Neck Warped? How can i tell for certain?

dudesta559

New member
How can you tell if your neck is warped and if you need a new neck? I have tried adjusting the truss rod, but it still doesnt feel right, so i have come to the conclusion it might be warped. I do not have any local luthiers where i live at the moment, so i have to try to adjust myself, but are there any sure ways besides "eyeballing" it, to see if your neck is warped?
any advice would be much appreciated.
 
Re: Neck Warped? How can i tell for certain?

You should be able to tell. If it's not obviously warped, but you've got buzzing in spots or something you may just need a fret level. You can take it off and adjust the rod till it's straight and lay it on a flat surface to see what you've got going on.
 
Re: Neck Warped? How can i tell for certain?

Sight down the neck and look for a wavy pattern on the frets. If the neck is straight, you should be able to see the tops of all the frets evenly. If it's warped, the fret ends will look to be higher on some spots of the neck and lower on other spots.

Don't confuse a warped neck with one that has some excessive relief or back bow, as the fret tops will look kind of similar but not the same (they'll look as if they're closer together depending on the relief or backbow won't look warped). Relief and back-bow can be fixed with truss-rod adjustments, while a warped neck requires more drastic treatment... possibly a fret job with fingerboard planing, or even a neck replacement depending if the neck continues to warp after getting work done.

Some in the guitar repair community tried working on a system that would "twist" the neck back into spec using heat and various clamps, but -at least as far as I can remember- results were kind of questionable. That might possibly be another avenue to look into.
 
Re: Neck Warped? How can i tell for certain?

Sight down the neck and look for a wavy pattern on the frets. If the neck is straight, you should be able to see the tops of all the frets evenly. If it's warped, the fret ends will look to be higher on some spots of the neck and lower on other spots.

Don't confuse a warped neck with one that has some excessive relief or back bow, as the fret tops will look kind of similar but not the same (they'll look as if they're closer together depending on the relief or backbow won't look warped). Relief and back-bow can be fixed with truss-rod adjustments, while a warped neck requires more drastic treatment... possibly a fret job with fingerboard planing, or even a neck replacement depending if the neck continues to warp after getting work done.

Some in the guitar repair community tried working on a system that would "twist" the neck back into spec using heat and various clamps, but -at least as far as I can remember- results were kind of questionable. That might possibly be another avenue to look into.

Very good advice. You nailed it!
 
Re: Neck Warped? How can i tell for certain?

Beam me up, Scottie.
 
Re: Neck Warped? How can i tell for certain?

DAMMIT JIM, I'm a luthier, not a miricle worker
 
Re: Neck Warped? How can i tell for certain?

[FONT=.Helvetica NeueUI]Captain's log. Star date 2013. Moving into orbit around the planet Llort, galactic region DNFTT. :naughty:[/FONT]
 
Re: Neck Warped? How can i tell for certain?

[FONT=.Helvetica NeueUI]Captain's log. Star date 2013. Moving into orbit around the planet Llort, galactic region DNFTT. :naughty:[/FONT]

TO BOLDLY GO WHERE NO MAN HAS GONE BEFORE

TO THE LADIES ROOM LOL
 
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