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My son bought a Jcckson which was retrofitted by the previous owner with a Warmoth neck. The neck is unfinished and that is the disagreement. I suggested finishing it because Warmoth won't warranty their necks if it is left unfinished. He likes the smooth feel of the unfinished neck. Any opinions.

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My son bought a Jcckson which was retrofitted by the previous owner with a Warmoth neck. The neck is unfinished and that is the disagreement. I suggested finishing it because Warmoth won't warranty their necks if it is left unfinished. He likes the smooth feel of the unfinished neck. Any opinions.

I like a light satin finish. That retains some of the feel that he likes, but helps protect the wood.

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I'd suggest an oil finish, but does the Warmoth warranty even apply, since someone else actually bought the neck?

The only way I can think of that the neck would warp as a result of being unfinished would be if you left it underwater for a while or something :D . A few coats of oil will add a great looking finish, as well as protection from dirt and moisture, while retaining the feel of an unfinished neck.

Edited by IWishICouldShred
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oiled necks need a bit more care and maintenance to keep them in tip-top shape, just an occasional oil or rub down with wire wool. TBH - if its played a lot your hands will do all that for you.

i thought it was strange that warmoth wouldnt offer a warranty on them but i suppose it allows for the fact some users wont give them the care they need. even stranger when you consider warmoth does dip its necks in some kind of oil - whats the point in that if not for protection

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I'd suggest an oil finish, but does the Warmoth warranty even apply, since someone else actually bought the neck?

The only way I can think of that the neck would warp as a result of being unfinished would be if you left it underwater for a while or something :D . A few coats of oil will add a great looking finish, as well as protection from dirt and moisture, while retaining the feel of an unfinished neck.

No but I was thinking that if they excluded unfinished necks from the warranty then there may be a problem with the neck down the road. It's his money and decision but I thought a little looking into it wouldn't hurt...By the way I'm not overly impressed with the neck. The last 4 frets aren't set in at 90 degrees to the fret board. It doesn't cause a problem but it looks sloppy.

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My guess would be that it's directly related to what Wes said.

If you don't keep up with an unfinished neck, it can start to look crappy.

It follows that...

People who pay a lot of money for an unfinished Warmoth neck and don't keep up with it might compain when it gets dirty and stained and try to get it "repaired" under warrantee. Rather than including some instructions and telling people that not treating their neck right would void their warrantee, they basically just said "you're on your own!"

Just a guess though.

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No but I was thinking that if they excluded unfinished necks from the warranty then there may be a problem with the neck down the road. It's his money and decision but I thought a little looking into it wouldn't hurt...By the way I'm not overly impressed with the neck. The last 4 frets aren't set in at 90 degrees to the fret board. It doesn't cause a problem but it looks sloppy.

When you say the frets aren't set correctly, you're saying they aren't perpendicular to centerline? If thats true, wouldn't that cause a problem? I mean, you'd have 4 frets that are out of position essentially. Maybe I misunderstood that part. Too bad this is a second, cause if that was the case of any neck I bought, it would go back. I never hear much on the negative side about Warmoth necks really, maybe that neck is just a lemon or maybe the previous owner fiddled with it somehow. Who knows, I'd vote to add some finish as well. Even just a light rub of oil helps some. J

Edited by jmrentis
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My son bought a Jcckson which was retrofitted by the previous owner with a Warmoth neck. The neck is unfinished and that is the disagreement. I suggested finishing it because Warmoth won't warranty their necks if it is left unfinished. He likes the smooth feel of the unfinished neck. Any opinions.

I don't believe Warmoth will honour a warranty on a neck that went into the wild unfinished, unless it's finished immediately. The smooth feel of an unfinished neck is obviously important to your son.....what wood is the neck and fingerboard? Some will work well over time without a finish, although some (as mentioned) like maple will pick up moisture and stains from dirt and sweat. Oily woods like rosewoods, wenge etc. can be left unfinished but an occasional light oil conditioning keeps the neck nice and "fresh". Raw boiled linseed oil does the trick better than "lemon oil" which (IIRC) is in fact a petroleum distillate useful only for cleaning gunk from fretboards than for long-term conditioning.

My gut feeling is that the neck would need a LOT of playing before sweat affected it's stability, although the amount of sweat and heat caused by stage lighting isn't exactly insignificant....if it's a home guitar I probably wouldn't worry too much unless general usage staining might be an issue.

