newmenco -> RE: What are good measurements at the 12th fret for action height? (Nov. 8 2009 19:33:34)
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I just received a vintage Conde, from the early 60's. I think mine may be been considered a student model at the time. It wasn't a concert guitar, so I'm kind of assuming a student model like yours. Here are some measurements I took tonight, because your post made me curious. I also have a Cordoba 30f I used for comparison. I haven't played it yet, so I don't know how that action will play out. I actually had the strings off to repair some cracks, but I put one back on just for some measurements. E string 12th fret is 2mm. The Cordoba is 4mm. The distance between the soundboard and bottom of slot is the same on both--3mm. The saddle on the Conde is 4mm tall. Cordoba is 5mm tall. The bridge height: Conde-almost 6mm. Cordoba-7.5mm Distance between soundboard and top of saddle: Conde-7.5mm, Cordoba, 11mm. Slot depth: Conde-3mm. Cordoba-5mm I put in .5mm shim, which increased the action to about 3.2mm For me, what all this means is that, with the Conde, I started with a slot depth of 3mm, and a 4mm saddle. 75% of the saddle was in the slot. By adding the shim, I now only have 62% of the saddle in the slot. On the Cordoba, if I lower the saddle, I end up with proportionately more material in the slot. Maybe it's all academic, and I'm making much ado about nothing, but I prefer to have more of the saddle in the slot, than less of it. And, it ultimately affects the break angle, but I'm not sure really where to go with that. I read another post that said less break angle is more desirable on flamenco guitars...??? So, if I need the extra height in the saddle, I'll have to make a new one. Speaking of which, the Conde saddle is 1mm thick. The Cordoba is 2mm thick. Anybody else got thin saddles?
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