Curious Situation with Truss Rods

[Scott Syltebo (bonesrad)]

Hi all,
 
Got a situation with my new (used) Series II.  I've been experiencing a bit of fret buzz on the B string, mainly from the 5th fret to the nut.  When I adjust the bridge to yield a 7/64 - 8/64 spacing at the 12th fret, problem for the most part goes away.  This action isn't bad but I much prefer about 6/64 spacing at the twelve.  So I decided to try for a little more forward bow by adjusting the truss rod nuts counter clockwise.  Here in lies the situation, I used my wrench to adjust the nut, and there was no tension when I turned either counter clockwise.  They appear as they actually could be turned all the way off the rod, without affecting the properties of the neck.  I've mucked with truss rods on Alembics before, and it's an 1/8 or 1/4 turn either way max, and you hear the neck creek a bit, and your heart skips a beat.
 
Am I missing something, or do I potentially have a major problem on my hands.
 
Thanks,
Scott  

[Valentino Villevieille (valvil)]

hello Scott,
 
I've had a similar problem recently switching strings; even though the new set (Thomastik flatwounds btw) was  of the same gauge (roughly ) of the older set, the string tension was much less and I found myself with the new strings literally sitting on the frets and one hell of a backbow. Therefore I slowly loosened the truss rods, to eliminate the buzzing and went a bit too far to the point that, like in your case, there was no resistance when I turned rods counterclockwise; I called Mica at Alembic and she explained to me what had happened . Eventually I retightened the truss rods slightly until I felt they were 'biting' again, I let the neck settle for a bit  and then re-intonated. It does not buzz at all, and the action is  low  & the bass plays like a dream. If the truss rods were loose when you got it from the previous owner you might have to send it to the folks at Alembic.  At the moment it does not sound like the rods are doing anything at all, I doubt you can get any more forward bow in that bass the way it is now. Mica can surely give you a better idea of what's up & I am sure she will . It could also be that you have a B string that does not have a lot of tension to it and thus flaps a bit more, or it may be simply that the 7/64 -8/64 height is as low as you can go with a B string on that bass....of course I'd have a better idea if I saw your instrument   Either way, though, your truss  rods ought to 'bite' or your neck will likely move at the first change in humidity,  in fact, if the previous owner had them loose for a while, that's exactly what might have happened, and might be the reason for the buzzing.
 
Good luck getting your new baby properly set up.
 
Valentino

[mark k palmer (jordislappa42)]

Hi Guys I have just bought an used 32scale series II.
I also have a major problem with the neck.When I got the bass the action was way high at the 12th and above so I decided to check the set up.
I fitted a set of 45-105 DR Fat beams and removed the truss rod cover to find that both nuts were only finger tight to loose.I took the bass to my local Luthier and he showed me that whith an engineers straight edge placed up the center of the finger board that the neck had major backbow!!
at the moment I am having to live with this and my Bic isnt much fun to play.
Can this be rectified??
Regards,Mark Palmer

[Scott Syltebo (bonesrad)]

Mark,
 
The nuts on my truss rods were also in essence, finger tight to loosen.  However, I do have a bit of forward bow.
 
Hopefully this is a rectifiable problem.
Scott

[Daniel Tracey (dannobasso)]

Mark, I have 7 Alembics with one on the way. %out of the 8 are medium scale. On my wider neck models, the adjustments stay much longer. I prefer a low action and try to maintain my basses that way. I was told by Alembic to start from zero on 2 of my sixes. Loosen the nuts to finger tight, and then tighten to achieve the desired height. B's on mediums may not behave as much as on longer scales.  I have raised the nut a bit to give a bit more height without losing the action I like. Anthony Jackson gave this advice in his clinics: Be aware of the humidity and temperature changes where you play and keep your bass, always play them to keep them up to condition. Maintain the neck with the proper oils, keep your tools with the bass and make small adjustments as necessary. All wood moves and may settle for a time. But whenever you change strings, it will move again as you know. You may have to go to a lighter gauge intil you are able to retrain the neck.  
Best of luck, Danno

[mark k palmer (jordislappa42)]

HI Again Guys,I thought that rudimentary guitar neck set ups were as follows:
Loosen truss rods,neck bowes forward(relief)under the tension of the strings.
Tighten the nuts,neck straightens working against the tension of the strings.
therefore: Heavy strings require tight nuts to maintain a straight neck and a lower action.
Light strings require looser nuts to allow strings to pull the neck forward.
 
To Recap: I have 45-105 strings fitted(heavyish string guage) with the nuts totaly loose,this in theory should make the neck bow forward to the point of being able to use it in a Robin Hood film,LOL!
 
But in my case I have the opposite effect:Backbow creating a hump in the neck!!!.
So lighter strings would make the problem even worse as the neck requires even more tension from the stings to bring it from back bow to the usual forward bow!!
I think only Alembic can cure this major problem as I dont fancy playing 60-120 on my 4 string just to have the neck sraight,LOL!
 
Can anyone at Alembic themselfs tell me how this can be rectified.
My local luthier said that even stoneing and recrowning the frets to create relief would be a pointless task as the back bow is too severe.
And it aint anygood having a refret and planeing relief into the finger board because I have laser LEDs fitted.
 
Help!!!!
 

[mark k palmer (jordislappa42)]

Hi Guys,I have a couple of e-mails from the Alembic help desk,they have been great.
It seems my bass needs heat treatment to give back the relief.Alembic quoted me aprox $75.00 to rectify the neck, but 2 way shipping and insurance will cost me $800.00 !!!.
However I spoke to Alex Carter at the Bass center London.He changed from 45-105 down to 30-90 strings!! and had the same problem.He took his series II along to a well known English Luthier who rectified the relief with heat treatment and it has not moved at all,that was 18 months ago.
So it seems my dilema has a conclusion.
I have posted some pics of my baby in the gear section.
Thanks guys for your input on this matter.
Regards,Mark