Thoughts on my J35 saddle. Problem ?

[Emmett]

Hi all,

I have a brand new J35 and would like some thoughts on her saddle height.

As you can see there is not much break angle on the 2 E strings..but the other strings have more.

The action is currently spot on where I like it..7/64 ths  low E and 4/64 ths high E.

I have a height between low E string and body at the bridge , of 15/16 ths or just under half an inch.

The relief is correct and a straight edge placed along the finger board sits exactly atop the bridge.

My query is... should I be concerned with such a low saddle on a brand new guitar.

thanks for any comments.

[Hesh Breakstone]

It is what it is and IMHO there is enough break angle but you would not want to have much less...  Regarding having much less if the action is how you like it there is no need to make any adjustments so I think that it's fine as is.  I've seem less break angle on new guitars once set-up.

As you approach neck reset time, which could be a considerable amount of time or not... there won't be much saddle to adulterate and lower but again there is no telling how long that this will be.

What's missing from the info that I would want to do a better job of answering your question is how well the nut slots are cut, amount of relief, even string gauge.  If the nut slots are high, and they often are on f*ctory guitars the saddle may be lower than it needs to be for the height that you have at the 12th.

All of these things are related in evaluating set-ups, nut slots, action at the 12th, relief, saddle height, break angle, even string gauge. 

Congrats on the new Gibby!

[Mark McLean]

The top of the saddle is quite curved, presumably to match the radius of the fretboard.  But I think you have a reasonable break angle over the saddle there, even on the E-strings.    If it sounds good and feels good - it's probably good. 

Mark

[Emmett]

Thanks for replies.

Hesh

The nut looks good..2/64 ths at first fret low E and 1/64 at high E. ( approx' )
Releif is not alot..enough to slide a piece of paper under. 0.010 ?
and I use 12's for strings

The guitar plays and feels great..I'm just a little concerned that say 10 years from now she needs a little adjustment..due to changes over time I have very little saddle to play with on those 2 E strings.

I guess I'll just have to live with it..as she's a keeper.

The action on the high E could even be taken a tad higher for my liking...so when she does need an adjustment I have a little more room there.

thanks again

[Hesh Breakstone]

Thanks Emmett!

I think that you will be fine.  Granted there is not a lot of saddle proud of the bridge for the treble strings but for now there is enough.  It also sounds like the current action is pretty good which is also a good thing.

My view is that neck resets, someday, are an expected thing and necessary evil of acoustic guitar ownership.  What we hope for is lots of time before this day comes.  Owners can help here too by using best practices for care, strings, etc.

If this one were mine I would feel free to enjoy the thing and not worry any further about the potential for issues down the road.

[Mark Pollock]

Gibson has some pretty small radius fingerboards, resulting in a tough decision when making a saddle and setting the neck angle - do I make the middle string really high with an intense break, or the edge strings really low without much break? I'd say the latter is less risky, results in fewer busted bridges, and you can always ramp the pin slots a little if you need to increase break angle in the future. No biggie.

[Emmett]

Thanks fella's

definitely eased my slight concerns.

All the best.