# First Neck Build



## pettymusic (Jan 4, 2015)

Well, here I go. I am not sure if I have the patience or determination to build the guitar I want but, I'm about to find out if I have what it takes to put a neck together for my Ibanez.

I bought a small neck blank from ebay. Already laminated maple, walnut, and ???.

Fret board is rosewood from lmii slotted for 24 frets radiused @ 16".

The goal: Build a playable neck for my Ibanez

Not because it needs one, I simply want the practice. I kicked around the idea of going through the process with cheap pine or something from Lowes but, some guys here @ SSO advised that I may be able to build a playable neck the first try.

So here we go:

I have drawn out my design to scale and here are the specs -

AANJ
25.5" scale
24 frets
dual actions truss rod - hot rod from stewmac
Rosewood fretboard
jescar nickel/ silver jumbo 

Width @ nut - 42mm
@ 24th - 57.7mm

Thickness @ nut - 19mm
@ 12th - 20mm

I started 3 weeks ago and still haven't glued the scarf joint. Haha! Learned alot though and built my first router jig to clean up the 13 deg. angle for the scarf.






]

Now, the neck blank I started with was not large enough to allow for error. Of course, my hand saw skills being so poor caused me to take a bit too much of the head stock piece. 






No matter, I have another piece of maple thats not only long enough but, wide enough as well. 

Here you can see my skills with the ryobi saw need some practice.












My next move is to create a thicknessing jig for my router. This way I can go ahead and get my headstock piece to thickness. At the same time, it will easily get the surface prepped for gluing the scarf joint. 

Hopefully, I will have time to get the jig done and the scarf glued tonight.


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## Killemall1983 (Jan 4, 2015)

Next time, if you make another neck, cut the scarf the other way, so you dont get a joint right in the center of the heastock.


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## immortalx (Jan 4, 2015)

You can definitely pull it off man.
Don't ditch the other neck blank, you can always glue a separate headstock piece over the blank and you can use it on another project.


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## pettymusic (Jan 4, 2015)

Killemall1983 said:


> Next time, if you make another neck, cut the scarf the other way, so you dont get a joint right in the center of the heastock.



Thanks. Do you mean start the angle at the back of the neck?


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## pettymusic (Jan 4, 2015)

immortalx said:


> You can definitely pull it off man.
> Don't ditch the other neck blank, you can always glue a separate headstock piece over the blank and you can use it on another project.



Thanks, I appreciate that. Yeah, thats my plan; just gonna glue a piece of maple on the neck and save the "now too small" head stock. 

I don't have much room for storage but, I really hate throwing anything away. For example: here I've attached a milk jug to my router as a dust extraction attachment! 
Haha! It actually worked, too! Hey, even if I can't build an instrument, I will have some nice jigs and attachments!







Now this is my thickness router jig. I was hoping to keep the router stationary while moving the piece around but, this proved to be very difficult. Mainly, keeping the piece flat against the granite while preventing the router from pulling the piece from my hand. So, I will secure the piece to the granite and move the router over the piece instead. Not tonight though. Gotta get to bed.


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## Pikka Bird (Jan 5, 2015)

pettymusic said:


> Thanks. Do you mean start the angle at the back of the neck?



I think he means the first option here:






...which I agree looks nicer on most necks, _but_ if you make a volute and veneer the back of the headstock then the middle one is more suitable.


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## DistinguishedPapyrus (Jan 5, 2015)

Looks really cool so far man... I couldn't help but notice I have that exact same router and have used it for a couple years doing the same type of neck blank thicknessing methods you're doing. Check it out:
















Its totally possible, just keep at it. I have built around 6-7 necks like this.


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## pettymusic (Jan 5, 2015)

Pikka Bird said:


> I think he means the first option here:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Ah! I see now! Thanks for the clarification on that.


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## pettymusic (Jan 5, 2015)

DistinguishedPapyrus said:


> Looks really cool so far man... I couldn't help but notice I have that exact same router and have used it for a couple years doing the same type of neck blank thicknessing methods you're doing. Check it out:
> 
> 
> 
> ...




HAha! I think I actually got the idea for this jig from one of your posts! So, thanks! I think I would feel better holding a neck under the cut like that but, holding a small headstock piece wasn't doing it for me. It's an easy resolve though, just secure the piece and move the router back and forth, to and fro.


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## DistinguishedPapyrus (Jan 5, 2015)

Totaly agree with that. I feel nervous any time I have get my fingers any closer than a few inches to the cutter. The smallest piece I did like that was shaping a nut blank out of raw unbleached bone from a PetSmart dog toy with a 1/4" straight cut bit. It came out great, in fact the blank is long enough that it could possibly go on a fanned fret 8 string but it scared the crap outta me to cut that piece, I havn't done it since lol...

Check it out, didn't get any pics of the shaping process but here's the before and after:


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## pettymusic (Jan 5, 2015)

^^ Yeah, just made me too nervous. That's a great idea to use the dog toy like that! Probably saves a couple bucks!


