Fender Japan 50s Pbass constant truss adjustment?

[Craig Williams]

I got a Fender Japan Pbass, I rarely use it...sometimes 3-6 months in between use but I always find the action is higher than last time when I get it out and have to put an extra turn on the truss rod. Its the vintage truss rod adjustment (phillips screw on the heel of the neck). I have found similar with other basses I have owned particularly with thinner necks. There seems to be stiill plenty of adjustment on the truss rod and it screws up firm, not too much force needed, and not broken or slipping a thread. Using flatwounds, not particularly heavy 100's or maybe 105's. Is this normal for a bass? (normally a guitar player) Will it eventually get to a point where it will stabillize and stay at the low action I prefer? I seem to remember when I got the guitar the truss nut was completely loose and immediately thought a broken truss rod but it did tighten up firmly, just someone had completely lossened it off and since then probably adjusted / tightened it up 3 times after 2 or 3 years. Should I release string tension when not using perhaps?

 

[Bodeeni]

I live in NYC and the way the weather changes, I am adjusting truss rods a lot. Both tighter and looser. Not continually tighter. Some necks are more sensitive than others. All pretty normal. I leave all my basses strung to pitch.
I have had more than a few necks that developed a kink at the 12th to 15th fret area (Ski Jump) and those will always seem like they need to be tightened more and more. You should be able to see that, sighting down the neck, and there is not much you can do.

 

[Gervais Cote]

My most unstable neck is the one made of maple with a thin layer of rosewood as finger board and it’s made in Japan. I guess they might not use some rock solid maple to build their necks. This particular one requires a truss rod adjustment 4 times a year in either direction.

I have many other basses with some roasted maple necks that require two truss rod adjustments at the beginning and remain stable for ever afterwards although I live in an area with very dry winters and very humid summers.

 

[SC Bassboy]

I got a Fender Japan Pbass, I rarely use it...sometimes 3-6 months in between use but I always find the action is higher than last time when I get it out and have to put an extra turn on the truss rod. Its the vintage truss rod adjustment (phillips screw on the heel of the neck). I have found similar with other basses I have owned particularly with thinner necks. There seems to be stiill plenty of adjustment on the truss rod and it screws up firm, not too much force needed, and not broken or slipping a thread. Using flatwounds, not particularly heavy 100's or maybe 105's. Is this normal for a bass? (normally a guitar player) Will it eventually get to a point where it will stabillize and stay at the low action I prefer? I seem to remember when I got the guitar the truss nut was completely loose and immediately thought a broken truss rod but it did tighten up firmly, just someone had completely lossened it off and since then probably adjusted / tightened it up 3 times after 2 or 3 years. Should I release string tension when not using perhaps?

I live in Alabama. Even with really nice, expensive basses I've owned for years I have to adjust the truss rods twice a year. Once in Spring and again in Fall.

 

[smtp4me]

Your situation does not sound unusual. I live near Philadelphia and own three bassses - two of which are fretted and fretless Jazz and one of which is a P bass. I have to adjust all the truss rods at least four times a year, and the P bass (thickest neck) requires adjustment just as often as the J basses.

 

[Scottgun]

If all you are ever doing is tightening it, I would say something is wrong and would take to a shop.

 

[2saddleslab]

Northern Kentucky can get very humid in the summer & very dry in the winter. I've never had to adjust a truss rod on any bass after it's been properly set up.

 

[andare]

Necks move but not continuously in one direction.
Measure the relief and action to make sure the neck has actually moved. Sometimes you think so but it's just because you haven't played the bass in a while. Precise measurements are always a good idea because you can reproduce your setups.
And make sure you adjust the neck relief first.

 

[Tim Skaggs]

If you were alternating between tighter and looser each adjustment, it would be no big deal, but if every adjustment is tighter every time, it’s possible you have a neck that has some anomaly with the wood. Depending on how many times you have adjusted, it might stabilize. Working with what was once growing plant life, there are some variables….

If it’s always months between times you use the bass, you might consider detuning it a half step or full step. I wouldn’t completely slack the strings, but lowered, balanced tension of the strings should help.

 

[J Wilson]

As a strategy, I would never de-tune a bass or guitar. Doing so may very well introduce relief issues when tuned back to standard tuning.

Necks and wood in a given neck will simply vary, some are just steadier than others, and the newer an instrument is, this can happen more frequently until over time it ultimately acclimates to where it is living.
Some instruments take a while to do this: over the last several years, I've had two new basses I had to chase relief adjustments for a year or more until they finally settled down. On the other hand I've had 80's builds that were virtually immoveable, so age and time usually settle things down.

If it were me, I would remove the strings, adjust the truss rod to dead straight unstrung. Then restring, bring up to pitch, and see where you're at, and do any fine tuning to get exactly where you want to be.

 

[Crackle]

Truss rod adjustments are a daily thing for me. I even make truss rod adjustments onstage, during shows. And even in the middle of the song if I have a chance.

 

[MCS4]

Setting aside possible issues with the adjustments always being in one direction, as others have already noted, having to adjust a truss rod every 3-6 months isn't unusual in my experience. Even in South Florida where the weather doesn't vary as much as in other places it is common for many of my instruments to need a temperature-related truss adjustment at least once per year or so, and others may be adjusted more often based on minor variations in how they move as well as how particular I am about the action on that particular instrument (my main gigging bass will likely get minor adjustments the most frequently, for example).

 

[MynameisMe]

I live in Northeast Florida and very rarely have to adjust truss rods.
Once it's set up correctly, they seem to stay in place well.

