Gibson Truss Rod Channel

Old truss rods can be trouble because the nut can rust or otherwise get stuck.

Gibson truss rod channel. When the truss rod is in the correct position make two pencil marks on the neck representing the front and back of the truss rod. There are two rods that i like very much. Now you re ready to start adjusting. Exerting too much force to loosen it can bust the rod or strip the nut.

The nut is used to tighten the rod and straighten the neck. It consists of a long round piece of 3 8 approx steel with an anchor on one end and a nut on the other. These will be the ends of the channel. Gibson truss rod brass nut brass nut on gibson les paul adjust nut with correct spanner loosen first.

On a newer guitar adjusting the truss rod isn t particularly daunting as long as you have some idea what you re doing. One design is the rod from allied lutherie above and also lmi though they are slightly different the overall design is close to the same. The latest version from allied lutherie is really beautiful and very high quality. A quick review of an alternative bit you can use to route the truss rod channel for the stewmac hotrod truss rods amazon link.

Single acting truss rods as used by gibson and fender sit in a curved channel inside the neck. The other kind of rod is a dual action truss rod that consists of two round pieces of steel attached at both ends. Once the position of the neck is set with the bolts the nut can be tightened to prevent the bolt from turning. As they are tightened the push against the center of the curve forcing the neck backwards.

Check relief at 12th fret using steel rule or feeler gauge. Always loosen the truss rod nut first as if it is stuck and you over tighten it then you could damage the guitar. The first is a vintage truss rod originally designed by gibson. The double action two way truss rod is my preference.

Appropriate lubrication can help free it of course. Create the truss rod channel. I often try to remove these types of rods by separating it from the anchor and sliding it out but that wasn t going to work with this broken gibson truss.