Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Hi there.. I recently changed my stock Ric strings
for a set of TI Jazz Flats and decided to do some minor
adjusting of the truss rod. I tightened them both about a 1/4 turn.
Then a few hours later, I loosened them to the way they were originally.
Then less than an hour later I re-tightened them (1/4 turn).
Then a few minutes later tightened them about 1/8th turn more. I'm worried that I stressed them too much. Did I? How would I know if I did?
Also, what would happen if I didn't tighten each by *precisely* the same amount?

They are meant to be independently adjustable so that necks that are bowed more on one side than the other or twisted necks can be straightened. Also...I assume that you're talking about the modern truss rod system. If your guitar is older than the mid 1980's you have to loosen the rods, manually adjust(bend) the neck to where you want it, then tighten the rods.

It's a brand new 4003 (June 2003)
So then I didn't screw anything up?

I wouldn't mind a second opinion since I'm not much of an expert at truss adjusting, but I would think that if you only tightened the rods 1/8 of a turn they should be fine. If it sounded like something broke, then it probably did! If you're using a nut-driver type truss wrench, you'd have to burn up your palms to damage the rods. Did you notice the action get a little lower?

I used a 1/4" nut with a screwdriver. The action did get lower
and it feels very good (the neck is definitely straighter than before). I don't think I damaged
anything, but it's the first time I've ever adjusted a truss-rod and like the
title says, I'm paranoid.
Thanks.

I have had to adjust the neck on my 4003 several times in the past couple of years. I use a nut driver and i do burn my palms every time.

just remember ... make sure it is not a full moon nor a even numbered day when you adjust ... doing so will cause tension reflux ... this is a deadly affliction which is completely imaginary and has no bearing on reality ...

heeheheh

actually the new truss rod system is one of the better designs out there ...

You're safe, Michael.

It sounds like you've done it right. Rick necks were meant to be adjusted so that they are very straight.
The older truss rod system was less user friendly to adjust and many Ricks fell victim to guitar techs and do-it-yourselfers that didn't know what they were doing.

You're welcome, and enjoy!

cool. Thanks guys. One more question: is it still a good
idea to loosen the truss rod first before tightening even
with the newer basses or is this completely unnecessary now?

As I understand it, the newer rods are designed to be adjusted under tension.

The older rods had to be loosened and the neck put into the required position before tightening the rods, which is unnecessary now.

Loosening the rod nuts for a 1/16 or 1/32 turn before tightening is good for preventing advertantly snapping the rods. Make sure you loosen the strings before tightening the rods or bend the neck into a backbow when tightening (look for Bob's tips posted in the forum), with the strings in tension.

I've never loosened any truss rod nuts before tightening, on either new or old Rics but I suppose it's a good idea to make sure they are not frozen. This method works for me: I leave the strings tuned to pitch, I put the bottom of the bass on a rug so it won't slip, then put my right foot in front of the bottom of the bass, my left knee behind the heel, then use my left hand up around the nut, 1st, 2nd fret and push backwards on the neck to release the tension from the strings that is pulling the neck forward (which is what the truss rods counteract), then I tighten the nuts with my nutdriver which was already in my hand (I hope) then release the tension, sight down the neck, then fret first and last frets and see how much relief there is in the middle, if I still have too much I repeat the process until I'm satisfied with the amount of relief I have, I leave the truss rod cover off for a few days to allow for settling which sometimes happens, this can take some time if the neck has been bowed for a long time.
This is mainly for the older system, I use it with new 4003's too, even though it is not necessary, it is a prudent thing to do though.
As long as your new 4003 neck is nice and straight and plays well with no or minimal buzzes you did it correctly. To snap a rod (I did it once on an old 4001) you really have to crank down on these truss rods, way beyond what is reasonable. (I was not reasonable that day)One of two things will happen on an old 4001 with a snapped rod:
1. the nut will come right off and stay in your nut driver along with the threaded portion that broke,
2. all of a sudden you will have no tension at all becuase it broke somewhere internally.
I did #1. I was not happy.

Michael, I have nothing to add to the advice already given here, just a question: why would you be tightening the truss rod after installing TI flats? Their tension is noticeably lower than the stock RIC strings.

Good question. I wasn't tightening the rods because of the TI's. I bought the bass last autumn and I haven't done any type of setup on it yet. Since I was changing the strings anyway I thought now would be a good time to adjust the neck and bridge (I noticed that the neck was a little more bowed than I wanted it to be).