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## pettymusic (Jan 6, 2015)

Got it glued up tonight. Since my headstock is wider than the neck, I couldn't clamp in a way to prevent the pieces from sliding once the glue was applied. I ended up drilling 2 small holes on the outer edges and carefully driving 2 finishing nails to work this out. 

We shall see how this works out tomorrow night.


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## pettymusic (Jan 9, 2015)

Ok, headstock is glued on! I don't see any issues yet and if there were any wiht this glue joint I wouldn't be able to spot it until later anyway. 

Continuing on......I have it in my mind to rout the truss rod channel next. Does this have to be an exact location or is the goal to keep the area where the allen wrench meets the allen head of the truss under the nut?

What I have is the hot rod from Stewmac and the router bit that matches it.

So, here's the order in which I'm thinking:

- rout truss rod channel
- flatten/ prep neck for FB glue up
- Flatten/ prep FB for glue up
- Glue the FB
- Cut the neck taper
- Cut my headstock shape
- check FB radius and perfect if needed
- install frets
- Shape the neck

Not gonna think any further than that... it makes my head hurt, Ha! 

This sound about right or is there reason to change this order up?


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## Renkenstein (Jan 9, 2015)

Looks like a sound order of operations to me, and similar to my own.


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## DistinguishedPapyrus (Jan 9, 2015)

Only thing I can think of is that I usually cut the headstock shape before gluing the fretboard. Just cause I use a jigsaw to cut the headstock and the fretboard would get in the way when getting down close to the nut. 

Just a preference thing, maybe you could use a different tool to cut the headstock...


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## Renkenstein (Jan 9, 2015)

DP brings up a good point. I definitely shape the headstock before gluing the fretboard, because the fretboard would get in the way. 

I also taper the neck without the fretboard with a template, then after gluing the fretboard, I trim the board to the neck. It's adding an extra step, but I like it that way.


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## immortalx (Jan 9, 2015)

There are several ways to do do it but no right or wrong way.
I first taper the fretboard by putting 2 straight edges either side and use them as a guide with a template bit. 
I then glue the fretboard by drilling 2 holes inside some fret slots and using small nails to help keep it in place.
Finally, I use the fretboard as the template to taper the neck.

Go with whatever you feel more comfortable.


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## pettymusic (Jan 10, 2015)

DistinguishedPapyrus said:


> Only thing I can think of is that I usually cut the headstock shape before gluing the fretboard. Just cause I use a jigsaw to cut the headstock and the fretboard would get in the way when getting down close to the nut.
> 
> Just a preference thing, maybe you could use a different tool to cut the headstock...



I think I'll take your advice DistinguishedPapyrus. I too will be using the jigsaw gor this operation. Make sense to me.

Thanks!

Gonna make some time today to get busy on this. It has been 20-40 degrees the last week. No heater in my garage 

Living in the south my entire life, I've become accustomed to warmer air. So, when this 2 mos of Florida winter comes around, I dont know what to do with myself

I definitely get more guitar playing this time of year.


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## BlackMastodon (Jan 10, 2015)

immortalx said:


> There are several ways to do do it but no right or wrong way.
> I first taper the fretboard by putting 2 straight edges either side and use them as a guide with a template bit.
> I then glue the fretboard by drilling 2 holes inside some fret slots and using small nails to help keep it in place.
> Finally, I use the fretboard as the template to taper the neck.
> ...


This is how I do it as well. Also, should you shape the neck before fretting? I feel like fretting is usually the last step.


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## pettymusic (Jan 10, 2015)

BlackMastodon said:


> This is how I do it as well. Also, should you shape the neck before fretting? I feel like fretting is usually the last step.



I see. Is this because the may "release" causing the wood to shift?


Do any of you guys happen to have a blackmachine style headstock template in pdf format?

The one I free handed seems way too small.


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## pettymusic (Jan 10, 2015)

Hmmmm. Maybe if I just move that curve closest to the truss rod up and away a bit, I might make this work. I shorted myself on the overall headstock length anyway.


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## immortalx (Jan 11, 2015)

You got PM man


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## pettymusic (Jan 11, 2015)

immortalx said:


> You got PM man


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## Renkenstein (Jan 12, 2015)

immortalx said:


> There are several ways to do do it but no right or wrong way.
> I first taper the fretboard by putting 2 straight edges either side and use them as a guide with a template bit.
> I then glue the fretboard by drilling 2 holes inside some fret slots and using small nails to help keep it in place.
> Finally, I use the fretboard as the template to taper the neck.
> ...





BlackMastodon said:


> This is how I do it as well. Also, should you shape the neck before fretting? I feel like fretting is usually the last step.



I'm actually going to try fretting before shaping the neck next round for a couple different reasons:

1) You won't need a caul for the back of the neck when pressing in frets, which is always a pain in the ass for me. I also fear that the pressure will crack the neck under the truss rod, which would be a horrible cock-up.
2) After the frets are trimmed, filing/sanding them flush to the sides will be made easier because there is still a significant amount of wood to support the sanding block. 

