Removal of The Truss Rods in a 381

mike381 · Post by **mike381** » Sat Oct 18, 2003 1:23 pm

In my 381 V69 I want to know if;

"I can remove the truss rods thru the 2 holes at the end of the neck?"

I am hoping that I can remove the neck pickup, remove the top nuts and slide the rods out the holes. Am I dreaming?

Thanks

bails · Post by **bails** » Mon Oct 20, 2003 1:41 am

ojobob2 · Post by **ojobob2** » Mon Oct 20, 2003 1:51 am

The old Rickenbacker truss rods can be easily removed, they just slide out of the headstock end when the nuts and bar are removed. Thats because they are simple metal bars that are not fastened to anything at the other end.

The modern ones aint like that

dave4004 · Post by **dave4004** » Mon Oct 20, 2003 6:03 am

The new type rods are removable too. Different design but still not attached to the instrument at the other end.

mike381 · Post by **mike381** » Mon Oct 20, 2003 12:09 pm

Thanks Guys,

Though I was confused by Onionballs' response.

Yes to:

"can I remove the truss rods?"
or
" Am I dreaming?"

Got it straight now .

Hopefully it won't have to take them out, but I was curious . . .

bails · Post by **bails** » Tue Oct 21, 2003 8:04 pm

Sorry for the confusion, however, I'm not sure if these responses actually answer the original question. YES, you can remove the truss rod from the neck-end if you remove the pickup to expose the hole, though I'm not sure why you would prefer this to sliding it out of the headstock cavity.

mike381 · Post by **mike381** » Thu Oct 23, 2003 6:12 pm

Well, we did remove the truss rods today.

Let me back up, the neck was adjusted to 4/64ths between the 12th fret and the bottom of the Low E string. In a matter of days it moved to 7/64ths. The rods did not seem to be spinning and seemed tight but the neck still would not hold the set.
Upon removal everything looked good, the end nuts were tight, the top plate was intact, the rods were wrapped in masking tape. The only exception was that, one rod was straight and the second (Under the High E) was bent in a strong curve. We also thought there might be a little wood compression where the end nuts contact the wood in the neck so there are plans afoot to shore that part up and we will either straighten or curve the opposing rod and see if that helps.

I will let you know how things turn out . . .

johnhall · Post by **johnhall** » Fri Oct 24, 2003 7:11 am

Steve Soest knows what he's doing and has already checked in with the factory for some extra guidance in this specific case.

You should have no problem to reach the factory spec which is 3/64" for the treble and 5/64" for the bass side with the suggestions I gave to him.

mike381 · Post by **mike381** » Fri Oct 24, 2003 3:00 pm

Thank you Mr Hall,
Your insight was greatly appreciated, I'm going to leave it with Steve for a couple of weeks to give it enough time to settle.

Though it's going to be hard to wait that long to play it . . .

mike381 · Post by **mike381** » Wed Nov 12, 2003 2:07 pm

[color=##FF0000]WOO HOO ! ! ! ! ![/color]
Just got it back from Steve Soest and all I can say is, "[color=##0000FF]BUTTER[/color]".
It plays like a dream and is holding the neck set.
The one bent truss rod was straightened, the heel end of the neck where the star washer sits was reinforced with glue and 2 more washers were added. The neck was then set with a back bow and allowed to stabilize, then tuned to the current awesome set.
Thanks Steve and John Hall . . .

wormdiet · Post by **wormdiet** » Thu Nov 13, 2003 2:27 am

Just can't help but make a comment. . . That guitar is gorgeous - can't say I've seen anything quite like it!

mortivan · Post by **mortivan** » Thu Nov 13, 2003 1:13 pm

I agree! Amazing wood; body and fingerboard!

mike381 · Post by **mike381** » Sat Nov 15, 2003 12:14 pm

It's taking alot of self control not to play until my fingers bleed . . .

It's a great instrument

rickcrazy · Post by **rickcrazy** » Sat Nov 15, 2003 12:36 pm

Now, that is one insanely beautiful Rickenbacker guitar! Some guys have all the luck...