Bernie Lehmann - “Do Try This At Home,” May 20, 2013
If you ever thought setting up your guitar was beyond your ability, Bernie showed us it ain’t necessarily so. Highly technical adjustments like truss rod adjustment, nut slotting, bridge adjustments, and fret leveling are well within the grasp of anyone willing to watch and learn. Bernie showed us not only how they’re done, but he explained the principles behind performing them.
For those who have never seen anything beyond the very end of a guitar truss rod, Bernie brought examples of unmounted truss rods we could actually adjust and see how they change the neck alignment. He also showed how much (actually, how little) of an adjustment is needed to straighten a guitar neck. Seasonal changes of temperature and humidity, as well as string type and gauge, often necessitate slight adjustments to keep the playing action optimal for the player’s style and personal preferences.
Bernie demonstrated how to listen to the sound of bridge saddles as they are dropped on a flat surface to determine relative quality of different bridge materials such as plastic, bone, and synthetics. He also showed how to properly slot nuts for various string gauges. He brought examples of specially constructed files specifically for that purpose. Bridge pin materials definitely affect the sound and sustain of notes on the guitar.
String material and brands came up in the discussion with the players attending the session. String installation, if not done properly, can also affect the tone and brightness of the notes played. Several players in the audience offered their preferences for string brands as used on six and twelve string instruments as well as on nylon string guitars. Bernie mentioned that Martin Guitars are normally set up at the factory with somewhat high action so the strings don’t buzz when Bluegrass players try them out.
One of the more interesting (and challenging) topics was fret dressing. When frets get worn they often have indentations where the strings wear down the fret surface. Bernie showed the group how to use a regular flat file to remove the indentations on an entire neck so that the fretted notes sound in pitch. He also showed how to do fret crowning with a specially designed concave file. Final fret polishing is done with steel wool or very fine grit (1500) emery paper.
Overall, Bernie gave the assembled group a wealth of information about setting up guitars. His presentation covered enough topics to allow those in attendance to do as many of their own guitar adjustments as they would feel comfortable with. Or, if they prefer not to try these techniques at home, at least they’ll be more able to accurately describe to a professional what adjustments might be needed to put their instrument in peak playing condition.
~John Williamson
Photos: R. Taglieri
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