ColBry Posted November 7, 2008 Report Share Posted November 7, 2008 (edited) Anybody have any opinions on how deep to rout the truss rod channel on a through neck bass guitar and implicit in this is what is the actual amount of curvature that is felt to be necessary. I have heard 1/4" curvature is OK but this leaves precious little neck wood coverage above and below the truss rod. I do have drawings if anybody would like to see the problem I have. Thanks for any help or info. Col B Edited November 7, 2008 by ColBry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted November 7, 2008 Report Share Posted November 7, 2008 Use a two way truss rod and rout a flat bottom channel...stewmac hotrod is a good one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RestorationAD Posted November 7, 2008 Report Share Posted November 7, 2008 I have been using Warmoth single action trussrods for years. They are almost identical to the wizard neck trussrod. You can get away with a really shallow truss rod trench. I have rarely seen an instance where I needed a double action trussrod that did not result in firewood. If you need the neck to be stiff laminate a really hard wood in or get some carbon fiber braces from stew mac. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted November 7, 2008 Report Share Posted November 7, 2008 It is just superior in every way,that's all....like listening to a CD rather than a cassette. I have a feeling 2 way truss rods are all that will be used before too long...Ibanez,Jackson,esp...they are all using them...I think Gibson still uses the old style,but they keep breaking off on old necks...the two way rod won't break because of the design...there is much less stress on the neck and rod to achieve the tension. My last neck was wizard II thin...with the two way hotrod... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stereordinary Posted November 7, 2008 Report Share Posted November 7, 2008 I use traditional curved-channel rods. They dip 1/2" below the ends at the deepest point, which still gives me 1/8" of wood behind it. Making that part of the neck only 5/8" thick. My fingerboards are fairly thin. I've never tried to make a neck as thin as an Ibanez Wizard, but I could easily route a shallow channel to give myself more area for carving off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick500 Posted November 7, 2008 Report Share Posted November 7, 2008 When I started building, I used Stew-Mac's Hot Rods. Now I'm using Allied's two-way truss rods. I prefer them because they're a bit shallower. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fookgub Posted November 7, 2008 Report Share Posted November 7, 2008 When I started building, I used Stew-Mac's Hot Rods. Now I'm using Allied's two-way truss rods. I prefer them because they're a bit shallower. Same thing for me. The Allied rods are great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ColBry Posted November 7, 2008 Author Report Share Posted November 7, 2008 Use a two way truss rod and rout a flat bottom channel...stewmac hotrod is a good one. Cheers man, This truss rod thing has caused me a whole lot of grief for quite a while now. Have checked out the website details and am about to order one. One thing I am not clear on, and maybe you can help. They say for a bass I need a 24 inch rod. As I have short fingers I am going for a 32 1/2 scale length. Can the rod be made to suit the scale length? I.E. can it be cut to suit a shorter than 34 inch scale neck. If you could help once again I would be most grateful. P.S. Thanks for your advice so far Kind regards Colin Bryant Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geo Posted November 7, 2008 Report Share Posted November 7, 2008 One thing I am not clear on, and maybe you can help. They say for a bass I need a 24 inch rod. As I have short fingers I am going for a 32 1/2 scale length. Can the rod be made to suit the scale length? I.E. can it be cut to suit a shorter than 34 inch scale neck. Look at your plan and see if a 24" rod will fit safely in the neck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted November 8, 2008 Report Share Posted November 8, 2008 Colbry...it depends on alot of factors... I just measured my 34" bass' neck...it looks like it will barely fit...you will need to either run the nut end of the trussrod further into the headstock than normal(only about 1/4",just to be safe),or run the nut end of the trussrod at the heel end of the neck...I suggest the former...and shape a nice volute to help support the nut end of the rod... I use traditional curved-channel rods. They dip 1/2" below the ends at the deepest point, which still gives me 1/8" of wood behind it. Making that part of the neck only 5/8" thick. My fingerboards are fairly thin. I've never tried to make a neck as thin as an Ibanez Wizard, but I could easily route a shallow channel to give myself more area for carving off. Would it surprise you to hear that my last neck(with a hotrod) is 7/8" thick overall at the thinnest point?That includes the fretboard...I did it in part by shaving the fretboard down to a hair less than 3/16" at the center,and by shaping a nice volute in the nut area... It has been fine for over a year now...no movement of any sort... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stereordinary Posted November 8, 2008 Report Share Posted November 8, 2008 Doesn't surprise me one bit. I made a few necks with various twin rod systems before switching to traditionals and some of them are wonderfully thin. I wasn't saying it can't be done. Just putting in my two pennies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Acousticraft Posted November 8, 2008 Report Share Posted November 8, 2008 (edited) For my 34" Tele bass I recently built, I used a two way hotrod I made myself plus 2 13x3mm steel stiffening rods epoxied in to prevent rattles, one either side of the truss rod as Warmoth does. The string tension is very high on basses and even with the stiffeners it pulled the neck into a curve but the truss rod counteracted this no problem. I wouldnt go back to using a standard single acting rod after using double acting hotrods. When you fret a neck it often backbows and it is easy to adjust it straight before fret levelling. They also make routing a channel so easy. They rule! Edited November 8, 2008 by Acousticraft Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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