Use lighter/electric strings to giveacoustic neck less tension??

[ayc6]

I just bought a lovely 60s EKO acoustic guitar and after putting on some new 11-52 acoustic strings i found that the neck got a bit too curvy so that the action is too high up the neck. I play a lot of chords up the neck so I was wondering if changing to lighter strings (or electric strings) will make the neck straighter and therefore easier to play? Would using lighter strings make a real difference to an old guitar like mine?

 

I think now the neck has too much relief (i.e. too bent) anyway. Playability is more important than tone for me.

 

Or should I take it to a shop to get it fixed up (the expensive option)?

[54merk]

So you are trying to get a 35-40 year old Eko to play properly but it has considerable neck bow??? The easiest solution, if you call it that, is to crank down on the truss rod. It has one, doesn't it?? If so, be careful. Tighten it a little at a time and don't break it by overtightening. If there is a lot of bow to the neck this will not help that much, since it means that you need a neck reset. I think most of those Ekos were bolt-on necks, so it can be removed and shimmed to reset the angle. Better yet, take it to a qualified tech who knows what they're doing. Electric gauge strings (with 0.010 or lighter E strings) will be easier to play because they have less tension, but they sound like crap on acoustics.

More information can be found here:

http://www.frets.com/FRETSPages/OwnerManual/manssguitar.html

[ayc6]

Would you say that higher action sometimes gives better tone? the acoustic sounds more soulful than my gibson at the moment but it's a bi harder to play up the neck.

yes my eko is 60s country western acoustic with a bolt on neck and it has a black plastic covering at the head which i suspect covers the opening for the truss rod.

i'm a bit weary of doing it myself...which way is it normal to turn the rod for less relief? is it ok to leave the strings on while adjust the rod?