neck questions

[MzI]

couple easy questions for sum experienced builders bout the neck,

i looked through the tutorials and the forums and couldnt find answers to my questions

1. the angle of the headstock needs to be cut and glued on bfore the truss channel is routed?

2. im a gibson guy so i like their truss rod covers, how do they route their channel so they can have the truss rod cover with the screw in the middle of the channel?

3. what is the best alternative double truss rod to the hot rod so i dont hafta shell out a ton of money for the damn router bit $20 imo is a lil excessive for a bit specially when i can get a standard size one for 10 and not hafta pay for shipping

thats all for now

thanx in advance

MzI

[GregP]

I know you said "experienced" builder, but I'll give'er a shot--

1. Nah. If you plan everything out beforehand so that you know where the cuts are all going to be, it's probably easier to do it the other way around. Rout the truss rod channel while you still have a flat hunk of lumber and it hasn't been shaped or profiled in any way yet. Again, this takes planning I'd imagine, but you'll end up having an easier time routing when your board can lie flat AND against some guide rails.

[EDIT: It occurs to me that unless the headstock is done FIRST, the way the rout 'exits' from underneath the fingerboard may not be as elegant, and you could screw up the wood for the scarf joint. Oops. Glad I stated my disclaimer. Don't believe a damn thing I say.]

2. Not familiar enough with Gibson to answer this one, and any guesses I could hazard would be as good as what you could come up with.

3. You don't need Stew-Mac's router bit... just use a narrow enough bit, then manually compensate and do the rout in 2 passes, moving the router (ie. the guide rails, really) whatever fraction of an inch you need to move it in order to get the right width.

Alternatively: LMI Truss Rod, though it's more expensive and doesn't (to my eyes) look as 'finished' a product. That's a COMPLETELY uneducated opinion, though, and I've heard people speak very favourably of them, so I doubt you can really go "wrong" with it.

Greg.