Setting the string heights when you dont have the appropiate gauge to hand.

DrJazzTap · September 2021

I'm just finishing off sorting out a Yamaha RGX121D to give to a friend of mine. I dismantled it, cleaned all the hardware etc and have rewired it etc (please god do not judge my soldering!)

I've adjusted the neck relief and i'm now at the stage where I need to adjust the string heights to match the fretboard radius.

According to the spec sheet online the neck radius is 13.5, I dont have that gauge to hand. I've got 12 and 14. Should i go towards a rounder radius or the flatter one?

I know we are talking about milimetres, I'm just curious.

BillDL · September 2021

Make a basic gauge from cardboard or rigid but easy to cut plastic. Use a piece of string tied to a nail at one end, measured to the correct radius, and then tied around a pencil or pen down near the point. Pin the nail down into something and stretch the string tight with the pencil. Position a piece of fairly thick white cardboard or plastic under the pencil or pen. Draw an arc with the pencil. Cut out a rectangle in the cardboard so that you have one side with the proper curved radius covering the distance across your strings at the bridge. You now have a radius gauge that you can lay on top of the strings or bridge saddles. It isn't going to last more than a few setups if made from cardboard, but it will do the job.

WezV · September 2021

I don't use a fretboard radius gauge for this except for a rough idea

The strings sit higher from the board. You also need the thicker strings slightly higher, so what you end up with is a flatter string radius than the fretboard radius.

I use a string action gauge for each string, gradually increasing height from high to low strings. A little steel rule will work. some people use a plectrum as a rough guide

DrJazzTap · September 2021

WezV said:

I don't use a fretboard radius gauge for this except for a rough idea

The strings sit higher from the board. You also need the thicker strings slightly higher, so what you end up with is a flatter string radius than the fretboard radius.

I use a string action gauge for each string, gradually increasing height from high to low strings. A little steel rule will work. some people use a plectrum as a rough guide

Thank you, i've set the two E strings (high at 2/32 and low at 3/32) i'll give it a go

fretmeister · September 2021

I do it entirely by feel.

No gauges at all.

axisus · September 2021

fretmeister said:

I do it entirely by feel.

No gauges at all.

Me too, but I don't have my action that low. I'm very unfussy with this sort of thing.

sweepy · September 2021

Some guitars work better with a flatter radius string action compared to the fretboard, ie a 12”radius string radius on a 9” radius fret board , try it, you’ll be surprised

Roland · September 2021

It also depends on the player. Someone who does a lot of sweep picking from someone who does a lot of bends, hammer-ones and pull-offs. Like @fretmeister I do this by feel, and the measurements will vary with different guitars.

PrecisionGuided · September 2021

Hold / tape a couple of Starbucks cards on the fretboard over the last frets.
Tap strings to check for clearance - when they all just touch the card you have the same radius as the fretboard.

ICBM · September 2021

sweepy said:

Some guitars work better with a flatter radius string action compared to the fretboard, ie a 12”radius string radius on a 9” radius fret board , try it, you’ll be surprised

*All* guitars work best like that, the only question is by how much. You want the strings slightly higher on the bass side, so the best bridge radius is usually about a quarter to third larger than the fingerboard radius. It's quite hard to explain why without drawing a cross-section, but essentially you've got a larger radius that's tilted slightly relative to the fingerboard.

As Roland says it depends on the player too, the faster/lower the action you want the closer the two need to match usually, but still not to be the same.

As far as I can remember I've never once used a radius gauge to set string heights, only to check a fingerboard radius for reference.

WezV · September 2021

ICBM said:

It's quite hard to explain why without drawing a cross-section, but essentially you've got a larger radius that's tilted slightly relative to the fingerboard.

i did a quick paint sketch of this a while back for someone who was struggling to get it. excuse it's crudeness

stickyfiddle · September 2021

I eyeball it. There’s no better gauge than your own hands and ears

DrJazzTap · September 2021

Thanks guys, I'm just fiddling with it now. I know the guy quite well. And he's not into super shred stuff, so it doesn't need to be super low and all that jazz.
I'm just trying to make it comfortable for him to play on and record into an interface with.

It's buzzing around the 7th on the D String. I've backed the truss rod off a bit and that's helped somewhat, may need to do a bit more.

Ive set the trem to lightly wobble if needs be.

Law of sod the middle pickup has decided crap out now haha!

Howdy, Stranger!

Categories

In this Discussion

Become a Subscriber!

Setting the string heights when you dont have the appropiate gauge to hand.

Comments