Charvel USA San Dimas - Floyd springs hitting bottom of route?

[AndyK]

Never had this happen before, but I am guessing because of the neck angle and action height, when I dive the Floyd (37mm block), the springs naturally move down as the block swings, and the springs catch the bottom of the trem cavity andf make a horrible noise.

The neck is adjusted properly (just a bit of relief), but the Floyd posts are pretty high - resulting in the trem and block being high - bringing the springs closer to the bottom of the cavity.

Does this make sense? What can I do?

[Axewielder]

Your best two options are:

1) try the next larger block size (42 mm)
2) Reduce the amount of neck angle (i.e. remove shim in neck pocket)

37 to 42 is a big jump, and that might be too big. Maybe you can get one of those dudes making the big blocks to build a custom in-between size like 40"? You'd need to make careful measurements in that case. Personally I like tons of neck angle and would not want to reduce it.

I've seen some psychos dremel grooves in the trem cavity to provide clearance, and that's just a bit too redneck for me.

EDIT: So this is a Pro Mod? Aren't those supposed to have 42 mm blocks anyways? Was this Floyd swapped out? :think:

[AndyK]

It's a USA Pro Mod, and the original Floyd (Korean) came with a 37 block. I swapped it for my OFR with 37 block. There is no shim in the neck, and the angle is pretty perfect - not sure why there would be no clearance for the springs allowing for a straight neck?

Also, not sure how they get their block sizes, but I can't see how my block would be 37mm when it measures close to 50mm.

[DonP]

I just checked the MIJ ProMod build I put together. I used a 42mm big block and it fits under the cover fine. This is a top mount Floyd with no recess. My action is very good with the stock neck angle.

On my SL2H, I stuffed in a 37mm (originally a 32mm). I had to dremel the block to make recesses for the springs because the springs were hitting the cover. It was very easy to do and just took a few seconds.

[straycat]

42mm needs to be used with a top mount Floyd.

[toejam]

42mm needs to be used with a top mount Floyd.

Not always. A lot of guitars that are non-recessed can use 37mm. Most of the newer Charvels have 37. My '05 Star came with 37 and was fine, but it did not have very much room to pull back. I just dropped the trem to the body and shimmed up the saddles anyway since I only wanted to dive.

[Axewielder]

^^^ this is true. My Strat-24 is non-recessed, and a 42 mm was too long and scraped the trem cover. A 37 mm fit perfectly. That one was an oddball and did have that hybrid pull-up route, though. The 42 mm blocks do fit the majority of these the best, though.

[ralph]

Also, not sure how they get their block sizes, but I can't see how my block would be 37mm when it measures close to 50mm.

This is the block height, from where the block bolts to the floyd baseplate, to the bottom where the springs are inserted,

Try a 42mm, as long as it doesnt hit the trem cover it will be fine

[DalyTek]

If the Floyd posts are riding high then your neck angle is not correct. Put a thin shim (maybe a slice of business card or so) in the pocket at the headstock end to raise your neck angle and it should make everything line up much better.

[AndyK]

I just ordered an OFR 42mm block. I figure it would be too long, if my action was lower, but because the neck angle sweeps back a bit more than most, the Floyd has to be raised more, resulting in the springs coming closer to the back of the cavity. A longer block should solve my problem, without hitting the back plate (which I take off anyway)!

Thanks for the advice!

[DonP]

If the Floyd posts are riding high then your neck angle is not correct. Put a thin shim (maybe a slice of business card or so) in the pocket at the headstock end to raise your neck angle and it should make everything line up much better.

Here's the deal. If you want to be able to pull back, you need your Floyd posts high and a 42mm block. And you want a good neck angle for low action with the high Floyd.

If you want no pull back, you want a low neck angle, a 37mm block, and lower your trem posts.

So it's a lot of personal preference. I like having some pull back so I go with a higher Floyd and neck angle.

[AndyK]

Here's the deal. If you want to be able to pull back, you need your Floyd posts high and a 42mm block. And you want a good neck angle for low action with the high Floyd.

If you want no pull back, you want a low neck angle, a 37mm block, and lower your trem posts.

So it's a lot of personal preference. I like having some pull back so I go with a higher Floyd and neck angle.

True! I posted a question on the forum about action height between the 12th and last frets, so see if my neck angle was wrong. Most responded that the action was a hair higher at the last fret. If I shimmed the neck to produce less of an angle, the action at the last fret would go up too much, making the guitar harder to play. Right now, I have super low action, and great feel, all the way up the neck. It just requires my Floyd posts to be higher - which is why i orderded the 42mm block.

I guess the way the cavity was cut at the factory dictates the neck angle, and how high the trem has to be to get good playing action. I'll try posting a photo, to show how high my Floyd is. Mabye it's not that different compared to everyone elses?

[Axewielder]

As long as you are within range of the trem height posts and can get the trem low enough, the neck angle has no effect on the action of the guitar. It affects the playability in terms of the strings being higher off the body, but that is about it. There is no discernable difference of the setup over the fingerboard. There is a LOT of disinformation floating around about that.

[AndyK]

As long as you are within range of the trem height posts and can get the trem low enough, the neck angle has no effect on the action of the guitar. It affects the playability in terms of the strings being higher off the body, but that is about it. There is no discernable difference of the setup over the fingerboard. There is a LOT of disinformation floating around about that.

The neck angle does effect the action. As you angle the neck back, the strings get closer to the last fret, and there is lower action. If the neck angle is pitched forward, the action is raised at the higher frets, and you can't really lower the action without the notes fretting out in the first few frets.

[Axewielder]

If you:

1) Measure the string height
2) Adjust the neck angle
3) Readjust the trem height so the string height matches step 1

Then, the neck angle does not affect the action.