[Clydefrog]

First time. Never touched a truss rod before in my life for fear of breaking something.

But recently (probably the shift in temperature/humidity) my SZ520 ex has been buzzing. Badly. VERY badly. Couldn't go anywhere on the neck without it buzzing like the motherfucking dickens. So after making sure the bridge was adjusted to the right height, and still getting very bad buzz, I decided to try the truss rod.

Google yielded a decent amount of information, but nothing thorough so that I would have complete confidence while doing it. It took about 15 minutes of tweaking, tuning, checking for buzz, until finally I got it to the point where there is almost zero buzz whilst tuned to B standard with 10s or to Eb. Neck seems straighter, too. So I quit as soon as I got to that point, and made TINY and SLOW turns of the rod as I went.

The last thing I wanted to do was crack a neck-thru guitar.

[budda]

i hear ya! i adjusted the truss on my C7, still plinks a little bit but i think i can afford to raise the action a touch.

i also lived in fear of "the truss" lol

[jaxadam]

Good for you guys. Fear of the truss rod is easily overcome, and all it takes is to just mess with it.

You're really not going to mess anything up, especially if you're making normal adjustments with it using the right tools.

[amonb]

I'm still too scared to go near it

Clydefrog, did you find any resources that were helpful on the topic?

[Clydefrog]

PRIME'S TRUSS ROD GUIDE - Technical Support - Ibanez Forum

This was the single most helpful. Actually, it was the only helpful thing I could find via google.

Had some good advice in it for me.

[jaxadam]

Originally Posted by amonb

I'm still too scared to go near it

Don't be scared. A truss rod is only there to help counter-balance the string tension on the neck, and it's actually pretty durable.

Take the cover off, and loosen it a little. You'll notice that the action will raise and you'll have more bow. Tighten it and you'll notice the action will lower and you'll have less bow.

You really can't mess anything up.

[technomancer]

One thing is worth noting, the neck will continue to shift after you adjust the truss rod. It's not a turn the rod and it instantly settles in kind of thing. You may find tomorrow that you adjusted too much. Your best bet is to do a small adjustment (1/4 turn) then leave it sit overnight and check it again the next day.

[jaxadam]

Originally Posted by technomancer

One thing is worth noting, the neck will continue to shift after you adjust the truss rod. It's not a turn the rod and it instantly settles in kind of thing. You may find tomorrow that you adjusted too much. Your best bet is to do a small adjustment (1/4 turn) then leave it sit overnight and check it again the next day.

Although that is pretty common advice, most of the guitars I've worked on settle in pretty quickly, especially with thin necks, and you'll notice that a few turns will elicit a pretty automatic response.

You may have some more fine settling a few hours later.

I will usually adjust a neck loose until it's got just enough relief, and then tighten slightly about 30 minutes later to lower the action to a desirable setting.

[Stitch]

"A few turns" - be very careful with wording here.

A 'few turns' will very quickly shatter your fretboard and neck.

GO with what Steve is saying.

[jaxadam]

Originally Posted by Stitch

A 'few turns' will very quickly shatter your fretboard and neck.

lol... I've cranked truss rods from beginning to end with no problems.

Sorry, but people don't take "days" setting up guitars dialing in truss rods.

I don't know what the mystique is about the truss rod. It's just another adjustment on a guitar, like raising or lowering the bridge. You're not going to hurt it unless you do something to compromise the integrity of the truss rod itself.