Arguments against the "Poor Man's Neck Reset"

[pcoleff]

Hi all!

I have a 60's Yamaha FG-75 that is in desperate need of a neck reset. Since it is a cheap old guitar, I am not inclined to spend hundreds of dollars to get it properly done. I have found a handful of online instructions for the "poor man's neck reset", where you basically cut partially through the neck and epoxy it back in place at a better angle. Sometimes also adding a bolt in through the body to secure it.

I've also found lots of people recommending the person get a new guitar and either trash or hang the old one.

So my question is: what are the long term (or even short term) downsides to this process? It seems like when literally the choice is between the trash bin and a playable instrument with an ugly neck joint, there's no reason not to at least try. But maybe I'm missing something? Thank you for all your help and advice!

[redir]

I tend to agree with you. A guitar that is ugly but playable is better then one that looks mint but hangs on a wall. But there is a time and place for both too. But believe it or not those old Red Label Yamahas are desirable to many. In good condition you could probably get about $500 bucks for one. So is it worth it? Only you can decide. But someone might be willing to pay you for the guitar and get it fixed right too, then you have a bit of cash for a new guitar.

[pcoleff]

Thanks for the reply! Yes, it is an old red label FG. I ran the serial # at one point and it was either 66 or 68 (can't remember). It's in otherwise great shape, so I might think on if I want to post it to reverb instead. Thank you for the advice.

[Mbroady]

Cutting the neck and re-glueing sounds drastic (though I have heard of that being done)
How bad is the neck angle?

Perhaps the other “poor mans neck reset” might be less invasive
That being shaving down the bridge so the saddle can sit lower.
Both methods are ...not the right way to handle it, but shaving the bridge and saddle can be reversed.

Just something to think about

[Frank Ford]

Originally Posted by pcoleff

Hi all!

I have a 60's Yamaha FG-75 that is in desperate need of a neck reset. Since it is a cheap old guitar, I am not inclined to spend hundreds of dollars . . .

. . .literally the choice is between the trash bin and a playable instrument with an ugly neck joint, there's no reason not to at least try.

Quite so!

Cut the neck loose, don't remove it entirely, and don't glue it back on. Run a skinny deck screw through the heel (or #10 bolt through with a nut on the inside.) Finish the outside with a strap button. Doesn't look too bad, and you can keep using a guitar that's among the millions made to be disposable rather than restorable.

[pcoleff]

I completely get that this guitar was not made to last and is a beginner's guitar. But I think of what a friend of mine, who repaired organs for a living, said to me once:

A lot of his job was finding old non-working organs and stripping them for parts for later use. Once he found an old Hammond M3. Not a great organ and probably the organ equivalent of a old Yamaha FG. Anyways, he was about to strip it and he stopped. He ended up giving it to me for free, saying that he could not bring himself to take apart something that was still chugging along longer than he had been alive.

I kind of feel the same here. This thing is my senior by about a decade. Other than the neck reset, it's in beautiful condition. I feel like, if I can keep it chugging along a bit longer, it's my responsibility to do so. I'm just not gonna spend $500 doing so

So for putting a nut and bolt in there, do you think that would be more sturdy than epoxy (left to cure for awhile, obviously)?


Thanks!

[hubcapsc]

I bit the bullet and got a $350 neck reset from a
good luthier on my $100 197X guitar that I have
a sentimental attachment to... it turned out GREAT.
I went down to Guitar Center and got it a good case
for it afterwards I was so happy with it...

-Mike

[redir]

Originally Posted by pcoleff

I completely get that this guitar was not made to last and is a beginner's guitar. But I think of what a friend of mine, who repaired organs for a living, said to me once:

A lot of his job was finding old non-working organs and stripping them for parts for later use. Once he found an old Hammond M3. Not a great organ and probably the organ equivalent of a old Yamaha FG. Anyways, he was about to strip it and he stopped. He ended up giving it to me for free, saying that he could not bring himself to take apart something that was still chugging along longer than he had been alive.

I kind of feel the same here. This thing is my senior by about a decade. Other than the neck reset, it's in beautiful condition. I feel like, if I can keep it chugging along a bit longer, it's my responsibility to do so. I'm just not gonna spend $500 doing so

So for putting a nut and bolt in there, do you think that would be more sturdy than epoxy (left to cure for awhile, obviously)?


Thanks!

Frank knows what he's talking about. I would do both! But either or. And not hardware store epoxy but the good stuff.

[Kerbie]

Originally Posted by pcoleff

I completely get that this guitar was not made to last and is a beginner's guitar.

Welcome... hope you enjoy the AGF. I've still got my first guitar and I guess it was a "beginner." Turns 50 this year... it's in great shape and sounds wonderful.

[Mirosh]

Sawing the heel toward the neck... what do you do about the fretboard where it's attached to the body? The lowest 7 or so frets would be too high. Poor man removes those frets to give the string some room to vibrate?

I have 2 1970s Yamahas that are candidates for major neck work, or retirement. It's a shame because they sound better than almost everything I've played or bought since. Being a poor man, I have not looked above $1,000, though. Stimulus check still unspent. Hmmm.

[Rudy4]

Originally Posted by Mirosh

Sawing the heel toward the neck... what do you do about the fretboard where it's attached to the body? The lowest 7 or so frets would be too high. Poor man removes those frets to give the string some room to vibrate?

I have 2 1970s Yamahas that are candidates for major neck work, or retirement. It's a shame because they sound better than almost everything I've played or bought since. Being a poor man, I have not looked above $1,000, though. Stimulus check still unspent. Hmmm.

The fret board is left glued in place. The saw cut allows the heel to come closer to the body and the neck angle changes in the direction that allows the frets to "fall off" over the body. This lowers the height of the strings over the upper portion of the neck and/or allows you to increase the saddle height at the bridge.

[Mirosh]

Of course. I see it now. That sliver of a saddle can be replaced with a suitably tall one. Thanks!

[PatrickMadsen]

I bet "ole Red" would sound and play much better than any new guitar you paid the same price as the neck reset and setup.

[hubcapsc]

Originally Posted by PatrickMadsen

I bet "ole Red" would sound and play much better than any new guitar you paid the same price as the neck reset and setup.

In my post further up in this thread I mention getting a neck reset on
a 1970s $100 guitar... afterwards I took it to Guitar Center and played
it back-to-back with some of their guitars... an Epiphone and an Alvarez
that I remember... I liked my 1970s (Citation "guitar of quality" ) guitar
the best easily...

-Mike

[bisco1]

What about another method, "slipping the block"? Loosening the back from the neck block and the back kerfing for a little distance on either side of the block, slide the neck back a little to adjust the angle, then reglue. I think they used to refer to it as a "California neck reset". Reasonably easy to do. I think it was pretty popular before steaming the neck off and trimming the neck heel became the method of choice. Bill