drbassman wrote:Should I do anything since I do have good movement when I tighten the nut with the right tool? Once the rod was free of the constrictions of the truss rod pocket on a long handled nut driver, it moved easily.
I'd still clean up the scoring on the lower rod, as it will cause adjustment problems once you've got tension on the rods.
drbassman wrote:Will the slight bend probably worsen over time? I could easily cut the rods apart, straighten the bend and have a welder friend rebraze them back together. Another dumb question: pre-stress the rods? How is that done?
Yes, if the rod is really torqued it will probably continue to bend the threaded end downward, as there is no support below it.
Brazing is not like welding, as it does not rely on melting/fusing the metal rods together. It is more like soldering, using a different metal alloy to bond the metal parts together. I use a small propane torch, like a plumber would use and a brazing rod that is sold at any big home improvement store. I'm sure that your welder friend can help you here, but if you're handy, you probably can do it yourself.
By pre-stressing the rods, I mean to put a slight upward bend in the top rod, so that the ends will already be angled in the correct direction before any tension is applied to the nut.
drbassman wrote:When I tried to tighten the rod the first time, it was recessed deep into the rod pocket. Should the sleeve, and nut on top of it, be above the channel in the neck for freer movement? When I tightened the nut the first time, I could see the bottom of the nut hitting the wood around the rod channel, making me think that was stopping my progress.
The rod may not work this way, as it is designed to push the middle of the neck upwards against the pressure of the strings. Because the end of the threaded rod has been bent downward, it will cause the nut to rub against the back of the channel route. Straightening the rod end will help to move the adjustment nut away from the wood.
