Taylor Big Baby Neck Set and Action Adjustment

This Big Baby had mile-high action. A music store told the owner it was unfixable, and that she ought to buy a new guitar...

[@gpurkeljc]

I love the culture of maintaining and preserving our material possessions. We only have one planet to share its limited resources and today's throwaway culture will cost us far more in the long run.

[@erikhoffa966]

We are on our way to make hole Earth like Easter Island.

[@silverdragon0000120]

If you message Taylor, they send you the shims so you don't have to remove any wood from the neck. That's the coolest part about Taylor. No more neck resets. You can also take it to an authorized place and they fix it for you.

[@theshyguitarist]

Yep. This customer could have had the work done at no cost. Taylor is pretty good about that.

[@nonebiz2132]

Had the same problem, and sure enough they fixed it for me for free! Loved the loudness and tone of the Big Baby too...

[@Runoratsu]

Yeah… I gotta say I was surprised seeing Ted shave something off the neck instead of off the shim, too. I mean, that would’ve been the obvious solution. May very well have been impossible with this one, but if so, Ted didn’t explain why.

[@TheMilford]

same. So confused why this wasn’t done at the shim.

[@alanpachter]

A lot of my customers opt to have the work done at my shop because they prefer that over the time and effort to ship it to Taylor. So depending on how easy it is to access a Taylor tech, it sometimes makes better sense to have the local expert do the work. As for the comments here about the shim system, the NT system utilizes 2 shims and this model only has one, and that one is recessed, as you can see in the video. So reducing the one shim would make no difference here. I have this exact model in my shop for the reasons listed above. I'll be doing the same reset that Ted shows here.

[@altruisticphilanthropic4647]

Your vast skills/talents, are matched by your honesty, good sir. There are countless charlatans, somewhat malevolent, or merely misinformed humans in the world today...the number seemingly growing by the nanosecond. Thanks for the simple truths...in words and deeds. Your videos are a sheer pleasure...highly instructive, also...a fine, most welcome combination. Thanks for being around. - AH

[@adamkornreich2732]

Alan Hager eloquently put

[@jeremydaniel4764]

Quite literally I must say. Exquisite craftsmanship I must say.

[@andrewlydecker811]

I bought my Gretsch resonator from a big guitar store. Their tech told me the neck was warped and could not be repaired, and they sold it to me for virtually nothing. Turns out someone had run the truss rod out all the way and tightened it in the opposite direction. Took me about 5 minutes to get it right. I guess Cracker Jack is giving out luthier credentials now.

[@HarryNicNicholas]

i got a 69 epiphone texan for peanuts cos the neck was like a ski slope, flat on the soundboard, warped downwards 12 fret to 7th fret, then back up - you could only chord the first three frets and two frets were hanging off, i got it for £800 - took it to the shop (feline guitars in croydon, south london) they straightened the neck, did a great refret job (the previous owner had it fretless it seems) and it's an amazing guitar. cost £500 (needed a split brace fixed too) and epi texans go for at least 2K - at least.

[@Jakfilm]

I gotta say, the drywall screws are a slightly inelegant touch.

[@MamayKozak]

I completely agree with you. Even here, in Ukraine, at the Trembita Lviv factory, such a connection has M6 bolts for a 4-millimeter hex key.

[@uria702]

I have customers that have similar situations all the time. They bring me guitars that big box stores told them can’t be fixed when in reality the fix is very simple it just takes somebody willing to do the work

[@robertshorthill6836]

Synapse2k. Yes, music stores only want to accomplish one thing: sell more guitars. If somehow a person bought a guitar from that store, they might put it in a room of a few other guitars or other instruments to be worked on, but it may take months before that person ever gets it back, and probably nothing was done to fix it. They will give you a bill which only amounts to a "storage fee". It's tough having to deal with most big music stores, unfortunately.

[@fruitsicles]

I'm a woman who owns a big baby taylor who travels back and forth to southeast asia and brought my guitar to get set up a few years ago. Had to do a double take to make sure you weren't based in Toronto and talking about me 😂

[@troyclayton]

He's in Hamilton, which is pretty darn close. Your guitar is famous! My Big Baby, of the same year, is jealous.

[@crexpaint]

Why not take the difference off of the shim?