I imagine if you use a thin enough neck blank where you don't have to remove as much material from the back of the neck would have a much smaller risk of it moving. I've been using thick blanks, which is why I chose the reverse order of operations where this is concerned.


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## immortalx (Jan 12, 2015)

Oh yes, that's how I do it as well! (pressing the frets before shaping the neck). Sometimes I experience a slight bowback and sometimes not, even using the same fretwire and saw blade. It largely depends on the density of the fretboard wood, but it's nothing that a truss rod adjustment can't handle.


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## BlackMastodon (Jan 12, 2015)

Renkenstein said:


> I'm actually going to try fretting before shaping the neck next round for a couple different reasons:
> 
> 1) You won't need a caul for the back of the neck when pressing in frets, which is always a pain in the ass for me. I also fear that the pressure will crack the neck under the truss rod, which would be a horrible cock-up.
> 2) After the frets are trimmed, filing/sanding them flush to the sides will be made easier because there is still a significant amount of wood to support the sanding block.
> ...


Never thought of that. I guess if you just made a proper jig to carve the neck afterwards that wouldn't damage the frets this would be a better way to do it. This gives me ideas.


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## Prophetable (Jan 12, 2015)

BlackMastodon said:


> Never thought of that. I guess if you just made a proper jig to carve the neck afterwards that wouldn't damage the frets this would be a better way to do it. This gives me ideas.



A board with a cork sheet glued on top would probably be pretty decent for it.


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## Renkenstein (Jan 12, 2015)

I lil neck carving buck like this works good too. I corked the top.


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## immortalx (Jan 12, 2015)

Nice jig Renk, I'm stealing your idea!

I use whatever is within range no matter how ugly it looks


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## Renkenstein (Jan 13, 2015)

Feel free! I just did a stupid simple version of something like Aaron from Blackwater uses. I used a bunk fretboard template for it so I could work on the sides and not have it get in the way. Neck shaping got a hell of a lot easier when I made that.


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## pettymusic (Jan 13, 2015)

^^Thanks guys!

I think I'll do this. I will be using my drill press and the StewMac fret press caul so, doing it this way will allow me to press the frets in all the way up the neck without worrying about what to do when I get to the higher frets. 

Got a used #4 plane from ebay. Spending most of my time getting the sole flat... Not very fun but, necessary. 

I did manage to glue a piece on the the headstock making it long enough for the headstock design I want.


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## BlackMastodon (Jan 13, 2015)

I still recommend getting a fret hammer even though you got the StewMac Turn-you-drill-press-into-a-fret-press Majigger. It isn't foolproof and if you need to hammer in a stubborn fret then it's good to have.


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## pettymusic (Jan 14, 2015)

^^ I have one that has the brass head on one side and the plastic on the other. Doesn't feel like much but, I cant imagine I'd need more as this could damage the frets.

Well I got the template for the headstock made. Thanks Immortalx! 










I glued this piece to the end of the headstock. Yes, I am wearing flip flops over socks.......I live in florida and its cold in my garage. ....thats just how I do.






It is a thicker piece. I'm hoping I can get away with this.. The plan is to cut the headstock then sand the headstock. I have a flamed maple veneer that will go over this.

But first, I was considering the many ways to route the truss rod channel. 

I think, given my current progress, I will simply line up a straight edge on either side of the router, center up, and go for it.

I will make a jig one day but, this being my first build, it seems @ every turn I have to make jig, get a new tool, learn how to use tool...etc. so, for this step it will be nice to just set up and make the cut!


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## JuliusJahn (Jan 14, 2015)

BlackMastodon said:


> I still recommend getting a fret hammer even though you got the StewMac Turn-you-drill-press-into-a-fret-press Majigger. It isn't foolproof and if you need to hammer in a stubborn fret then it's good to have.



You can just take a spare brass insert and use it with your regular hammer. I did 5-7 fretjobs this way. Just watch your fingers and fretboard, and you'll be fine. It'll mushroom the top so try not to use one that you need for the press.


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## immortalx (Jan 14, 2015)

Looking great man! Forgot to mention that the template is drawn for sperzel tuners that have a locking pin instead of the little tab for the screw. If you use any other machine heads check for clearance before drilling!


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## pettymusic (Jan 15, 2015)

immortalx said:


> Looking great man! Forgot to mention that the template is drawn for sperzel tuners that have a locking pin instead of the little tab for the screw. If you use any other machine heads check for clearance before drilling!



Ha! I have the same tuners for this project. Actually, they are on the guitar this neck build is for. That's awesome though!

I really like these tuners too! Great idea using the tab like that.




> You can just take a spare brass insert and use it with your regular hammer. I did 5-7 fretjobs this way. Just watch your fingers and fretboard, and you'll be fine. It'll mushroom the top so try not to use one that you need for the press.



Awesome idea! Never would have even considered this!


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## pettymusic (Jan 17, 2015)

Ok. I'm getting pretty excited since it's starting to resemble a guitar neck now.

Routed the truss rod channel. I went super simple and super dangerous! Haha! I simply set up a straight edge on 1 side. I will not be doing it this way again. I took a small mm size off on one side. Not really a big deal but, the next build; a jig will be made.






