iSoto Posted November 29, 2008 Report Share Posted November 29, 2008 I'm planning my next guitar project and I have found the guitar body I want. They can either make it with a 2-1/4" or a 2-3/16" neck pocket. What's the difference between these two? Will the fretboard be wider on a neck with a 2-1/4" heel or is that completely irrelevant (if it is completely irrelevant, what spec determines how wide the neck is going to be?)? Thanks in advance! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick500 Posted November 29, 2008 Report Share Posted November 29, 2008 (edited) Are you building a neck or buying one? Naturally, the neck is going to have to match the neck pocket. The fretboard on a neck made for a wider neck will be wider at least at the body end of the neck. May or may not be wider at the nut; depends on the taper of the neck. Edited November 29, 2008 by Rick500 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keegan Posted November 29, 2008 Report Share Posted November 29, 2008 (edited) I think the 2-1/4" heel is if you plan to have the pocket and heel of the neck finished. 2-3/16" is the standard Fender size that will fit most necks snugly. The nut width determines how wide the neck is on the lower frets, 1-5/8" being thin, 1-11/16" is standard, and 1-3/4" is large. There really isn't much variation in neck width on 6-strings, just where the strings start at the nut and where they end at the bridge.' Edit: I assume that you're buying the neck, since you're also buying the body. Edited November 29, 2008 by Keegan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iSoto Posted November 29, 2008 Author Report Share Posted November 29, 2008 Ok, my post was kinda weird so I'm going to say exactly what I'm thinking of doing. I want to buy a Meanie Green body from Wayne Guitars. The neck pocket options are either 2-1/4" or 2-3/16. A little research on the Internet (without sending any emails to stores with replacement necks for Strats) showed me that almost everyone is selling 2-3/16" necks (musikraft sells custom necks with 2-1/4" heels, but I didn't get a good vibe from that whole thing and I have lots of issues...don't ask). My question is: If I decide to tell them to build me the body with a 2-3/16" neck pocket, and I buy a Strat replacement neck, say from StewMac, will that result in my neck having a narrower fretboard? If that's the case, I might consider trying and building a neck myself (I know it's a tedious job, but I don't care). As for the neck profile, I'm thing of sanding the neck (even if it's a ready one) to a D profile (I'll have to figure out how to do that, but I'll try to make it work). P.S.: I will replace the fretboard, because I want it to have 24-frets (I'll have Wayne Charvel route only the bridge pickup, so that I can make my adjustments for routing the other 2 pickups with the 24-fret neck). Hope that clears out what I've in my (sick) mind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keegan Posted November 29, 2008 Report Share Posted November 29, 2008 (edited) Narrower than what? It won't be any more narrow than a standard strat. Also, Warmoth has a 24 fret option on their necks, so you wouldn't have to replace the fretboard if you got it from them. And they'll make it in whatever profile you want. Edit: Links to the relevant pages- http://www.warmoth.com/guitar/necks/necks....n=back_profiles http://www.warmoth.com/guitar/necks/necks....board_extension http://www.warmoth.com/guitar/necks/necks....fuseaction=heel Edited November 29, 2008 by Keegan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iSoto Posted November 29, 2008 Author Report Share Posted November 29, 2008 Ok, I think I got it now. Thanks a lot you guys, 95% chance I'll get the neck from Warmoth! Again, thanks!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted November 29, 2008 Report Share Posted November 29, 2008 Ok, I think I got it now. Thanks a lot you guys, 95% chance I'll get the neck from Warmoth! Again, thanks!!! The body's ready-made? Including the bridge route? Then chances are you won't be able to use a 24-fret neck. You have to get a neck that's going to work with the scale length. Frankly, I think your best bet is to buy the neck from the same place, they'll make sure it'll work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RestorationAD Posted November 30, 2008 Report Share Posted November 30, 2008 (edited) +1 for warmoth. never seen a bad neck from them. Love their stuff. Edited November 30, 2008 by RestorationAD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keegan Posted November 30, 2008 Report Share Posted November 30, 2008 (edited) Ok, I think I got it now. Thanks a lot you guys, 95% chance I'll get the neck from Warmoth! Again, thanks!!! The