Official Luthiers Forum!

Hi guys,

I'm not a luthier, just a an arm-chair modder. I have a question about neck relief and I came here to ask because I can't find a good answer on the regular guitar forms I've posted to.

My electric guitar (2010 Ibanez S series, made in Indonesia) has a marked difference in relief across the fretboard. There is a 0.010" difference in the 6th and 1st string (measured at the 9th fret). No matter how I adjust the truss rod, the bass strings are much more "relieved" than the treble. The guitar plays well with 0.012" relief and 2mm string height at the 24th fret.

My questions: Is this a problem? Will it get worse as time goes on? Should I bring it back to the dealer (still under warranty) and ask for a new neck?

-Thanks

Should be okay if the larger string is the one that is a little higher since it will have a greater size of rotation when plucked. It is common practice to allow a little more height as the strings get larger in gauge. But maybe you are referring to a possible defect in the neck. Can you clarify??

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Barron Wesley Guitars

How are you measuring the relief?

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John Thiessen
http://www.iszacguitars.com

If you are comparing the neck relief on the bass side to the treble side and are finding that the bass side has significantly more relief than the treble side, that is indicative of a twisted neck.

See if you can adjust the neck straight. If the treble side is straight while the bass side has relief still, or vise-versa, then the neck is twisted and I would take the guitar back, it will probably get worse over time.

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Old growth, shmold growth!