Guitar of the week #77 - Jackson Pro Series Rhoads RRT-3

Wed 2016 Sep 28

The best looking V style guitar ever to exist? Yes.

Take the Jackson Pro Series Rhoads RRT-3 model; it's priced below that of a Fender American Standard Stratocaster.

I don't claim for one second that this guitar has the best sound, the best action, the best vibrato system or the best stability...

...but it is the best looking V guitar ever made.

The interesting thing about this particular look is that on any other guitar it would look terrible. White + black pinstripe + gold hardware doesn't work on any guitar except this one. I can't even tell you why it works other than it just does.

Some guitars are very age-specific. For example, a big hollow body electric like the Gretsch G2420 looks stupid in the hands on a teenager the same as any Ibanez JEM looks stupid in the hands of old guys...

...but for some strange reason, this Rhoads V dressed up as seen above escapes being tied to a specific age group.

Would I ever own one? If I had the disposable cash to spend on it, yes I would. It's just a cool guitar with a rock-and-roll attitude dressed up in a tuxedo. A weird combo, to be sure, but again, the look just works.

Also, on a final note, I have owned a Rhoads style V shape guitar before, and it is without question the best-balanced out of all the V shapes. It's lightweight and there is no neck dive. That's as good as it gets with a V shape guitar.

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What is the right way to adjust a truss rod at the heel?

Mon 2016 Sep 26

This is not that big of a deal once you know how to do it.

I recently performed a truss rod adjustment on my Yamaha RBX170 electric bass, which does have the truss rod adjustment hole at the heel. However, I'm going to explain one step beyond that for Fender guitars, such as the Fender '60s Jaguar, where the neck physically comes off the body in order to adjust neck relief.

Which way does what?

Assuming a right-handed instrument in the seated position, a clockwise turn a.k.a. "turning right" a.k.a. "turning down" tightens the truss rod.

Assuming a right-handed instrument in the seated position, a counterclockwise turn a.k.a. "turning left" a.k.a. "turning up" loosens the truss rod.

On the RBX170 bass, the neck is not required to be removed to adjust relief. Yamaha put a slot at the heel that can fit a wrench in there to make adjustments.

If holding a right-handed RBX170 bass in the seated position, "turning down" is a clockwise turn, which tightens the truss rod and would bring the strings closer to the fretboard. "Turning up" is a counterclockwise turn that would loosen the truss rod and would bring the strings away from the fretboard. Easy enough to understand.

How to adjust a vintage style Fender truss rod

This style of truss rod adjustment, be it on a vintage style Stratocaster, Telecaster, Jazzmaster, Jaguar, Precision Bass or Jazz Bass freaks people out because the neck has to come off in order to make a truss rod adjustment.

There's no reason to freak out, but I do admit it is a tedious process.

This is the process:

Step 1. Loosen the strings.

How much should you loosen? To the point where almost all tension is lost where the strings are about to come off the tuning posts. I'll explain why in a moment.

Step 2. Put a capo on the first fret.

You have to do this. If you don't, your strings are going to come right out of the nut and possibly scratch up your neck once you move it out of the neck pocket.

Step 3. (Assuming a 4-bolt neck plate) Loosen the two screws furthest away from the headstock almost all the way out.

By "almost" mean about 80% of the way out.

Step 4. (Assuming a 4-bolt neck plate) Loosen the two screws closest to the headstock between 1/3 and 1/2 of the way out.

These two screws don't need to come out as far. Just enough so we can do the "scary" part next.

Step 5. Tilt the neck out of the neck pocket.

This is the part that freaks people out.

I recommend loosening the strings and then putting a capo on the 1st fret. I also recommend loosening the screws more than you would for a bass. I doubt what works for a Fender bass would provide enough tilt to fully expose the adjustment screw for adjustment on a 6-string guitar.

It's at this point where you realize why I said to loosen the strings. On a 6-string guitar, when you tilt the neck out of the pocket, if your strings are still at pitch you won't get enough tilt angle to get to the adjustment screw. When the strings are loosened, you do.

