Neck shift season?

[BottomEndian]

[quote name='Bloodaxe' post='978428' date='Oct 5 2010, 03:09 PM'][i][b]Never[/b][/i] had fret sprout on anything I own, don't understand that one at all.[/quote]
I thought it was a given with fretted basses and central heating. Almost all of my fretted basses have sprouted over winter and retracted in summer (if I haven't had them filed down over the winter). Perhaps my house is particularly dry.

Either way... it's not much of a problem for me now I play fretless almost exclusively.

[Delberthot]

I have pretty low action and my bass sits on a stand next to the radiator in the living room most of the time.


Hmmmmmm, Sprouts

[BottomEndian]

[quote name='Bloodaxe' post='978558' date='Oct 5 2010, 04:52 PM']Even the ACGs? I could posit a controversial theory about the others in your sig, but AFAIK Alan only uses properly seasoned MDF [/quote]


The ACGs are both fretless. No sprout there. Not even line-sprout on the Skelf.

[Bloodaxe]

[quote name='BottomEndian' post='978561' date='Oct 5 2010, 04:54 PM']

The ACGs are both fretless. No sprout there. Not even line-sprout on the Skelf. [/quote]

Hence the rapid post deletion after a DOH! moment

I do wonder if it's a seasoning issue though.

P.

[Clarky]

Sprouts, seasoning? Must be getting closer to Xmas

[martthebass]

Both Rays are getting a little tweak tonite, meanwhile the Status will sit in the corner with its 3 year old truss rod 'hymen' still intact.

[BottomEndian]

[quote name='Bloodaxe' post='978564' date='Oct 5 2010, 04:57 PM']Hence the rapid post deletion after a DOH! moment

I do wonder if it's a seasoning issue though.[/quote]
Hmmmm. *scratches chin thoughtfully* It may well be. Cheaper basses, cheaper cuts of wood, still a high moisture content... ship 'em to the dry confines of my bass corner and I suppose some wood shrinkage is inevitable (fnarr-fnarr). Had it with a 2009 USA Fender as well though, although the sprout totally subsided in the spring/early summer. The SUB, though, has been absolutely brilliant from day 1.

I've had a few Wesley instruments. They come with fret sprout included, no extra charge. And a nut cut by a blind ape.

[ezbass]

Had to adjust my Ray34 a week ago and my Roadworn P yesterday. I've aslo moved house so that was probably a contributory factor too.

[Bloodaxe]

[quote name='BottomEndian' post='978588' date='Oct 5 2010, 05:20 PM']Hmmmm. *scratches chin thoughtfully* It may well be. Cheaper basses, cheaper cuts of wood, still a high moisture content... ship 'em to the dry confines of my bass corner and I suppose some wood shrinkage is inevitable (fnarr-fnarr). Had it with a 2009 USA Fender as well though, although the sprout totally subsided in the spring/early summer. The SUB, though, has been absolutely brilliant from day 1.

I've had a few Wesley instruments. They come with fret sprout included, no extra charge. And a nut cut by a blind ape.[/quote]

I was under the impression that Fenders have built to a price from day 1, so whatever the Corona branch of Travis Perkins has on offer is likely to have an effect. Very rare to hear of long-term QC issues with EBMM though.

P.

[bigjohn]

[quote name='Fat Rich' post='977871' date='Oct 4 2010, 11:45 PM']They're '62 reissues so they don't have any access slots, but I learnt from Bernie Goodfellow at the London Bass Bash that I can loosen the neck bolts and tilt the neck out of the pocket enough to get to the truss rod without completely removing the neck. Still means slackening all the strings though and guessing how much to adjust.[/quote]


Aye. My '65 reissue is the same.

[gary mac]

My G&L is in need of a tweek, as of today rattling on all strings.

[Grand Wazoo]

[quote name='BottomEndian' post='978341' date='Oct 5 2010, 01:51 PM']Half a turn?! That's [i]loads[/i]! I've never had to do more than an eighth... maybe a quarter at a push... when the seasons change.

I've also found that summer to autumn seems to flatten the necks off (introducing rattles and buzzes), rather than causing more bow, so I've gone to the [b]left[/b] at this time of year.

Do different neck woods react completely differently to seasonal changes?[/quote]

Well seriously don't quote me by the letter, half a turn for some basses and less for others, yet it needs to be done when winter is setting in.

