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New On The Board - SoCal Setup Question

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  • New On The Board - SoCal Setup Question

    Hi,

    I'm new on the board, as I just managed to score a SoCal in black whilst I still could. I'm in Germany and even getting hold of one of them took about a week of searching online. Anyway, got it now!

    So, to introduce myself. I've been playing about 25 years on and off. I had a white model 3 back in about '90 which was my first decent guitar. Sold it to buy a Jem, then spent years with IBZs, then Fenders, then Gibsons and now back to a Charvel. The ciiiiircle, the circle of life!

    The SoCal is fantastic. I'm really pleased with it (especially for the amount it cost). Case, strap locks, Dimarzios. And that neck! I've sanded finishes off necks before to get them to feel like that, so coming out of the box like that's great. Finish is excellent (none of the problems that I've read about). But mostly, it feels like a real instrument. Some of the MIJ stuff that I've played in the past feel a bit like plastic toys. Not this.

    The setup, though left a lot to be desired. Nothing big, but all in all it's taken a few hours to get it closer to where it should be (truss rod out, bridge not floating, action like a cheap 12-string). The one thing that I'm struggling with a bit is getting the neck angle right as I'm not sure exactly what is possible

    Almost all of the floyd guitars that I've ever had have been recessed (IBZ edge). The SoCal's not, so what I'm not really sure about is how high above the body the floyd should be set? What I wan't to get out of it is a bit more upward travel (a tone, maybe 1.5, not an octave) and to have enough travel for bar flutters. At the moment, the action's OK and there's less than a semitone of upward travel.

    So, before I start messing about with it any more and jacking up the bridge, is this trem ever going to do that, or should I just be happy with it as it is?

    Cheers,
    Ian

  • #2
    This varies on these guitars. some are higher and some rest on the body. If you what some upward pull I would suggest you shim the neck(back of pocket only) to give it more of an angle or else you may have high action to get what you want.

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    • #3
      Took me a few tries but now got the neck angle just right and now it's a fantastic player. One of the best that I've got and certainly the fastest! That's why I bought it!

      Rock on!
      ian
      Last edited by iffy50; 03-22-2012, 06:15 PM.

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