U.S. Guitar Kits Cutaway User Manual download pdf (Page 37)

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Use either medium or light gauge strings. Install each string

so that it seats into the bridge pin hole notch. The groove in

the bridge pin should hold the string as well, and the ball end

should snug against the bridge plate under the soundboard.

Thread the strings loosely into the tuners.

Seating the strings

Neck “relief,” the upward curvature of the neck in the direc-

tion of the string’s pull, is adjusted with the truss rod. You

should set the neck relief before ﬁnal adjustment of the

nut and saddle heights. Although the truss rod will affect

string height, it shouldn’t be used to do so. It’s intended to

control the relief, which can affect “buzzing” in the lower

frets. Depending on your playing style and the accuracy of

the fret heights, the neck should have anywhere from zero

(straight) to 0.012" of relief. A straight neck tends to play bet-

ter, but few guitars end up with no relief at all, and several

thousandths or more is perfectly normal.

Start with the nut and saddle roughed out to height, and

the guitar tuned to pitch. With a straightedge resting on

the frets, along the centerline of the neck, use feeler gauges

between the seventh fret and the straightedge to determine

the amount of relief. The heavier you strum, the more relief

you’ll need. Bluegrass players may need more relief, ﬁnger-

pickers less, and the majority of players will be somewhere

in between.

Turn the truss rod nut

counterclockwise to bring

the neck up, adding relief.

Turn the nut clockwise

to pull the neck back,

reducing relief.

Go slowly and carefully — a little

adjustment goes a long way.

Understanding neck relief

KIT TIP: Feeler gauges

Unwound guitar strings make excellent feeler

gauges for measuring relief. Turning the truss rod

nut clockwise straightens the neck and reduces

the relief.

Turning it counterclockwise bows the neck upward, adding

relief. Always adjust the truss rod with care — a little bit

goes a long way.

Select the proper size drill bit and place a tape stop on the

shank of the bit so that the bit does not go through the slot

walls. Be sure that the bit stops at least 1/32" short of going

through. Replace the tuning machines, and fasten them

with the small mounting screws.

Clean out any excess ﬁnish from the tuner post holes so that

the tuning machines ﬁt easily into their hole. With the tuners

in place on the peghead, mark the mounting holes with a

scribe or an awl through the small holes on the baseplate.

Remove the tuners, and drill the mounting screw holes.

Installing the tuning machines

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U.S. Guitar Kits Cutaway User Manual Page 37

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