SE 245 Serious Problem - Please Help

[Joe Henry]

Hello - I posted this in the Electric Guitars forum before seeing this one - so just posting again in case it was in the wrong place - apologies in advance to Mods.

Here's the issue.

I'm pulling whats left of my hair out with a problem here guys - I hope somebody can shed some light on this.
Changing PUPs on a PRS SE245 - but something is drastically wrong with the neck!

Guitar plays absolutely fine beforehand. I have taken all of the strings off to change out PUPs - strings have been off for about a week as I couldn't get to it all at once. Job now done and putting the strings back on.

The string tension does not pull the neck back into position anymore. Putting tension on the strings - but the strings hit the neck at the first fret they pass and there is a break angle that goes back the way down the neck to the tuners. It seems as though either or some of:

1. The neck angle has shifted as though the neck is coming out of its pocket
2. The neck is so stiff that the string tension isn't enough to pull it into shape
3. Somehow the bridge height has lowered.

I really cannot understand what on earth is going on here because:

1. There is no visible sign of the neck shifting in the pocket - no cracks in the finish or obvious signs of movement.
2. The truss rod was adjusting absolutely fine before and has not been touched in the process (cover was on all the way through.
3. I taped off the bridge so that it wouldn't move during the PUP change.

I am totally stumped by this - never seen anything like it. I need to get some thoughts on this guys and some measurements if anybody can help me with that. Would be very grateful as this guitar has gone form great to absolute nightmare in a very short space of time.

Can anybody give me a photo of what an SE 245 looks like from the top edge - as though you are looking down at the string/neck/pick up rings from the switch edge while playing. Also - can anybody tell me what is the distance from the very end of the fretboard to the body of the guitar if you have one - I need to check to see if this neck has begun to pop out of the body.

Does anybody have a tech support number for PRS (I'm in the UK - I believe that there's a PRS UK but not sure if it does tech support)

Thanks for any help guys - this one has got me completely stumped.

 

[pac90]

Post some photos

But these guitars are solid, so likely just needs setup, and there is complete guide on main prs website, which is great

http://www.prsguitars.com/csc/setup.html

It almost reads like the nut fell out of slot?

 

[Joe Henry]

Thanks for your reply Pac90. The nut is all fine and the guitar really does seem solid. This is much more seriously out of whack than the adjustment parameters of a set up though - I can set guitars up myself - no prob with that. This is more like a shifted neck or a snapped truss-rod - although you'd expect the opposite to happen!

Thanks again though!

 

[charliefrench]

Hello and welcome. It is extremely unlikely that the neck has begun to lift from its pocket. Were this the case there would certainly be finish cracks visible in the affected area - front and rear of the guitar. You state that there are none so forget this idea and worry no more about the possibility.

A scenario: Guitar is at rest with strings removed for about a week. You are in the UK experiencing seasonal higher humidity. One possibility could be the neck has reacclimatized to the environment while the string tension was removed and created a back bow, a back bow sufficient enough to explain why the strings are hitting the end of the neck (and we are assuming the bridge height is exactly as it was before, since you taped it up).

You say that the truss rod was working absolutely fine before. Does this mean that you are unable to adjust the rod now?

It sounds to me like the truss rod needs adjusting to ease the back bow in the neck. If indeed a back bow exists. We need to know more.

Have you examined the neck relief? If not do it now. Tune all six strings to pitch, if possible. Place a capo behind the first fret - or use a finger on the fat E string. Then fret where the neck joins the body on the same string. Compare what you see with the conditions shown in the illustration below.

Do you have a gap between the bottom of the string and say, the top of the eighth fret?

EDIT: The above was written without seeing previous replies to your post.

 

[pac90]

yes check truss rod loose all the way first...

I re-read your original post, and think maybe what your seeing is just 'compounded' for want of a better adjective by the bridge maybe going down, lowering the strings at that side

I know I had to check on a forum for the correct bridge height of my sc when I changed pickups, but don't remember ever having to do more than a wee truss rod tweak. (My strat on the other hand was a ballache to get setup)

The PRS fixed bridge has a tilt with the left side higher than the right. I took the following pictures from my old SC, which has similar bridge (it has non SE nut and action is quite low with no fret buzz)

Hope this helps a bit anyway, its about 6/64s on high string side and almost 15/64s on lower E side

Good luck

[/IMG]

 

[Joe Henry]

Guys - thank you very much indeed for your replies - really appreciate you coming to the rescue.

However - I am delighted to announce that the panic may be over. When I tell you what I've done - you'll see simultaneously what an idiot I am and why I was in such a panic.
During the week that these strings were off - I only went and forgot that this is a TOP WRAP TAILPIECE!!!!!!

I called into a local guitar store to see if they had an SE 245 that I could look at to compare. The great guy there mentioned the top wrap and the penny dropped - thank god.
It had totally and utterly slipped my mind that this was a top wrap. I have not put it back together yet - but this explains everything.

Really sorry to have bothered everyone and thanks very much indeed guys for your inputs.
What an idiot I am!

All the best

Joe

 

[charliefrench]

The man who never made a mistake never made anything. Gave me a good laugh though

 

[pac90]

Harr harr good one

Ive not noticed the pickup rings are the wrong way around.....until after restringing

Enjoy the guitar, what pickups did you put in?

 

[Joe Henry]

Thanks again guys - it's a set of Bareknuckle Abraxas that I've put in. Not really had a chance to get to know them yet - but I will post up an opinion once I've had a play with them.

All the best

Joe

 

[pac90]

abraxas - I'll try them one day, had mules in a bernie and they were great. I've read the abraxas really suit prs, bit hotter.
I have a set of mississipi queen p90s in that modded soapbar 1 sc in the photos, and also in a steinberger travel guitar which has a veneer '63 in the middle too, kinda stuck on them just now, very versatile