Neck Question

[sawdustdave]

I looked at a nice Yamaha at a local pawn shop last weekend. Considering the strings were dead, it sounded OK. Would be a nice beater.

However, the neck joint looked suspect. Almost like it was coming off - there was what looked like glue squeeze-out around the heel, and a definite gap between the neck heel and body of the guitar.

So, I'm wondering: would it be OK to buy the guitar and re-set the neck on my own? I'd not be out a lot of money, and other than the neck joint the guitar seemed pretty nice. No, I've never reset a neck, but I have stayed at a Holiday Inn Express once...

Thanks!

[bnjp]

Originally Posted by sawdustdave

...other than the neck joint the guitar seemed pretty nice.

Man...that's a pretty big "other than." It sounds like it needed a reset and someone shot glue in there (always a bad idea). In my experience it's harder to refix one that was fixed wrong than to fix it right the first time. There's no telling what kind of glue they used or whether you're gonna be able to get it apart well. If you get it apart without damaging the wood, you've got to get all the bad glue off before you can even do a normal reset. I would say that unless it's a VERY good price, I'd stay away from it.

[redir]

On cheap guitars that are not worth the price of a neck reset I've resorted to the quick fix of glue injection and you may be surprised how well it works. I prefer CA. Pics would help.

[sawdustdave]

Can't post pix since I don't own the guitar yet. I've been a woodworking hobbyist for about 30 years, to getting glue off, whether by heat, chemical, or scraping, isn't a big deal. The neck actually appeared fine - until I saw the apparent "fix". Might stop tomorrow and see if it's still there. If not, well, then this is a moot issue. If it is, maybe I can talk it even cheaper.

[Ned Milburn]

Some people have reported good results with the addition of a screw or bolt. However, since glue has already been added, the neck likely would need to come off if it is indeed at an incorrect angle.

If you are okay with trying the neck reset and are resigned to the fact that you might not get it quite right, then at the very least it will be a great learning experience, at worst it will be a wall hanging.

BTW, I love your holiday inn comment!! ;-)

[John Arnold]

The neck actually appeared fine - until I saw the apparent "fix".

If the neck angle is OK, there is a good chance that you don't need to do anything....other than any cosmetic work you choose to do.
The beauty of a dovetail joint is that it will tend to 'come tight' at some point.

[sawdustdave]

The guitar looks to be ok, other than comsmetically. If I clean up the gap - remove the finish that pulled away with a knife - it may be fine. For less than 100 bucks it will be a player. And, if it does need work it will be a good learning experience for not a lot of money. The neck angle seems fine, as I sight down the neck and body from both the top an bottom of it. The action was fine, the strings were aweful! I'll put some new strings on it and see what happens.

[printer2]

The people who weighed in are much more knowledgeable than I am but I was set upon a task (family) to look at a neck of an old guitar. Also had glue in the joint where it looked like someone wanted to do a no buck neck reset, cut the neck off, trim and glue back on. I was not really enthusiastic at what I was getting myself into but in the end it was not that bad. The previous owner just squirted glue in the joint that was letting go, hoping to solve the problem. Once I got the fretboard off I managed to get the guitar reasonably playable. Even posted the experience here.

http://www.acousticguitarforum.com/f...d.php?t=344342

[sawdustdave]

Last night I put new strings on the guitar, tuned it up. Took a sharp knife to the heel to cut through the finish and scrape off the finish that pulled away from the body. There is a good 16th of an inch gap at the bottom of the heel, and the setup is way too high at the 12th fret (which makes complete sense.)

So, looks like I'll have a project. Removing the neck appears to be easy enough - once I heat the fretboard and loosen it from the top. Read on Frets.com on how to do this, and will do more research as well.

Shimming the neck joint shouldn't be an issue - he says having never done it. But I've cut plenty of "normal" dovetails in box carcasses. Similar, but very different. What this project will provide is practical experience as I begin building my first guitar over the winter. That's my story and I'm sticking to it!

[printer2]

Good to hear. Not a bad job once you get into it. The worst part is not knowing what to do. At least there is information out there on how to do it.

[John Arnold]

I think you will do just fine.