changing a neck profile

Re: changing a neck profile

jake_xms3_punk said:
i buy guitars to play, not to sell. i don't want to change the actual shape of the neck, just make it a bit thinner
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You WILL change the shape if you just sand it freestyle. And it will get thinner.

Your instrument, your call. My 79 neck is thinner and shape changed and unfinished now. But it got that way from years of playing.

I did sand the finish off of a Kramer one time. By the way - unfinished necks can absorb moisture and warp more easily.
 
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Re: changing a neck profile

Been sanding my D neck too, I get thumb pain from it that I don’t notice with my C necks. I love the guitar and there is no similar guitar. I am sanding it down and it takes a long time . If I ever get to bare wood Ill put a coat of oil on it and then it will be safe.
 
Re: changing a neck profile

Use a blade, sanding takes forever and shapes sloppilly

I recommend, from experience, using locking boxcutters with branded premium blades

To check progress, you can use something like thick solid core coated wire (10-12 gauge) to take "moulds" of neck profile at several fret positions, transfer it to engineering graph paper (you can print some up if you have none handy), and compare to a guitar whose profile you like

BLO rubbed in till it gets hot to the touchm half a dozen coats, applied with brown paper, makes for the best neck feel after
 
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Re: changing a neck profile

What Adieu said. I did three neck up to now. The best job do a 'cabinet scraper'. i recommend measuring the thickness from time to time to get a even taper from the first to the twelvth fret. I like a very small taper from 21 mm to 23 mm with a more V-ish going to C shape (thats a Taylor like neck which works for me on electrics and acoustics). That means no shoulder on the first fret to more shoulders on the 12th. I also recommend a light sealing of the neck with shellac. This gives you a period of time to try your new neck shape you can redo it and seal it again. If you are sure you got it right you give more coat of shellac or buy a rattle can of nitro to finish it.
Take your time and try my 2 step method.
 
Re: changing a neck profile

You might have to use files, scrapers and sandpaper to get to the shape you like and then you might want to refinish the neck. There is a lot more to it than wrapping a piece of sandpaper around it and going back and forth unless you have a lot of time for sanding. If it's a maple neck it's probably very dense and hard as a rock "hard rock maple". Use a contour finder on a neck profile that you like. Trace it out and make 3 wood or cardboard templates in 3 places. 1st fret, 7th fret, 14th fret and use these to check your work. I would start with a Japanese Dragon Rasp:
https://www.stewmac.com/Luthier_Too...yE0pUaH7ksTtjWBSCVe0_a-qaPaKGRwsaAodCEALw_wcB

Cheaper ones on eBay
 
Re: changing a neck profile

Rasp is a bit final solution nuclear

Also, anything you touch with a rasp now HAS to lose 2 mm material before it gets smooth and clean again
 
Re: changing a neck profile

I'd either sell it and buy something else with a more ideal neck or take it to a tech that really knows their stuff. If you don't have experience you are likely to really mess it up.
 
Re: changing a neck profile

GuitarGuy503 said:
I'd either sell it and buy something else with a more ideal neck or take it to a tech that really knows their stuff. If you don't have experience you are likely to really mess it up.
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You can buy a china strat neck NEW for 40 bucks on amazon, or a 50 buck pawnshop squier affinity strat to practice on
 
Re: changing a neck profile

Adieu said:
You can buy a china strat neck NEW for 40 bucks on amazon, or a 50 buck pawnshop squier affinity strat to practice on
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As someone who has bought a couple of direct-from-China all maple necks for a Strat and a Telecaster ( less than £20 each) I can attest they are straight as a die, beautifully finished with no raised/sharp frets, and dropped straight in to one of my Strat copies which had a slightly-too-high action that truss-rod action would not cure.The satin finish feels beautiful in use.
Mike
 
Re: changing a neck profile

I guess if it were me, I would first purchase a new Warmoth neck with a more desired profile etc -but if I decided to sand a neck down, I would build multiple sanding jigs (probably 3 or 4 for basics neck sections) with the negative of the desired neck profile blocked out to add the sand paper too -sand them carefully with 220 or such and then hand transition them smoothly together with high grit paper by feel and repeat if necessary.
 
Re: changing a neck profile

The thread is from 2010. I suspect the OP either sanded the neck or sold the guitar by now...
 
Re: changing a neck profile

Adieu said:
Topics live organic lives all their own, regardless of OP survival
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Zombie threads are fun! As long as they serve a purpose.

Me, personally, if I spent more than maybe $500 on a guitar, then it is what it is. But if it's less than that, and I just had to fix it, then it's on!

If it's a "C" shape neck and I just HAD to flatten it down the middle, then I'm grabbing a rasp and pretending to be careful. If it's more like just touching up the edges to round it off some just below the fretboard, then I'm grabbing a rasp with smaller teeth, and pretending to be a little bit more careful.

For the record, I have never built a guitar in my life...because when I was done with it, it didn't work. It was an attempt at an acoustic build using scrap wood cut primarily on a table saw, and "freeby" stuff laying around the house. The frets were nails! I tried using screws for machine tuners, it had a "zero fret" for a nut, and another nail in the bridge for a saddle.

The tuners were the ultimate fail. (I got the idea from "cigar box guitars" I saw online.) Next was inaccurate fret placement (cut on a table saw). And finally, I questioned the headstock joint, and after it was time to chuck it out, I broke the headstock fairly easily.

BUT...one thing that I will say is that I only misshaped the neck by a tiny bit just eyeballing everything, and the heel was done like a pro (please let me keep that thought, it makes me feel better about myself!). All neck work was done with rasps. It was oak. And boy howdy, did I ever have to go to town on that thing to even get it shaven just a little bit! Oak and maple are on par when it comes to hardness. Sandpaper works, but you'll be there for a while!

FOR THE RECORD: Believe in yourself while admitting defeat before you even start, and then DO NOT blame me when it's time to throw your guitar away!
 
Re: changing a neck profile

Aceman said:
OMG - you are all a bunch of pussies.
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+1

A decade or so ago, I had tendonitis in my left hand really bad. It was enough that playing caused severe pain. After the doc's prescribed recovery time, it still hurt to play, but my Peavey Predator felt the most manageable. I took some sandpaper and hit the neck until it didn't hurt to hold. The neck is a little thinner than I prefer now, but it never warped, didn't result in firewood, never exploded, and allowed me to keep playing without further injuring my hand.

Last year, I got an Epiphone Dot Deluxe with a really beefy neck. Ultimately, I decided to sell it rather than sand the neck down. Currently, I really miss having that in my arsenal, and somewhat regret not taking a stab at making it feel better.
 
Re: changing a neck profile

Seriously kids use a blade

And I mean spend a couple hours and SHAVE it with a blade, not cut it with one.... rasps are for serious demolition, like turning a tele heel into a strat heel
 
Re: changing a neck profile

Aceman said:
OMG - you are all a bunch of pussies.

Is this a player or an investment? And don't be a pud and say both! If you bought it to make money by selling it someday put it away - don't touch it, and get another guitar.

Now - there is sanding a neck, and then there is changing the shape. Which of these do you really want to do? They are two different things. Warmoth has a nice chart of neck shapes. Do you even know what neck shape you prefer? Do you even care?

Short answer: Yes - sand away. I would generally recommend go slow and be conservative. I doubt you'll be able to sand it to a specific shape on your own, but you can certainly make it thinner.
Click to expand...

this is the right answer, many people will sand that damn nasty sticky lacquer off the neck. But be carefull, go slow and take it in steps. remember up by the 12th fret many neck profiles flatten out where as by the 5th and above it is more rounded to help you play folk chords or what ever you prefer to call them
 
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