I used a 1/2" bit for the cavity for the allen head......wayyyyy too big. Will be getting a smaller bit for this next time.






Pressing on....I routed a little bit deeper than I wanted. I am maybe 1 1/2mm below the top. It just translates to more sanding. Wish I had a jointer/ planer..






I'll be getting in there and sanding the allen head cavity too. 







Ok.... question: I read somewhere that some like to dab a little silicon under the block ends of the truss rod. The only downfall to this that I can think of is: These hot rods are designed so that they can be replaced without removing the fretboard. I'm guessing the silicon would prevent that from happening, right?


Oh yeah, I almost forgot. My headstock veneer of short by about 1 1/2" and all the places I'm looking at are only selling 8" long pieces. Is my only choice to get a body top veneer? I would much rather spend $8-$12 verses $30.

Here's what I got:











Next up:

- Silicon the truss rod...maybe?
- Sand the FB and neck ready for glue up
- glue FB on the neck
- Re-radius the FB
- Apply finish to FB
- Install frets
- shape/ profile 
- Drill for tuners
- Install tuners
- Mock up and see where we are

Lots to do yet. I hope to get the FB glued on by tomorrow.....crossing fingers.


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## Renkenstein (Jan 17, 2015)

Light years beyond my first truss rod channel attempt. Good work, bud.


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## BlackMastodon (Jan 17, 2015)

The silicon under the trussrod is to prevent rattle, and I had no idea those trussrods are meant to be easily replaceable. I mean, ideally you don't want to ever have to replace a trussrod like that, so I guess it's up to you if you want to put silicon under it? I personally have on my few builds just for peace of mind.

One thing I noticed about your to do list: "Apply finish to FB." It looks like you have a rosewood fretboard next to the headstock template in that pic above, and if that's the case, then it shouldn't need a finish on it. My understanding is that only maple and other similarly open pore (I could be totally wrong on this by the way) woods need a finish applied. Ebony, wenge, and rosewood don't need a finish. Just sand it extremely fine if you want (like, 1200 grit fine, til it shines) and you should be ok.

Reference:
Look at the "Finish required" part here Warmoth Custom Guitar Parts - Neck Woods


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## KnightroExpress (Jan 17, 2015)

Maple has very tiny pores and will work just fine unfinished, but it will get all grimy as you play, which I'm sure you guys have seen before. Maple gets finished mainly for that reason- it ends up looking gross if you don't. 
Dense, oily woods like rosewoods don't require finish- just sand it up (like BlackMastodon said) and give it a bit of conditioning oil every once in a while.


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## pettymusic (Jan 17, 2015)

^^^^ Thanks for the save guys! For some reason, I was thinking it was maple FB do not need finishing... Duh!?

As far as the truss rod thing, I don't really care if I have to remove the FB to get to it anyway. If I do this right, that wouldn't be necessary anyway.



Ok, can I ask you guys for some advice?

I noticed starting around the 19th fret on my fretboard it starts curling up toward the slotted side. I'm pretty sure this wasn't the case when I received so, I tend to think this is due to environmental changes?

I have another ebony FB that is slotted, tapered, and compound radius. It appears to be curling up in about the same area as the rosewood FB. 

Is this a common occurrence for pre-slotted FB? 

I'm ok to go ahead and clamp and glue right?

I can get pics posted in you feel you need it before offering any advice....I just had a feeling this is not unusual.

Thanks is advance!!!


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## pettymusic (Jan 17, 2015)

Renkenstein said:


> Light years beyond my first truss rod channel attempt. Good work, bud.



Haha! Thanks, Renkenstein! 

I'm still light years behind you in building though!


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## Dana (Jan 17, 2015)

go ahead and glue.
i might suggest that you put the brass truss rod end under the fretboard. it looks like its going to stick out beyond it at the nut end? you don't want it under the nut, it'll pop the nut off when you adjust it i think.


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## KnightroExpress (Jan 17, 2015)

Ah yeah, your position is off. The end of the adjustment nut should line up with the back of the string nut.


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## pettymusic (Jan 17, 2015)

^^^ Thank you, guys. 

I have corrected this and glued her up!







I ugh....I got it about half clamped and then remembered......oh crap! The piece of tape over the truss rod! I seriously considered just leaving it and then just undid everything and removed it. Funny stuff though!


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## pettymusic (Jan 26, 2015)

Only a small amount of progress this weekend. I made a template for the neck taper and used the router to do this. I made it slightly over sized so, I can sand to the final dimensions. Sorry guys, I forgot to take pics of that. 

I used some dragon files to blend the neck/ headstock transition:





It still needs some refining. Looks like the right side needs to come in a little.








I re-established the radius on the fretboard:






Looking good so far:







Looking at my glue joint of the fretboard, it looks pretty good to my eye. I have not seem any gaps between the FB and neck so, I'm assuming that's as good as it gets for glue joints.

