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Message 8660
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| Subject: | [RESOGUIT-L] An ans. to Ben Wooten's suggestion | | Date: | Wednesday, January 30, 2008 16:01:19 (+0000) | | From: | reso-man <reso-man @.......net>
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Hi Ben, and list,
Don't know why "reply" or "reply all" isn't working on this thing this morning,
duh, but Ben, YES, you can really mess things up by overtightning that screw!
The newer Quarterman or perhaps more accutately "Quarterman style" cones are
somewheres in the neighborhood of .011" thick. Or maybe I should say thin!
That's considerably less than your first string, Ben, so if you realize this, you
can see it doesn't take much to mess things up. That's why, unless you have some
idea of how these reso-guitars are put together, it's best to leave that screw
alone.......unless after checking the entire instrument for the source of buzzes
and rattles, and eliminating things like loose coverplate screws, worn out
strings, (my, and probably ***the*** most common problem,) then as a last resort,
yeah, I slowly "adjust" the screw in 1/4 turn increments. For me, slowly
tightening the screw till it just touches the spider, and then continuing in
those 1/4 turn increments, usually between another
1/4 and 1/2 turn will do it, **IF** the spider is level to the cone, and the
cone is level on it's support ring, etc. etc. A very common cause of rattles is
the tail piece barely touching the coverplate. I've put thin pieces of leather
under the tailpiece with good results. I remember a guitar once, with cheap
tuning machines, that I fixed a rattle by running a rubber band back & forth around the tuners, I think it was on the lower bass side of the guitar. Obviously I replaced the tuners with a decent set, and the problem was cured. Eliminate these type of rattles before you jump right on that cone tension screw is what I'm suggesting.
This sort of "tweaking" and knowledge is what you get when you buy a guitar
that's "set up" properly. Truse me, I just "mess around" with these things a
bit, and I'm only trying to share is what's worked for me in the past. If you
***really*** want your guitar to sound it's best.....send it to someone like
Beard, or Jr. Barber, who know these things inside and out.
What I've found helpful regarding the use of "magic marker" pens, is to put a
small dot, on both the spider leg, and the cone, and for me, I put this dot at
the bottom of the guitar, right under the tailpiece, and this guides me in
re-assembly to align the component pieces of the guitar the same way they were
when the guitar came apart.
Seems I remember in the past, some of the inexpensive "off shore" reso-guitars
having some kind of a tiny spring on the cone adjusting screw that was supposed
to keep it from turning on it's own. I forget what guitar I saw that on,
probably one of those "e-bay" things for a couple of hundred dollars, but I
remember I threw that spring away, along with the cone, the spider, etc.
It's my opinion, that most any guitar, can really sound decent, if the
components that make up it's resonator system are of good quality. You get what
you pay for! Later, when you get into the fancy tone woods, and inlays, and
finishes, gold hardware, etc. well, ya gotta remember, (for me) the most fun in
this crazy music is the field picking jam sessions at the festivals......where
it's usually raining anyways!!!
Hope this helps, so leave that screw alone, and stay dry........O;-)
Richie
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