String heigth distance

Adjusting the bridge is possible, but if you're 1/2" off, it won't help much. Trimming the bridge saddle will only move the string closer at the 12th fret by 1/2 the amount you take off the saddle - and it's not likely you've got a 1"+ tall saddle.

You might want to have a shop give you an opinion - depending on construction (truss rod, neck design) there might be some adjustments that can be made.

Sounds like a truss rod problem to me, if your new to guitar DONT MESS with it! and experienced person will do it for you. You could end up mking more problems for yourself if you play with it.

Thanks guys. Its just a practice guitar for sittin on the porch. I was hoping to practice some higher "frett action" while away from the Elect.

oh well.

Just a minor correction, truss rods affect neck relief. They do not affect action. With action like that I'm afraid you probably need a neck reset.

Really? I thought the truss rod also effects to "Bow" of the neck, wouldnt that effect the string height?

Truss rods do affect the bow of the neck, but they're not designed for major adjustments. You can break your truss rod by cranking it too much - if you try to make a major adjustment with the rod, you risk breaking it.

Some inexpensive guitars don't even have a truss rod, which is why I said it would depend on the design... and even if it's got a truss rod, some aren't adjustable - and that doesn't just apply to 'cheap' guitars; I have an older Martin with a fixed truss rod. It's possible the neck is built separately from the end block (the part that gives support to the neck inside the body), and some are even bolted on to the end block - so it's possible there's a cheap fix available for a neck reset.

There are a bunch of things that can be done to change action... but that's not what a truss rod is designed for. If you crank yours every time you hear a touch of fret buzz, eventually you'll be shelling out for repairs.

Noteboat is right on the money.

The answer to your question is yes, it does affect the string height. It just isn't used for correcting action.

The truss rod will change string height by bending the neck up or down. The degree of change will be anything up to .04" It's only used to make sure the strings clear the frets. Since the change will be more pronounced in the center of the neck you can't use a truss rod to change the action over the entire length.

Actually changing the action often involves shaving the saddle and bridge to lower the strings by up to 8/64"

Well, I decided to take the old guitar into my local music shop to se what they thought needed to be done. The guy said that it needed a new, lower saddle ($5), new strings ($6), and a neck adjustment (but nor a reset in his opinion, although he isn't the guy who does the work; I have to bring it back today to show it to the technician). All told, he figured about $30 worth of work could fix it up good.

Also, I tried out a few acoustics at the store- boy what a difference playing a properly set up instrument! Things I had been struggling with on my old one were a piece of cake on the store models. they felt like butter compared to mine.

Now I have a dilemma- I liked a few of them so much I was wondering should I take the money I had budgeted for an electric and just buy a better acoustic? Maybe if it's only 30 bucks I should go ahead and have mine worked on and see what difference it makes. Then I could buy a new acoustic if I'm not totally satisfied and use the old one as a backup. The guy at the store said thay could make a major improvement to the playability- I certainly hope so.

Its the angle of the neck that is the culprit. Some how take the neck out and add some slanted shims of wood or something. Thats what id do (no i wouldnt, id probaby just take the neck off and never get around to adjusting the strips of veneer :oops:).

Please correct me if im wrong (but dont humiliate me please :P).

I think, if I had a guitar with action that high, I'd put it to use as a slide guitar with an open G tuning. :-)

$30 sounds like a decent price to me, but I understand your dilemma... the last time I took a guitar in for a refret, I walked out with a Martin I fell in love with while waiting for the technician to assess the old one :)