Graham56 Posted August 29, 2003 Share Posted August 29, 2003 I had to hand my P-Bass into the left-luggage at the railway station the other day. I, know, I know, what the hell was I thinking off?! But I got it back, unharmed, as I left it. No problem. But what was interesting was seeing the image as it went through the X-Ray security machine. You could see the outline clearly in plan view, with all the metalwork standing out in sharp definition. What puzzled me was the truss-rod. It curved in plan view ('audience' view?). I know they are supposed to curve, but I thought that was at right angles to the fingerboard (up to the fingerboard). But curving 'across' the neck? Is that common? Is it a problem? Or is it just the tolerances within the truss-rod slot? Emmm.... did I explain that clearly? Cheers Graham www.talkingstrawberries.com - for rocking' blues, raw and fresh! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Phil Posted August 29, 2003 Share Posted August 29, 2003 Originally posted by Graham56: Emmm.... did I explain that clearly?no. not really http://www.briantimpe.com/images/LDL/dots/blue.JPGhttp://www.briantimpe.com/images/LDL/dots/black.JPGhttp://www.briantimpe.com/images/LDL/dots/fuscia.JPGhttp://www.briantimpe.com/images/LDL/dots/grey.JPGhttp://www.briantimpe.com/images/LDL/dots/orange.JPGhttp://www.briantimpe.com/images/LDL/dots/purple.JPGhttp://www.briantimpe.com/images/LDL/dots/red.JPGhttp://www.briantimpe.com/images/LDL/dots/yellow.JPG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
462 Posted August 29, 2003 Share Posted August 29, 2003 What I think you're saying is that if you were looking at your bass with the neck pointing straight up the truss rod would be curved to the left/right? This doesn't seem right to me, but I could be wrong. Does the actual neck curve in this direction? These words, are sledgehammers of truth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham56 Posted August 29, 2003 Author Share Posted August 29, 2003 Yeah, sort of. Assume the bass was resting on it's tail, with the neck pointing up and the headstock at the top and the fretboard flat on to you. If you had X-Ray eyes, on this bass you'd see the truss-rod as a shallow 'C' shape, starting in the centre at the bottom, bowing slightly out to the left in the middle of the rod, then back in to the centre at the top again. Is it supposed to be like that? And no, the neck doesn't (visibly anyway) curve like that. There doesn't seem to be any problems with it at all and the truss-rod seems to adjust OK. I'm not particularly worried, just curious. Cheers Graham www.talkingstrawberries.com - for rocking' blues, raw and fresh! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davebrownbass Posted August 30, 2003 Share Posted August 30, 2003 Yes. I've X-Rayed a bass (body only) But also... Yes. As I understand it, the truss rod will have a shallow curve in it, so that it moves in a plane perpendicular to the fingerboard. On the other hand, if the truss rod has a curve favoring the E string side or G string side, I think that would be bad. The truss rod has the function of adding "spring-iness" to the neck...counterbalancing the string tension to keep a slight camber in the fingerboard. "Let's raise the level of this conversation" -- Jeremy Cohen, in the Picasso Thread. Still spendin' that political capital far faster than I can earn it...stretched way out on a limb here and looking for a better interest rate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MartinJ Posted August 30, 2003 Share Posted August 30, 2003 Once, but I was drunk. C.V.: Snowboarder (1983-), Bass Owner (1996-), Chemistry Teacher (1997-) & Serious Bass Student (2003-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bassplayer58 Posted August 30, 2003 Share Posted August 30, 2003 it could have just been the monitor(tv) you were looking at. have you ever noticed that when you watch basic cable some times the picture gets strange curves in it. it could be just a old monitor and some bad hook up cables that distorted the picture. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandman Posted August 30, 2003 Share Posted August 30, 2003 If the monitor was old it may have extreme white screen distortion. this is where the image on screen seems to bend because there is something bright or white on screen(and with x rays i'm assuming theres alot of white.) I lost some time once. It's always in the last place you look for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Afro_Man Posted August 31, 2003 Share Posted August 31, 2003 Dude just go back and get it x-rayed again, say its part of an experiment then slip them some money, just look real carefully and do it at like 4 o'clock in the morning so there isn't that many people about. "i must've wrote 30 songs the first weekend i met my true love ... then she died and i got stuck with this b****" - Father of the Pride Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fantasticsound Posted September 1, 2003 Share Posted September 1, 2003 We carried on a Gibson Explorer, A Hamer LP-Double Cut copy, a bass (Can't remember his preference. ), and a strap-on midi key controller for 13 flights overseas. Got to see them on x-ray monitor several times. We even tried to get one place to give us a print out, but they wouldn't go for it. We weren't given but a glance of these x-rays, so I can't comment on the state of your truss rod/neck. It's easiest to find me on Facebook. Neil Bergman Soundclick fntstcsnd Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham56 Posted September 1, 2003 Author Share Posted September 1, 2003 I had quite a good look at the screen and it seemed pretty clear. The outline of the bass was straight with no distortion. The strings came out as straight lines, and I could see the truss rod curving in a gentle 'C' shape undeneath. Perhaps the truss rod channel is too wide? Anyway, the setup is fine at the moment so unless something starts to come apart I won't do anything about it. Cheers Graham www.talkingstrawberries.com - for rocking' blues, raw and fresh! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexclaber Posted September 1, 2003 Share Posted September 1, 2003 Theoretically the truss rod shouldn't bend in the same plane as the fingerboard but I can't see it mattering if it does. Because most basses have much wider necks than they are deep the resistance to bending in that plane is much higher (larger 2nd moment of area due to flat wide shape IIRC). Also, traditional truss rods work in just one dimension: they push or pull in a line between the headstock and neck joint, so the sideways forces involved are pretty negligible. Alex Caveat: This is all surmising based on having an Engineering degree and knowing a bit about basses - I'm not a luthier! Barefaced Ltd - ultra lightweight, high ouput, toneful bass cabs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.