Need help from Luthier with floating trem knowledge

Tahoebrian5

Tahoebrian5

Fractal Fanatic
Hey all, I have an issue with my Friedman Cali that I am trying to determine best fix for. The high E string is too close to the edge of fretboard.. almost like the neck was slightly out of center (see pic below).

these guitars have pins in the neck pocket so I think trying to adjust the neck is not ideal

I am considering filing down the string holder block in the trem assembly.

Looking for advice on this or an alternate concept.
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Tahoebrian5 said:
The high E string is too close to the edge of fretboard.. almost like the neck was slightly out of center (see pic below).
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The neck is out of alignment toward the right so the headstock probably got hit from the left side.

I'd try loosening the strings then the neck screws and giving the headstock a little tap on its right side then comparing the strings over the ends of the last fret, and if that didn't do any good I'd take it to my guitar tech and let him ask me "Greg… WTF did you do?"

Paging @Andy Eagle….
 
I think I saw this a few weeks ago on some luthier channel. IIRC, the cause was bad spacing in the nut. May need a new one or repositioning.

I've slid off on one guitar, but it just needed some muscle memory adjustment to solve it forever. Yours does seem too close...
 
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Tahoebrian5 said:
Hey all, I have an issue with my Friedman Cali that I am trying to determine best fix for. The high E string is too close to the edge of fretboard.. almost like the neck was slightly out of center (see pic below).

these guitars have pins in the neck pocket so I think trying to adjust the neck is not ideal

I am considering filing down the string holder block in the trem assembly.

Looking for advice on this or an alternate concept.
View attachment 111641
Click to expand...

I am considering filing down the string holder block in the trem assembly.

This is exactly would I would do. I put myself in asterix's because I have no patience these days.

I have experienced so much nonsense from people that I have taken to relying totally on myself ( I should also point out, I don't make much money ) I'd get a file, go to the saddle and file a slot for the little E to sit properly, I'd also look at where the neck meets the body and muscle the neck up and down to check for the slightest hint of play, if I felt any, I'd then look for the skinniest shim to wedge in there to correct things.

Although this just a cheapo Yamaha Pacifica, I had to do these modifications myself to make things work.

1) the David Gilmour noiseless EMG's sound absolutely beautiful. There happened to be a handyman working in our building who had a dremel, I borrowed it and made a damn mess to make room for the battery required for the pickups.

2) the bridge cost a mere $35 and is thoroughly superior to the thin junk that came with the guitar, I borrowed the dremel again and carved out some space for the nice big tremolo block to go down.

This guitar with these pickups now sounds incredible. It has zero resale value, yours being a Friedman does, I'd send this back to be honest. I'm guessing you paid quite a bit for this thing and this is what you ended up with? Unacceptable.
 

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Do NOT take a file to the bridge to try to fix this issue. I guarantee it isn't a machining issue with the bridge, but a fitment issue with the neck. You'd only be creating another problem with that approach. Adjust the neck in the pocket and be on your merry way.
 
Musikron said:
Do NOT take a file to the bridge to try to fix this issue.
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This. Filing new slots into the bridge to shift the strings off of their natural path is likely to cause string wear, pitch stability problems, and more. Besides, the results will be ugly.

Musikron said:
I guarantee it isn't a machining issue with the bridge, but a fitment issue with the neck.
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Or a placement issue with the nut or bridge. I’ve seen all three of these things.

Musikron said:
You'd only be creating another problem with that approach.
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+1.

Musikron said:
Adjust the neck in the pocket and be on your merry way.
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That’s the quick fix, if neck fitment is the problem. But it may not be a stable fix. In that case, the permanent fix usually involves shims and/or reshaping the pocket. You can experiment with shims, if you’re reasonably comfortable working with tools. Reshaping the pocket can be complicated. But with your Friedman, those dowels in the neck pocket are a further complication. It’s unlikely that your neck shifted in the pocket without breaking the dowels. It would take a major impact to do that. If neck fitment is the problem, it likely happened at the factory.


Your first step is to get an experienced eye on the guitar to determine which of the three causes mentioned above (or which combination of those) is the real problem. Then you can develop a plan.
 
Okay lots of good advice. I’m hesitant to send it back due to shipping costs and had it over a year so not sure if it’s still under warranty.

I think it is worth while to loosen the neck and take a look if it can be shifted. I’m not sure how the neck pocket pins work but a least worth a look.

my filing idea was not to redo the string slot, this is a Floyd rose so it ias individual blocks for each string. I was considering filing down the side of the high e string block to allow it to shift. This would also require to file the inner portion where the setscrew is located.
 
Tahoebrian5 said:
Okay lots of good advice. I’m hesitant to send it back due to shipping costs and had it over a year so not sure if it’s still under warranty.

I think it is worth while to loosen the neck and take a look if it can be shifted. I’m not sure how the neck pocket pins work but a least worth a look.

my filing idea was not to redo the string slot, this is a Floyd rose so it ias individual blocks for each string. I was considering filing down the side of the high e string block to allow it to shift. This would also require to file the inner portion where the setscrew is located.
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First of all, kudos for thinking outside the box and trying to find a solution. Filing the saddle to get the string to shift could seem to visually bring it back into alignment, but the string spacing would be altered. May not seem like a big deal, but changing the string spacing on just one string can throw off the playability of the guitar.

As has been suggested, the neck is out of alignment. I'm not familiar with Friedman guitars and how they pin their necks, but there should be enough room for the little adjustment yours needs. Before doing any work though, it wouldn't hurt to reach out to them and see what their service is like.
 
This looks like a string spacing issue on the bridge from the top pic, you can see how the strings start to lose their spacing from the A string on using the pickup and neck edge as a reference.
 
Tahoebrian5 said:
Okay lots of good advice. I’m hesitant to send it back due to shipping costs and had it over a year so not sure if it’s still under warranty.

I think it is worth while to loosen the neck and take a look if it can be shifted. I’m not sure how the neck pocket pins work but a least worth a look.

my filing idea was not to redo the string slot, this is a Floyd rose so it ias individual blocks for each string. I was considering filing down the side of the high e string block to allow it to shift. This would also require to file the inner portion where the setscrew is located.
Click to expand...
S&H should be handled by the mfr as part of the RMA. If not then it’ll still be cheaper than the fix for the domino effect of problems from you trying to fix it yourself.
 
Sixstring said:
This looks like a string spacing issue on the bridge from the top pic, you can see how the strings start to lose their spacing from the A string on using the pickup and neck edge as a reference.
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This but to me it looks like an improperly cut or set nut Or a combination of both (If the neck isn’t misaligned).
 
USMC_Trev said:
This but to me it looks like an improperly cut or set nut Or a combination of both (If the neck isn’t misaligned).
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True! but an improperly set nut would be pretty obvious especially if it's a locking nut which is what is on this guitar if I'm not mistaking as it would be hanging off of the neck to one side. It's really hard to tell as we cant see the whole neck in the pic.

After I posted I also realized that the neck pickup is not F spaced. Another thing to consider as hard as it would be to believe is the bridge posts could have been placed in the wrong spot on the body. If you look at the very end of the neck where the strings cross over, all of the strings are moved to the right. Again we cannot see the whole neck to look at the strings how they track all the way down the neck but using this as a reference it would appear like a bridge problem.

All speculation of course the first thing to be done is to find out if the neck is set in the pocket correctly. Time for the OP to break out some frog tape and a ruler and do some investigating.
 
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