Radius gauges are a massively important tool for anyone setting up a guitar or bass. Eyeballing this subtle change is next to impossible. Free radius gauges sign up for a completely free set of printable radius gauges. I thought itd be useful to look at some of the other ways a radius gauge can be not just useful, but indispensable.
Go here i used an empty plastic ice cream tub to transfer gauge. In order to promote public education and public safety, equal justice for all, a better informed citizenry, the rule of law, world trade and world peace, this legal document is hereby made available on a noncommercial basis, as it is the right of all humans to know and speak the laws that govern them. If youre going to be doing this regularly, it might be worth buying a good set but my free, downloadable, radius gauges will definitely do the trick for a while. Radius gauges these gauges are very useful around a guitar builders shop. As promised in number 4, here are the instructions to make your own fret board radius gauges. Include 2 narrow radius gauges and 2 wide radius gauges. Thinner than the original so it slips easily between the string and the fretboard for easy measuring of the fretboard radius. Having the fingerboard and string radius match contributes to the best possible action adjustment for overall easy playability.
Use them to measure fret board radius, saddle radius nut radius accurately and check your work as you smooth or shape a fingerboard or frets. I had a need to check a fretboard radius after removing the strings. Check bottom of braces before gluing, check radius of your back or top after the braces are glued. A word of caution though many guitars are compound radius, which means theyre more curved at the nut and less curved where the neck meets the body so you cant measure at just one place. Set of 9 understring radius gauge for guitar and bass setup luthier tools. A radius gauge is used to compare the height of each string in respect to the radius of the fertboard. Sure the aesthetics are what may first catch ones eye, but in our experience it is the feel that gives a player that got to have it syndrome. Aug 30, 2017 hold the gauge with the band against the piece. Tools for measuring your fretboard radius pic heavy i wanted to measure some fretboard radii on my guitars and here is what i used.
Guitar radius gauges for measuring fingerboard and nutsaddle. At times we need to know the radius of our guitar neck and this site has a free download template with. Dan erlewine demos three different gauges used for guitar setup and fretwork. Guitar radius gauges how to use with free download. Included with each radius gauge that baileigh industrial sells is the variable arc attachment.
Guitar radius gauges for measuring fingerboard nut saddle radius set of 2. True historic 1959 les paul additional specifications. Grainger carries gono go plug gauges to help you measure hole sizes in machining operations. Guitars commonly have a compound radius, meaning the curvature changes from the nut to the end of the fingerboard.
Download either the postscript or pdf version of this paper and print it. Radius gauges for a beginner learning to do setups the gear. I show you how i go about adjusting a stratocaster style guitar bridge with a drill bit feeler gauge and a free radius gauge template. Apr 19, 2018 i show you how i go about adjusting a stratocaster style guitar bridge with a drill bit feeler gauge and a free radius gauge template. True historic 1959 les paul additional specifications unprecedented accuracy in vintage looks, feel, and tone the most desirable les paul ever captured with unprecedented accuracy for the 2015 true historic series, with wetsanded nitro finish, doublecarved and handsanded top and neck, rolled binding and more. From fretwork and refrets to action setup, pickups, saddles. These come in the most popular fingerboard radius and make it easy to measure the radius from either above or below the. I got my gauges from stewmac years ago and they no longer have the cheap ones i have. Notched radius gauges makes it easy to measure the fingerboard radius without removing the strings. These come in the most popular guitar fingerboard radii. Guitar setup and intonation guitar alliance guitar lessons. These metal radius gauges are the finest you will find on the market. If you change the gauge of strings that you use this can have an adverse effect on your intonation.
Use type a natural set plug gauge assemblies to verify and set adjustable threaded ring gages. You can click to open a new window and show the printable radius gauge pdf. Neck radius gauge instructions 1 print out on a card stock check the 1 block for accuracy. Next, youll need a radius gauge and you can find free ones online. Here is a free printable guitar action gauge i posted on my personal site for anyone who is looking to reset the action on their guitar or bass. Radius gauges are a highly underestimated tool for proper set ups. Radius gauges for a beginner learning to do setups. Fretboard radius explained weve found over the years that feel is what really draws a player to a certain guitar. Were going to do the intonation on your guitar, too. This also helps to promote proper technical development of the guitar player see under the string radius gauge below. Our knowledge base contains over 28,000 expertly written tech articles that will give you answers and help you get the most out of your gear. I only own one bass, and its a 200809 mim fender jazz so i can assume the radius is 7. Narrow is for measure fingerboard radius near the nut and the wide is for measuring the radius at the bridge end of the fingerboard. To optimize your guitar s playability, it is recommended that the string heights should match the radius of the fret board.
