It seems altogether likely that this has been dealt with before but, with apologies, I would like to ask the collective wisdom for advice on nut flap adjustment. I can find lots of mentions of this and even a video showing Greg actually doing it, but somehow I still feel unclear on how the hardware is supposed to work. My instrument is a Railboard.

The two flaps look the same: each has two small sockets for an Allen wrench and a central small Phillips screw. What is the correct procedure? I gather that the Allen wrench adjustments raise and lower the nut. Does one loosen the screw, adjust with the Allen wrench and then retighten? Or is the central screw an independent adjustment? If so, what does it do?

Are these adjustments best done after string height adjustments at the bridge?

Thanks in advance for helping.

Robert

are you trying to adjust the action on the fretboard ? If so , the first place to start is with the truss rod . It’s rare that you have to do things beyond that unless you are changing string gauges markedly, or someone has been messing with it after it came from the factory


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Well, yes, of course, I have worked on truss adjustment, and I think it’s OK. But I have changed the string guages of this instrument from Emmett’s original setup. Greg clearly says that this may necessitate both bridge and flap adjustments. I would like to know what the correct procedure is for using the available adjusters. Is the central screw for adjustments? Or does it just remove the flap altogether? Is there a recommended procedure for performing the adjustment?

Adjustment at the bridge, and also truss adjustments, are described in detail in a variety of places. But I have not found a detailed account of adjustment at the nut. Please direct me if you know of one.

Thanks for any advice.

R

At around 10:49 in this video Greg goes about adjusting the flaps on the nut to accommodate a new/different string setup for an instrument. The whole video is instructive, so it’s worth watching from the start. If I recall correctly you should not have to mess with the middle Phillips screw , just the two outer Allen screws as Greg does in the video . If you wanted to lower a whole flap equally all the way across you would tighten both Allen screws the same amount . If you need to tilt it lower on one side tighten just that side, or loosen it a bit if you need to raise a side a bit. Greg makes it more clear in the video which way to turn the screws

https://youtu.be/v1ZLQG4_A3c




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I only use the nut flaps for fine tuning adjustments just to make sure the string gauges are in the right spot on the damper. Honestly, the only time I ever had to mess with them at all was when I changed my ACTV-2 over to DBR and then changed it back. This only required the use of the allen screws because it was more a matter of getting the right tilt.

I also recall Don Schiff posting at some point about raising his slightly in a uniform way to make the bass strings fuller on that 1st fret but with a Railboard that really shouldn't be an issue because of the length of that fret by design.

Hopefully that helps a little more,

MM

Thanks! That’s just the info I wanted.

Always happy to help. The switch to DBR required adjusting the bridge sliders as well. I took pictures to reference getting everything back in place beforehand.

Honestly, I was scared to move anything on my Stick for the first 10 years I had it. Once I realized that Emmett really had thought of everything it became much less nerve wracking to use all of that adjustable hardware. It's really a testament to his constant evolution of the instrument.

MM

Photos. Why do I never think of that?

Probably because when we grew up it was such a hassle! LOL

I have fully embraced the uses of my pocket super computer now and take all the help I can get. Lord knows I need it.

MM