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how is this done? i guess you're supposed to sand the bridge or something...
but aren't there grooves in the saddle? enlighten me please

I hate to squash inquiry or discussion, but I'll risk it. One search of google for "how to lower the action of a guitar" (I did not use quotes in the search) returned the following result (first result on the page no less):

http://www.frets.com/FRETSPages/Musicia ... ion01.html

If you are still confused or uncertain after reading that tutorial, feel free to post questions in this thread.

In general, not searching Google before asking a question is BAD FORM, because it makes you look lazy, as if you expect others to do your research for you. This is the last time I'll do it for you.

If you DO Google before asking, post your search terms and the sites you found that were not satisfactory. This will help avoid wasting everyone's time with repetitive effort.

JB

Furthermore: if you really have no idea about altering the setup of your guitar, you should probably not attempt it yourself. It's not really that difficult but there are a couple of ways to cause major damage to the guitar. Take it to any music store and they ought to be able to set it up to your satisfaction for not much money.

i did a google search with different terms and asked a couple guitar friends before coming here. the sites i found only told me that the bridge was supposed to be sanded, and no more information than that. i figured the question would have a very simple answer... and apparently it did... "the saddle is removed and sanded from the bottom, so the grooves are not an issue." i didn't realize this, and none of the sites i originally found explained this. i didn't want someone to go google for me, that would be idiotic. i figured that since people here play guitar, they would know the answer and would be able to just tell me, and i didn't realize it would be such a TERRIBLE BURDEN on everyone to do this.

honestly, on other forums, when people ask a simple question, people just answer it and get on with their lives, or else they ignore it and get on with their lives. while saying that i tried a google search already might make me look less lazy, it doesn't really make it harder or easier for someone to answer the question.

love,

a lazy incompetent

Angry response to useful criticism, CAPITALIZED word or two, hmm.

Everybody drink!

There are lots of things that can affect the action on a guitar.

For an acoustic, the main things that can be fixed include:

Saddle height
Nut height
Neck relief

Things that can't be fixed, or are very difficult/costly to fix:

Bridge raising (where the face of the guitar is warped)
Neck warping/humping
Fretwear (easiest of these to fix)

There are tons of other problems, but these come up the most, especially with cheaper guitars, which I will bet a thousand dollars you have.

Saddle height is generally the simplest solution to lowering the action. If you're going to sand down the saddle, however, make sure the neck is nice and straight (there's actually a formula to the slight curvature the neck is supposed to have, but I won't get into that. really effing straight is good enough here). If you lower the saddle but have too much/little relief in the neck, you'll end up with dead frets.

Instead of sanding the saddle, you may want to go up to guitar center and buy a new one. First take your old one out, take it with you, and ask the guys if they can get you a saddle that's already cut a little lower. Aside from the obvious benefit of having it cut just right already, you can get a better material. A Martin bone saddle is like a dollar or two. Real bone, it is. From US cattle. Delish.

As far as the actually sanding of the saddle, it sounds like you're worried about the grooves, leading me to believe you want to sand the top. You don't want to do this. The top of your saddle is (in theory) curved to exactly follow the radius of the fingerboard. Screw up that curve, and your action will really be screwed.

So, you're going to sand the bottom of the saddle. Just take the strings off the guitar, and it should come right out. If it's in there snug, you may need to grab it with pliers. Quick note - if your guitar is an acoustic/electric, have a real tech do this whole process for you. If you don't sand the saddle just right, your pickup won't function properly. If your guitar is straight acoustic, you can afford to be off a little.

Now that you have the saddle off, just sand the bottom down. A medium-grade sandpaper does well. I honestly usually use one of my skateboards if they have fresh grip on them.

Saddles, especially bone or bone imitator (tusq, ivorex) ones are very dense and take a lot of sanding to make a dent. Seriously, you'll produce a shitload of powder without making any progress at all. On that note, do this outside or in your garage because it's a fucking mess. You'll probably want to make some kind of mark on the saddle itself (a good cut with an exacto works) before you start so you know how much you've sanded. Half a millimeter usually is a good increment to stop at, put the strings back on, and see how it affects the action. Better to go too little than too much. Rinse and repeat.

Make absolutely sure you're sanding the bottom as even and level as possible. Make your marks on both ends and keep your sanding even between them. You should be able to set the saddle down on a flat surface and not have it wobble or lean. No biggie if you're off a tiny bit. After all, it's just your shitty acoustic.

There you go. Just saved you like $40. Also, change your fucking strings when you're done. Seriously, how old are those fucking strings? They're black for god's sake. Change 'em. Savage.