With the guitar strung up to pitch and held in the playing position, use your straightedge to evaluate relief. When youre setting up a guitar or bass, its great to. A simple tool to help you get your guitar playing its best. If you do any guitar work, you need a set to measure the fingerboard radius and set the radius of the bridge. To achieve a perfect fit, the thalia capo comes with multiple interchangable fretpads so that you can match the fretboard radius of your specific instrument. Sep 26, 2017 i thought itd be useful to look at some of the other ways a radius gauge can be not just useful, but indispensable. The following table lists common fretboard radii used by major manufacturer. A heavier gauge of string will put more pressure on the neck of the guitar while a lighter gauge will put less stress on the neck.
There a couple of main uses for the radius gauges the first one is for checking the and adjusting the radius of the fretboard during the guitar construction, where we hold the radius gauge against the fretboard and look for spaces or bumps in order to eventually match the desired radius. Measuring the radius of the fingerboard and comparing it to the radius of the bridge saddle. Details about guitar radius gauges for measuring fingerboard and nutsaddle radius. Guitar radius gauges how to use with free download slideshare. Remove or loosen the strings and use your radius gauge on the fingerboard. Understring radius gauge wide for guitar and bass setup. Print them, cut them out, and youve got one of the handiest tools in your guitar or bass setup toolkit. To optimize your guitars playability, it is recommended that the string heights should match the radius of. Used together with either the inside radius gauge or the outside radius gauge, the variable arc will allow the user to transfer any arc to another medium easily by tracing along the variablearc. Free radius gauges and their many uses haze guitars. Guitar radius gauges for measuring fingerboard and nutsaddle radius. Free printable radius gauges the acoustic guitar forum. Understring radius gauge for guitar and bass setup. Set of 4 notched radius gauge guitar gauges measures radius with strings on.
If you own a guitar with saddles that allow for individual string height adjustment. How to adjust a guitar bridge with diy radius gauges youtube. And asking for donations for gofundme and such are generally frowned upon here no matter how dire the need. Radius gauges should form part of the toolkit of any guitar setterupper. Buy dreamtop set of 9 guitar radius gauge understring radius gauge string gauges luthier tools for guitar and bass setup. Use the top radius of this gauge to determine the proper height adjustment for the bridge saddles. Once you have your printable radius gauge for your guitar neck on a piece of paper. Check in a few different positions along the neck to make sure your neck is the same radius or that it compoundschanges radius consistently. Or you can simply go to fenders website and look up the specs on your guitar. Inside radius gauge radius measurement tool baileigh. In order to promote public education and public safety, equal justice for all, a better informed citizenry, the rule of law, world trade and world peace, this legal document is hereby made available on a noncommercial basis, as it is the right of all humans to.
Obtain accurate measurements of your instruments fretboard radius using the bottom radius of the gauge. If you wish to use it on your own site, please contact guitarhack and we will try to assist you. Guitar radius gauges quickly find the curvature of a fingerboard or bridge with the set of radius gauges. A setup guide im reading suggests you cut out a set of radius gauges from plastic using a template. Its used for bridge types that adjusts every string independently like fender strat tremolos. This can change the natural bow of the neck causing a change in string length. Tools for measuring your fretboard radius pic heavy. Also use them for profiling an acoustic bridge saddle and setting the string heights on an electric guitar bridge. The bottom radius can also be used to set pickup polepiece height to the string radius. Another great product from toolu luthier supplies in the uk. Unless the gauge happens to already be set to the correct size, the contact will show a gap as described with the bladetype gauges.
A set of radius gauges should form part of the toolkit of anyone doing any sort of guitar setup. To optimize your guitars playability, it is recommended that the string heights should match the radius of the fret board. Setting string height as described above will roughly match neck radius. Wider for 78 string guitars and 56 string bass guitars.
The second time we us the radius gauge is when setting up the guitar with the string on it. Of course, i would bet that not all 10 inch radius necks are exactly 10. Guitar diy how to use radius gauges electric guitar. I didnt have the need for a set of metal radius gauges and for quickie onetime use i made these accurate templates. The adjustment for this lies with the truss rod, which leads us to the. I also put a quick description of what youre trying to do and you can also look up videos on youtube for more assistance or leave me questions in the comments below. I used the stew mac understring radius gauge to adjust the. I picked up a set of steel under string radius gauges from stew mac a few years ago they allow you to measure the fretboard radius with the strings on as well as adjust the saddle heights to match that radius. Jawtype gauges use a flexible band with either a convex or concave curve. This is a tool used for evening the string heights with the curve radius of your fretboard.
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