Robert Manning Posted March 28 Share Posted March 28 So I got this last week from BassBros. the truss rod appeared to be maxed out as I couldn’t get it straight after a few turns - so without wanting to break it - I took it to my local tech. he popped a washer in the give it some more adjustment travel. And it’s done the job. The neck is now almost as straight as an arrow (my preference) and all is well. It adjust as expected. I did notice however, the bullet nut is now quite a lot closer inside the neck. should I be worried? Will it explode? I have the before and after photos. I’m worried that it’s like compressed into the neck wood or something but I’m no expert. Even though it plays perfectly there’s a niggling feeling of doubt in my mind that something is not as it’s supposed to be. But it’s my first bass with this type of truss rod so I wondered if anyone else came across something like that? thanks guys!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ossyrocks Posted March 29 Share Posted March 29 I'm no expert, but if the rod hasn't broken and the neck isn't cracked then you're probably ok. I have the exact same bass too, also from 2003. I got mine a couple of months ago from @walshy of the Vintage Bass Room. They are lovely. Congrats. Rob 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gary mac Posted March 29 Share Posted March 29 I wouldn't worry, the washer has done the trick but as a consequence the nut doesn't wind in as far. Exactly what I would expect. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean-Luc Pickguard Posted March 29 Share Posted March 29 I have no particular expertise in this area, however I would be wary of a neck where the end of the truss rod is sunk in like that. My limited understanding of what might be happening makes me wonder whether there is an issue with the anchor at the other end, such as the wood holding it compressing under the tension. It might be perfectly okay, but it would irk me if it was on one of my guitars or basses. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert Manning Posted March 29 Author Share Posted March 29 Thanks for the replies guys. Appreciated. im going to think about it for a couple days. Although it plays perfectly and the truss rod works - there’s a small seed of doubt. Which is probably silly but it’s one of those things that I’ll be thinking about every time I play it. So I may potentially send it back for an exchange. Thanks for entertaining my thinking-out-loud on the internet woes. 😅 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gary mac Posted March 29 Share Posted March 29 If you’re happy with the amount of relief in the neck now, take a measurement and then check it over a few days. If it doesn’t move, then happy days , stop worrying and enjoy 👍 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ikay Posted March 30 Share Posted March 30 Looks a bit odd to me. When a trussrod is maxed out the nut sinks deeper into the hole so the original pic does't really look maxed out. When you add washers it shouldn't sink even further in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supernaut Posted March 30 Share Posted March 30 On 29/03/2024 at 21:12, Robert Manning said: Thanks for the replies guys. Appreciated. im going to think about it for a couple days. Although it plays perfectly and the truss rod works - there’s a small seed of doubt. Which is probably silly but it’s one of those things that I’ll be thinking about every time I play it. So I may potentially send it back for an exchange. Thanks for entertaining my thinking-out-loud on the internet woes. 😅 The bass plays and sounds great but because of a non-existent problem, you want to send the bass back? Okay... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert Manning Posted March 31 Author Share Posted March 31 58 minutes ago, Supernaut said: The bass plays and sounds great but because of a non-existent problem, you want to send the bass back? Okay... yeah I know. It does sound silly; but it was £1.4K, so quite a significant chunk of change - getting an instrument I think is a bit of an emotional thing in a way. When the honeymoon period is marred with doubt about the truss rod nut not behaving as expected - which may seem trivial, but it’s the kinda thing that sits in the back of you’re head and it kinda spoils it. Yano that's just me though I guess. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aidan63 Posted March 31 Share Posted March 31 But you have had work done on it after buying it ? Was this approved by the vendor, or done by the vendor ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert Manning Posted March 31 Author Share Posted March 31 8 minutes ago, Aidan63 said: But you have had work done on it after buying it ? Was this approved by the vendor, or done by the vendor ? Yeah I let BB’s know that I took it to a tech. Been keeping them updated. Cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ped Posted March 31 Share Posted March 31 On 30/03/2024 at 07:51, ikay said: Looks a bit odd to me. When a trussrod is maxed out the nut sinks deeper into the hole so the original pic does't really look maxed out. When you add washers it shouldn't sink even further in. I think it was tightened all the way but not doing enough work, so with a nut added and more tightening it’s now engaging and flattening the neck, so the bullet is sunk in because now it tightens more than before. Seems logical and fine to me, if everything now seems stable and flat I’d be more than happy. I’ve had bullet truss rods where nearly the whole bullet is hidden (I like super flat necks) and never thought twice about it, although I always quite liked the look of being able to see more of the bullet itself. I’m always wary when buying any instrument because I know deep down that it’s normally going to need some adjustment to suit me, and I never know whether the bass will support said adjustments well enough until you’ve had it for a few days. As a result a honeymoon period is often spoilt and the real fun begins when you find that yes the action does go low enough and yes the frets are level and there’s no ski jump. