asm Posted May 14, 2004 Report Share Posted May 14, 2004 could you theroetically put strips of graphite rods and not have to use a truss rod at all? sorry, probably a stupid question, its late. thx. t Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Litchfield Custom Gutars Posted May 14, 2004 Report Share Posted May 14, 2004 I believe David Myka did so. His site Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Litchfield Custom Gutars Posted May 14, 2004 Report Share Posted May 14, 2004 Yup he did. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asm Posted May 14, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 14, 2004 that looks nice. only downfall i see is graphite rods are like 20$+ each right? so 20x6=120$ hmmm.. not to terrible but i wonder how it turns out in a few years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jay5 Posted May 14, 2004 Report Share Posted May 14, 2004 David actually said that he gets his from some kite place at about $4 a piece so it is definately cheaper than the Stew-mac rods at $10 a piece. His are actually tubular and I think he covers them with a cove cut strip. I would like to see what that neck looked like in production. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krazyderek Posted May 14, 2004 Report Share Posted May 14, 2004 virgier guitars actually laminates in a carbon rod in the middle of their necks, i don't know about not having any adjustability in a neck.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Myka Guitars Posted May 14, 2004 Report Share Posted May 14, 2004 The is guitar Guitar #006 was a very cool project. You can read about it on my website. The neck was extremely stiff but it did flex just enough for a touch of relief along the neck. I didn't like the idea of the neck not being adjustable but the customer wanted it to be as light as possible and a truss rod would not work due to the weight. I dug up a few pics of the neck in progress: The amazing this about this guitar was that it was loud acoustically. All the sound emanated from the neck! It was quite the cool experiment and amazingly I was paid to undertake it. You just can't beat clients like that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asm Posted May 14, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 14, 2004 hmm, im not understanding the scarf joint completely, is the bundle of rods as thick going down the neck as it comes out of the headstock? or did you cut a piece of the bundle and make a joint out of the actual rods also, i did find a kite place that sells them before someone mentioned thats where you got them from. did you use graphite, or carbon? one of the descriptions said one of the materials bent really easy. dont know how. thx for the pics! t Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spirit Posted May 14, 2004 Report Share Posted May 14, 2004 Cool! Anyone happen to know of a UK supplier of these rods? I'm gonna be making a guitar with a 1 piece (by that I mean 1 piece of maple with a rosewood fingerboard on) birdseye maple neck, and I want to make sure it'll stay straight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted May 14, 2004 Report Share Posted May 14, 2004 did you use graphite, or carbon? same thing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guitar_ed Posted May 14, 2004 Report Share Posted May 14, 2004 Howdy, Being the paranoid SOB that I am, I would want to insert a truss rod even if I used the carbon fiber rods. I would hate to do all that work and find that the neck needs a touch of adjustment, and then find that I can't adjust it. Most importantly which is why we are all here. Just my $0.02 worth. Guitar Ed Opinions are like @ss holes, and I just showed you mine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guitarfrenzy Posted May 15, 2004 Report Share Posted May 15, 2004 Yeah, I don't think I'd ever make a neck without a truss rod in it, even though I use alot of carbon fiber rods in each one. It is true that they can make a neck extremely stable, even to the point of not needing a truss rod, but just for the fine adjustments it's so nice to have one installed. On a side note, if your gonna make a thin neck make sure you keep the carbon rods close to the middle as you can or you might end up with problems, also if you buying them from stew mac go with the #4403 0.200" x 1/4" x 18", since they don't set at deep into the neck but compensates for this by being slightly wider. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asm Posted May 15, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 15, 2004 think you would have a problem using mutiple graphite rods AND a normal truss rod? meaning the neck would be so stiff, but if you had a slight bow over time, adjusting the truss rodd might brake it or pull it out or strip the nut or something? just cause your going to have a weak link somewhere? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted May 15, 2004 Report Share Posted May 15, 2004 my necks with the graphite rods in them all also have a 2 way truss rod,which adjusts much easier,and i have no problem adjusting them for neck relief....remember,you are not actuall bending the neck,you are keeping it straight,counteracting the pull of the strings Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Myka Guitars Posted May 16, 2004 Report Share Posted May 16, 2004 hmm, im not understanding the scarf joint completely The scarf joint is done with the wood before the carbon tubes are glued in. The carbon is then made long so that it runs out the end of the headstock. It is then sanded to the headstock angle. I would want to insert a truss rod even if I used the carbon fiber rods. Me too. I would never leave out the truss rod unless the client wanted it that way. And even then only if they understood what they are getting into. The guitar I built was an experiment. It worked when I was done building it but I have no idea how it will hold up in 10 or 20 years. There simply is not enough necks built this way to draw a valid conclusion. Beacsue of the experimental nature of the technique I will not guarantee any non-adjustable necks. I would go with a combination of truss rod and carbon reinforcement for added stability. It is the standard way I build my necks necks. If anything I'll leave out the carbon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slaughthammer Posted May 16, 2004 Report Share Posted May 16, 2004 i somewhere read something about titan truss rods. a luthier said, that it reduces the weight of the neck by almost 50% but i don't belive it's that much. maybe it reduced the weight of the rod by 50%? anyone of you heard about this or got a clue where to get one of these rods? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted May 16, 2004 Report Share Posted May 16, 2004 The scarf joint is done with the wood before the carbon tubes are glued in. The carbon is then made long so that it runs out the end of the headstock. It is then sanded to the headstock angle. it should be said that stewmac advises AGAINST sanding carbon rods because of the danger of the dust... Precautions First and foremost, beware of splinters! We recommend wearing gloves when handling or cutting carbon fiber. The small splinters are very sharp, and quite brittle. This makes the splinters very difficult to remove since they often crumble and break as you try to extract them. As with most materials, the dust produced when cutting or machining carbon fiber is dangerous. Always wear a dust mask to keep the fine dust particles from entering your lungs and nasal passages. Safety glasses are also required whenever you are doing cutting operations. from stewmac Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Myka Guitars Posted May 16, 2004 Report Share Posted May 16, 2004 it should be said that stewmac advises AGAINST sanding carbon rods because of the danger of the dust... The dust is nasty. It not only gets everywhere but it is a very hard splintery material that will probably get lodged into your lungs. Wear your mask whenever you sand anything especially non-organic and synthetic materials. And vacuum it up as soon as you are done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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