What I do agree with however is that you do not have to remove the strings nor the entire neck off the body just to make a relief adjustment. You can keep the strings on and the neck semi-installed in the pocket and still get the job done.

The thing to know about taking a neck out of the pocket for relief adjustment is that there really is no civilized way to do it. Once the screws are loosened, you do have to push to get that neck out of the pocket where "putting a little English on it" is required. The first time you do it, you will probably freak out a little because you are physically taking apart the guitar.

Step 6. Adjust relief.

Again, clockwise a.k.a. "turning right" will tighten the rod and bring the strings closer to the fretboard, and counterclockwise a.k.a. "turning left" will bring the strings away from the fretboard.

There's no way to know if you have adjusted the relief correctly or not until you get the neck installed again and all strings tuned to pitch at which point you can test relief distance. This means yes, you will have to guess how much adjust.

Step 6a. How much should you turn?

The general advice is to give a 1/8 turn. A 1/4 turn is only necessary if you've got some major string buzz issues going on even with the string saddles set correctly, or if the strings sit really high off the fretboard even with properly set string saddles.

Obviously, you need to check the relief before you take off the neck.

Quick-and-dirty method to check relief: Tune your strings to pitch. Put a capo on the 1st fret. Hold the last fret with your picking hand. Tap the 6 string at the 12th fret. Listen for a tapping/clicking sound, and examine how much room there is between the string and the fret. If there is no tapping/clicking sound and the string is resting flush on the fret, the truss rod needs loosening to bring the strings away from the fretboard. If there is a ton of room, the truss rod needs tightening to bring the strings closer to the fretboard. Optimal spacing is generally considered to be about the thickness of a credit card or American quarter coin.

Step 7. Reattach the neck.

Self-explanatory.

Step 8. Remove the capo and tighten strings to pitch.

Self-explanatory.

Step 9. Wait.

I give the neck 24 hours to settle after making an adjustment before attempting another adjustment if need be.

Why do I do this? Because I have made the mistake before of making a truss rod adjustment, checking relief, adjusting again, being satisfied with the relief only to find it not set right when I check it the next day. In that instance, what happened is that the wood settled over the night and the relief changed slightly from where I had it set.

On a Fender neck with vintage style heel adjust for the truss rod, believe me, it is worth it to give the neck wood time to settle else you'll have to take the neck off again for another adjustment.

How often are truss rod adjustments necessary on a Fender maple neck?

If you don't bounce around with different string size sets, and neither the ambient temperature nor the RH (relative humidity) level changes drastically, you should not have to adjust the neck relief that often.

For those of you who gig, yes you will have to adjust neck relief more often. But if the guitar stays mainly at home, I seriously doubt you would have to adjust neck relief more than just a few times per year, if that.

Remember, hard maple is an excellent neck wood. Once you have the relief set to your liking, it will stay put and you shouldn't have to be constantly adjusting it.

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Guitar of the week #76 - Gibson SG Special T

Wed 2016 Sep 21

Ordinarily I don't feature two same-brand guitars in a row, but I had a good reason to feature this one.

In my article all about nitro finishes, I talked about satin urethane and mentioned that Gibson has a few guitars in that particular finish. The 2017 Gibson USA SG Special T is one of them.

Where satin finishes on the body are concerned, I admit that Gibson really knows how to do it right - and do it at a reasonable price for a USA model as you'll see on the link.

The satin finish is naturally not a high gloss but a duller, diffused gloss. But in the way Gibson does it, it works. I personally think the "Vintage Sunburst" is the best of the three (the other two are Cherry and Ebony).

This SG guitar is a really nice blend of vintage designs in a modern instrument. The entire guitar has a very cool look, almost like something you'd see in a guitar store in the early 1960s.

Does the guitar look better than the more expensive Gibson USA SG Standard with its nitro finish? To that I say there's only one thing I like better about the Standard, and that's the trapezoid neck inlays. The Special T uses blocks.

