Humidity Question?

[David Edward Helmer]

Hey guys. Got a Taylor in the other day. It is one of those w/ no back bracing. Any who... the high side of the saddle is almost flush with the bridge and the high side has maybe 50 thou sticking up. He complains of high action and he is right. High side at the 12th is .07 and low is .120. With a straight edge on the fingerboard it comes to just under the top of the bridge. About 1/32". It looks healthy. I am thinking it is just dry as heck. Oh and he put 13's on it too. I told him we are gonna go lighter, he agreed. Any thoughts or advice? I don't have any pics but I am just assuming this is a common thing, right?

[Hesh Breakstone]

David my friend you may be right that this is a dry guitar.  Another tell-tale indicator would be sharp fret ends proud of the neck although this does not always happen.

I don't know what part of the country that you are in?  Here in Michigan we see many, many dry guitars this time of year and in the last few months when it was the coldest.  So it may simply be dry or it may be dry AND need a neck reset from what you are describing from the action.

If you have a humidity controlled shop in the 40ish to 50%ish range I would rehumidify the thing for a few days and then see what you have.  I bag-em in a Hefty, Hefty, Hefty not to be confused with a wimpy garbage bag offering... ;) with a large sponge soaked in water.  I hang em for up to several days and then have a look.  Avoid having any water or the sponge touching the guitar.

If you still can't get the action down to say 4/64th for the high e and 6/64th" for the low e and still have some saddle AND enough break angle as to not muddle the sound/tone of the high e and b it's likely neck reset time.  Of course relief, checking out the neck, etc are all important to do too before coming to this conclusion.

Since it's one of Bob Taylo'rs innovative offerings the neck reset is a breeze to do if you have to go there.

[David Edward Helmer]

Hesh, I am in Iowa. How much do you charge for a Taylor Neck Re Set? Pics soon...

[Paul Verticchio]

David,

Neck resets don't get any easier than a Taylor Big Bbay.

See those 2 screws on the FB between the 15th & 16th frets?  Take the strings off the guitar & remove these screws.  The neck will lift right out of the body.  After that, it's no different than shimming a Strat, Tele or other bolt on necked guitar or bass.

At least give it a try.  It's impossible to goof up the guitar if you have to repeat the process in determining the proper angle. No dimensional changes to the existing guitar need to be made. The only tool you'll need is a #2 Phillips screwdriver.  It will also be a good learning experience.  You'll be fearless & confident on the next BB or regular Taylor Baby you reset.

I'm next door in Illinois (home of THE most corrupt politicians and the most incompetent legislature in the universe).  If you just don't feel confident to perform the reset & if you can get it to me, I can do the reset in about 10 minutes.  Send me a PM if you're interested in that offer.

Good luck our friend (:

[michael mcclain]

sorry, you are wrong wrong wrong. i by chance, not plan, have the misfortune to reside in south carolina, whose legislarure gave us such blockbusters as the civil war, aka locally as the war of northern agression. they are again stirring the pot with a whole range of nulification legislative actions. woe is us!!!

[Paul Verticchio]

Michael,

Well played, sir !!

Given the fact that SC has been around much longer than IL, you win. :-)

Abraham Lincoln is entombed exactly 25 'as the crow flies' miles from where I sit.  There have been recent recordings of mild seismic activity coming from within his sarcophagus.  You may have solved the "why" portion of that mystery.

Carry on my friend.

Respectfully,

Paul (:

.......so kids, that ends the political commentary portion of our show....forever.....OK?

[Hesh Breakstone]

LOL!!!  Maybe it was that bean burrito that Abe ate before going to Ford's theater...

[Paul Verticchio]

Come to think of it...that explains why, in the recent movie, Abe & Mary asked the coachman to drive-through Taco Bell on the way to the Ford Theater.

Thanks Hesh.  That's been a real head-scratcher for me (:

[Hesh Breakstone]

Sorry David I did not see this until this morning - been a very busy week here trying to participate in two businesses an hour apart....

You don't want to have to send out the Taylor all the way to Michigan.  Boxing, shipping etc. is a real drag and then we have to explain to the customer why the headstock broke off when the FedEx guys break the thing....

There has to be an authorized Taylor service center closer to you, maybe call them and ask?

[michael mcclain]

whilst i agree that hesh's garbage bag/wet sponge method is an effective treatment for a dehydrated guitar with the classic syntoms of that malady, e.g. sunken top, low action, often with buzzing frets and  exposed fret ends.

 

whar is described  here does not seem fit the dry guitar syndrome. hugh qction is often related to high humidity, but not low,

 

so  i must respectfully disagree with his course of treatment. (do you regret inviting me over hesh?)

 

taylor ships this guitar with light guage strings for a reason.

 

i think a careful examination with  a straight edge will reveal a fair bit of body deformation, i.e. belly fulge, fingerboard extension sinking into the sound hole, and a greater than normal longitudinal curvature to the back.  it will almost certainly require a neck reset to make the action playable with sufficient string height above the top to produce acceptalble tone and volume. and no more heavy strings; lights only!

[Jeff Highland]

Yep nothing there is screaming too dry and the 12th fret action is not incredibly high

Check the relief first, if 13s have been put on without adjusting the rod, it  will have too much relief and this brings up the action

[Mark McLean]

David

So is this a Big Baby (no back bracing, laminated back, no heel on the neck, screwed on neck with screws visible in the fingerboard at the 15th fret)?  I just happen to have two examples of this species living in my house right now

These guitars have a bit of arch on the tops and if they get dry the arch flattens - so the bridge is lower and the action drops, not rises. If I am reading you right (high action despite the saddle being shaved way down) it sounds like a neck angle issue, or a bellied top. If I put a straight edge on these two here the end falls just below the bridge top in one that is under normal string tension, but about 2mm above the bridge in one with no strings currently on it.  Did you do that with it strung up (what you described would be about right), or unstrung (that bridge would be a bit high, and maybe bellies up more under tension). 

Is the top deformed behind the bridge?  Is the bridge coming unglued at the back edge?  These guitars are supposed to be strung with 11s.  13s wouldn't have been good for it.  Has it got overheated and bent out of shape?

A picture might help

Mark

[Luke Single]

I don't mean to insult your intelligence but something you may have overlooked. Neck relief. I get guitars in the winter that I scratch my head like it seems you are. And then I straighten the neck out for a relief around .002-.004 depending on gauge of strings and voila action is better. Also when people can't afford a neck reset I do a " get you by" set up... The lightest gauge strings they can stand, some careful saddle and nut adjustment, and I encourage them if they use a drop tuning on a guitar to use this guitar for that tuning. It usually makes the guitar bearable. I'm sure some of you will disagree with me because the fix is a reset but I try to make the customer happy and some are happy with this option some just save up some money to have the proper fix. As this is a band aide on a cut that needs stitches.

Defiantly listen to hash. I frequent the pages a lot and he always gives good advice.