Fender neck relief question

[pr0n]

Okay here's the thing.

I understand since Fender's have that 25.5" scale length, they're usually stringed with gauge 9-42. However I kinda prefer 9-46, so I'm worried that using those strings and bringing it to tension might be enough to overstress the neck and cause it to warp.

Does anyone have any experience with this? Will I have to adjust the truss rod if I use 9-46?

 

[daryl]

probably not. any adjustments would be minimal. and fyi, the neck will not warp. there will be more tension on the neck which will lead to a greater bow (only slightly) but the neck will not warp. when it warps, it's time for a new neck

 

[Soundaholic]

oh so scale length is related to string gauge? I want to change my strings form 9-42 to 10-46 but now I'm not sure also. I'm afraid my guitar neck will bend or something.

 

[lightice]

It might bow, all it needs is a truss rod adjustment if it happens.

If a neck warps, you need a new neck, but warping and bowing is different.

Warp = twisting from side to side. E.g Like how you would twist a soaked towel to dry it

Bow = the top and bottom are bowing towards each other

Please don't confuse the two as they are very different.

New string guages will only ever cause bowing, and that can be fixed with a truss rod adjustment to counter the new tension of the strings.

You can DIY truss rod adjustments with a capo and automotive feeler guages.

 

[Ized]

just send it for a setup when you wanna change string guage.

My strat was configured from a 9-42 to a 10-46 setup by Beez. No problems whatsoever.

 

[subversion]

neck bowing is not a bad thing- many people think it is by virtue of it not being straight. if you use thicker gauged string sets, bowing is necessary to prevent excessive buzzing which would render the guitar unplayable.

is scale length related to string gauge? must you use a certain gauge set if your guitar is of a certain scale length?

you are free to use whichever string gauge you wish for your guitar, regardless of the scale length but be mindful of the consequences.

many Les Paul players equip their guitars with a .010 set due to the 24.75" scale length but i have .0095 in mine with no issues.

 

[pr0n]

Does bowing necessarily cause damage to the neck? That's what I'm more worried about.

I used to string up my acoustic with a heavier gauge, till I noticed the bow so I tuned it down a half step as a precaution.

 

[seekz]

Nope, the guitar neck is designed to be like that.
So that people may freely change string gauges.

Your strat is "set-up" with .09s factory default (if i understood you correctly)
doesnt mean its meant to do 0.9s and nothing else.

So don't worry, usually a new gauge just needs a few simple and painless adjustments.

 

[smurfpiss]

What about a tele that is permanently in forward bow? That's my tele's current situation now the truss rod is at it's tightest and it's string on .10s.