Got a uke bass with broken truss rod - what to do?

[Mornats]

I bought Harley Benton "deko" ukulele bass that came with a truss rod that doesn't do anything. The neck has a back bow too so I get an awful lot of fret buzz. So I'm looking for ideas on what to do with it.

First of all, I did buy this as a "deko" which is described as "not for playing" so I knew it could well be a bass that I wouldn't be able to play. I decided not to return it and to use it as a project to see if I can fix it.

So here's what's up with it.

The truss rod turns both ways so it's not maxed out. When I turn it, I can sometimes hear the crunching sound you get from cheap wood compressing. No idea what's causing that or what effect it's having on the insides.

The saddle leans forward a bit which means it's not sitting on the piezo pickup fully which is causing the E and A strings to be much quieter than the D and G strings.

I've levelled the frets as best I can but only took a tiny amount off as I didn't want to cause any problems if I managed to straighten the neck up.

The strings are Aquila Thunderguts (that's what most people say are fitted to the Harley Bentons).

So, options and questions:

Could I simply replace the strings with higher tension ones to pull the neck forward? If so, would flatwounds have a higher tension than the Thunderguts? Any suggestions on strings that may do the job?

If I corrected the saddle that's leaning towards the neck would this raise the height of the strings enough? Maybe raising the saddle could help a bit? Although the neck does lean back somewhat so perhaps not.

Could I fix the trussrod somehow?

Could I force the neck forward by other means? By using clamps or some other woodworking magic?

Or should I put the whole thing down to bad luck and see if I can sell the components (clearly stating the issue with the neck and trussrod of course).

This is the (non-deko) uke bass: http://www.thomann.de/gb/harley_benton_kahuna_clu_bass.htm

If any pics of mine would help I'll be happy to post them.

Cheers!

[Manton Customs]

Sounds like the anchor is not doing it's job, have a read through this http://www.stewmac.com/How-To/Online_Resources/Truss_Rods/A_sign_of_truss_rod_trouble_and_an_easy_solution_.html.

Failing that, yes heavier gauge strings or clamping into a forward bow should also work.

[Matt P]

if you decide to sell on then I might be interested, mainly in the tuners and the electronics, and probably the strings as well, (I've got the ideas for a build and these would be good donor parts to get me going)

Matt

[Mornats]

Cheers, I'll try clamping it I think as I do like the current strings. If it doesn't work out Matt, I'll let you know if I split the parts.