I'm already planing a second neck build. I have an awesome piece of ind. rosewood. Looks to be quartersawn. I have another piece honduras rosewood on the way. At first I was considering laminating these 2 pieces but, since the grain is so straight on this piece of ind. rosewood, I'm wandering if I might be better off leaving it as a 1 piece, maybe adding some carbon fiber rods.  Decisions, decisions


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## pettymusic (Jan 29, 2015)

Woohoo! Got the frets in last night.

Chamfered the slots, cleaned the frets.







Applied some minwax on the FB. Hammered the ends of the frets in, Wick'd in some thin CA, then pressed the rest of the way






I then used the 16" radius aluminum beam as a clamping caul over the frets over night. This is what it looked like this morning.






You can't really tell from the photos but, I may have used too much CA in some slots and it dried up against the areas where the frets meet the fretboard. I'm thinking maybe a razor or cab scraper, scrap along the grain hopefully, will clean this up.

Next up, I think I will make myself a fret end bevel file. 

As this gets closer to being finished, I can't help but get excited. I must remain calm and not rush this as that is when I am most likely to screwing something up. I am pretty nervous about drilling the holes for the tuners  

Oh yeah, I just thought of something. I totally have not considered my side dots. Should I have done this before the frets? Hmmm, I should definitely get to this before the neck carve.


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## Renkenstein (Jan 29, 2015)

Your neck is still square, so kick that sucker on it's side and drill the side dots. I compensate for the neck taper angle by tilting the drill press table. I also use a little piece of angle aluminum to make sure they're vertically centered. Pic Here You can also see how I align them to center between frets as well. 

I never got around to making a bevel file. I always just took my flattest mill file and eyeball it. I never found it a task that required a specialty tool. I run the mill file the length of the neck at a 45°


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## pettymusic (Jan 29, 2015)

Renkenstein said:


> Your neck is still square, so kick that sucker on it's side and drill the side dots. I compensate for the neck taper angle by tilting the drill press table. I also use a little piece of angle aluminum to make sure they're vertically centered. Pic Here You can also see how I align them to center between frets as well.
> 
> I never got around to making a bevel file. I always just took my flattest mill file and eyeball it. I never found it a task that required a specialty tool. I run the mill file the length of the neck at a 45°



Thanks again for the cool tips, man!

Love that angled aluminum, too. I hadn't considered that.


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## pettymusic (Jan 29, 2015)

Hey guys? About the tuner holes, just thinking of a way to do this carefully and methodically. I can use a smaller brad point bit, run it reverse first to prevent tear out on the drill side, use a spare piece on the reverse side. Then use a normal bit to size it up. 

Do you guys think that would work?


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## DistinguishedPapyrus (Jan 29, 2015)

Man, the first time I tried to drill tuner holes, almost ruined my build. I tried to just hand drill it though... please don't do that lol. 

I learned to get really nice holes this way: 

Mark out exactly where the tuner holes will be centered on the headstock, place a flat piece of scrap on the drill press table, place the headstock down on top of the scrap piece, turn on the drill press and drop the bit down til it just barely starts to touch the wood with the tip of the bit, so you can see that your headstock is positioned correctly. Turn off the drill press and then clamp a second piece of scrap down on top of the headstock where you're about to drill the hole WITHOUT moving the neck out of position.

This will make sort of a headstock sandwich on top of the drill press table, and it'll be positioned where the tuner hole needs to go, clamped solidly in place.

Now drill straight down through all 3 pieces, take it all apart, check your work, repeat. Should be a perfect hole in the right location. Might not even be any fuzz on the edge of the holes... 

For a headstock like yours that is 6 in line tuners I'd take it a step further for accuracy and put in a guide fence piece of scrap to make all 6 holes a consistent distance from the treble side edge of the headstock.

This was my first build a couple years ago, Check it out at the bottom of the second page, that was my jacked up tuner hole Thread Here


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## Renkenstein (Jan 29, 2015)

I drill a 1/16" pilot hole all the way through and then drill halfway on one side with a forstner bit(brad point will work as well), flip it over and drill the remaining material out. That way the bit never bursts from the surface and tears out. I've had a couple holes not meet up with complete precision, but the holes ended up fine after reaming them to fit the tuners.


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## Taylor (Jan 29, 2015)

Renkenstein said:


> I drill a 1/16" pilot hole all the way through and then drill halfway on one side with a forstner bit(brad point will work as well), flip it over and drill the remaining material out. That way the bit never bursts from the surface and tears out. I've had a couple holes not meet up with complete precision, but the holes ended up fine after reaming them to fit the tuners.



I'm stealing this.


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## KnightroExpress (Jan 30, 2015)

I just use a nice sharp brad-point and an MDF backer. I've done Renk's way too and that works really well


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## pettymusic (Jan 30, 2015)

DistinguishedPapyrus said:


> Man, the first time I tried to drill tuner holes, almost ruined my build. I tried to just hand drill it though... please don't do that lol.
> 
> I learned to get really nice holes this way:
> 
> ...



Ouch! That sux! 

I do like the sandwich method though. 



