Lakewood guitars have an adjustable truss rod which is located under the fret board. The 5mm adjusting hex-nut is accessible via an aperture in the brace between the sound hole and fret board. Adjusting the truss rod affects the relief (bend) of the fret board. When correctly set, the fret board will have a slight, concave bend. The truss rod’s purposes is to stabilize the neck and fret board but should not, as a rule, be used to adjust the action.

To adjust the truss rod, you will need the following:

• Capo
• 5mm, long arm hex wrench (Allen key)
• Feeler gauge, 0.05 mm thick

To adjust the truss rod, proceed as follows:

1. Place the capo on the 1^st fret.

2. Fret the bass E string at the 14^th fret.

3. Insert the feeler gauge at the 7^th fret between the bass E string and the fret wire (img. 2)

A. If the feeler gauge fits into this gap snugly, the truss rod is correctly set up.
B. If the gap is too narrow, the truss rod needs to be loosened. Start by loosening one quarter turn (anti-clockwise) and then check the gap again with the feeler gauge. Repeat the process if required.

C. If the gap is too large, the truss rod needs to be tightened. Start by tightening one quarter turn (clockwise) and then check the gap again with the feeler gauge. Repeat the process if required.

In case you feel unsure about adjusting your truss rod - feel free to reach us by mail or phone!

General

Please rest assured that a ‘rattle-free’ guitar has not yet been built and that we may expect the rules of physics to apply into the future.
Rattle occurs when vibrating strings make contact with the frets. The vibrations interfere with the string oscillation and lead to an impure sound. The energy in the string is partially absorbed by the rattle which leads to a quicker decay of the tone.

Causes of rattle (fret-buzz)

Rattling of strings may be due to a number of causes. Imprecise playing technique in either left or right hand often leads to string rattle. The fretting of a string (finger placement vis-à-vis the fret) may cause unwelcome vibrations.

On over-powerful strum with the right hand or the equivalent of a flamenco-like Apoyando can drive the vibrating string too close to the fret board.

These aspects of technique should be critically evaluated as they can either themselves or in conjunction with characteristics of the guitar be lead to string rattle.

Naturally, there are other causes of string rattle:

1. Worn or faulty strings are the most common cause
2. A string action unsuited to the guitarist’s playing style (see the section How can I measure and adjust the action of my guitar?)
3. Uneven fret height (see the section on The frets are uneven and worn)
4. Incorrect adjustment of the truss rod (see the section on How do I adjust the truss rod?)
5. Excessive notch depth of the nut (see the section on How the nut can be checked)

Subjective perception

What may seem unacceptable string rattle to one player might not bother another and even be appealing to a third player who chooses this as his preferred musical ‘sound’. While we don’t intend to persuade any player to accept a rattling guitar it might be good to put one’s own perception into perspective. Strictly speaking, no guitar is rattle-free; indeed you can express and emphasise these sounds. To focus on these tones unduly might lead to an eventual loss of pleasure in the music.
Technical flaws must clearly be eliminated but, realistically, only in sync with improvement of the player’s technique.