Do I mind the blocks? Not at all, but I totally admit I'm a sucker for trapezoid inlays on Gibson Les Paul and SG guitars.

However, I will say the Special T is the much better buy. You're getting a kickass guitar with the SlimTaper neck profile (typical for SG models), it totally has the right vintage look on a modern axe and it's actually more gig-ready than the Standard would be. Why? Because the satin finish can take far more punishment than nitro can and cleaning a satin finish is stupidly easy.

I do sincerely appreciate the fact the SG Special T purposely looks different from other SG models. The white pick guard treatment, gold knobs and nickel hardware all just work so well. This is a cool guitar.

And once again, the price is right here. For a USA-made Gibson, this is pretty darned good.

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Everything you ever wanted to know about nitro guitar finishes

Mon 2016 Sep 19

It's time to talk about this. At length.

This is a subject I've been avoiding because you can't talk about nitrocellulose lacquer finish without talking about "relic'ing", so I'm going to cover both those topics.

An example of modern relic'ing is the "Heavy Relic" Fender Custom Shop Stratocaster, should you need a reference.

Nitro vs. Polyurethane vs. Polyester

The toughest, most durable finish on modern mass-produced electric guitars is polyester, as that finish can basically handle almost anything you can throw at it. The Fender Standard Stratocaster does use a polyester finish on the guitar body.

Polyurethane (often stated as just urethane) is what originally replaced nitro. The best advantage of it is that is requires fewer coats than nitro to seal properly and is more glossy in look. You can truly get an amazing mirror-like shine out of polyurethane. This finish is what's used on the Fender American Standard Stratocaster body. Also bear in mind there is satin urethane, which I'll talk about in a moment.

Nitrocellulose lacquer is the oldest finish of the three and also the worst. It wears out the quickest, feels the worst when touched and it's difficult to clean. But it does have a few special things about it that some consider very desirable, and I'll get to that in a minute.

You mostly see satin urethane used as a neck coating. In that application, it feels the best but looks the worst. And by worst, I mean plain and boring. In the hand, you can play a satin urethane coated neck for hours easily and feel little to no skin irritation, but the drawback is the "milky" appearance of the finish. You're just not going to get a super-glossy look out of satin urethane no matter what. Even if the neck is painted, you're always going to have that milky/dulled look and that's just the way it is.

Satin urethane coatings when used as a body finish (Fender/Squier doesn't do this but Gibson/Epiphone does on lower-cost models) has the same result as when applied to a neck. You get a look that is duller than gloss urethane. If I were to pick one word to accurately describe the sheen of a satin urethane finished body, it would be diffused.

A real-world example where you can easily see the difference in satin urethane vs. gloss urethane is to look at any new Fender Standard or Fender American Standard Stratocaster back of the neck, then examine the back of the Squier Classic Vibe Stratocaster neck. The Squier will be much different because it has gloss and a color tint for a "butterscotchy" or slightly-orange-like look.

What you will notice is that the Fender neck feels better, but the Squier neck looks better. Why? The color tint with the clear gloss finish will always look better than the diffused look of satin urethane.

Interestingly enough, a gloss urethane coated neck with color tint is the closest you can get to a nitro look without the guitar being actually nitro coated. And it just so happens that a Squier Vintage Modified or Squier Classic Vibe series guitar is the cheapest way to get it.

Now let's talk about nitro and what's so special about it.

Nitro on the body

Given the fact that nitro is the worst possible finish you could put on a guitar as it can be so temperamental during the curing process (which does take a long time compared to other finishing methods), why are there so many players that specifically want it as a body finish?

There are two main reasons.

First, when new, nitro just has a certain look to it that polyurethane and polyester just can't match.

The problem with polyurethane and polyester finishes from an appearance point of view is that they both look too much like plastic. Nitro doesn't have that problem, and there is no other finish that brings out such rich, vibrant, almost liquid-like color. When you want color that really pops, nitro is amazing for that sort of thing.

