Official Luthiers Forum!

Sorry guys if this has been done before, or done to death!

The last instruments I built were around 15+ years ago, a selection of basses, telecasters etc, so I'm no newbie.

Would anyone care to eleborate their thoughts on a 'traditional' truss rod, i.e. routed channel a little deeper in the middle etc... against the 10mm aluminium channel? When I made them they were always the traditional type - perhaps I was being snobbish?

For my purposes it will befor a jazz bass neck with ebony board, adjustable at the body end, to keep the head clean.

Thanks,
Steve
UK

I'm totally addicted to double acting rods from StewMac or LMI. Instead of trying to compress the neck they actually apply pressure against the full length of the fretboard helping to "shape" the neck. They are very smooth operating. They have a small allen key adjuster that can be routed into the headstock without making a big cavity like a Gibson style nut or you can put the adjuster in the body. I do body for all my acoustics, but since its a hassle to take the neck off or the pickups out of an electric I usually do a headstock access. They do make them with a spoke type adjuster that might work for you

http://www.stewmac.com/Materials_and_Su ... s_Rod.html

Unless I am building a vintage spec recreation I always use a 2 way rod like those from LMI, Allied etc.

_________________
Brian

You never know what you are capable of until you actually try.

https://www.howardguitarsdelaware.com/

Two way rod is cheap insurance AND may save the day someday.... We see it all the time.

Yes this is sound advice and I thank you all for contributing. Dual Action it is, although by the time I but a StewMac one here in the UK it gets very expensive!

Adjustment will be from the body end, as I want to keep the neck clean - I'll go for the recessed 4mm Allen key type - the body has no scratchplate so bo room for a recess there, either!

I made a one-piece flame maple next a few years back, it had a one way truss rod and an ebony board. Before I hade the chance to glue it in, it warped and had so mach back bow in it I scrapped it. A dua lrod may have saved me then. I had a gut feeling that the wood had not been dried out properly before I machined it!

At 40 bucks, the Blanchard is the best out there. Why use anything else?
If a neck has so much back bow that you scrapped it, you are doing something wrong. TR's make small adjustments, they are not for making huge changes.

Not trying to persuade you or change your mind about type or brand but the wheel type is being used on guitar bodies without pickguards. MusicMan is one if you want to see how they look.

Plus one on the Blanchard rod here too! Have used a bunch of them with never a single problem. I also really like the innovative dissimilar thread idea that is not unlike gearing something down or up making adjustments very easy.

I'll add since I'm in the biz and repairing guitars every day that corrosion is a huge problem with older truss rods. On G*bsons one of the first things that we often do is remove the truss rod nut and lube it up.

The Blanchard rod is stainless, a very welcome thing and much more so the older the guitar gets.

I'll also add that I did a study of the Blanchard rod and the other competitor that looks very much the same. Both weighed in at 119 grams by the way... Anyway the similar rod had weld globs that needed to be filed down before the rod would fit in the channel, not so with the Blanchard rod. There have been reports of the adjustor twisting or breaking off at the welds too for other rods but I have not heard this with the Blanchard rod or experienced it myself. Always test a rod well before installing by the way.

Martin has a great two way rod too just haven't used it personally but use them every day on the Martins that we service, works great.

I am a fan of single acting truss rod for weight saving. I like the way they feel in the neck.

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Ken