Aymara

donny, play your guitar, don't smoke it ;-) Possible, yes. Fact is, both my Gretsch and my Gibson smell exactly the same though the lacquer is different ... my Epiphone doesn't smell at all.

And why then does my Gretsch Panther smell exactly the same as my Gibson Les Paul, though the LP is Nitro and the Panther is Urethane finished? Put it in the case for a whole day and the smell is back as before. So I still guess, it's the case.

Hi again! With standard gauges between .10-.11 I don't think so. With heavy gauges especially used for drop tuning ... maybe. Lower tension, easier bendings ;-) And the critic, that a raised tailpiece will reduce sustain and sound quality is nonsense. But a tailpiece with locking screws like the Tonepros can be a big improvement, which I learned after upgrading my Epi Tribute 1960's bridge and tailpiece. Since I got my Signature T I no longer believe this, but that's a different story and too off-topic here.

That's a very long video, Haph. But I saw something, that's worth some critique: One should never lower the tailpiece all the way down to the body. I discussed this last year with my master luthier and he recommended to adjust the tailpiece to the same angle than the bridge and to take care, that the string angle between bridge and tailpiece is not too extreme, which causes higher tension and the risk of string breakage by bendings even if the strings don't touch the bridge body, which can cause buzzing.

You're welcome ... nice to see, that this thread still is found and of help. I myself prefer an analog display for intonation checking. I use a Boss TU-12EX. But tastes are different ;-) Nice to see, you got it nicely setup. Regarding your fear about trussrod adjustments ... even that is no problem, if done properly: First of all never use more than a quarter turn at once. After every turn wait an hour, that the wood can settle and do a final check the next day. And most important: If the trussrod doesn't move or makes noise, visit a good guitar luthier or an experienced guitar tech!

Fact is, that the Silica bag in my Gibson case had a very extrem vanilla smell and the case itself still has that smell, but less intense after removing this bag. But I think, we can come to the conclusion, that it is not the lacquer causing the smell, but the Silica or the case itself.

Oh, Donny, you know how to confuse people ... a new user name again The strange thing is, that in my Epiphone case there were these small Silica packs, that didn't smell at all. So the Epiphone case and guitar don't smell at all. In my Gretsch case I found these too, but here the case smells like vanilla. And in my Gibson case I found a big Silica sack, about 10x10cm, that smelled like hell. After removing this large pack, the vanilla smell slowly vanishes. It's still there, but not as intense as before. Fact is, the smell is inside the case, it's definitely not the laquer as some people in different forums guessed.

I can tell you where that vanilla smell comes from. When I bought my SigT the whole case smelled like vanilla, even the guitar itself had that smell. The same with my Gretsch Panther, though the laquer is different. Well inside my Gibson case I found a bag of these salts to keep the humidity low ... and guess what ... yes, this bag caused the smell. And it was that intense, that the whole case smells like it. Keep the guitar out of the case a few days and the smell is gone. Put it back in the case a further few days and it comes back.

You're welcome ... I thought, some people might never have done it themselfes or it's so long ago, that they don't remember the details ... as it was in my case

Hi, I thought the following guide might be helpful for the not so technically experienced players and for those, who don't know a good (!) guitar tech: Les Paul Setup Guide ( <- click ) BTW ... it's also worth to read the comments below the article.