Official Luthiers Forum!

Owned and operated by Lance Kragenbrink
It is currently Thu Mar 28, 2024 12:57 pm


All times are UTC - 5 hours


Forum rules


Be Nice to our new friends! Remember, everybody starts somewhere!




Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 6 posts ] 
Author Message
PostPosted: Wed Oct 27, 2010 3:13 pm 
Offline
Mahogany
Mahogany

Joined: Thu Jul 23, 2009 4:54 pm
Posts: 96
First name: Devin
Last Name: Cox
City: Edmond
State: Oklahoma
Country: usa
Focus: Build
Status: Amateur
I was looking at a picture of a top,
Image,

that uses a similar bracing to the one Im working on right now and noticed a hole in the utb that looks to be there to give access to the truss rod.
My brace is 16mm high, does this brace need such a hole in order to adjust the truss rod?

Thanks,
Devin


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Wed Oct 27, 2010 3:46 pm 
Offline
Koa
Koa

Joined: Sun Sep 16, 2007 1:27 pm
Posts: 705
Location: United States
First name: Dave
Last Name: Livermore
State: Minnesota
Focus: Build
Status: Semi-pro
It does if you want to be able to EASILY adjust your truss rod.
Unless, you designed it for adjustment at the other end.

That said, make sure you also put some sort of cutout in the popsicle brace behind the utb to leave room for the wrench to reach the truss nut.
AND, make sure that when you rout for the truss that you do so with a wedge so that the slot is deeper at the heel end than the nut end. Otherwise you could end up with the top of the truss nut being hindered by the top. Trust me, you don't want to fix that one after you're ready to attach the neck.

IF you've already put the top on and haven't drilled the hole (like I did once), the world hasn't ended. I've used a good, sharp, drill bit wrapped in a stiff tape to make it big enough to grip and drilled a hole with my fingers alone. Then reamed it out with bigger and bigger bits until the desired size was aquired.

Good luck.

Dave


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Wed Oct 27, 2010 4:05 pm 
Offline
Mahogany
Mahogany

Joined: Thu Jul 23, 2009 4:54 pm
Posts: 96
First name: Devin
Last Name: Cox
City: Edmond
State: Oklahoma
Country: usa
Focus: Build
Status: Amateur
Dave,
I have attached the brace to the top already, I guess a long bit is in order.

thanks,
Devin


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Wed Oct 27, 2010 8:54 pm 
Offline
Brazilian Rosewood
Brazilian Rosewood

Joined: Fri Apr 02, 2010 10:35 pm
Posts: 2561
Country: USA
Focus: Repair
Status: Professional
Some companies make a curved adjustment tool that fits around the brace so they don't have to cut a hole through a critical support beam right at the point where the guitar is trying to fold in half from the string tension.

_________________
Old growth, shmold growth!


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Wed Oct 27, 2010 11:25 pm 
Offline
Contributing Member
Contributing Member
User avatar

Joined: Sat May 17, 2008 1:11 pm
Posts: 2335
Location: Spokane, Washington
First name: Pat
Last Name: Foster
Country: USA
Focus: Build
Status: Semi-pro
Ball-ended hex wrenches are readily available, which allow you to work at an angle. That's what I did on my first, and it's not a problem. I'm assuming of course that there's an Allen-head on the truss rod.

I don't believe a hole there is an issue if it's close to the top, away from the bottom of the brace.

Pat

_________________
formerly known around here as burbank
_________________

http://www.patfosterguitars.com


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Thu Oct 28, 2010 10:05 pm 
Offline
Brazilian Rosewood
Brazilian Rosewood

Joined: Fri Apr 02, 2010 10:35 pm
Posts: 2561
Country: USA
Focus: Repair
Status: Professional
I've seen more Martins needing neck resets after 15 years than Gibsons, since Martin started installing truss rods, for what that's worth.

Structurally the closer the hole in the brace is to the soundboard, the stiffer the brace will remain.

I don't cut holes in my transverse braces, as it bears the most load, which is why it is the stiffest brace in the guitar as well, other opinions may differ.

beehive

_________________
Old growth, shmold growth!


Top
 Profile  
 
Display posts from previous:  Sort by  
Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 6 posts ] 

All times are UTC - 5 hours


Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 8 guests


You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot post attachments in this forum

Jump to:  
Powered by phpBB® Forum Software © phpBB Group
phpBB customization services by 2by2host.com