Setting up a guitar

[TheGummy]

what are the basic things that get done in a "guitar setup"?

i imagine - action checked, intonation checked, strings usually changed and tuned, electronics checked.

what other basic points are there?

i may be getting a job in the guitar/piano shop in town (where i bought the fender from) so i need to be able to do setups. i can do all those things, i just wanna know if there is anything else i will have to learn.

oh, and setting up floating bridges, is that just adjusting the height, sadles, and the tension from the tremolo springs?

[Rick]

hehe setting up floating floyds now theres a thing.
you have to probably kow how to dress frets and or be able to sort out dead frets.

[bwdavis99]

Get a copy of Dan Erlewine's excellant book "Guitar Player Repair Guide" he covers everything from set ups, touch ups and electronic basics.

[Stew]

Ben if this is just a Saturday job for extra dosh I can't imagine you being asked to do anything more than the basic setup. Floaters are not that difficult really...what I do is block the recess change one string at a tiem and tune it up then once stretched and retuned I removed the trem springs to allow trem removal with strings still attached and then clean the ffrets and fretboard and then put trem back on and re-attach springs. The trems tend to need not much fine tuning once back on and presto your done.

Depends if customers wants radical alteration of action if truss rod involved and as I said the person you work with with oversea what you do anyway.

[TheGummy]

itll be four days a week, but its not a dedicated guitar shop so i imagine i will only need to do the basics.

im fine with doing action, truss rod adjustments, intonation and some basic electronics (switches and pots), all he said was "can you set up guitars and floating bridges and stuff?" and i said "yes" lol.

that seems like quite a logical way to do it, thanks stew.

thanks for the advice on the book, i will check it out could come in handy.

theyve also asked me if maybe i will consider doing some beginners lessons outside of work hours, which i said yes to aswell.

if i get this job, i'll be asking you guys for a lot of help! lol. but its what i want, something to push me into learning new skills, but as it just sells a few guitars (its mainly a piano shop), it wont be anything too "hardcore".

[Rick]

you clean your fret boards stew?

i've taken to rubbing yogurt into mine to help my fingerboard grow, all that grime helps lower the action

[Stew]

you clean your fret boards stew?

i've taken to rubbing yogurt into mine to help my fingerboard grow, all that grime helps lower the action
lol yoghurt to lower action cool idea hehe.
I clean mine jsut at string changes but that ain't too often as don't break strings often now at all.

[Guitarpima]

I'm bad for leaving my strings on forever. Just too lazy to change them I guess. I think I'm going on 4 months with this set. I'll probably change them tonight or next week/month. I don't know.

[Six]

I put new strings on a week ago... they're black and dead now!

[Guitarpima]

I hate changing string on a locking trem. I can hardly see the string going in the hole and on top of that, the little clamp thingy inside keeps sliding down so I have to use a magnet to keep it from falling in. GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRrrr!

BTW Just changed them.