body's ready-made? Including the bridge route? Then chances are you won't be able to use a 24-fret neck. You have to get a neck that's going to work with the scale length. Frankly, I think your best bet is to buy the neck from the same place, they'll make sure it'll work. The 24-fret extension from warmoth doesn't alter the scale length at all, because it just makes the fretboard hang over the end of the neck more. It doesn't make the neck any longer. Edited November 30, 2008 by Keegan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sami Ghouri Posted December 1, 2008 Report Share Posted December 1, 2008 but warmoth necks aren't finished and the frets are ONLY basically levelled (please correct me if i'm wrong) while the stewmac necks are ready for immediate consumption which brings me to a question (i DO NOT INTEND on hijacking the thread, it's just a quick innocent question) of how much work is needed after getting your warmoth neck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keegan Posted December 1, 2008 Report Share Posted December 1, 2008 From their site: "Seating the frets in a piece of wood is a difficult process to accomplish with extreme precision. There are usually slight variations in this work and it's further complicated by the fact that the neck woods seldom respond uniformly to string tension. Therefore, a fret leveling operation performed on a raw neck is likely to require further attention after the neck is strung up. It's an accepted fact that final leveling and instrument set-up are best done after the guitar has been strung up to pitch for several days and the neck has time to settle in to the tension of the strings. Then, if it's needed, the frets may be leveled under tension to provide the finest action. After the frets are leveled then they are individually recrowned to restore their rounded shape. Most Warmoth necks do not require a fret leveling; they are good to go as they are received. Of course, if you want really low action then yes, the services of a good tech to accomplish this, as well as to adjust the nut and do an overall set-up, is probably called for. This is highly skilled work and the associated costs are relatively high, as one might expect for professional services." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted December 1, 2008 Report Share Posted December 1, 2008 The 24-fret extension from warmoth doesn't alter the scale length at all, because it just makes the fretboard hang over the end of the neck more. It doesn't make the neck any longer. Okay, I didn't know this. I'd still be careful though. The neck you choose needs to work with the bridge, so I'd verify all the measurements, heel shape etc. Or get the neck from the same source as the body, since they'll be able to match them exactly (assuming this company makes necks too? If you trust them for the body, why not the neck?) Also, does the body provide access to the extra frets? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RAI6 Posted December 1, 2008 Report Share Posted December 1, 2008 Not to mention, the Warmoth 24 fret extension covers part of the neck p/u cavity.... No p/u in the neck position. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keegan Posted December 1, 2008 Report Share Posted December 1, 2008 Not to mention, the Warmoth 24 fret extension covers part of the neck p/u cavity.... No p/u in the neck position. Already mentioned. I'll have Wayne Charvel route only the bridge pickup, so that I can make my adjustments for routing the other 2 pickups with the 24-fret neck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RAI6 Posted December 1, 2008 Report Share Posted December 1, 2008 Touche'..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iSoto Posted December 1, 2008 Author Report Share Posted December 1, 2008 I'm still not sure I got it right . If I got it right, the neck pocket dimension has nothing to do with how wide or narrow the fretboard is going to be. So, what defines how wide or narrow the fretboard is going to be? Radius? Nut width? Neck profile? My main concern is: if I get a Warmoth neck with 1-11/16" nut width, 12" radius and a Wizard (or maybe Standard) neck profile, the neck will be as wide (or as narrow) as the necks found on Stratocasters (say 9.5" radius) or will it be wider than that? Sorry if I'm going off topic, I hope that my question is clear enough (and that you don't think that I'm an idiot). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keegan Posted December 1, 2008 Report Share Posted December 1, 2008 It will be exactly as wide, but a 12" radius is flatter on top, and a wizard neck profile is thinner on bottom. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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