 

[Zooberwerx]

Actually, one of my worst is a 34 y.o. Fernandes with 3 piece maple neck mated with a 4 mm thick rosewood FB. Two dissimilar species in the ever-changing SE Virginia climate. So much for stabilization with age. The relief swings both ways.

As already mentioned, if we're constantly tightening the TR, we've got a problem.

Riis

 

[Matt O]

phillips screw on the heel of the neck

Hey @Craig Williams, friendly tip to save mangling the truss nut: it’s a cross hatched flathead nut. Using a Phillips screwdriver is the reason so many vintage fenders have mangled up nuts and gouged pickguards. Try a flathead, preferably with a blade end no wider than 1/4”

To your question we could use more info. is it kept in a case? In direct sun? I see you are from Thailand, are you still there? Or did you move to somewhere dryer? How much do you have to turn the nut each adjustment, 1/8 turn, 1/4, 1/2, full, or more?

 

[Swerve]

I've had basses that need an adjustment almost daily and others that don't for years. There doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason either. Most fall into the "few times a year" range, which is acceptable to me.

 

[TeeSee]

I got a Fender Japan Pbass, I rarely use it...sometimes 3-6 months in between use but I always find the action is higher than last time when I get it out and have to put an extra turn on the truss rod. Its the vintage truss rod adjustment (phillips screw on the heel of the neck). I have found similar with other basses I have owned particularly with thinner necks. There seems to be stiill plenty of adjustment on the truss rod and it screws up firm, not too much force needed, and not broken or slipping a thread. Using flatwounds, not particularly heavy 100's or maybe 105's. Is this normal for a bass? (normally a guitar player) Will it eventually get to a point where it will stabillize and stay at the low action I prefer? I seem to remember when I got the guitar the truss nut was completely loose and immediately thought a broken truss rod but it did tighten up firmly, just someone had completely lossened it off and since then probably adjusted / tightened it up 3 times after 2 or 3 years. Should I release string tension when not using perhaps?

Must be your climate mate, I have a 7ender MIJ P for 8 years and rarely if ever touch the truss rod. I do live in UK though so we don't get the high variations in seasons. Just grey all year round

 

[pbassnut]

I got a Fender Japan Pbass, I rarely use it...sometimes 3-6 months in between use but I always find the action is higher than last time when I get it out and have to put an extra turn on the truss rod. Its the vintage truss rod adjustment (phillips screw on the heel of the neck). I have found similar with other basses I have owned particularly with thinner necks. There seems to be stiill plenty of adjustment on the truss rod and it screws up firm, not too much force needed, and not broken or slipping a thread. Using flatwounds, not particularly heavy 100's or maybe 105's. Is this normal for a bass? (normally a guitar player) Will it eventually get to a point where it will stabillize and stay at the low action I prefer? I seem to remember when I got the guitar the truss nut was completely loose and immediately thought a broken truss rod but it did tighten up firmly, just someone had completely lossened it off and since then probably adjusted / tightened it up 3 times after 2 or 3 years. Should I release string tension when not using perhaps?

It sounds to me like you might want to consider lower tension strings for that particular bass.

 

[Dadio]

I got a Fender Japan Pbass, I rarely use it...sometimes 3-6 months in between use but I always find the action is higher than last time when I get it out and have to put an extra turn on the truss rod. Its the vintage truss rod adjustment (phillips screw on the heel of the neck). I have found similar with other basses I have owned particularly with thinner necks. There seems to be stiill plenty of adjustment on the truss rod and it screws up firm, not too much force needed, and not broken or slipping a thread. Using flatwounds, not particularly heavy 100's or maybe 105's. Is this normal for a bass? (normally a guitar player) Will it eventually get to a point where it will stabillize and stay at the low action I prefer? I seem to remember when I got the guitar the truss nut was completely loose and immediately thought a broken truss rod but it did tighten up firmly, just someone had completely lossened it off and since then probably adjusted / tightened it up 3 times after 2 or 3 years. Should I release string tension when not using perhaps?

I think it depends how many adjustments and the magnitude of those you have made during your period of ownership. Also depends on the thickness of your neck, my 83 Precision has a very thin neck profile. You mentioned that there appears to be plenty of adjustment left. It’s very possible that the neck has not reached stability, what I mean is that the truss rod has not reached the point where it is helping to counter the string tension. The molecules in the wood take some time to settle after adjustment. In my experience flat wounds require multiple adjustments until they stop pulling against the neck. I always release string tension before making adjustments on the truss rod then bring back to pitch. Small adjustments are suggested until it gets stable.

 

[Craig Williams]

Hmmm seems like a common problem. I have had most of my issues with Fender Japan necks TBH, on guitars too. The only two Fender basses I had that I had no constant neck issues were a 2013 P bass with a fat baseball bat type neck and a Fender Japan 50s P bass, again very thick neck. In fairness I am probably over fussy about my action on my basses. I like a really straight neck and very very low action. Most of the basses I have bought or picked up in the past had (to me) very high actions that didn't seem to bother the owner. I don't think there are any structural issues with this one per se. The truss is doing up firmly and still feels like it has a lot of adjustment left. Like I said when I bought it the truss rod was completely unwound for some reason, and I imagine this wouldn't be good leaving the wood to do its own thing without any support. I hope over time it will stay where I set it or close. And yes, Thailand...the climate here ranges from severely dry, to severely humid and always hot. In and out of air conditioning. I just bought a hard case for it (been sitting in a gig bag) so may help. Would it help to lay it flat on the floor under the bed or upright ok? Thanks for all the advice