Gsa60

[moses]

i bought a GSA60 because i liked the white body and overall it felt solid. Turns out the neck has a bow that i cannot get rid of. Is there a neck i can replace it with? Does anyone know? I would appreciate the help as to deciding wether to get rid of it.

Thanks,
Moses

[DonP]

Have no idea what a GSA60 is.

[moses]

gsa60

It is one of the lower priced guitars. A little over 200. It is an hss with an arch top body shaped like a strat. The fretboard extends over the body.

[moses]

Gsa60

It is made by Ibanez. Sorry about that!

[xbolt]

Can you return it?

[moses]

gsa60

i wish! its over a year old!! I put it in a case and ended up forgetting about it after i spent a week and a half in the hospital.

[DonP]

I'd say try to find an Ibanez forum and ask them if you can swap necks. I saw a cool wizard neck for $125 a little while ago. I'm not sure of the rules with Ibanez product - what swaps with what that is.

[moses]

gsa60

Thanks Don! I atried that. 14 people read my post but no one has left a reply. I don't thik there are that many members there. But there are more here. Jacksons Rule!

[DonP]

When you say bow do you mean back bow?

If so, maybe you can loosen the truss rod and put some pressure on the neck to get it to bend correctly.

If you think the neck is salvagable, try books from Dan Erlewine. He covers how to fix necks where the truss rod was over-tightened.

[moses]

gsa60

I have the truss rod real loose. To the point where the head of the rod where the allen wrench slides in is actually coming out. I have not tried pushing on it but I actually have loosened all the strings to relieve the tension. but it did not help. I took the neck off and put a piece of cardstock in to lower the action. It has string buzz.

Thanks Don

[moses]

gsa60

I loosen the strings and the neck straightens. I tune it and the neck bows right back.

[DonP]

I loosen the strings and the neck straightens. I tune it and the neck bows right back.

Ok, do you mean it bows so that the strings are high off the fretboard? If so, you can tighten the truss rod to pull the neck straight. Your neck should be salvagable. Might want to take it to a tech to have a setup done. Don't tighten too much at once if you are doing it yourself. Do a little, wait a day, do a little more,...really need Dan Erlewines books.

If when you tighten the strings they go flat on the frets, that's whacky (because the neck should bow the opposite direction) and the neck might be shot. Still might want to take it to a tech to get a second oppinion.

One other possibility - you might have a "double action" truss rod where it can arch and bow both ways. I've never had an axe with one of these, so I don't know much about them.

[moses]

gsa60

Yes, the strings raise up off the fret board. Loosen the strings it straightens out. Tune it it bows out again. If I tighten the truss rod it puts bow back in it (raises the strings). I dont think it's a double action.

Thanks Don,
I appreciate your help!

[Spivonious]

Wait a minute, let's review:

1. Without strings, it's straight.
2. With strings, it is bowing so the strings are high off the fretboard.

You need to set the truss rod to counteract the tension of the strings. Tighten the truss rod, tune the strings. Let the guitar sit for an hour. Check the neck again. If it's still bowing, tighten the rod some more. Repeat. If you tighten it the whole way and it still has a bow, then it's time to look for a new neck.

Although it sounds like you're fairly new at setting up guitars, so you may want to take it to a shop and have them do it.

[moses]

gsa60

Thanks Don. I have 3 others that I set up and they are great. Its just this one that is throwing me for a loop. But I did get my DXMG set up by a luthier. He is a story teller and worked for some of the greats. I won't mention any names like Lynch or Nugent. He is just to busy to waste time on a cheap guitar like this one. He would consider me throwing my money away although he would do it if i wanted to spend the money of course. I will try tightening the truss rod and see what happens.