I'm unsure as to whether the grain orientation will affect the stability in terms of the neck being unfinished. Somebody more experienced in that side of things may be able to help you better in that respect.

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Even though the warranty is void for an oiled neck, it shouldn't be a problem in terms of warpage. Even finished necks can warp.

My 1987 Ibanez Jem RB has an oiled neck. I never had a problem with the neck warping but it did develop a hump at the heel, like every other bolt on neck out there. I just re-oil the neck every year or two.

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I never had a problem with the neck warping but it did develop a hump at the heel, like every other bolt on neck out there. I just re-oil the neck every year or two.

What do you mean by "hump at the heel"? I'm not aware of this phenomenon, and although it sounds self explanatory I'd like to hear a more in-depth description, if possible.

Also, are you suggesting that re-oiling the neck every year or two wards off "the hump" from plaguing your bolt-on guitar?

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I never had a problem with the neck warping but it did develop a hump at the heel, like every other bolt on neck out there. I just re-oil the neck every year or two.

What do you mean by "hump at the heel"? I'm not aware of this phenomenon, and although it sounds self explanatory I'd like to hear a more in-depth description, if possible.

Also, are you suggesting that re-oiling the neck every year or two wards off "the hump" from plaguing your bolt-on guitar?

They also refer to this as "fenderitis"

Basically, its the neck/fretboard going up near the neck/body join. common with bolt-on guitars.

Re-oiling won't help. This happens on completely finished necks too.

Edited by guitar2005
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There are a number of "exotic" neck woods that Warmoth say's require no finish. So I guess whether it has a warranty depends upon what wood your neck is made of.

They presently say "no finish required" on the "showcase" necks made of Bloodwood, Bocote. Brazilian Rosewood, Bubinga, Canary, Goncalo Alves, Indian Rosewood, Macassar Ebony, Padouk, Purpleheart, and Ziricote.

DR

Edited by Don Ramsay
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All very dense or very oily woods it seems. I can't think of any common denominators with all of these woods other than they all take a hell of a polish with high grits of Micromesh and their grain doesn't raise too much with water when sanding through low grits.

These all seem to be rosewoods or at least woods in the territory of ebony-type density.

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No but I was thinking that if they excluded unfinished necks from the warranty then there may be a problem with the neck down the road. It's his money and decision but I thought a little looking into it wouldn't hurt...By the way I'm not overly impressed with the neck. The last 4 frets aren't set in at 90 degrees to the fret board. It doesn't cause a problem but it looks sloppy.

When you say the frets aren't set correctly, you're saying they aren't perpendicular to centerline? If thats true, wouldn't that cause a problem? I mean, you'd have 4 frets that are out of position essentially. Maybe I misunderstood that part. Too bad this is a second, cause if that was the case of any neck I bought, it would go back. I never hear much on the negative side about Warmoth necks really, maybe that neck is just a lemon or maybe the previous owner fiddled with it somehow. Who knows, I'd vote to add some finish as well. Even just a light rub of oil helps some. J

The frets are not completely flush with the fingerboard they are set in at a slight angle. I don't know how to describe it. it doesn't seem to be causing a problem but the two Might Mite necks I purcahased itn the past were finished better than this one except fot the fret sprout which I sanded down in a few minutes. The neck is maple witha a rosewood fretboard. I'll suggest an oil finish perhaps tung oil. Thanks...

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Smack your son! No don't, lol, it's a good thing he has his own opinions of "feel", it's something a good guitarist has to develop.

Most people have already answered the warping issue, but may I add that unfinished wood gets VERY dirty, this does not feel good to play on.

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Second the tung oil. A natural rubbed oil finish is becoming popular on electric guitar necks these days. It makes sense because shiny finishes tend to grab your hands if you play extra shreddy. Rubbed oil protects almost as well as an oil varnish (like a violin...or boat), and I'd guess MUCH better than laquer or urethane. Lets remember that even laquer is a relatively new finish. A few hundred years from now we'll see how it and urethane stack up against oil. My guess is they won't fare well. For an expensive Warmoth neck, I'd stick with tradition.

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Warmoth will not warranty the oil either. Only hard finishes. I have 3 guitars with unfinished necks, not a problem with them yet, and they went from Germany, to MD, to Korea, to Texas and now back in MD... so there have been a ton of climate changes on them. They are all maple.

Ah, and Van Halen plays unfinished necks too, if they can stand stage tours with Eddie, they will be good in my house.

Edited by Maiden69
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