[@liaventure306]

'Cause you can reuse the shim for other guitars and if you change the shim it will not be accurate anymore.

[@StiggysGuitarLoft]

I just bought the exact clome of this today and followed your video to the letter. Thank you so much

[@robinleebraun7739]

I had a similar experience when I took my 25 year old Applause guitar to The Guitar Center to have it looked at because the action was too high and the saddle couldn’t be lowered any more without the strings hitting the bridge. The guitar tech said the neck was badly twisted and the guitar was basically garbage and unfixable. After doing some research, I found out that the neck on this guitar is made of aluminum. Not twisted. Perfectly straight. Always get a second opinion.

[@theverseshed]

I recently bought a Baby Taylor built in April 1999 - just a few months after the NT neck was introduced. This guitar had been well played (and abused). It also had the half-hoop bracing that I think Taylor phased out fairly soon after. Truss rod adjustment made a slight improvement, but not enough. The action was still on the high side. It was easy to remove the neck (I detuned all strings but left them in place and VERY slack). I found that on this model there was no pocket or provision for a shim. (I assume they came in later on). I didn't want to make any changes to the guitar that couldn't be reversed. Sighting along the neck suggested that it needed to be raised rather than angled, so I searched my shed and found a flat piece of very hard plastic that I could cut and shape for the neck pocket.(I had no ultra-thin pieces of wood). I pre-drilled it with two large holes to allow me to adjust it laterally if necessary when the screws went through it. I inserted it and tightened the screws, With strings still in place, I was able to tighten them and check to make sure the action was lower and without rattles or buzzing. In the future, if necessary the shim can be changed without any damage to the guitar which, as Ted commented, has also been well played in during the last 24 years and has both great tone and volume. The action is now about as low as it could go without rattling.

[@jonahguitarguy]

I have a local shop that sends me people all the time that "need" fretwork. Most of the time it's a geometry problem that is fixed by patient adjustment. I'm guessing you chose to shave the neck because you don't have access to the Taylor shims or you didn't want to wait for them. Not knocking it just curious.

[@aflatminor]

Big thumbs up for a luthier that knows what he's doing and doesn't spin customers bullshit!! :) I'll be picking up a 2014 Big Baby up hopefully tomorrow or tuesday! (Can't wait!) :)

[@dannymccoy1783]

How u like it?

[@aflatminor]

@@dannymccoy1783 Love it!, I have a damaged shoulder that dreadnoughts makes hurt when playing them, The The Big Baby isn't quite as big so doesn' set the pain off as much, Sounds great too (The guitar, Not my playing! ☺)

[@dannymccoy1783]

I also have one.USA one.needs neck reset.action high. I'm gonna try it myself. Hope it works. Congratulations on yours

[@dphotos007]

I bought my daughter the same guitar. It’s a wonderful guitar at a fair price point. You don’t have to spend a ton of money to get a good quality guitar. I recommend Taylor guitars to anyone looking for a great steel string guitar.

[@mrwashur1991]

Just picked one up today with the same issue. Hoping the repair shop doesn’t say it’s toast. All guitars are fixable, it just depends on how much you want to throw at it.

[@alanhowell3646]

I wish you were in the UK and could reset the neck on my 2012 Martin 000-28 EC. Great job

[@craxypackets]

Damn. I have the same issue with my BBT. No music stores within 60 miles. Tryin it myself.

[@kevingill648]

Taylor Big Baby are good guitars and sound great! ideal travel guitar and will last years if looked after.

[@daniell.taylorsr3771]

I have been watching several of your videos and you sir are an excellent Luthier!...I have over the years watched hundreds if not thousands of luthier videos and you are one of the best I have seen.

[@desotopete]

Couldn't this have been done by a different angle shim? I have a Big baby and am looking at lowering the action. Just curious. Looking for the least invasive option. Thanks.

[@jamesfox9922]

When I put Electric guitar strings on my Big Baby 08's.. They didn't have enough pull on the neck and they buzzed.... So I carved a piece of oak and lifted my bridge an eight of an inch... It worked great an it was so much easier.... Peace Out..

[@tipman321]

Why didn't you just replace the shim with a thinner one?

