Reshaping a neck? Is it possible? Is it worth it?

[Cri75!]

Hi everyone,
I have a guitar that has a sound that I like very much. It is not expensive, but for my pocket is not even cheap.
I have a problem with it: the neck... I do feel uncomfortable. It has a C shape profile, I would like it to have a D shape. So I am thinking to reshape it.
I would like to have your opinion if is it difficult if is it worth.
Do you have also some links (youtube, websites) where to find some tutorials?
The guitar has a truss rod, so I do not think that removing some materials will put the structure under too much stress.
I have good manual skills.

Thanks in advance for your thoughts/suggestions.

[vintageparlors]

Hello Cri,
The reshaping of any guitar neck is very personal to the fretting hand that the reshaping is being done for. I can't speak the finished "benefit" of the reshaping exercise but I can tell you that the physical task of reshaping the neck is not terribly difficult.

Reshaping a C-shape profile to more of a "D" shaped profile means taking material of the bottom-most area of the neck and including a proper taper to the fretboard that meets your requirements for the "D" shape.

I've done enough neck reshaping myself to work free hand using feel as my guide but there are templates available designed to make the job a bit less creative and more specific if that would help. The important thing is to take baby steps and and let your fretting "road test" the changes at various stages of the job to determine when and where to stop.

This aspect of the task is very personal to the player, for which there is not set guidance. Only the feel of your hand on the neck will tell you when it's time to stop.

be well,
Steve C

[Cri75!]

Originally Posted by vintageparlors

Hello Cri,
The reshaping of any guitar neck is very personal to the fretting hand that the reshaping is being done for. I can't speak the finished "benefit" of the reshaping exercise but I can tell you that the physical task of reshaping the neck is not terribly difficult.

Reshaping a C-shape profile to more of a "D" shaped profile means taking material of the bottom-most area of the neck and including a proper taper to the fretboard that meets your requirements for the "D" shape.

I've done enough neck reshaping myself to work free hand using feel as my guide but there are templates available designed to make the job a bit less creative and more specific if that would help. The important thing is to take baby steps and and let your fretting "road test" the changes at various stages of the job to determine when and where to stop.

This aspect of the task is very personal to the player, for which there is not set guidance. Only the feel of your hand on the neck will tell you when it's time to stop.

be well,
Steve C

Thanks, Steve,
I would ask you if after the reshaping do you usually re-paint/spray the neck or stop just after sanding it down.

[Italuke]

Yes it's possible and yes it's worth it, depending on the guitar. I had my Eastman E8D neck reshaped and I love it. But no way was I gonna try that myself. I'm a firm believer that experience is the best teacher. I might try it on several cheap guitars first but honestly I don't have time nor do I get any sort of pleasure out of DIY. You might be the type who does. But in my case I found a tech local to me who builds and assured me he has shaped hundreds of necks. Much better than me only doing one. It was also very affordable.

[vintageparlors]

Originally Posted by Cri75!

Thanks, Steve,
I would ask you if after the reshaping do you usually re-paint/spray the neck or stop just after sanding it down.

Most of the neck reshaping that I do is a part of larger rebuild project where I can decide what the new finish will be. Vintage burst or solid color tone lacquer are the most common options I use on an old guitar neck.

Matching the neck finish on a newer guitar might be a bit more involved given the various forms of finish used today. I might defer to those with more experience in this area.

[phavriluk]

Reshaping a neck is not difficult to do but easy to do badly. Shape and dimensions need to be carefully monitored, there's no putting any material back on. And the tendency to take too much out of the middle has to be controlled.

I think if OP really wants to re-profile his guitar's neck, he will be well served to have it professionally done.

[redir]

A D to a C is going to make the neck thinner as you need to remove wood at the apex of the C to flatten it out. So you really do have to consider the truss rod.

[Fathand]

Originally Posted by redir

A D to a C is going to make the neck thinner as you need to remove wood at the apex of the C to flatten it out. So you really do have to consider the truss rod.

The OP stated he wants to go C to D. My understanding is that D necks are usually thicker.

[Quickstep192]

Before you dig in with re-shaping tools. Take the guitar to your dentist and ask them to x-ray the neck so you can see how close to the surface the truss rod is.

[redir]

Originally Posted by Fathand

The OP stated he wants to go C to D. My understanding is that D necks are usually thicker.

Doh! I am dyslexic so it goes...

So now he can leave the middle apex of the curve alone and bring the shoulders into the C-shape and not worry about the truss rod.

[Cri75!]

Thanks to all for the answers.
If I decide to give a try, I will let you know how it goes.

[runamuck]

It's certainly possible. Just make sure you don't take off so much that you hit the truss rod. The challenging issue will be to get the finish looking good.

[Cri75!]

Regarding the finish, I have seen a video of reshape a Les Paul and no finish has been applied. Only some protective oil…. I liked the result; maybe I will do the same.
I do not want get rid of this guitar. I will try a little more to get used to its neck. If I will be not able to adapt to it, I will try to reshape it. It is a guitar with the value around 500 euros (550 dollars)… for now I am willing to take the risk… I bonded with it and a part the neck shape it his what I want.

[Backcountry]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KPUQy0kfeYc