Warped Neck, Should I Remove Fretboard?

[dirty sanchez]

I have a cheapish fender copy neck, with redeamable features.

There is a knot in the maple neck just near the heal, it has caused the whole neck to warp back (not forward, like normal). It only has a basic one way action trussrod, so it doesn't adjust in the other direction.

Should I remove the fretboard carefully and insert supporting beams?

[LukeR]

Hi man,

I may be wrong, but the knot in the neck sounds like a really serious flaw. As I am sure you know, you really want the neck to be as strong and sturdy as possible.

I dont really think it will ever be stable, even with the mod you describe.

I really think you may be better off with a new neck.

Sorry man,

Luke

[Southpa]

I can't see how a knot at one end of the neck can cause the whole thing to warp. Are you referring to backbow which can't be corrected with a one way truss rod?

There might be a few ways to correct the neck before you decide to toss it out. One is by heating and clamping, never tried it myself, but I've seen mention of it in some guitar repair books. Another way is to pull all the frets and cut the slots a little wider, that might relieve some of the tension. And then you can always pop the fretboard and install a dual action truss rod.

[doug]

it doesn't seem like a small knot would matter. if the knot is large then it might be an issue. many neck woods have tiny knots here and there like BE maple, mahogany, and korina. even plain maple will have small ones. thought it is best to have clear wood, this small "imperfections" typically make no difference.

removing frets, removing the fingerboard are not simple tasks so you might want to consider your options. of course, if you manage to ruin it in the learning process, you're not really any worse off in the end. experimenting is how we learn, right?

-doug

[dirty sanchez]

The knot isn't a knot-hole. the grain of the wood just gets complicated. The backbow only really starts at the 12th fret.

i think i'll try steaming it and clamping it first. I got this neck from the tip, so whatever I do to it is no loss.

[sirkentesquire]

As far as heating and clamping the neck is concerned, the traditional, budget method is to heat up the fretboard with high wattage lights that give off a whole lotta' heat. While the fretboard, and consequently the neck and glue in between, is heated you want to clamp it in an extreme forward bow. Don't worry, it never stays as radical as when it's clamped. If you're unsure then just do it bit by bit, clamping and reheating as necessary.

Steam could work, but I just have no idea how. You have to heat the fretboard fairly uniformly. I've actually done it many times using a kerosene heater with a vent on the top. Consequently, don't walk away from it because wood has a tendency to burn when it gets really hot. Don't ask how I know this. The point of the heating and clamping is really to heat up the glue enough so that the neck and fretboard can change their positions slightly before the glue sets again.

Good luck