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Club Sadowsky!!!

#10,881
Alexander said:
So, I just put the new LoRiders on and they must be even higher tension than the Nickel LoRiders I had before as the action has come up a bit with the new strings on (especially as you move higher up the neck). I'm assuming a truss rod adjustment would do the trick here and that to bring the action down, I just need to slowly turn clockwise (a 1/4 turn at a time) until it is back where it was. Is this correct? Anything I need to watch out for (I've just not adjusted the action on my Sadowsky since I got it and want to make sure I'm doing things right...) Any help would be appreciated - thanks!
Click to expand...
Correct, and no, there's no gotcha's on this. And this does kinda' make sense, since SS is a different material and might have more tension at pitch.

Here's what I recommend tho... don't just turn the truss rod against string tension. This might sound a little nuts, but I've been doing this for years and I've had many luthiers, builders, and techs agree with me, so it's very safe and IMHO the best way to do it...

BEFORE you turn the wheel, put your knee in the middle of the neck and pull back on the headstock JUST ENOUGH for the strings to move very slightly towards the fingerboard. THEN turn the wheel, and then release slowly. Let it sit for a while, recheck, and repeat if need be.

What you're doing here is defeating string tension just long enough to make the adjustment. IMHO, the rod should only have to compensate for string tension... not tighten against it.

Obviously, for cases where loosening the truss rod is necessary, no special steps are needed. Just loosen it. Done.
 
#10,883
Vic said:
Correct, and no, there's no gotcha's on this. And this does kinda' make sense, since SS is a different material and might have more tension at pitch.

Here's what I recommend tho... don't just turn the truss rod against string tension. This might sound a little nuts, but I've been doing this for years and I've had many luthiers, builders, and techs agree with me, so it's very safe and IMHO the best way to do it...

BEFORE you turn the wheel, put your knee in the middle of the neck and pull back on the headstock JUST ENOUGH for the strings to move very slightly towards the fingerboard. THEN turn the wheel, and then release slowly. Let it sit for a while, recheck, and repeat if need be.

What you're doing here is defeating string tension just long enough to make the adjustment. IMHO, the rod should only have to compensate for string tension... not tighten against it.

Obviously, for cases where loosening the truss rod is necessary, no special steps are needed. Just loosen it. Done.
Click to expand...

Great - thanks for the tips - seems to have worked like a charm. Amazing how easy these basses are to adjust...
 
#10,884
Vic said:
Correct, and no, there's no gotcha's on this. And this does kinda' make sense, since SS is a different material and might have more tension at pitch.

Here's what I recommend tho... don't just turn the truss rod against string tension. This might sound a little nuts, but I've been doing this for years and I've had many luthiers, builders, and techs agree with me, so it's very safe and IMHO the best way to do it...

BEFORE you turn the wheel, put your knee in the middle of the neck and pull back on the headstock JUST ENOUGH for the strings to move very slightly towards the fingerboard. THEN turn the wheel, and then release slowly. Let it sit for a while, recheck, and repeat if need be.

What you're doing here is defeating string tension just long enough to make the adjustment. IMHO, the rod should only have to compensate for string tension... not tighten against it.

Obviously, for cases where loosening the truss rod is necessary, no special steps are needed. Just loosen it. Done.
Click to expand...

EXCELLENT points! Now......IF my ol' Fender was just that easy/simple to adjust ;)
 
#10,886
No doubt - many moons ago, I tried to adjust the truss rod on an old Yamaha acoustic guitar and it was such a PITA that I've been afraid really to mess with them again. But since I have rehearsal tonight, I needed to do it myself this afternoon. The wheel moved effortlessly and a little went a long way. I adjusted a 1/4 - 1/3rd turn and the action was too low, so backed it off until the buzz just went away. It may actually play a bit more to my liking than when I got it new, to be honest.

Another "small" innovation that adds to the overall quality of the instrument, IMO...
 
#10,887
Alexander said:
So, I just put the new LoRiders on and they must be even higher tension than the Nickel LoRiders I had before as the action has come up a bit with the new strings on (especially as you move higher up the neck). I'm assuming a truss rod adjustment would do the trick here and that to bring the action down, I just need to slowly turn clockwise (a 1/4 turn at a time) until it is back where it was. Is this correct? Anything I need to watch out for (I've just not adjusted the action on my Sadowsky since I got it and want to make sure I'm doing things right...) Any help would be appreciated - thanks!
Click to expand...

It sounds like Vic got you setup with his method. Good!

Just for future reference there are some excellent setup procedures available on the net. The two that come to mind are the Gary Willis site and Jerzy just produced a really indepth set guide available in .pdf at the Jerzy Drozd website.
 
#10,888
ROGI said:
I've read that sadowsky pickups don't fit fender basses. i'm interested in putting sadowsky single coils in a 5string fender usa dlx jazz. so are the pickups too wide or too narrow? will installation require drilling?
Click to expand...
I believe the issue is length. The Fender pickups are longer at the bridge and shorter at the neck. The pickups that go in the Sadowsky are both the same size, and shorter than the bridge pickup, tho I'm not sure if they're both the same size as a Fender neck pickup.
 
#10,889
Jerry J said:
Just for future reference there are some excellent setup procedures available on the net. The two that come to mind are the Gary Willis site and Jerzy just produced a really indepth set guide available in .pdf at the Jerzy Drozd website.
Click to expand...
Funny you should mention that. I got Jerzy's guide right when he finished it, and it is really excellent, but doesn't mention my trick for tightening the rod. I actually emailed him and he agrees it's a good idea, tho I don't know if he feels strongly enough about it to rev his guide.
 
#10,891
Vic said:
Funny you should mention that. I got Jerzy's guide right when he finished it, and it is really excellent, but doesn't mention my trick for tightening the rod. I actually emailed him and he agrees it's a good idea, tho I don't know if he feels strongly enough about it to rev his guide.
Click to expand...

i read somewhere about that trick when you tighten the truss rod your kinda helping it against the string tension and with the wheel its super easy to do. great stuff!
 

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