[@walterw2]

sorry, i know this is three years old and procedures may have changed but this is _wildly_ the wrong thing to do. the entire _point_ of taylor's NT design is that the precise laser-cut shim gets replaced with a different precise laser-cut shim with a different angle, making neck resets a trivial setup job. this is a fix that could have been done by a savvy guitar store salesman with a phillips screwdriver in fifteen minutes and probably covered by taylor's warranty i hate to even comment because twoodfrd's videos have been an absolute treasure trove of amazing repair methods, but this one is just not what is supposed to happen

[@Rawwr1ful]

I'm having a similar issue with a baby taylor having high action on the higher frets. What would you suggest I do?

[@walterw2]

@@Rawwr1ful same idea; if the neck itself is straight but the action is still way high then the internal shim needs to be changed out, find an authorized taylor repair place and they can easily do it for you.

[@Isosceles1]

With the action that high, shimming it higher would bring the edge of the fretboard above the surface of the guitar top, leaving an unsightly gap. The only way to avoid this is planing it down like he does here.

[@walterw2]

@@Isosceles1 looking at it again, at 0:56 you can see a sizable gap between neck and body from the outside, i wonder if the neck wasn't fully seated right in the first place. either way this is a simple fix with the larger factory shim, actual woodwork is not indicated for these it would be highly unusual that the needed angle was so extreme that the end of the fretboard would "breach" the surface of the guitar, like "busted neck block" unusual

[@troyclayton]

@@walterw2 I have a 2001 Big Baby and the action was almost the same as in this video. I made a tapered shim, after removing the piece of gift card someone at the factory had 'installed' over the stock shim. There are no gaps anywhere, but the neck material is now exposed in the area that would be a fretboard extension on another guitar. I'd plane it if I had half of Teds skill.

[@josephbrewer7026]

Never get a salesman’s opinion. I have never seen a guitar with neck attachment screws like this Taylor has at the sixteenth fret. Very interesting. I quite enjoyed watching this repair.

[@zibbezabba2491]

err... it's unfixable.. but the good news is we'll give you $75 part exchange on your 'broken' guitar if you want to pick a new one from in store.

[@locustvalleystring]

Good job. I am considering adding a shim for the same issue for my wife's Big Baby. Thinking about it, shimming raises and re-angles the neck, whereas, planing lowers the and re-angles the neck. I would think more angle change is necessary when planing to re-angle. Still mulling this over. I emailed to Taylor to see if they have shims available.

[@skipstalforce]

You can add a half shim under just the front of the factor shim to lower the action some, I did this, in my case I used only a small peice of note book paper folded in half. Only took a couple minutes.

[@danieldelewis2448]

Cool video

[@marka.200]

Guitar Assessment: The guitar in question is a Taylor Big Baby from the early 2000s, showing signs of wear due to age and travel. Action Adjustment: The main issue is the high string action at the twelfth fret, causing tuning problems and discomfort for the player. Repair Process: The technician plans to perform a neck reset and adjust the fretboard to improve playability. Neck Reset Procedure: The neck reset involves removing material gradually to lower the action to a comfortable level, using specific measurements and tools. Conclusion: The repair was successful, reducing the action to between five and six sixty-fourths at the twelfth fret, making the guitar playable and extending its lifespan by another decade or more.

[@TheGeniuschrist]

A friend of mine had a big baby taylor when I was a kid. I thought it was a great little guitar.

[@MikeWtf]

It would be warped. To be fair Taylor baby's are a pile of s***. The tops (and backs) are so thin that the bridge slowly creates a bubble behind it. It's more obvious on the smaller models. I had to make a shim 3.5mm to 1.5mm to align mine. The only superior thing about this guitar compared to any other guitar I own is care factor in the case of theft.

[@japhygoldman8856]

Just curious, while planing the neck heel 1mm lower on one end, with a taper, you improve the geometry but don't you also increase the distance between the fingerboard and strings? Did you, in addition to the slight geometry change, add a thicker shim under the neck ? Thanks

[@xijinpingsfavoritehemorrho1328]

No, the angle is lower on the neck end, improving geometry is nearly synonymous with creating less, in this case, space between string and frets. You must be picturing this wrong, the lost distance on the heel is more than made up on the plane on the strings as it lowers.

