Official Luthiers Forum!

Hi guys,
My first build, a walnut Strat has a problem. The strings aren't centered. At the 22nd fret they are 1.2 mm to far to the heavier string side of the fingerboard. I figure that I have to move my Callaham S model bridge 1.2 mm the other way and I will be fine. That seems a bit daunting at this point but that appears to be necessary.

My problem is that the 6 holes that I drilled for the bridge will have to move 1.2 mm also and I dont know what to do about that.

Any suggestions?

Thanks

Are you sure your neck isn't on cocked a bit to the side. It would be a lot easier to make sure the neck is straight on the center line than move the bridge.

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Your neck is cocked.

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"Act your age, not your shoe size" - Prince

Your neck MAY be cocked. Ideally when you build the body you do the neck pocket first, install the neck and then use that to establish the center line on the body, which you then use to locate the bridge.



Loosen the mounting screws and see if you can "coax" the neck sideways in the pocket so it lines up with the bridge. If you can't gain enough you might be able to open the neck pocket a little bit or you might have to move the bridge. You also should make sure the pickups are centered - that will help you decide what has to move.

If you have to move the bridge then, yes, you will have to fill the holes and relocate them

1.2 mm ain't much.

Thanks for all the replies. I am very exited to complete this project and I don't want to screw it up at the finish line.

I think you guys are right about the neck. The joint is snug and there is no wiggle room. I will have to make some room. It seems like it would be easier to take a little wood off sides of the neck to make room, especially since there is no finish on the neck yet and the body is finished.
Is it a bad idea to make the body screw holes a little bit bigger to make wiggle room and then expect the screws to hold it in place? It will only have to move a tiny bit.
The alternative would be to fill the holes and re-drill. I have never tried that on a project before and it seems like it would make the joint weak.

Thanks again.

Never hurts to redrill the holes in the body a little larger for more wiggle room. Use a drill press, please - and try not to chip the finish.

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"Act your age, not your shoe size" - Prince

If you have to take wood off the neck, you can then build up the sides of the pocket by gluing in veneer to create a snug fit in the new position.