1981 Fender Precision setup help please

[dyerseve]

Howdy, so I have setup many a bass but this is my first Fender and I am struggling to get anything approaching a low action. I have set the truss rod to give the recommended relief(and also tried experimenting just in case). Ive tried neck shims and that overcame the limitations of the saddle height adjustment screws. However I still cant get a low action - currently it is 4-4,5mm at the last fret!

Is this normal for Fenders? 

 

[Reggaebass]

4 minutes ago, dyerseve said:

currently it is 4-4,5mm at the last fret!

Is this normal for Fenders

No, I’ve got 12 jazzes and precision’s and I play with a low action, all mine are about 1.5mm with a couple just under 2mm

[dyerseve]

1 minute ago, Reggaebass said:

No, I’ve got 12 jazzes and precision’s and I play with a low action, all mine are about 1.5mm with a couple just under 2mm

thank you, that is very useful to know. Looks like I need to get a pro to sort out the frets in that case.

Out of interest, what kind of relief have you set to achieve that action?

[Brucegill]

This may help, though I’m sure you’ve already seen it

https://support.fender.com/en-us/knowledgebase/article/KA-01903

 

managed to get a squire up to a custom shop to easily meet these specs with no issues personally. 
 

maybe photos would help people troubleshoot for you? And also always good to know how and where you’re measuring your specs 

[Reggaebass]

Just now, dyerseve said:

thank you, that is very useful to know. Looks like I need to get a pro to sort out the frets in that case.

Out of interest, what kind of relief have you set to achieve that action?

Hi dyerserve, I normally set my neck as straight as I can with the very slightest relief and then lower my saddles to my height, which is as low as I can go without any buzz, I play with a soft touch which I think helps 

[dyerseve]

19 minutes ago, Brucegill said:

This may help, though I’m sure you’ve already seen it

https://support.fender.com/en-us/knowledgebase/article/KA-01903

 

managed to get a squire up to a custom shop to easily meet these specs with no issues personally. 
 

maybe photos would help people troubleshoot for you? And also always good to know how and where you’re measuring your specs 

thank you, yes I have already seen that. 

 

What would help is if I had a brain! I just measured the relief again(corrrectly this time though!) and I am getting around 2,5mm. Still much too high for my liking though. 

My go to bass is a '87 JD Thumb which plays like a dream with an action of no more 1,5mm across all the strings. 

[Brucegill]

1 minute ago, dyerseve said:

thank you, yes I have already seen that. 

 

What would help is if I had a brain! I just measured the relief again(corrrectly this time though!) and I am getting around 2,5mm. Still much too high for my liking though. 

My go to bass is a '87 JD Thumb which plays like a dream with an action of no more 1,5mm across all the strings. 

so are you running out of adjustment in the saddle screws, or getting too much buzzing to need that action height? 

Edited July 26, 2023 by Brucegill

[Lozz196]

Does it buzz on every fret, if not due to age it may be fret wear contributing to this.

[hooky_lowdown]

51 minutes ago, Reggaebass said:

all mine are about 1.5mm with a couple just under 2mm

All your basses are 1.5mm at the last fret? You must like fret buzz, or have an exceptional light touch.

[Reggaebass]

2 minutes ago, hooky_lowdown said:

All your basses are 1.5mm at the last fret

At the 12th fret 

[wrinkleygit]

Both of my P basses are 1.5 treble, 2.0 bass side at 12th fret, both have a playing card shim in the neck pocket just below the lower screw holes, hope that this helps.

[Paolo85]

51 minutes ago, dyerseve said:

thank you, yes I have already seen that. 

 

What would help is if I had a brain! I just measured the relief again(corrrectly this time though!) and I am getting around 2,5mm. Still much too high for my liking though. 

My go to bass is a '87 JD Thumb which plays like a dream with an action of no more 1,5mm across all the strings. 

Sorry, just to check if I interpret this right, you are getting 2.5mm string height at the 12th ot 15th fret or 2.5mm relief?

[dyerseve]

1 hour ago, Brucegill said:

so are you running out of adjustment in the saddle screws, or getting too much buzzing to need that action height? 

 

I can't get the action lower without getting buzzing 

[dyerseve]

25 minutes ago, Paolo85 said:

Sorry, just to check if I interpret this right, you are getting 2.5mm string height at the 12th ot 15th fret or 2.5mm relief?