[@flyinacircle6398]

i’m glad you asked as i was wondering the same. it’s still not entirely clear to me. i would need someone to draw sketches as the words don’t work for me.

[@nate40474047]

Don't do this! You will ruin the neck. Just message Taylor, they will send you the shims for free.

[@gitarboi6760]

I have a Taylor big baby Have had it since the early 2000s It has never been serviced Sounds and plays great

[@MrEarle999]

I'm wondering why not just use a thinner shim as Taylor provides for this purpose?

[@tinastarlingmusic]

i wonder if ALL Taylors have really high action, I got a new GS mini and it was insane

[@arieltherealify]

Iam from Puerto rico and i recive my shims in 3 days directed by Taylor Guitars en El Cajón Clifornia. Cus i have 2 Taylor acustics.

[@ahsamv1992]

nice work i did this stuff with some Chinese guitars I brought but if i buy a Taylor i am expecting it to be perfect out of the box

[@alextrendler]

I took the strings off my Big Baby the other day and the neck was incredibly loose. The screws still felt quite tight, but it seemed to be raising up/wobbly with the screws as the "middle of the see-saw." I was nervous to take the screws out and try putting it back, but it seems like this may be the right thing to do. Is this quite common?

[@twoodfrd]

Alex Trendler it's not that common in my experience, but it can happen. The wood of the neck may have shrunk slightly over time. With the strings off or loose, try backing the screws out a few turns, pushing the neck down firmly into the pocket and retightenting them until snug.

[@alextrendler]

Hi! I just wanted to say thank you for the reply. I've since done exactly this and it's working beautifully now. Could this be a result of frequent tuning and string changes? I go through a lot of tunings and change my strings once every week or so. Thought maybe this could have made the neck weird.

[@derekfromtauranga6012]

Alex Trendler It is the sound board lifting under string tension which is why all acoustic guitars should have adjustable necks to compensate for movement through tension and humidity changes.

[@christopherkaczka]

Beautiful work.

[@SticksAandstonesBozo]

I love my big baby so much but it’s absolutely insane how high the action is. I mean at the 12th fret it’s like 7/16”. It’s really a bummer.

[@dariocarafa3788]

I'm very curious what those measurements are. I heard you say 6 6/64 or something, but, it doesn't quite make sense. It's not 6 mm and 6/64 an inch, and it's not 6" and 6/64". This might be a silly question, but, I just don't understand what those measurements are. If you have the time could you please explain it to me? By the way I love the videos you're an amazing guitar fixer upper😁 (Luthier)

[@audio01]

This is the overly complicated imperial system and its fractions. I hope someday they will finaly embrace the universal metric system.

[@kindabluejazz]

6/64 of an inch is about 2.4mm. To an Imperial thinker, a 64th is similar to your millimeter, i.e. 'a very small amount' (except a 64th is actually smaller than a mm). You set the action by X 64ths depending on preference - e.g. 4, 5 or 6 64ths, or even "a smidge under 6 64ths" :-). That's just the way we think about it and do it. Note, we are all taught the metric system also, but many of us prefer the Imperial system for certain things, whether it be more intuitive, or historical. Any historical guitar setup information written for American made instruments for the past 100 years will have all its specs in Imperial. Sorry, but we are not going to eliminate all usage of the Imperial system. It's just not gonna happen, ever. Get over it.

[@loredominguez8281]

My big baby taylor has the same problem, it is from 2003, it sounds good but when I put the capo on the 7 it sounds kinda bad since the strings are too high, but I dont know how to do this, I was hoping I could fix it with the truss rod wrench, in my other guitar I just took out a piece of metal sheet that was under the bridge and it worked but this one doesn't has the metal sheet is just pure wood in that part

[@twoodfrd]

Lore Dominguez you can unscrew the neck and put a flat piece of wood veneer in the pocket and screw it back down. That works okay too.

[@loredominguez8281]

twoodfrd alright thnk you👍

[@humbucker1414]

Thanks so much for this video. I have a big baby that I received as a 16th birthday present (I'm 33 now). I played the snott out of it for about 6 years but it's been put away since then because the action got so high it was unplayable. One time with the strings off I noticed I could wiggle the neck (screws are still tight) and I thought something was broken and must have been causing the high action. Now I see that the neck just sits in that pocket and there's not much to really go wrong. You might have just breathed new life into my old guitar! Also I agree with and appreciate your sentiment that we shouldn't consider these things disposable. Take care!

