Cold Weather in Northeast - Fender Necks

[JoeYello]

The cold weather we have been having in the northeast this year has my forced hot air heater working extra. Even with a humidifier the house is very dry. This weekend I really noticed my Fender guitars buzzing like crazy.

I was trying to setup a 90's Thinline Tele and I cannot get it to stop buzzing. I have the neck set with a slight relief, the microtilt screw is backed off so I don't think it's an issue. I set the action to 2/32 across the board. Every string is buzzing from about the 3rd fret on up....very annoying. I have Snakeoil 9.5's on the guitar.

I am starting to wonder if I need to shim the neck a bit forward to try to keep the strings from buzzing.

Anyone else experiencing this? Any solutions?

 

[still.ill]

perhaps just give the neck some more relief?

 

[JoeYello]

I loosened it a bit last night. I will see how it is later. I don't think that is the problem though.

 

[JoeYello]

It seemed to setup better with 10's, but it felt stiff to me.

 

[bransonb]

My Smith Strat with 9's is fine but I have a CV 50's that has been extremely responsive to change of season since I've owned it. This winter it had been playing fine but the action was rather high so I suspected excessive relief because of the change of season. Fender has a pretty good pamphlet on setting up guitars and I adjusted the neck based on the measurements they recommended resulting in reduced relief. I then set the action where I wanted it but got severe buzz on strings 3 through 6 in the 7th to 10th fret area. I added relief back and raised the action which solved the problem for strings 3 and 4 but not strings 5 and 6. The action is now higher than desired, strings 5 and 6 still buzz, and I don't know what else to do either except wait for the heating season to end. It was suggesterd to me to string with 10's but I like 9's on my Fenders and there's never been an issue using 9's on my very stable USA Strat. I was wondering if I was just expecting too much from a Chinese guitar but see Joe is suffering similarly above with his Thinline. So you've got company, friend. I'm not shy about adjusting guitars but I'm no expert. What am I missing?

 

[JoeYello]

Per a friends suggestion I raised the action up to 2.5/32 and it is much better. Still a slight buzz if I dig in, but nothing that you would hear through the amp. The neck is pretty straight right now, I probably could add a little relief and it would be even better. I love the Snakeoil 9.5's on just about every guitar. I am glad they are available again....my stash had run out and I was using DR strings. I like the round core strings since they have a looser feel.

 

[bransonb]

Per a friends suggestion I raised the action up to 2.5/32 and it is much better. Still a slight buzz if I dig in, but nothing that you would hear through the amp. The neck is pretty straight right now, I probably could add a little relief and it would be even better. I love the Snakeoil 9.5's on just about every guitar. I am glad they are available again....my stash had run out and I was using DR strings. I like the round core strings since they have a looser feel.

Glad to hear you're satisfied with the results of your adjustments. A quality instrument should respond positively to adjustment. Fortunately, I've never had to touch any of my USA guitars because of change of season.

But hoping for an early spring regarding this CV 50. Guess we're all hoping for an early spring. This winter has been old-school here in the northeast . . .

 

[ClassTone]

I found I have to run my action higher this winter too.

 

[ylo]

I live in Boston. Humidity in the house has been between 35 and 45 percent this winter. I usually have the opposite problem as the OP, the humidity shoots up to 70 percent indoors in the summer even with the AC running, and most of my guitar necks bend back, causing buzzing. No need for guitar humidifiers in the summer for me!

Anyhow, hanging moistened towels up in the bathrooms will probably raise the humidity 5 percent or so. In my experience, 40 - 50 percent RH is ideal.

 

[trojanhov]

Having the same issue with my suhr Classic t. Just raised the action and it’s ok

 

[Laurent Brondel]

Cold usually equals lower RH in the air, which results in necks having too much relief and the truss rod needing to be tightened a bit.
The opposite happens in the spring with warmer air allowing more RH, then the rods need to be loosened a hair.

What's the relief on your necks? Press the G string at the first (with a capo if necessary) and last frets and try to measure the clearance between the string and say, the 7th fret.