Guitar Neck Relief
Source: Guitar Neck Repairs
Guitar Neck Relief:
It is very easy to check for neck relief, but the terms are so darn confusing. Forward Bow, Backward Bow, Slight Bow, Cupping and various other terms. The two most common terms are Forward Bow and Backward Bow.
Forward Bow:
Ideally you want your guitar neck to have a slight Forward Bow. Check this by holding the headpiece of the guitar alongside your head and sight down the neck from the nut to the body of the guitar. Do this on both sides of the neck. The neck should bow downward toward the center of the neck, just a little bit. An easier way to understand this would be to hold a straightedge over the fretboard from the first fret to the 12th fret. The fret centered half-way between these two points would be Below the straightedge slightly. This would be Forward Bow.
Backward Bow:
We DO NOT want Backward Bow in our instruments. Having backward bow means you have to have the strings much higher to prevent string buzzing. If you would hold the straightedge against the first and 12th frets again, the straightedge would “rock” in the center because the neck bows upward. This is known as Backward Bow. You see what I mean about these terms being confusing.?
Tip: Another way to check the proper amount of Forward Bow is with the aid of a capo. Place the capo just behind the first fret and tighten it just enough to allow the string to sound clearly. Now hold the same string down on the 12th fret. Half way, or approximately half way between these two points you should have a slight gap above the fret. Take a Feeler Gage and measure it. It should be between 0.010″ and 0.015″. If it is slightly higher do not worry too much about that.
Precautions:
Proper neck relief occurs between the nut and the Middle of the neck. If you have relief (Forward Bow) between the middle of the neck and the body or if there is a hump in the fingerboard where it meets the body, or over the top plate of the guitar – that can mean problems.
Adjusting for Proper Neck Relief:
This issue will be dealt with in our article on Adjusting Your Guitar Truss Rod.
Tags: guitar neck, guitar neck adjustment, guitar neck relief, guitar repairs
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