[@philbrown102]

I have seen that on every one which I have worked on. I could be wrong, but I believe that is a design flaw, partially born out of necessity to avoid the truss rod. Due to tension, over time those screws take on a sort of lever action and the screw holes become ovaled a bit sometimes. They're tight in the blockk, but not necessarily in the neck.

[@2000SkyView]

why not just add a larger shim?

[@AmerikkkaGuitars]

Great design by Taylor. Alternative to trimming the neck is just trimming the nut underneath. Got it to about 5/64th". I also had to level the first 3 frets. Find this method way easier than busting out the hand planar. Alternatively you can use lower gauge strings also, maybe try lighter than .12 to get even better action and the expense of volume.

[@vernonknight8611]

Just 2 drywall screws thru the fret board to hold a neck on?? Yet when Fender used 4 through bolts through the back side of their Acoustics it was sacrilege?

[@NamnetHar]

Q: Thank you for your great videos. I have the exact same problem with my Big Baby. I wonder why you removed material from the neck and not from the shim. Im no luthier so removing wood from the neck makes me nervous. From the shim, not so much. Are there any pros/cons that I dont get? Kind regards from Sweden.

[@bills6093]

Because it was the neck angle, not the neck height? He did say he doesn't like to stack shims because he prefers direct contact. I suppose you could make a wedge shaped shim. I like the idea of the more permanent fix.

[@IrisGalaxis]

That way of attaching the neck seems stupid to me. They could've bolted it on from the back instead of having screws in the fretboard. It'd work fine...I know cause I have one built like that.

[@radsy5821]

Thanks mate, my 2001 big baby had exactly the same issues, and it's playing much nicer now. If you wanted to add electrics to this model for stage work, what would be your recommendation?

[@billroberts849]

While I can't fault Ted for the work if judged by the end result but I think its worth saying that if you own a Taylor Guitar search out a Certified Taylor Technician there are a lot of us out there. Even a Bronze rated tech can do neck resets on a Big Baby. All Taylor service techs have full sets of factory shims in stock both negative and positive. Resetting a neck on a big baby is a 10 min. operation not including setup. I feel bad that a stores salesperson would say this was not repairable to her. I have to wonder if that store was a Taylor dealer as this should be common knowledge to anyone selling Taylor Guitars.

[@stephendixon8575]

Mmmm, either the person she spoke to was an idiot or they were not at a Taylor guitar dealership store (or both); crazy advice! The factory installed shim is of course exactly all that needs changing to alter the neck angle, unless you go to a ‘proper’ luthier like you who can alter the neck angle without changing the shim. I gather that all ‘authorised Taylor repair centres’ will only change the shim on modern era guitars like these or with the NT neck (like in mine) rather than altering the angle any other way. Sounded pretty sweet after you got it set back up right 👍

[@alansauer6853]

Drywall screws?From the factory?Were the screw heads covered with a rosewood plug?Drywall screws in a guitar used to be called a hack job.I've heard of such a thing.I guess , live and learn

[@pschroeter1]

I"m just amused by no attempt to hide the two Philips head screws. My respect for you soars every time you says things like, "the action is okay but I want to make it better."

[@georgefrench1907]

Deck screws, maybe ..... ?

[@voltagevillain7342]

Looks easy when you know how! I have just acquired a 2016 Big Baby so will keep your advice in my mind for when the time comes. Mine came with highish but manageable action. I lowered it then put it back to how it was. The tone is way beyond its price point. Any tips on how I can safely age the top? It has that new look not the amber, mellow look of ‘old’ Taylors. Thanks for a great video. All the best from the UK.

[@robertrosenfield405]

My first thought was to taper the shim instead but your fixing the neck is permanently fixed. The screws need covers, not important.

[@sprikitiksprikitik3929]

I am not a luthier but i can say if all my guitars had a neck like that well i can do neck reset by my self.. but in a neck joint by M and T.. you need to have the right tools and here in our country.. it is a slim chance to have it.. though for me guitars joined by screws only tend to produce a thin sound compared to unscrewed neck.... just saying..