Second, when old, nitro unquestionably looks best - if the guitar was played often.

Nitro does a thing called finish checking where little cracks in the finish start appearing. As for where they'll appear on the body first, you never know for sure. All you do know is that it will happen. And as for when the checking will start, that all depends how often you play the guitar. The more the guitar is played, the sooner the finish checking starts.

Nitro on the neck

Looks great, feels terrible (at first).

If you are the type that wants "all-nitro" where both the body and the neck are nitro coated, it's going to take some time before the neck starts feeling right from regular play. How long the break-in period lasts depends on how often you play, of course.

These are some of the models Fender makes that are all-nitro (both body and neck):

For you bargain hunters out there that want the most bang for the buck, the Mexico made Classic Series '60s Stratocaster Lacquer is your best option. It has a sunburst finish that really pops and is already wired with the 5-way Strat switch instead of the traditional-but-annoying 3-way switch. Also bear in mind the purchase does come with a tweed case.

As for which of the American Vintage series is the best deal, that would be the '52 or the '58 Tele.

The best deals for both the Jag and the Jazz are the Mexico-made '60s models. The American Vintage models have nicer options, but cost more than double that of the Mexico versions.

Now as for the allure of "relic'd" guitars, part of the reason they sell well is because they have nitro coated necks where a significant amount of the nitro has been worn off by the builder.

The worn-off lighter colored areas of neck nearer to the nut (usually from frets 1 to 5) is not just for appearance. That is nitro coating which has been strategically rubbed away by the luthier who built the guitar in an attempt to get that well-used feel to it. Lighter color areas are a simulation of where a player's fret hand would have been the most when using the instrument.

Why does new nitro feel terrible on the neck at first?

A brand new coat of nitro on a neck feels similar to gloss urethane and also slightly sticky. Yes, the coating is dry and cured, but to your fingers it will have a bit of a stick to it and may also cause mild skin irritation.

What ends the stickiness and skin irritation? Playing the guitar regularly. You've just got to play the thing and wear in that neck. Trust me, the neck will start feeling better eventually. It will happen.

And no, spraying the neck with Fingerease won't help with fret hand irritation because that's for strings, but I can tell you something that will help. Dove soap and/or moisturizer. Dry hands on a nitro coated neck is a bad combo. If you wash your hands with regular hand sanitizer before playing on a nitro neck, oh yeah, you're going to feel skin irritation. Why? Because most hand sanitizer contains alcohol which dries the skin, and that's exactly what you don't want.

Wash your hands before play with plain water and Dove soap instead, as Dove has moisturizer in it. Using additional moisturizer may also help. I suggest Aveeno. True, it's not manly stuff at all, but it will make your fret hand feel better while breaking in your nitro coated neck.

Until your nitro neck breaks in, I suggest keeping a second guitar that has a satin urethane neck finish nearby for when your fret hand starts feeling irritated. Again, guitars which have satin urethane coating on the neck are the Mexico made Fender Standard Stratocaster and the Fender American Standard Stratocaster. It doesn't matter whether you get a one-piece maple neck or maple neck with rosewood fingerboard. The back of the neck is always maple and it will have a satin urethane coating on it for maximum comfort and absolutely zero sticky feel.

Is there a Gibson model with a satin urethane finished neck?

There is the Les Paul Studio Faded T, a very nicely priced USA model I just talked about. It is stated to have a satin finish which should include the neck. The SG Faded T and SG Special T (also USA models) are 2 more options, also nicely priced, and serve very well as comfortable satin-finished guitars that are very easy on the hands.

Is nitro worth getting at all?

For appearance both when new and when old, yes, nitro is worth it.

For neck feel specifically, no it's not worth it being that satin urethane feels so much better.

Will a nitro coated neck ever feel right? Yes. A well-used guitar with the nitro almost rubbed all the way off is a very desirable feel that many guitar players chase after. To get that feel the correct way, you have to buy the guitar new and play the hell out of it. For how long? That depends on you. Maybe it will take a few months. Maybe a few years. Maybe a few decades.

