Last year I bought a set of socket drivers with screwdriver handles to adjust the truss rods on my Ric 4003. I read the Ric brand wrench isn’t that great but is there another L-shaped wrench that lotta you guys use? The screw driver style driver I got is hard to get any torque and Kinda hard to maneuver.
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Ric wrench
- Thread starter Mo Boogs
- Start date
The Taylor and older Carvin truss rod tool is also 1/4".
I got one of these and it's great.
For Taylor Guitars Truss Rod Wrenches- Regular | eBay
I got one of these and it's great.
For Taylor Guitars Truss Rod Wrenches- Regular | eBay
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When I had my Ric I tried a few but found the ones from Stewmac worked best because their head shape fitted most easily into the Ric headstock space.
That's the whole point, to prevent overtorque-ing, potentially damaging the truss rods.
yeah, Rics don't adjust the typical way. You really need 3-4 hands to adjust the truss rods. Two to put pressure on the neck and 1-2 to turn the wrench.
Two hands work fine, for me. On any instrument, it is wise to pull back on the neck some when tightening the truss rod(s).
That’s what I did today. Worked super.
I got a used X-celite 1/4" nutdriver off eBay for a few bucks and carefully thinned down the socket wall on a bench grinder I believe this is exactly what the Ric Boutique tool is at a fraction of the price. No need to buy a specialized tool that is exactly the same as a generic tool.
That's what Ric says.
Hard to damage it with a screw driver style.
Just sayin'
Glad you got it sorted out.
I am not disagreeing, I would add that if a truss rod requires that much force to turn, there are bigger issues to deal with.
Yep. That's what I got and now that I see that photo, I'm pretty sure I got it from Stewart-Macdonald as well. As others have pointed out, the torque limiting factor is important.
It has a very thin-walled socket on a long shank so it works well on a Rickenbacker (4003).
I suppose you could find something cheaper if you looked but ...
I used a regular 1/4" deep-socket (with 1/4" square drive) but it was thicker walled and harder to use. It (the craftsman socket) is much more robust as it is intended for automotive/industrial use.
The screwdriver that accepts magnetic bits that came with my Craftsman tool kit just happens to fit perfectly, so I use that.
Here's is the X-Celite I mentioned above. It fits easily over the nuts. Just a few bucks and a few minutes on the bench grinder.
I use one of those, too. I found a really long shaft one many years ago that is perfect. Many that I see these days have a rather short shaft so the thicker handle of those may get in the way of the headstock, perhaps.