[@alext8828]

If those are really drywall screws, swap them out. Drywall screws snap very easily and a piece could get lodged in the neck pocket.

[@barruzza]

Great video. I love fixing my own guitars and I have this exact Taylor with the same issue. I thought it was toast but after seeing this video, I was able to keep my baby.

[@AbbieHoffmansGhost]

I've found that there is a pivot point because of the narrow neck attachment with two screws at the 14th fret. I had trouble with tuning and action because of this. As you can see the shims are not tapered but flat. The work around that I found (and I'm not advocating this for others, but it works great for me) was adding two more screws at the 16th fret. I also adjusted the truss rod after to make it almost flat. A straight edge on the frets now lands on the top of the bridge saddle and if it ever needs adjustment I should be able to just back off on the two screws that I added. One note, the way that the neck block is does not allow you to add screws much higher than the 16th fret or they may not hit anything or possibly crack the end of the neck block.

[@robertwillett4122]

Just wanted to sale,sale ,sale. Probably something worst.

[@startreker8591]

Worst design imo

[@battlehrfred]

Lovely fix.I guess it about past experience and the skilled mind of remembering about fine detail and workmanship ,excellent Video sir ty for this lovely vid

[@Bkokane]

This makes no sense? Action is too high so you sanded down the heel of the neck to make the action even higher? Wouldn’t you want to raise the neck (like by adding a thicker shim) so the strings aren’t as high off the fretboard, rather than making the neck lower down?

[@kevinseversonandhisvizslas8287]

Sacriledge! Re-shim w taylor shims????

[@TheBionicleRocks]

After I resetted my neck angle with a shim I noticed there is a slight gap at the end of the fretboard and the top of the guitar (near the soundhole.) I assume this is normal due to the design of the bolt on design of the neck? Can I simply just fill up this gap with putty? Thanks

[@twoodfrd]

TheBionicleRocks you could, if it bothers you.

[@zacharyhodge3568]

Hey, thanks for the video. Right now my action is still really nice, but this gave me a really clear picture of how to fix this, or adjust it in the future. Is this the same process for most guitars or just the big baby, since it is bolt on. I should check to see if Arturo did mine.

[@twoodfrd]

Zachary Hodge this is specific to the babies. Most acoustics have a more complex neck attachment system, and resetting them is much more involved.

[@AllSpace]

just needed to put 1 or 2 mm wood or plastic shim at the back to tilt neck, jobs done, same as any bolt on neck acoustic or electric

[@bills6093]

I like his idea of a more permanent fix and more direct contact of the neck to the body.

[@MikeGervasi]

I have a later BBT and the action has gone up. Why wouldn't I just remove some material from the bridge saddle? Did I miss something here?

[@myprivatelibrary]

I wonder the same thing.

[@dannymccoy1783]

You can

[@AProudRobot]

Hey! great video! I have a question though, if the action is too high, shouldn't you be adding material to the neck instead of removing? If you remove material, making the neck "lower".... wouldn't this make the action even higher?

[@twoodfrd]

pablo lopez by removing material in a wedge shape it tips the end of the neck upward, lowering the nut end below the plane of the body and bringing the strings closer to the fretboard. You can add shims under the neck in the pocket to get a similar effect. I don't like stacking shims because I prefer solid contact between the neck and body.

[@dingdang3845]

❤

[@cajunqueen5125]

👍👍👍

[@arieltherealify]

Waooo! Now Taylor will not hellp that customer if they see that the neck has ben shave down. Realy rong what you did to that costomer instrument. Waoooo

[@twoodfrd]

Taylor didn't help the customer the first time... Anyway, it still plays fine two years later and she's happy with it.

[@bobbillnolan7644]

Twoodfrd: do you know if the Taylor , Big Baby has shim/s under the bridge saddle? Cheers from, Birmingham u.k 👍

[@MikeGervasi]

I just pulled mine. It does not have any shims and there's enough there to trim down.

[@bobbillnolan7644]

Thanks

[@faunaflage]

Sometimes I feel like an old big baby, too.