[JTUK]

Since my basses have slim necks, have very low actions and lighter strings, I am heartened that I have not have to touch them so far.
I may well take the action up on one a tad but it will still be low, I think....but do not feel the need to tweak the neck... as yet.
Any adjustment should happen at the bridge ...so far..!!

[leschirons]

Keep all my guitars and basses in one location with a cheap dehumidifier on, set to 50%.

Never had a problem.

[cocco]

My japs fenders are both buzzing furiously. I may attempty first truss rod adjustment tomorrow. They both need their necks loosening first though. Is the risk of making it worse high?

[Clarky]

[quote name='cocco' post='978970' date='Oct 5 2010, 11:20 PM']My japs fenders are both buzzing furiously. I may attempty first truss rod adjustment tomorrow. They both need their necks loosening first though. Is the risk of making it worse high?[/quote]
Not if you are methodical. loosen neck with bass flat ( eg on a bed) and - assuming basses are buzzing because the neck has flattened out and doesn't have enough bow. - small turn counterclockwise of truss rod ( try an 1/8th turn to begin with) may well sort things. It will take some of the tension out of the truss rod so the strings pull more heavily and the right gentle amount of bow is restored. Be careful to screw neck on tightly but not in such a way that you risk stripping the threads if you have to adjust again. if it's the other problem, ie, too much bow, then clockwise turn of truss rod.

[Jerry_B]

Weird - I have a Japanese Fender Jazz fretless and it's fine, as are my other basses. I've noticed that the atmosphere in my flat is a tad damper too, as it's Autumn and it's been raining alot. But everything's fine.

[essexbasscat]

Noticed one of mine needs a tweek too. Must be that time again.

[watchman]

[quote name='BottomEndian' post='978588' date='Oct 5 2010, 05:20 PM']The SUB, though, has been absolutely brilliant from day 1.[/quote]

I loved the SUB I had, and persevered with it for six months. Four returns for a setup to the shop and countless tweaks by me later the manager and I had to agree that a refund was in order Never did settle down. As ever, it's all about the specific instrument and much less about the model. At least with mass-produced basses.

[Mr. Foxen]

Ha, was thinking of bringing this up myself, mentioned it when talking to Nick recently. Figured I'd wait till I had my new workshop set up before I offered services.

[Fat Rich]

Jazzes are starting to need attention, the Status necks are all still perfect.

[xgsjx]

This must be a Southerner's thing? I've never noticed any changes like this at certain times of the year.

By Southerner, I mean where you get enough of a temperature change to make a difference. Up here you get cold & wet or cold & not so wet with some sunny days between (Summer & Winter respectively).

[hillbilly deluxe]

Must be,none of mine have needed doing since i got them.

[hillbilly deluxe]

[quote name='xgsjx' post='1180438' date='Mar 29 2011, 09:00 AM']This must be a Southerner's thing? I've never noticed any changes like this at certain times of the year.

By Southerner, I mean where you get enough of a temperature change to make a difference. Up here you get cold & wet or cold & not so wet with [b]a[/b] sunny day (Summer & Winter respectively).[/quote]
Fixed it for you.

Edited March 29, 2011 by hillbilly deluxe

[Lfalex v1.1]

No shifty necks in this household. The basses are stored in cases/bags inside a brick (!) built-in wardrobe. All the cases/bags have silica gel sachets in, too
Otherwise, The Streamline doesn't care, nor does the Vigier. The Fender's got graphite rods in it, and has never been a problem. The Wenge-necked Warwicks seem very stable, and the Ovangkol-necked Warwick has a moderately high action because it sounds better that way. Without any specific design, I seem to have sold on the two that needed the odd tweak (Ibanez SRX700, Zoot Chaser)

[quote name='Clarky' post='977783' date='Oct 4 2010, 10:36 PM']But where's the fun in an entirely stable neck? I thought we bassists love to tweak truss rods and, er, other things? I imagine Status owners have carefully manicured lawns and quartz watches that are accurate to 1 picosecond per millennium. Chaos, entropy (killer word), wild times, thats what life's about ... and slightly shifting bass necks[/quote]

Pfft. My lawn's a mess. Rather play bass than;
a)Tweak Truss rods
b)Mow lawns