davedadude Posted December 6, 2013 Share Posted December 6, 2013 Hello my fellow epiphonains, About a month ago i found an ad for a G-400 (1966 reissue) locally on craigslist. The kid was asking 90 dollars because the headstock had broken and was repaired. And he stated that he could not get the frets to stop buzzing etc..I ended up trading him a boss ds-1 distortion pedal for it. I got it home and found that the headstock repair was done right, The action was very high. But, the finish on body and stuff is still very good Not beat up at all except where the repair was done. i planned on fixing it as good as i can and flip it to guy across the street from me So, after messing with the truss rod and bridge, I have the action very low and, the guitar plays very nice. so, i decided not to flip it to neghibor lol. I really like this guitar. Anywhoo, Today is day i strip the strings off and start on setting it up properly and fixing little glitches in the electronics and stuff. I have looked around for factory specs for setup and, cannot find any. I just need to know what the gap should be between 1st fret and underside of the hi and low E strings. Also, Stock neck relief specs And, proper string height (Action) The repaired section of the neck could use little filler where the missing micro splinters of wood go but i will deal with that later. Thanks for any help anyone can do for me And, if Ya want pictures, I will send a couple. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vomer Posted December 6, 2013 Share Posted December 6, 2013 I don't know about factory specs, and my own personal answer would be 'it depends'. It depends on how hard you hit the strings, what string gauge you use, whether you do big bends (not such an issue on Epi/Gibson radius necks), and to a lesser extent, though it pays to be careful, do you downtune. Dan Erlewine's suggestion for nut height over the first fret on the top E and B is 0.005-10", then raise each one by around 0.002". For relief, I tend to aim for about the same, 0.005-10", measured at the eigth fret while holding down the 1st and 17th. YMMV. Some people like straight necks. My main strat feels too 'tight' if there is no relief. Other guitars may not do this. The main thing I'm looking for in relief is to get the top few frets (nut end) buzz free when the action is as low as I want it at the other end. String height? However you like it. Factory specs are only a guideline. It sounds like you know enough to have been able to set her up to your satisfaction. If you've got the action low and the guitar plays well, it sounds like you're there, why mess with it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davedadude Posted December 6, 2013 Author Share Posted December 6, 2013 Thank you for the response Vomer i learned to do my own setups few years ago And, still have bit to learn. The main thing is, The nut. It was re-glued on and, for some reason does not look right. Looks like it is not evenly centered on headstock And, The high E (1st) side is lower than the low E (6th) I can see small gap between the low E and top of 1st fret But, practically no gap from top of 1st fret to high E string. Looking from bottom of guitar body down the neck flat to the nut, It looks like the nut angles downward as it travels from low E string to the high E string. Is it suppose to look like that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gunner Posted December 6, 2013 Share Posted December 6, 2013 If there is no buzz when picking open strings, the nut is not cut too low. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whitmore Willy Posted December 7, 2013 Share Posted December 7, 2013 Davedadude, You've gotten some good info so far. Just to add a bit.... About a year ago I wrote a post with a few links on setup tips. The first part discusses neck relief and basic setup link. However... If you move further down the post I include the three methods for checking nut slot depth. Hope some of the info is of interest: http://forum.gibson.com/index.php?/topic/96629-dot-action-recommended-measurements-for-nut-height-and-relief/page__p__1311613#entry1311613 Best of luck, Willy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davedadude Posted December 7, 2013 Author Share Posted December 7, 2013 Thanks Evrybody For the helpful posts I checked out Willy's links and They are a big help to me. After a goodnights sleep And while sipping my morning coffee, I had another look at the nut And, found that it is positioned correctly in place. (Tho, looks like the guy overdid it a little on the glue lol) With the help i have recieved on here, I think i will get her right once again. I have one last question tho Then i will be done pestering. On the side of fretboard just below the 1st fret, There is a small piece missing. About the size of a BB mabye slightly bigger It does extend to top of the fretboard ever so slightly. What would be the trick to filling it in? Thanks again And that will be all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vomer Posted December 7, 2013 Share Posted December 7, 2013 There is a small piece missing. About the size of a BB mabye slightly bigger Dave, could you post a pic? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davedadude Posted December 8, 2013 Author Share Posted December 8, 2013 I am cleaning up the body and neck right now as i sip my coffee Then i will take couple pics and, post them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whitmore Willy Posted December 8, 2013 Share Posted December 8, 2013 I am cleaning up the body and neck right now as i sip my coffee Then i will take couple pics and, post them. Dave, Make sure one of them is of the neck damage. Willy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gordy01 Posted December 8, 2013 Share Posted December 8, 2013 There are basically 3 methods of filling a small dent, or hole in a fretboard. I am assuming NO binding. 1. This is the best way, but may not be necessary if the imperfection is very small. Carefully cut a small section of the board out, cut a small piece to fill it in, and glue the new piece in. File and sand the repair until the lines are gone. 2. Make a "Slurry" of epoxy and sawdust and fill in the hole. Always test your mix on a practice board. 3. Do the same with wood glue. Wood glue is not the best for this. Superglue can be used as it dries very hard, but it tends to dry darker than the sawdust was originally, so color matching is a bit difficult. If the hole is in the side of the fretboard and is very small, a small drop of superglue may just fill it in and you won't need sawdust. BUT, it will be slightly darker in color. Oiling the fretboard afterward may come close to matching it up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davedadude Posted December 9, 2013 Author Share Posted December 9, 2013 I have tried to upload pictures But, the site says they are too big And, i cannot seem to get into my photobucket account (have not been there in so long I think i forgot my password) But, I will keep trying. And, Thanks gordy for the tip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davedadude Posted December 9, 2013 Author Share Posted December 9, 2013 Ahhh Forget it...This photobucket has me sooo fustrated..And, i cannot re-up cos i only use 1 email provider and it keeps saying that it is being used by another member YEA....ME! lol..Is there any other photo sharing sites That i can use? Or, Any other way to get my pics posted? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gunner Posted December 9, 2013 Share Posted December 9, 2013 Try Image Shack. I agree the photo sharing sites are frustrating. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davedadude Posted December 9, 2013 Author Share Posted December 9, 2013 http://imageshack.com/a/img593/5811/zuwt.jpg http://imageshack.com/a/img826/3082/v171.jpg http://imageshack.com/a/img11/6075/wuhs.jpg http://imageshack.com/a/img13/8725/u9ff.jpg Ok...Thanks Gunner...Lets see if this works. if so, I will send pics of the whole guitar when i am done fixing it. I found the hi e side of frets 1 and 2 are damaged from the clamp jaws ( I did not do the headstock repair ) i will deal with it when i get to it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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