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snorkie635 Posted March 31 Share Posted March 31 Don't know if this helps your making a decision Robert, but here's a photo of my '75 AVRI bullet - the neck is arrow straight with this much of the bullet showing. Good luck. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reggaebass Posted March 31 Share Posted March 31 9 hours ago, Robert Manning said: yeah I know. It does sound silly I don’t think it’s silly at all, I’d be the same , I’m no expert but if the truss rod is at its maximum and the neck is straight then what happens if you wanted to try something like labella jamerson flats which are high tension, there would be no more adjustment, I play with a really low action and I’m guessing that wouldn’t work, you also have to think about if you sold it on in the future, just my thoughts 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ikay Posted March 31 Share Posted March 31 (edited) This cross section of a Fender bullet trussrod might help with understanding what's going on here. When it's properly seated and functioning correctly, the amount of 'bullet' nut protruding from the hole should always remain the same. Tightening the nut should apply tension to the rod and straighten the neck, but the nut itself shouldn't sink further into the hole when you tighten it (it just remains seated on the washer at the base). Typically about half of the nut should be visible. A bullet nut is 1" long, so about 1/2" should be showing, give or take a bit. However, the area at the base of the nut, where the washer sits on a thin shoulder of wood, can be a weak point with tension trussrods of this type. Sometimes (particularly when being overtightened) the nut/washer can chew its way into the wood and sink further into the hole. That's the main area of concern here. The nut in the 'after' pic in the first post does seem to be quite deep in the hole, which could indicate that it's started to chew its way into the neck. Most necks can tolerate a little bit of movement, but if it sinks too far into the neck, then the fretboard near the nut can buckle or crack. The block inlays on 70s basses, being cut into the fretboard, further weaken the wood in this area and exacerbate the problem. It may or may not be what's happening with this particular bass, but a deep set bullet is a common symptom of the problem (or an impending problem down the line). Edited March 31 by ikay 3 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snorkie635 Posted April 1 Share Posted April 1 It seems that this very bass is now back up for sale on the BB website, unless they forgot to remove it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert Manning Posted April 1 Author Share Posted April 1 @ikay @ped Thank you for taking time to share you’re experience and knowledge- highly appreciated! the cross section of the neck is really informative. and thank you @snorkie635 for sharing the image of your 75AVRI I’ve kept Will informed and decided to exchange for something a bit more modern. I think the Shopify system they use has auto populated the page again so I’ll let him know that it’s come back. Thanks for the heads up. bassbros been great tho, so even it’s sad the 75 didn’t work out, the experience dealing with them has been positive. This is the 3rd bass I got from them the last two also came with great service. Again thanks guys! 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mowf Posted April 2 Share Posted April 2 On 31/03/2024 at 21:41, ikay said: This cross section of a Fender bullet trussrod might help with understanding what's going on here. When it's properly seated and functioning correctly, the amount of 'bullet' nut protruding from the hole should always remain the same. Tightening the nut should apply tension to the rod and straighten the neck, but the nut itself shouldn't sink further into the hole when you tighten it (it just remains seated on the washer at the base). Typically about half of the nut should be visible. A bullet nut is 1" long, so about 1/2" should be showing, give or take a bit. However, the area at the base of the nut, where the washer sits on a thin shoulder of wood, can be a weak point with tension trussrods of this type. Sometimes (particularly when being overtightened) the nut/washer can chew its way into the wood and sink further into the hole. That's the main area of concern here. The nut in the 'after' pic in the first post does seem to be quite deep in the hole, which could indicate that it's started to chew its way into the neck. Most necks can tolerate a little bit of movement, but if it sinks too far into the neck, then the fretboard near the nut can buckle or crack. The block inlays on 70s basses, being cut into the fretboard, further weaken the wood in this area and exacerbate the problem. It may or may not be what's happening with this particular bass, but a deep set bullet is a common symptom of the problem (or an impending problem down the line). That is EXACTLY what happened to my '78 Jazz, in fact I've got a very similar photo somewhere except on mine the block inlay had cracked as well. Jon Shuker did an amazing job of repairing it but I'd lost confidence in it and moved it on soon after. A shame because it was an amazing sounding bass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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