Please use tool in help with installing our Flexstrong Ultralight Truss Rod
There are two methods of installation of this rod to insure that it will be able to slide in and out of its home at will: (either way will require routing the same size slot in the neck- more on this later.)
1- Rout the slot, prepare the neck/fretboard glue interface, put the glue-scraper tool (which may or may not have been included with your order) into place at the far (i.e. blind) end of the slot (typically the heel-end of neck), apply glue, clamp the fretboard into place, pull the scraper tool out of the slot, clean off the tool, repeat as necessary and slide the rod (long-side-up for backbow action) into its new home.
2- Rout the slot, prepare the neck/fretboard glue interface, lubricate the outside of the rod with paste wax, place the lubricated rod into the slot, apply glue and clamp the fretboard into place.
The truss rod measures .28” tall by .28” wide. The threaded component of the rod depends on a cozy fit in the slot to enable it to do its work without splaying open too much under tension, so the slot depth should be carefully routed so there is only a few thousandths of an inch of play (i.e., as snug as possible while still allowing the rod to slide in and out of the slot). If there is too much play, the male/female thread interface within the rod will gradually separate more and more (and possibly fully decouple) as the nut is tightened. The width of the slot is less critical. In fact, it’s good to have a bit of extra space in this dimension to allow for airflow to facilitate the removal of the rod.
To remove the rod, you may be able to back out the adjustment screw far enough (but with some threads still engaged) to get purchase on it with your fingertips, pliers, or gently pry out with a flathead screwdriver using the fretboard-end or string nut to fulcrum against. If need be, you can fully remove the adjustment screw and insert a longer 10-32 screw or a length of 10-32 Allthread to use as a handle to pull the rod from its slot.
If you have further questions about the rod and/or its installation, feel free to reach out to me or Adam.
Thank you again and good luck!