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  #1  
Old 06-17-2022, 10:35 AM
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cliff_the_stiff cliff_the_stiff is offline
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Default Martin J40 Custom Shop neck replacement

I have a 2018 J40. This is to my ears, the best sounding guitar I’ve played.
The guitar came from the factory with an underset neck.
After considering the options available, I chose to have Martin replace the neck with one that had specs I prefer.
Essentially they built a wonderfully shaped neck, a nice and fat V profile with a large diamond volute. The weight of the neck was noticeably heavier.
The design choices I went with were basic, With the snowflake inlay traded for a four leaf clover and no head inlay.
1 13/16 X 2 5/16 spacing required a new bridge also, which is now a vintage style long saddle and notch-less pins.

I got it back this week and am pleased with the results.
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Old 06-17-2022, 11:54 AM
tommieboy tommieboy is offline
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WOW! This is totally awesome that Martin does this kind of customization after the fact. Kudos to Martin.

Tommy
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Old 06-17-2022, 03:05 PM
gstring gstring is offline
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Default Martin J40 custom

Hi Cliff

I had a J40 several years ago and LOVED it. I sold it because I now only play
1 13/16 and 2 5/16 string spacings. Many times I have thought about custom ordering the exact guitar you now have.

If you ever think about selling .........

daniel ( from Quebec City )
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Old 06-18-2022, 09:25 AM
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cliff_the_stiff cliff_the_stiff is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by gstring View Post
Hi Cliff

I had a J40 several years ago and LOVED it. I sold it because I now only play
1 13/16 and 2 5/16 string spacings. Many times I have thought about custom ordering the exact guitar you now have.

If you ever think about selling .........

daniel ( from Quebec City )
Thank you. Haven’t put it down yet. It is nice to have that sound back in the house. The neck feels wonderful. Very pleased overall.
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Old 06-18-2022, 10:42 AM
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Congrats! This has been a long time coming, hasn't it! You're right about the tone of this one; I miss it! Enjoy much!!
Steve
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Old 06-18-2022, 12:23 PM
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cliff_the_stiff cliff_the_stiff is offline
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Thank you Steve. I thought for sure you would be interested in the outcome having owned this one for a time. I really appreciate you teaching me about the neck angle and string break angle. Correction to those things with appropriate saddle height and the slotted bridge seem to have improved the middle and upper end. I think it sounds wonderful and is set up nearly perfectly.
There are a lot of guitars sitting around here that are going to feel pretty ignored for a while.
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Old 06-18-2022, 05:50 PM
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colins colins is offline
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What a great way to improve an already good guitar. Well done! Now you’ve got me thinking about one of mine, that I’d play much more if it wasn’t for the particular feel of the neck its first owner specified. Hmmm…..

Last edited by colins; 06-18-2022 at 08:14 PM.
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Old 06-18-2022, 07:10 PM
sinistral sinistral is online now
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That is very cool! I recently picked up a ‘93 J-40 and love how lush the sound is. With those modifications (chunky neck, slotted headstock, vintage style bridge with slotted pins), it must sound amazing.
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Old 11-05-2022, 10:29 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sinistral View Post
That is very cool! I recently picked up a ‘93 J-40 and love how lush the sound is. With those modifications (chunky neck, slotted headstock, vintage style bridge with slotted pins), it must sound amazing.
It’s been a few months now, and I really love it. I noticed the look of the big diamond volute a lot more than I feel it, accept when playing the first position and then I just love it finding it supportive and takes some pressure off my thumb.
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Old 05-07-2023, 07:28 PM
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Default Honeymoon is over

So time always tells-
I wont buy another new Martin, and I will never return to the Martin Custom Shop.
While I absolutely love the sound of this guitar, the work I had done was left unfinished in every aspect. They did not give me what I asked for, and paid for.
The Neck and Bridge replacement cost over 2k.
They didn’t finish the nut, it’s slots are too narrow and pinch and break strings before they reach tune.
They installed a 2 3/8 spaced bridge instead of what I asked for and they invoiced me for which was 2 5/16.
They didn’t intonate the saddle, it played out of tune above 6.
They didn’t fully seat the frets, didn’t dress the fret ends, and left the fretboard a sharp 90 degree corner.
They installed the cheapest tuners they could find.

I have had a fine shop do some work on the saddle and finish installing the frets as well as dress the fret ends and roll the fretboard edges. I’m going to replace the tuners and have them fix the nut slots.

All this stuff shouldn’t be necessary though.
I’m posting this follow up so future patrons of Martins Custom Shop know that you have to ask them to finish the job or they will send you back a hack job.
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Old 05-08-2023, 07:34 PM
sinistral sinistral is online now
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That's really unfortunate. I recently picked up two Custom Shop guitars used, and the workmanship is impeccable. I assume that you worked with a dealer to have the neck replacement done--did you show them the guitar before you had the other shop (I assume it was a different shop) do the finish work?
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Old 05-08-2023, 07:51 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sinistral View Post
That's really unfortunate. I recently picked up two Custom Shop guitars used, and the workmanship is impeccable. I assume that you worked with a dealer to have the neck replacement done--did you show them the guitar before you had the other shop (I assume it was a different shop) do the finish work?
I sent the guitar to Martin in Pennsylvania, and they did the work in the Martin Custom Shop.
Once I got it back and had some time to find the issues and errors I weighed whether to just deal with it or not. The wrong bridge and untuned saddle are minor issues that I could tolerate and correct respectively.

Schoenberg is a Martin authorised repair shop as well as a fantastic shop to visit, they finished the fret work and rolled the fretboard edges.

The color tones of the binding are perfect and there’s very little sign that the neck was removed or anything else for that matter.
Now having the tuners replaced and the nut slots honed should make it nearly perfect.
My disappointment is a combination of the things I didn’t expect to see unfinished adding additional money to spend and time away from the guitar.

The guitar still sounds amazing. I have brought it to shops with me as I try other instruments to compare and I haven’t found its equal.
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Old 05-16-2023, 04:44 PM
tommieboy tommieboy is offline
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Ouch!

Been there, done that. I, too, paid a local guitar tech (a lot) to clean up the mess.

What bothers me is that you asked for a 2 5/16" spacing, and they provided 2 3/8". I'm assuming the neck is also correspondingly wider, running parallel to the outer strings? I've seen it where they missed that too. I'd check the replacement bridge plate below while you're at it, just because. Actually, don't.

Tommy
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  #14  
Old 05-18-2023, 05:01 PM
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A shame to read this. I just started getting the urge to buy a Martin, leaning toward a dread, and a J-40 is one that I only recently read about. I haven't found one locally to play, but the videos I've found show and amazing instrument. Hope you come to love it once all the work is finally properly completed.
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