So I have a different issue I could perhaps get some clarification with. I'm attempting to do a truss rod adjustment on my '84 4003 (which, thanks to the help of you kind TB folks, I now know requires the old-style adjustment method). It didn't take to the first attempt I gave it, so now I turn to the most trusted wealth of bass knowledge I know.
I've got the rods which adjust at the body-end of the neck, but even still, I used the info from Joey's Bass Notes (all his advice/examples used basses with headstock-end truss rods). First problem I ran into was that the recommended 1/4" nut driver was far too small for the task; it seems to be about 5/16" (well, it was a 10 on my British neighbour's set). As well, getting a conventional nut driver onto the actual nuts is basically impossible; they both tilt downwards coming off of the bearing plate (which both also seem to be angled slightly; they are not completely flush to the wooden surroundings), and are basically touching the wood of the cavity. On a side note, these rods look completely different from the ones in Joey's video. My neighbour is good with tools and such, so we took the lugs off (loosened with pliers), pulled the rods out a bit, and attempted to manually adjust the rods to get rid of their odd angle to no avail. Seemingly left with no other options, we attempted to tighten the rods using pliers and a clamp/wrenchy-thing (that's the technical term), still following Joey's advice. Tightening the rods back up didn't seem to work; there was/is still a little bit of wiggle on them while using the pliers, and this was using more torque/strength than Joey calls for. Didn't want to overdo it for fear of popping off the fretboard, but it felt like we used way more effort than necessary (and far more than Joey does in the video). As it currently stands, the rods are tightened to where we left them, and the strings (La Bella steels 45-105) are on but completely slack. My neighbour's going to bring home his full set of tools tmrw so we should have luck getting a proper nut driver on it; we'll see if that makes a difference. Don't want to ruin the bass (even though I'm guessing someone is cringing at how I've gone about this job), so is there any advice? Besides take it to a luthier, of course (which I'll do if things don't pan out tomorrow)!
I've got the rods which adjust at the body-end of the neck, but even still, I used the info from Joey's Bass Notes (all his advice/examples used basses with headstock-end truss rods). First problem I ran into was that the recommended 1/4" nut driver was far too small for the task; it seems to be about 5/16" (well, it was a 10 on my British neighbour's set). As well, getting a conventional nut driver onto the actual nuts is basically impossible; they both tilt downwards coming off of the bearing plate (which both also seem to be angled slightly; they are not completely flush to the wooden surroundings), and are basically touching the wood of the cavity. On a side note, these rods look completely different from the ones in Joey's video. My neighbour is good with tools and such, so we took the lugs off (loosened with pliers), pulled the rods out a bit, and attempted to manually adjust the rods to get rid of their odd angle to no avail. Seemingly left with no other options, we attempted to tighten the rods using pliers and a clamp/wrenchy-thing (that's the technical term), still following Joey's advice. Tightening the rods back up didn't seem to work; there was/is still a little bit of wiggle on them while using the pliers, and this was using more torque/strength than Joey calls for. Didn't want to overdo it for fear of popping off the fretboard, but it felt like we used way more effort than necessary (and far more than Joey does in the video). As it currently stands, the rods are tightened to where we left them, and the strings (La Bella steels 45-105) are on but completely slack. My neighbour's going to bring home his full set of tools tmrw so we should have luck getting a proper nut driver on it; we'll see if that makes a difference. Don't want to ruin the bass (even though I'm guessing someone is cringing at how I've gone about this job), so is there any advice? Besides take it to a luthier, of course (which I'll do if things don't pan out tomorrow)!
).
I guess we'll see how it goes!