If you are the type of player who does not have that kind of patience, is nitro still worth getting? Yes, as long as you realize your guitar can only be played in short bursts before fret hand irritation sets in.

The best advice I can give before buying a guitar where both the body and neck are nitro coated is this: Also own a non-nitro guitar. Whether it's a guitar with a gloss or satin urethane finish on the neck, it doesn't matter as long as it's comfortable.

If you're wondering if a guitar exists that has a nitro coated body and a urethane coated neck, the answer is yes. Fender Road Worn. All 5 models have nitro coated bodies and urethane coated necks...

...and now you know why some sing such high praises about these guitars. The worn down nitro coated body will check properly as time goes on, and the neck will always feel right.

I do have a suggestion as to which Road Worn to get, but first, the these are the 5 models:

The best of the lot here is the '60s Strat and I'll tell you exactly why.

Since the neck is urethane coated, it will get slightly darker in color over time but will not check. That being true, on the '50s all-maple neck Strat, the body and neck will become mismatched over time and there's no way around that. The '60s Strat however has a rosewood fingerboard which will look proper when the body starts to check more as time goes on.

If you're a regular reader of my site, you know I'm a Jazzmaster guy, so why am I recommending the Strat over the Jag or the Jazz? Price. The Strat is $100 less.

And why do I recommend the Strat over the Tele? The Tele has an all-maple neck meaning body and neck appearance mismatching will occur later on similar to the all-maple neck Strat.

Concentrate on rosewood fretboards only with Road Worn models, and yes you will get a great nitro coated guitar out of it. Yes, the fact it's artificially aged is a bit on the cheesy side and I don't deny that, but consider that it absolutely is the "safest" way to get a nitro coated guitar. Both the body and the neck will feel right.

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Working through the pain is a stupid idea

Fri 2016 Sep 16

This is a diet update for September 2016.

I was doing my morning exercise routine and something happened. My left calf developed a sharp pain during a jumping jack set.

I stopped exercising, waited a minute, tried another jumping jack and nope... not happening. That pain was not going away. What happened to me is commonly known as calf strain; a tear in the muscle fibres.

There are 3 grades of calf strain with 1 being minor and 3 being pain so bad you can't walk. Mine was a solid 2. No bruising, but still painful.

The cure for this strain? Let the tear heal naturally, don't exercise and don't walk too much. And yes, walking is painful when you have calf strain.

I stopped exercising for a whole week, kept my walking to a minimum and at the time I write this I'm almost back to 100% and have started exercising again.

The reason I talking about this is because there are some idiots out there who subscribe to the "no pain, no gain" way of doing things, and wow what a stupid statement that is.

When my body says STOP, I stop to let the healing process begin, because if I don't stop and "work through the pain", that only causes more pain and possibly permanent injury.

This is not the first time I've had injury due to exercise. The last time it happened, it was right after my treadmill busted and I was doing the running-in-place thing as a replacement exercise. At first I was fine, but my right leg started complaining, so I stopped, let it heal, then switched over to a different set of exercises.

Why did my left calf get a strain? It was because I switched to doing jumping jacks in bare feet. This is something my calf wasn't used to, so I stopped doing that and went back to how I was doing them before.

What I did not know before but know now is that you can't just suddenly go barefoot when it comes to exercise. Whether it's jumping jacks, jogging, walking or running, you have to slowly transition yourself into it, else you get injured. My feet are used to shoes and not being bare, so if I decide to try exercising in bare feet again, I have to be a lot more gentle about it. Lesson learned.

Weight update

On my last weigh-in, the scale said 152.4 pounds, so I'm still doing okay with a BMI of 22.51.

I've kept the weight off and that's what matters. And during the week I didn't exercise, I cut the calories down to compensate.

Yes, I still count calories because it does work and keeps my weight in check.

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