[@Mati05jp]

Good work ! Fantastic skills

[@stormengine3261]

Most of these comments are Big Babies about the shims

[@andyt6191]

And at the end of the day! Its a bolt on!

[@RockYouVideos]

Very cool. Why did you shave the neck heel instead of shimming the pocket? Just curious because I recent added a hardwood veneer shim to a Taylor Baby improving the neck angle and consequently, the action. Turned out perfectly and took two minutes. Gotta love how easy a neck "reset" is on these! Haha.

[@twoodfrd]

RockYouVideos shims work well too, I just like solid contact between the neck and body. Plus, there's already the tapered shim in the pocket and putting another on top just feels weird.

[@RockYouVideos]

twoodfrd Gotcha. I like how serviceable this Taylor design is. Pretty silly the guitar store people said it couldn't be fixed.

[@ianturner6062]

You don't put an extra shim 'on top' of the original, you replace the original shim with one of the correct dimension. With 90% of Taylors, it's an 'original owner' warranty job.... for **life**. If she was the original owner, you have just voided her warranty by sanding the neck joint. This is just weird!

[@bobbillnolan7644]

Can some explain: wouldn’t making the depth of the neck at the heel , make the action higher? I just bought one of these... I want to lower the action.

[@derekfromtauranga6012]

Bob Bill Nolan get a thin shim and place under neck at rear of neck pocket. This will lower action. You may have to experiment to get shim thickness correct.

[@bobbillnolan7644]

Thanks, I’ll give it a shot 👍

[@anybody3248]

Why would he sand down the neck heel when the whole point of the Taylor bolt on neck and shims is to prevent that from having to be done?

[@twoodfrd]

He would do it because he comes from a world where sticking shims between neck and body decreases coupling and makes that characteristic Taylor tone even less appealing. (The video was actually more a commentary on shops that suggests stuff is unrepairable when they are).

[@anybody3248]

@@twoodfrd I'd have to disagree as to how much using shims between the neck and body decreases the coupling between the two. I doubt that any difference in sound can be heard in this guitar if it would have been repaired with the correct size shims instead of going through all of this work.

[@stellingbanjodude]

I think the salesman’s sales technique was warped. 🤦🏻‍♂️

[@gogosuperstar]

Nice video! Did you put the shim back inside? Because I'm about to do the same procedure but I don't know how much I should take of from the neck? Thanks!

[@twoodfrd]

Gogo Singer yes, I kept the shim. Its also possible to put a piece of veneer in the pocket under the shim and change the angle a little bit I f you don't need a lot of adjustment.

[@gogosuperstar]

Thank you for the fast reply. I have some questions : I bought my big baby Taylor on Ebay last year in April but I got it in September because I'm from Europe and my friend who is from USA brought it to me. The sound is amazing even more when it's plugged, no doubts about that. But when I got it the string action was very high similar as yours in this video. So I took the neck off and tried to put some material under the shim (read on the forums) but then when I put back the neck, it was moving even thou I screwed the screws, and the only solution was to take the shim out (because even only with the shim inside I couldn't get it to the original position/angle) and then the neck was properly put in to the slot without moving but then the string action got even higher. After 6 months I decided to try again to fix the string action (today). I took the neck off but when I tried to put the shim back it didn't fit, the shim seems damaged, I had to force it to get into to slot. ( I don't know how it got damaged, it was placed in my locker safe and sound). I contacted Taylor if they can ship to me new shims, I'm waiting for the response. My question is how can I set up the neck properly so it wont be moving? And the procedure you did on your guitar's neck, did you took 1 millimeter from the whole neck or only on the lower part of the neck? Does the neck fit the slot properly or it is a little lifted up? I'm sorry for writing you such a long message, but I'm scared to give my guitar to be fixed to a random person. If you were here I'd totally pay you to fix my guitar. Here are some photos so you can see how the shim is damaged : prntscr.com/iw46gm prntscr.com/iw46o5 prntscr.com/iw46y2 prntscr.com/iw479h Any advice or comment or suggestion would be appreciated a lot at this moment! Thank you in advance. Greetings from Macedonia, Gogo.