> I drill a 1/16" pilot hole all the way through and then drill halfway on one side with a forstner bit(brad point will work as well), flip it over and drill the remaining material out. That way the bit never bursts from the surface and tears out. I've had a couple holes not meet up with complete precision, but the holes ended up fine after reaming them to fit the tuners.



I like this too! 

Thanks guys. Now I have no reason to screw this up. 


I spent about an hour cleaning the CA from the fretboard last night with a razor. I'm happy with the results, I will definitely control the amount of CA I use next time.

I beveled the fret ends. I took Renkenstein's advice and just hand held the file. Turned out good on that.

Then I remembered; back when I was blending the neck/ headstock transition, the dragon file took a bit out of the FB between the nut and 1st fret. I took out my flat leveling beam and started to try and blend this in a little. It's still a little noticeable. I will try and blend a little more.







I started to do the side dots and after I got them marked and started looking for the correct sized drill bit, I realized a don't have the right size. 

I'll get the right bit today and probably pick up a hand reamer while I'm at it.

I got a piece of honduras rosewood waiting for me @ UPS today, woohoo! 

I'm planing on hitting this hard this weekend. I'm not putting any time limits/ goals on this, but, you know....kinda can't wait to bolt this thing on and see how it feels.


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## pettymusic (Feb 2, 2015)

Big update:

Thanks guys for the tuner holes tips. Got her done without any issues 

Here we go! I pushed hard this past weekend and got way more done than I could have expected!

Started out getting the tuner holes drilled. I just put a scrap MDF piece underneath, started with a pilot hole drilled, then drilled to sized and used the hand reamer to bring it up the rest of the way:





Quick trip to the hardware store to get a 3mm drill bit for the luminlay side dots and I was on my way to drilling these bad boys. I didn't bother with a fence and wish that I would have. Will be making a fence for this step next time:











I created a template for the neck pocket and made myself this redneck router table 






Next up, carving the neck profile. I quickly made up a little stand to set the neck on while carving and away we go:





After a while of getting used to the spoke shave, I realized I still have over 10mm to go to get to the thickness I want. So, I decided to used my router thicknessing jig to get me there:





I used a spoke shave, sureform, and dragon files. A couple of hours later, I ended up with this:














Strung the first and six strings, lined it up and bolted to the body:






Shaped the nut and I was jamming away last night!! Totally ecstatic!! 






I took some notes on the profile and will be fine tuning this. I started out giving myself more shoulder but, I'm not really digging this. My plan is to fine tune this profile and then I can created some templates for the next neck. Once my neck profile is perfected, I will finish up with some tru oil and gun stock wax.


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## DistinguishedPapyrus (Feb 2, 2015)

Thats dank man... happy for you to finish your neck, and it totally looks good with that Ibby body. (can we get a pic from the back to see how the lams contrast to the body finish?) I notice its the same body you put the Evertune on, sweet axe all around.

It's a major over haul to that Ibanez, maybe you should call it the Ibbymachine or something lol...


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## Renkenstein (Feb 2, 2015)

Redneck router table!!! 

Mannnn, that's awesome. Necessity often births the craziest ideas.


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## pettymusic (Feb 2, 2015)

DistinguishedPapyrus said:


> Thats dank man... happy for you to finish your neck, and it totally looks good with that Ibby body. (can we get a pic from the back to see how the lams contrast to the body finish?) I notice its the same body you put the Evertune on, sweet axe all around.
> 
> It's a major over haul to that Ibanez, maybe you should call it the Ibbymachine or something lol...



Thanks, I'm pretty stoked! Yep, it's the same one. I may have to steal Ibbymachine from you Haha! 

Renkenstein -


> Redneck router table!!!
> 
> Mannnn, that's awesome. Necessity often births the craziest ideas.



No doubt, right?! That's one of the things that make this so much fun!

Here's a pic of the back before the second round of carving. There are pen marks all over it where I was marking for removal. The profile is much better now. Rounded the shoulders and thinned it just a tad more. My instinct is to go thinner but, I'm going to sit on this one for a couple of days. I just spent an hour tracking some guitars and my left hand did not cramp once. That's unusual for me....especially when you add 2 days of carving and sanding.


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## Renkenstein (Feb 2, 2015)

One thing I've noticed since picking up building...I cramp way less now. Building these girls really develops strength in the digits and in the forearms, so now blasting out gallops and blazing through arpeggios is a lot easier for me now. 

Odd how one hobby improves the other. 

I also have a suspicion that when I shape my necks, I'm subconsciously forming a pleasing shape that will perfectly fit my hand. HAHAHAHAHA...I almost made it through that without laughing. That's some hippy dippy baloney.


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## pettymusic (Feb 2, 2015)

Renkenstein said:


> One thing I've noticed since picking up building...I cramp way less now. Building these girls really develops strength in the digits and in the forearms, so now blasting out gallops and blazing through arpeggios is a lot easier for me now.
> 
> Odd how one hobby improves the other.
> 
> I also have a suspicion that when I shape my necks, I'm subconsciously forming a pleasing shape that will perfectly fit my hand. HAHAHAHAHA...I almost made it through that without laughing. That's some hippy dippy baloney.



 haha! Yeah that is baloney! There is nothing "subconscious" about any of this!


