Allen key sizes for American Standard Strat?

Neil

My '89 US Strat is really hard going lately due to arthritis in my hands.

I thought that a change to 9's from 10's may help although I have never used 9's before.

I guess there will be less pull on the neck so some adjustment of the truss rod would be necessary along with the bridge.

My questions are:

What are the sizes of allen keys needed for the truss rod and bridge sections?

Will 9's be OK with the nut as is?

Thanks. 

ICBM

9s will be fine in the nut. If you're lucky, you might not have to adjust the other things either. If you do...

Bridge saddles - .050". This is very small, and can be hard to find. If you're very careful you can make the more common 1.5mm or 1/16" smaller by grinding it on a sheet of sandpaper, but you need to be careful to keep it accurate.

Truss rod and neck tilt - 1/8". DO NOT use a 3mm, which is the nearest metric equivalent - it seems to fit at first, but it's very slightly too small and will slip, sometimes rounding the inside of the nut and meaning it has to be replaced which is a serious job on a USA Standard, involving removing the walnut plug, replacing and touching up the finish.

This is a fairly common issue - in my opinion a bad choice of part size since 3mm keys are very common for other guitar uses, eg locking tremolos, so a lot of people have them to hand.

streethawk

Get a set of imperial allen/hex keys. 

Agree with the ICBM ^ - 9's should be fine. If not, tune down to Eb like Hendrix et al! 

Neil

Thanks very much.

As usual, quality advice on this forum. 

streethawk

Don't fancy switching to a jaguar then?

Neil

streethawk said:

Don't fancy switching to a jaguar then?

I must admit, a Jag with its 24" scale does appeal (My Gibsons play easier than my Strat) but I have always heard criticism of funny bridges, set ups and a tinny sound which has always put me off but they do look great and I'd like to get around to trying one.

streethawk

Neil said:

streethawk said:

Don't fancy switching to a jaguar then?

I must admit, a Jag with its 24" scale does appeal (My Gibsons play easier than my Strat) but I have always heard criticism of funny bridges, set ups and a tinny sound which has always put me off but they do look great and I'd like to get around to trying one.

Think of it as an adventure!

I had a go of the Johnny Marr jag and was well impressed. Pickups are well sorted, colours are gorgeous.

ICBM

To be honest, it won't be any easier to play a Jag because to make the bridge and trem work well you really need to use a minimum of 11s, and even with the short scale they still feel more like 10s on a Strat than 9s. You might be able to get away with 10s without it sounding thin if you fit a Buzz Stop.

You could try a Duo-Sonic II or Musicmaster II though - super cool things, fixed bridge and 24" scale, and very cheap for a proper vintage Fender. The only problem is that most of them have the very skinny A-width neck.

streethawk

You can fettle a jag to work ok with 10's, come on...

Foster

Get a set like this - it'll have every allen key you'll need.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Draper-28744-Hex-Case-Pieces/dp/B009YFYV6Q/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1397414689&sr=8-6&keywords=allen+keys

Years ago I bought one for the house and one for the garage - I got sick of having to play 'hunt the chuffing allen key' when working on stuff.

Gagaryn

streethawk said:

You can fettle a jag to work ok with 10's, come on...

Yeah no problem. I even got away with 9s when thats all i had handy. 

ICBM

streethawk said:

You can fettle a jag to work ok with 10's, come on...

Only if you like the feel of elastic bands for strings.



It does work better with a Buzz Stop, though.

Jags need proper strings .

streethawk

ICBM said:

streethawk said:

You can fettle a jag to work ok with 10's, come on...

Only if you like the feel of elastic bands for strings.



It does work better with a Buzz Stop, though.

Jags need proper strings .

Neil is 76 years old, he needs spaghetti strings for his spaghetti fingers.  :-<

Neil

streethawk said:

ICBM said:

streethawk said:

You can fettle a jag to work ok with 10's, come on...

Only if you like the feel of elastic bands for strings.



It does work better with a Buzz Stop, though.

Jags need proper strings .

Neil is 76 years old, he needs spaghetti strings for his spaghetti fingers.  :-<

This is unfortunately true! :-<

Neil

Foster said:

Get a set like this - it'll have every allen key you'll need.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Draper-28744-Hex-Case-Pieces/dp/B009YFYV6Q/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1397414689&sr=8-6&keywords=allen+keys

Years ago I bought one for the house and one for the garage - I got sick of having to play 'hunt the chuffing allen key' when working on stuff.

Thanks for that. 

I see it has the elusive 50 thou size I will require. 

ICBM

Neil said:

streethawk said:



Neil is 76 years old, he needs spaghetti strings for his spaghetti fingers.  :-<





This is unfortunately true! :-<

Understood, but a Strat with 9s or even 8s feels and sounds much more like a Strat is meant to than a Jag with 10s does... at least to me.

My Jaguar is what got me into using heavier strings, because it really didn't work right otherwise.

Neil

^^^

Thanks for the advice.

I think 9's on the Strat is the way to go.