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Looking for tips for setting up Strat with .12 flatwounds. I love heavier strings but most of my electrics now have excessively high action after prolonged time with them. Got myself a Vester tradition Strat for cheap, taking to the tech tonight, and want to get this one just really dialed in so I have one high utility guitar.
Planning to ask for a neck shim and general setup, but wondered if other players may have tips for keeping the action/tension/neck angle consistent over time. Any recommendations for preventative work or parts would be much appreciated- if you’ve had good results with something like changing the nut size/spacing, getting fretwork done, using a particular set of lower tension strings, maybe recommendations for aftermarket bridges that make it easier to dial in etc.Last edited by Flying Ashtray; 04-15-2021 at 01:13 PM.
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04-15-2021 09:20 AM
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Tip 1: Always make sure your strat is a telecaster.
Joking aside, it'll probably be fine...how many springs on the trem? Have you considered blocking it completely?
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The way I set up all my Strats, when I had Strats: Block the trem to stop movement. Put the trem arm away in a safe place. You might change your mind. Use all five springs, and crank them up nice and tight (I like that built in reverb). Re-set the bridge saddles for height and intonation. If the height is still not correct, loosen the strings and adjust the neck. Good luck!
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Originally Posted by Flying Ashtray
John
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Was it set up well before you went w the heavier strings? If so, I would look at adjusting the truss rod and putting 5 springs in the trem cavity.
the nut might need a bit of work as well
I would put off the shim until you see how far a regular setup will get you
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I use 12s on mine. It's a bonafide hardtail though.
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Thank you all very much for the advice! Blocking the trem is exactly the kind of advice I was looking for, very helpful. I just got the guitar yesterday- it has a straight neck and lower action with .09’s it came with, and I agree it should generally be fine with little adjustment (maybe not even a shim). Just hoping to be a better steward of this one while I send my beloved tele in for repairs. I think that guitar will need a new neck bc the truss rod has gone out.
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Originally Posted by Flying Ashtray
John
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Heavy strings pulling the trem up will heighten the action; string tension causing excessive neck relief will heighten the action. The former can be fixed by either blocking the tremolo or using five springs and setting them tight. Adjusting the truss rod should take care of the relief. You may need to adjust the saddles a little bit to fine-tune the set up. But every Strat and Telecaster should be able to handle 12s without any problem.
That said, I have dropped to 11s on all of my guitars- Tele, Strat, archtops, flattop. They sound just as good as my old 12-52s and the lower tension is friendly for aging hands. Ed Bickert used 10s on his Tele and his tone was superb; Jim Hall used 10s on his archtop, at least towards the end of his career. I don't think heavy strings are needed any more for tone unless you've got a right hand that just can't go to a lighter approach (like Pat Martino) or are playing all acoustic and need to bang out some volume.
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I would tend to agree that 10's are fine for Strat jazz - you just have to keep a light grip on the pick and play gently. The jazz tone of an arch top with high and tight flats is partly from the strings being "tighter than the pick"... you can get that same vibe by using 10s if you hold the pick lightly and play lightly.
In terms of Strat tone, first find the brightest notes. On my Strat the brightest notes are on the B string in the 10-12th fret area. I reduce treble on the guitar until that brightness just disappears; on mine that is about "7" for both guitar volume and tone.
You might put on a set of round wounds before going to flats, just to hear if flats are needed for the sound you want. I play with rounds and they don't squeak or squeal with finger motion over them.
If the neck has been off the guitar you may want to do the neck-pop thing after re-stringing:
- carefully and slowly loosen each of the neck screws, little at a time
- wait for the neck to slip suddenly firmly against the neck pocket
- tighten up the neck screws
You just have to do this once if needed. When a neck is put back on there is no string tension holding it firmly in the pocket when tightening the neck screws, so no assurance that the conduction between the body and neck is solid. Cycling the neck screws loose and then tight while the string are on gives the neck a chance to press and seat firmly and then be screwed tight holding that solid contact...
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Blocking the trem is a great idea. I have a very nice partscaster that uses a wine cork to block the tremolo.
I didn't think of it myself, but it works great !!!
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