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## immortalx (Feb 3, 2015)

Looks fantastic man, well done! It really is a perfect match for that body!


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## pettymusic (Feb 3, 2015)

^ Thanks immortalx but, I can't take all the credit. You, Renkenstein, DistinguishedPapyrus, BlackMastodon, JuliusJahn, and Pikka Bird were a huge help with this. So, thank you very much to all of you! 


So far, I'm really liking the neck profile I've got after the second round of carving. That wizard neck was definitely playing a role in my hand cramping up. If I do decide to make any changes to the profile, they will only be minor changes. 

I think I may go ahead and put it through my home made erlewine neck jig, get those frets nice and level with string tension, then see where I'm at. 

side note - I've heard a few times that the neck of the guitar contributes a great deal more than one might think to the tone of the guitar. I now believe this to be true. I lost some low mids with this new neck and gained some high mids and highs. The wizard neck seems to have a little more weight to it and it has a wider walnut lam up the center. Both necks are mostly maple but, I'm guessing it all comes down to density?


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## Renkenstein (Feb 4, 2015)

I've always used Duncan JB pickups in the bridge position of all my gigging guitars...there's the control for our experiment.

The Ibanez guitars in my rig always sounded thinner than the Schecter and the Hamer I used. The Ibanez guitars all have Wizard necks, the other 2 had various neck thicknesses. 

I absolutely believe with 100% certainty that a fatter neck yields a fatter sound. It applied in the studio as well. Same guitars, same pickups, fatter neck won the crushing tone challenge.

Once I outgrew the "thinner MUST be better" phase, it opened a whole new world of comfort and fat tone.


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## pettymusic (Feb 4, 2015)

Well, this piece of honduras rosewood I got is heavy as hell so, I'm thinking this next neck will be thickening things up a bit.


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## pettymusic (Feb 6, 2015)

Set it up on the old neck-a-mah-jig last night and gave it the royal treatment!

This thing is playing like a dream now!







Lemon oil on the fretboard:






Polished those frets:





I think before I apply the finish, I want to make some small adjustments to the profile. We're trying to get this album finished so, I going to try and spend the next couple weekends tracking guitars.


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## Renkenstein (Feb 6, 2015)

So what is the purpose of those gauges do on those jigs? I've often wondered that.


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## Leftydudebro (Feb 6, 2015)

Renkenstein said:


> So what is the purpose of those gauges do on those jigs? I've often wondered that.




Glad i'm not the only one.


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## pettymusic (Feb 6, 2015)

They allow you take take a reading/ measurement of the bow in the neck.

Basically, while strung to pitch, you adjust the truss rod to flatten the FB, lift the whole thing into the playing position, then zero those dials. Now, you have a reading of the neck under string tension.

Un-string, using that strap over the nut area and a jack that lifts the headstock from the bottom, you make the dials go back to zero.....You just recreated string tension without the strings. 

Level and re-crown those bad boys then enjoy the effortless playing!!


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## pettymusic (Feb 6, 2015)

The argument is the neck has different characteristics when under string tension than adjusted flat than the same without the strings. 

All I know is that once I run my guitars through this thing, my guitars feel much better all around. Not so much that the action is low, which I like and this is easily achieved, but also that I can get the strings to match the radius of the frets more closely. There is no buzzing on any fret and I often find that I do not need but a little relief in the neck.

Before, I always seemed to have to compromise in 1 or all of these areas.

......but, I could have been doing something wrong before haha!


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## Renkenstein (Feb 6, 2015)

I'm new to the whole fret leveling and crowning realm, and it sounds like you're familiar with this end of it, so perhaps you could enlighten me. 

What's always confused me is the idea of leveling frets with the neck having relief bow like that. I've never used one, so I have no idea. I just always thought that with bow in it, the leveling beam would take far more off the frets toward the nut and body extremities. 

I've leveled flat, then a fall-off on the 12-24. Is this process used after the initial leveling, or in lieu of a straight neck leveling? 

I was able to get a really low action on my last build, so I'm wondering if and how this could improve upon my current results.


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## pettymusic (Feb 7, 2015)

Ah, I see. Looking back on my earlier post, I didnt really explain well. 

You actually set the fretboard straight during this process as well, so there should be no releif when leveling frets. The difference is when the neck is under tension, there is some compression going on up and down the fretboard. The compression in those areas causes the fret board to go up and down a little. By leveling with string tension (mimicked) you're able to combat that compression because you're basically leveling the frets with the strings on and the compression there. I dont know of I'm explaining well. Probably not. Check this lineout for a better explanation: http://www.strangeguitarworks.com/the-inside-scoop-on-the-neck-jig/

I was able to do decent jobs leveling and crowning before but, now they are excellent jobs. 

By no means am I an expert in this area. I mean, I've been doing my own setups for years and just keep picking up tips and tricks here and there. I saw this jig on Stewmac and started reading up on it. Heard great things about it and thought, I can make something like that. I tell you, I'm glad I made this jig!


