Acoustic guitar action

[Greg_L]

I hate acoustic guitars with a passion. Having said that, I need to lower the action on an acoustic so I can teach my old lady how to play. She's small and petite and the high action on this cheapo Squire acoustic makes it hard for her to fret chords. Can I file the saddle or something?

 

[miroslav]

I've pulled the "plastic" bridge insert out on some acoustics, and just shaved it off a bit on the bottom...but they certainly are not as adjustable as electrics.

 

[muttley600]

Getting a good playable action on acoustic guitars is a combination of a lot of things. The neck relief, the way the nut is cut, the saddle and the frets themselves. Add to that string gauge and string length.

Lets start with the basics. What String gauge have you got on there and what is the action at around twelfth fret? We'll take it from there. After that you look at the nut and the neck relief, then the saddle. Are there any buzzes or dead frets as it is?

 

[Greg_L]

I have no idea what the string gauge is. It's the strings that came on it.

At the 12th fret, there is 1/4 inch of "action" on the low E. It's a little closer at the high E, but not much.

No buzzes or dead frets.

 

[muttley600]

OK, you can definitely improve on that. If you fret at the 2nd fret and also at the 14th fret what sort of gap/action is there at the mid point between those two?

A quarter inch is a pretty high action but before you go chopping the saddle and nut that value will give you an idea of the neck relief and if you need to tighten the truss rod any as you go. Also, do you have much saddle showing above the bridge and does the action down by the saddle seem stiff or tough to fret?

 

[Greg_L]

OK, you can definitely improve on that. If you fret at the 2nd fret and also at the 14th fret what sort of gap/action is there at the mid point between those two?

A quarter inch is a pretty high action but before you go chopping the saddle and nut that value will give you an idea of the neck relief and if you need to tighten the truss rod any as you go. Also, do you have much saddle showing above the bridge and does the action down by the saddle seem stiff or tough to fret?

While fretting the 2 and 14, the action between the two is very low. Like maybe the thickness of a medium/heavy pick. There is a lot of saddle showing above the bridge. All of the frets are easy to press, there's just a ton of space between the string and fretboard.

 

[mjbphotos]

Fer chrissakes, buy some new light gauge strings! Show your old lady you care at least that much!

 

[c7sus]

If you really loved her you would ditch that POS and get her a nice Collings parlour guitar.

 

[Chili]

While fretting the 2 and 14, the action between the two is very low. Like maybe the thickness of a medium/heavy pick. There is a lot of saddle showing above the bridge. All of the frets are easy to press, there's just a ton of space between the string and fretboard.

I say Sand-Away. If you screw it up, replacements aren't expensive. I used a belt sander on mine. Took off a lot. The one problem was I didn't keep the correct angle so it wasn't linear across the strings, more off the high E than the low E. I eventually took mine in to a luthier to have done properly. He did everything; frets, neck, saddle and something else I don't remember. It plays nice, but not as nice as my piece o' junk Ovation. That thing plays like an electric.

I think the main thing you have to be cautious of is to ensure there is still an angle between the saddle and the pins.
I know Mutt is going to correct me on something.

 

[LDS]

Honestly, you'd be better off getting a pro to do it or at least work with you on it.

 

[muttley600]

......

....Mutt is going to correct me on something.

Only the Ovation thing. I know it may play like an electric but I bet it sounds like one too.

 

[muttley600]

While fretting the 2 and 14, the action between the two is very low. Like maybe the thickness of a medium/heavy pick. There is a lot of saddle showing above the bridge. All of the frets are easy to press, there's just a ton of space between the string and fretboard.

Right, I would start by reducing the height of the saddle and then you have some room to tweak the truss rod. You probably don't need as much relief in the neck as that.

Take a sharp pencil and scribe the line where the saddle meets the bridge so when you remove it you have an idea of how deep the slot is and how much you can comfortably remove. Ideally I shoot for about two thirds buried and one third showing. My guess would be you are closer to 50/50. The best way to trim the saddle is on a solid block of glass or marble that you know is flat with 120 and 180 grit paper stuck on it. Mark a line a few mm's off the bottom and sand to that trying to keep the bottom flat and true. If you do go too far you can always shim it up. Once you've done that restring and check the action against what you had to start. A quarter to half turn on the truss rod to tighten it will then pull in some of that neck relief and things should start to get easier for the little lady.

Once you've got that done if you want to go further I'll walk you through checking the nut setup and tweaking the saddle bass to treble.

 

[Greg_L]

Fer chrissakes, buy some new light gauge strings! Show your old lady you care at least that much!

I show her how I care in other ways.

If you really loved her you would ditch that POS and get her a nice Collings parlour guitar.

I don't know what that is, but it sounds dumb. I fucking hate acoustic guitars. They're so lame.

I say Sand-Away. If you screw it up, replacements aren't expensive. I used a belt sander on mine. Took off a lot. The one problem was I didn't keep the correct angle so it wasn't linear across the strings, more off the high E than the low E. I eventually took mine in to a luthier to have done properly. He did everything; frets, neck, saddle and something else I don't remember. It plays nice, but not as nice as my piece o' junk Ovation. That thing plays like an electric.

I think the main thing you have to be cautious of is to ensure there is still an angle between the saddle and the pins.
I know Mutt is going to correct me on something.

I'm never paying for anything. That's what the internet is for.

Honestly, you'd be better off getting a pro to do it or at least work with you on it.

See above. If it's just a matter of sanding the saddle, then I can rub it against a sheet of sandpaper as good as any jackassed luthier. I have tools. I can turn a truss rod. If I break something, then no big deal because I hate acoustic guitars anyway.

 

[Greg_L]

Right, I would start by reducing the height of the saddle and then you have some room to tweak the truss rod. You probably don't need as much relief in the neck as that.

Take a sharp pencil and scribe the line where the saddle meets the bridge so when you remove it you have an idea of how deep the slot is and how much you can comfortably remove. Ideally I shoot for about two thirds buried and one third showing. My guess would be you are closer to 50/50. The best way to trim the saddle is on a solid block of glass or marble that you know is flat with 120 and 180 grit paper stuck on it. Mark a line a few mm's off the bottom and sand to that trying to keep the bottom flat and true. If you do go too far you can always shim it up. Once you've done that restring and check the action against what you had to start. A quarter to half turn on the truss rod to tighten it will then pull in some of that neck relief and things should start to get easier for the little lady.

Once you've got that done if you want to go further I'll walk you through checking the nut setup and tweaking the saddle bass to treble.

Sweet. Thanks a lot mutt. I'm gonna fuck with it this week.

 

[c7sus]

Sweet. Thanks a lot mutt. I'm gonna fuck it up this week.

Fixed that for ya.

 

[Greg_L]

Fixed that for ya.

Hey Oh! Zing! The classic quote edit! Too funny!

 

[Supercreep]

Oh, pirates yes they rob I; sold I to the merchant ships....

 

[Greg_L]

Oh, pirates yes they rob I; sold I to the merchant ships....

I don't know what you're talking about.

 

[ibleedburgundy]

Let someone who knows what they're doing set up your guitar. I have a guy near me who does repairs on guitars and basses. He does excellent work and it's pretty cheap.

 

[muttley600]

I wouldn't steer you wrong mate. If I thought it was beyond your immense talent I'd say so..