xXMikeXx Posted February 14, 2010 Report Share Posted February 14, 2010 OK... So here's my problem... I'm planning on making my own guitar, Already have a sweet bit of Mahogany for the body, But i want to make a thru-neck like my Ibanez, Because... Well... It's a hell of alot nicer than any bolt-on or set-neck guitar i've ever played! Now, what I'm wondering... Could i convert a bolt-on neck to a thru-neck? As this is my first one i don't particually feel comfertable starting a neck from scratch. But you can quite easily buy a bolt on neck fairly cheaply, but to buy a thru-neck will run me about 200-300 quid! So... Imagine a 3-Piece neck... Take off the side parts so you're left with the one piece in the middle, add 2 much longer pieces each side, and another piece to fill the gap in the lower middle part... If I'm making sense here... Say I'm using a nice strong wood for the extended parts, like wenge. So the wenge will run down the full length of the neck, from headstock to the end of the body... And then just shape the wenge. Think it'll work? (Saves having to route the truss-rod groove, And the main bulk of the neck will run the entire way down the body... So would be strong enough, right?) Let me know, And thanks to all who reply in advance! Mike x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted February 14, 2010 Report Share Posted February 14, 2010 No...really bad idea.Besides that,It's more work and more expensive than just doing it properly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Southpa Posted February 14, 2010 Report Share Posted February 14, 2010 (edited) What you are describing is more complicated and difficult than building a neck from scratch. Go ahead and take the plunge! In for a penny, in for a pound I always say. Rip that old neck down the middle 2X, just remember to take off the fretboard first! j/k If you are going to sacrifice a bolt on neck anyway, but still don't want to get involved in doing fretwork, you could still use the existing fb if you are careful. Edited February 14, 2010 by Southpa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avengers63 Posted February 14, 2010 Report Share Posted February 14, 2010 Really guys... he has made a total of ONE post, hasn't even made his first instrument yet, and you're nagging him to make his own necks. Why don't you nag Drak to make them himself? Mike: Don't let 'em try and pressure/guilt you into more than you're ready for. Take the steps as you're ready to take them and don't let anyone tell you otherwise. Some of the guys here can really come down on you if you don't fit into their little mold of what they think you should be as a builder. Ad for your question, they're right in that it'd be more work than it's worth trying to make a bolt-on into a neck-thru. It CAN be done, but it really isn't worth the effort. For your first one, a bolt on is probably the easiest way to go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xXMikeXx Posted February 14, 2010 Author Report Share Posted February 14, 2010 Really guys... he has made a total of ONE post, hasn't even made his first instrument yet, and you're nagging him to make his own necks. Why don't you nag Drak to make them himself? Mike: Don't let 'em try and pressure/guilt you into more than you're ready for. Take the steps as you're ready to take them and don't let anyone tell you otherwise. Some of the guys here can really come down on you if you don't fit into their little mold of what they think you should be as a builder. Ad for your question, they're right in that it'd be more work than it's worth trying to make a bolt-on into a neck-thru. It CAN be done, but it really isn't worth the effort. For your first one, a bolt on is probably the easiest way to go. Thanks dude! But i think i'm gonna have to go straight into it and do a Thru-Neck, I can't play Bolt-On or Set-Necks... Just doesn't feel right to me, I've gone though plenty lol! I'll just have to make the neck and see how it goes before attaching the wings. Could always make another if it goes horribly wrong anyways i suppose. Thanks for your advise! And after thinking about it... The only thing that would be made easy by converting a Set-Neck or Bolt-On neck to a Thru-Neck would be not having to route the truss rod cavity xD Mike x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soapbarstrat Posted February 14, 2010 Report Share Posted February 14, 2010 Some of the guys here can really come down on you if you don't fit into their little mold of what they think you should be as a builder. More like some of the guys pass on info based on mistakes they made in the past and you can save yourself $$ and trouble by highly considering what they bothered to type. You want a bolt-on neck but don't like bolt-on a whole lot : threaded inserts in the neck, sculpt the heel, no plate. Most sensible compromise, short of neck-thru from scratch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted February 14, 2010 Report Share Posted February 14, 2010 And after thinking about it... The only thing that would be made easy by converting a Set-Neck or Bolt-On neck to a Thru-Neck would be not having to route the truss rod cavity Exactly,but that would be more than offset by the difficulty of removing the fretboard,etc.. Trust me on this...removing and replacing frets without chipping and damaging the fretboard is much more difficult than just installing them the first time...you can buy preslotted boards from stewmac or lmii for between $12 and $25 or so,depending on the wood requested. The truss rod slot is a piece of cake with a two way rod...It is just a square bottomed rout that the rod sits in...no curve at the bottom because the rod is made to work against itself.. Stewmac sells them,as well as warmoth,lmii,and many other spots...they are rarely more than $15 IIRC..most here prefer the lmii or warmoth rods I think,because they are more petite..I like the stewmac because of it's strength,but admittedly it may be overkill.. Some guys just like to argue,it seems...but everyone else's advice so far is perfectly sound.It is meant to save you time and money...but it sounds like you already know that. I know wood selection and all of that sounds daunting,but really it is easy enough. If you choose to not build a neck,there are options...Carvin makes neck through blanks which are very nice,and Doug at soulmate will custom make for you the most perfect neck through blank you could ever want,for a very reasonable price... And the member Avenger mentions?Drak?he buys bolt on necks from warmoth to put on his handmade bodies..perfectly viable and he does not try to remake them...he uses them as they are built..quite different from what you propose. If you have any questions about that,do a search on Drak in the build section... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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