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## DistinguishedPapyrus (Feb 7, 2015)

I'm about the same as Renk when it comes to leveling and setup. I've done a full build once before, and that guitar plays ok, but not like my factory made guitars. I gotta look into this stuff more for my next build which I'll probably start in a month or so.

Thats a very interesting article, thanks for the post! I am deff considering building one of these neck-a-ma-jigs now. I didn't think that a neck would shift so much due to gravity in playing orientation vs working orientation. Maybe its more dramatic on the bass that guy had simply cause its a longer neck? and for what its worth I bet its worse still on a single piece of flatsawn lumber vs a 5-7 piece multi lam like maple and wenge with the grain oriented quartersawn. If there is any shift due to orientation in a properly built multi lam neck I bet its negligible, if measurable at all. 

So where do you get these dial gauge things for the jig?


EDIT: I bet I could get by for a while with a super simple version of this jig, without any dials!!! Check out this idea I had: simply strap down the guitar body good and solid to a bench, with the neck sticking out unsupported, but under full string tension. Set up a piece of cardboard at the tip of the headstock and mark where the headstock touches the cardboard. Then take off the strings, and I suppose the neck will shift down a millimeter or so from the mark on the cardboard, just jack or shim the neck up from under the nut or first fret area until it gets back to the mark, it should be close to the position it was in under string tension, then level away!

Thats just a cheap way to make a level jig... I have not tried this yet but maybe I'll do it to one of my junk guitars and see how it goes.


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## pettymusic (Feb 7, 2015)

DistinguishedPapyrus said:


> I'm about the same as Renk when it comes to leveling and setup. I've done a full build once before, and that guitar plays ok, but not like my factory made guitars. I gotta look into this stuff more for my next build which I'll probably start in a month or so.
> 
> Thats a very interesting article, thanks for the post! I am deff considering building one of these neck-a-ma-jigs now. I didn't think that a neck would shift so much due to gravity in playing orientation vs working orientation. Maybe its more dramatic on the bass that guy had simply cause its a longer neck? and for what its worth I bet its worse still on a single piece of flatsawn lumber vs a 5-7 piece multi lam like maple and wenge with the grain oriented quartersawn. If there is any shift due to orientation in a properly built multi lam neck I bet its negligible, if measurable at all.
> 
> So where do you get these dial gauge things for the jig?



You are right about lam necks have less movement most of the time but, I was surprised to see how much movement is going on from playing position to bench position, even on laminated necks. But, considering that with the added compression in different places on the neck; these alone are not much. We're talking 2-3 thousandths of an inch off in each area. However, add them all together and it quickly becomes significant. 

The gauges I bought are from good ole Harbor Freight. Don't remember the exact price but, I'm thinking around $10 a piece..ballpark? Edit: $14.99 Just found them here: http://www.harborfreight.com/1-inch-travel-machinists-dial-indicator-623.html

Here is the plan I went from, if you guys are interested: Plan for an Erlewine style neck jig. - LuthierTalk.com. 

I don't know if Sully got around to making his. This plan makes it super simple though. After I got the parts, I had it finished in half days work.


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## pettymusic (Mar 23, 2015)

Well darn! I could have sworn that I had at least a couple more mm's before hitting the truss rod channel. I wasn't going to repair it, it's my first neck but, I think I will take this mistake and learn a little repair. 

The damage done:





So, I'm thinking square this hole up. Cut a piece from the left overs. Glue it. Sand it. Finish it!!

Never done repair work so, I'm open to suggestions.


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## DistinguishedPapyrus (Mar 23, 2015)

well how deep in that hole does the truss sit? Maybe you can chisel a little rectangular shaped section out with tapered ends and lay a small filler piece in that matches the surrounding wood?


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## pettymusic (Mar 23, 2015)

DistinguishedPapyrus said:


> well how deep in that hole does the truss sit? Maybe you can chisel a little rectangular shaped section out with tapered ends and lay a small filler piece in that matches the surrounding wood?



Yeah, that's what I have in mind to do. I have some left over from this neck so, it shouldn't be a problem to match a piece up to it. 

I was pretty upset when it happened but, I gotta start taking these opportunities to learn from my mistakes and more about this craft.


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## DistinguishedPapyrus (Mar 23, 2015)

I came very close to sanding through to the truss rod on my 1st build, after stopping to check the measurements I found I had about 1mm before it cut through so I stopped and glued on a thin slice to build it back up another couple mm... check it out






It worked really well, today you can see the patch on the back of the neck but you cant feel where the piece is at, it sanded and smoothed right into the rest of the neck.


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## pettymusic (Mar 23, 2015)

DistinguishedPapyrus said:


> I came very close to sanding through to the truss rod on my 1st build, after stopping to check the measurements I found I had about 1mm before it cut through so I stopped and glued on a thin slice to build it back up another couple mm... check it out
> 
> 
> It worked really well, today you can see the patch on the back of the neck but you cant feel where the piece is at, it sanded and smoothed right into the rest of the neck.



Nice work, man!


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