 

Sorry for any confusion, I am measuring 2.5mm action(distance between bottom of the string and the top of the fret) at the 20th fret

[NAS Bass]

10 minutes ago, dyerseve said:

 

Sorry for any confusion, I am measuring 2.5mm action(distance between bottom of the string and the top of the fret) at the 20th fret

Either uneven frets or a "ski ramp" at the end of the fretboard. Take it for a set-up, they'll quickly work it out

 

[hooky_lowdown]

1 hour ago, Reggaebass said:

At the 12th fret 

You may well be confusing the OP who is talking about measurement from the last fret (20th), no idea why they're talking last fret. So for the OP measurements are generally taken from 12th fret, not the last fret.

[Reggaebass]

6 minutes ago, hooky_lowdown said:

You may well be confusing the OP who is talking about measurement from the last fret (20th),

Ah yeah I just reread that hooky

 

, sorry @dyerseve my measurement earlier is at the 12th not the last fret , apologies for not reading properly 

[Brucegill]

25 minutes ago, hooky_lowdown said:

You may well be confusing the OP who is talking about measurement from the last fret (20th), no idea why they're talking last fret. So for the OP measurements are generally taken from 12th fret, not the last fret.

it’s funny as I’ve been a guitarist for 30 years and only took bass up over the last two. All guitar measurement for action are 99.9% taken from the 12th fret, yet for Bass, I’ve come across the use of the last fret so often. Always confused me tbh. Always wondered why. guess Fender themselves using the last fret is where it’s come from?

[dyerseve]

35 minutes ago, hooky_lowdown said:

You may well be confusing the OP who is talking about measurement from the last fret (20th), no idea why they're talking last fret. So for the OP measurements are generally taken from 12th fret, not the last fret.

For me it makes zero sense to measure at the 12th fret as it's not the highest the action will be and, depending on the relief set, will not be indicative of the action across the neck.

[ezbass]

10 minutes ago, dyerseve said:

For me it makes zero sense to measure at the 12th fret as it's not the highest the action will be and, depending on the relief set, will not be indicative of the action across the neck.

However, this is what most people use as a measurement of action. I have always used the 15th fret, but that’s for my own reference, when sharing measurements, the 12th fret seems to be the de facto standard.

[Bigguy2017]

Using the 12th fret for measuring action height makes calculations for saddle height and neck angle easier.

1mm change at 12th equals 2mm adjustment at the bridge saddles.

 

[Grahambythesea]

Fender publish their recommendations online about setups. This is an extract which may help.

Neck Radius
7.25". .014” (0.35mm)
9.5" to 12"  .012” (0.3mm)
15" to 17”  .010” (0.25mm)
 

ACTION

Players with a light touch can get away with lower action; others need higher action to avoid rattles. First, check tuning. Using a 6" (150 mm) ruler, measure the distance between bottom of strings and top of the 17th fret. Adjust bridge saddles to the height according to the chart below, then re-tune. Experiment with the height until the desired sound and feel is achieved.

Neck RadiusString Height Bass SideTreble Side

7.25"
9.5" to 12"
15" to 17"7/64" (2.8 mm)
6/64" (2.4 mm)
6/64" (2.4 mm)6/64" (2.4 mm)
5/64" (2 m

[ossyrocks]

I've never measured mine before. I tend to tweak until I'm happy. Like Tony, I play with flats and a light touch with fingers.

 

I set the relief to be as close to flat as I can get without heading for a back bow. Sometimes this is absolutely flat and sometimes it's the tiniest bit of relief which I then can't be bothered to take the neck off (again) to tweak out. Then I take the action down in increments across all strings in turn, re-tuning each time until I get a buzz, and then come back up until it's gone.

Measuring the two I have out on stands this morning, which are a 1987 MIJ PB-62 and a '78 P bass, both are around the 1.5mm at the 12th fret mark, perhaps up to 1.7mm depending on the viewing angle. They feel nice and low, which is how I like them.

 

Rob

[dyerseve]

On 27/07/2023 at 09:30, Bigguy2017 said:

Using the 12th fret for measuring action height makes calculations for saddle height and neck angle easier.

1mm change at 12th equals 2mm adjustment at the bridge saddles.

 

I still dont get it - why would you want to know how much you need to change it at the 12th fret - that only services half of the fretboard...

Typically I never measure the action when setting up any of my basses, I just keep going lower until fret buzz intervenes. Then I raise the action a fraction at a time until there is no fret buzz on the last few frets as they are always the last to buzz.

I have only measured the action on this occasion to compare it to what others are achieving with their P basses 

[hooky_lowdown]

Because the 12th is the center point between nut and bridge, changes at either end will affect the action and height of the strings.