Adjusting saddle height

[jspeter51]

I have a Takamine EF341SC acoustic/electric which is in desperate need of an action adjustment. The neck is straight and the nut is at a playable height, but the action at the bridge is quite high. I took it apart to file down the bottom of the saddle piece, but it has a channel on the bottom that apparently the pickup sits in. My question is, can I file it down anyways, which would almost eliminate the channel, or is there another option that I am not seeing?

[JLS1]

Originally Posted by jspeter51

I have a Takamine EF341SC acoustic/electric which is in desperate need of an action adjustment. The neck is straight and the nut is at a playable height, but the action at the bridge is quite high. I took it apart to file down the bottom of the saddle piece, but it has a channel on the bottom that apparently the pickup sits in. My question is, can I file it down anyways, which would almost eliminate the channel, or is there another option that I am not seeing?

How much of the saddle is showing, above the body of the bridge? If it's less than 1/8", you may be in neck reset territory. Sight down the neck, from the headdstock--the plane of the frets should point to the top surface of the bridge. If you can see the front of the bridge, it's likely that the neck angle has changed. You can also hold a straightedge on the frets, and see where it meets the bridge; it should be touching, or just above, the top of the bridge.

I hate to be the bearer of bad tidings, but I don't think filing/sanding the saddle bottom, ESPECIALLY with a groove that the pickup has something to do with, is going to solve your action problem.

[jspeter51]

JLS--Thank you. I initially thought I may need a neck reset too, but it seems to check out just fine with a straightedge. That is, the straightedge touches the bridge and there is no bow in the neck to speak of. I have plenty of saddle sticking above the bridge, just not sure how to go about filing it down. It should also be noted that there are no good guitar shops within an hour of me, so I would like to do it myself if possible

[3 Chord]

Buy a bone saddle blank. Save your original saddle. Try your hand at making a new saddle, its kind of easy but time consuming. If you screw up you still have the original.

Also, check out "frets.com"

Good luck

[jspeter51]

Well, I did a bit of checking around and came up with this:
http://www.takamineforum.com/forum3/...t=1727&start=0
Apparently the saddle is an integrated unit with the pickup, and cant be replaced by a regular bone saddle. I will have to check for some shims and if that doesnt work, shave the top, which doesnt sound like a ton of fun. But at least I know now. Thank you guys for all your help!!!