[@twoodfrd]

If it is possible for you to take it to someone who does guitar repairs I would suggest that. Taking off wood from your neck is a non-reversible decision and if you aren't very careful you could make the problem worse. This is not something I can teach you how to do online and guarantee success! Wait for Taylor to send you a higher shim or find a guitar repair person who has a good reputation.

[@gogosuperstar]

I just put another saddle bone that is shorter than the original and it seems like it fixed the problem. From almost 9mm on the 12th fret it went down to 4.5mm and it feels and sounds pretty great! But for sure I will listen to your advice and take my guitar to some experienced guitar repair person, as soon as I get the shims.Hopefully Taylor will send it to me. Thank you once again for taking your time and helping me. Gogo.

[@jakevoss7885]

It's like Leo Fender designed an acoustic

[@wayneg296]

👍👍😎✌️

[@freelancerider100]

Thankyou

[@nilz91]

why not just trim the shim to lower the action?

[@twoodfrd]

Trimming the shim would raise the action. You could raise the shim, but then you've got all the pressure at the far end. It can do weird things to the neck.

[@nilz91]

@@twoodfrd ah ok. i actually meant raise it. but the pressure never crossed my mind. thanks for clarifying.

[@williambyrne6855]

Easier to clamp and plane the larger tail of the neck than the thin shim that would likely fracture under stress (maybe unless mounted to a block). But otherwise, a similar angular trim to the shim would suffice. The goal was to change the angle of the neck with respect to the body of the guitar -- but not necessarily lower the neck uniformly. Effectively, the neck is pivoting about the 15th fret causing the head of the neck to lower while proportionately narrowing the action across the entire neck. A nut adjustment might be necessary.

[@theworkshed1253]

Owe you a beer

[@deeplypresent]

Wow, nice work! I landed on your video after searching for how to fix the action on my Taylor Big baby. I got the same response from the shops I took it to, basically telling me to buy something new and chuck it. Really gross if you ask me! Now my fingers are crossed that you’re local to me and I can get you to repair mine 😄.

[@titusfleming6172]

Could I not just use the truss rod?

[@twoodfrd]

Truss rods are for adjusting the slight curvature in the neck known as relief. .020" or half a millimeter is a lot of relief. One full turn on the truss rod but is a huge adjustment. To bend the neck enough to change an action like the one pictured could easily snap the rod or split the neck. Also, you end up with a weird back-bow in the fretboard with lots of buzzes.

[@titusfleming6172]

twoodfrd I wish you was here to check out my new guitar I’m in meridian MS I don’t know any luthiers!

[@helenandrichard]

personally, I'd have made a new shim first.

[@ianturner6062]

'Removing 1mm here reduced the action by 3/64th'....Interesting mixed measurements there...…! Stick to one measurement system, 1,000ths are a good system if you must use imperial!

[@gmofftarki]

This is probably a stupid question, but doesn't that affect the angle of the self-tapping screws attaching the neck to the body, leading to cross-threading and/or possible additional stress to the body (somewhere?)/fingerboard or additional wood damage to the body? Or was the angle change slight enough to be within tolerance? Or were there additional steps taken to avoid altering the geometry of the screws/I'm misunderstanding the repair? I know nothing about any of this, it's just something that occured to me while watching.

[@twoodfrd]

The through-hole iin the neck has enough clearance to accomodate the slight change in angle- it's about 1 degree.

[@stevevice9863]

Don't waste your money on a Big Baby. That is the crappiest guitar Taylor makes, (the exposed "drywall" screws are a good indication of the level of quality)...can't believe Taylor still has this guitar in their lineup. Go for the GS Mini. It isn't much more expensive than a Big Baby, but it is better quality and it sounds way better. It is a good beginner guitar. I am assuming that the neck had too much relief, (bow), and since there is no truss rod, I guess that is why you removed wood from the neck? What was the action at the 7th fret after the reset? Taylor probably makes a wedge shaped shim for adjusting these necks. Also, I've always thought that if the fret ends protrude past the edge of the neck and feel sharp, it is an indication that the guitar is dried out causing the wood neck to shrink, (the frets don't shrink, so that's why they stick out). If the guitar is dried out that might be contributing to the neck being out of whack. A guitar can be dry in the summer if you are in a typically dry climate, like the Southwest US.

[@galenhunsucker8187]

Nice job...