Don't Be A Jerk... Just Buy A New Neck
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- Опубликовано: 23 сен 2023
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Original score: Electric Boogie Dawgs & Jim Jamm Jimmy
Artwork: Joy Kaminski & Paul Shellooe 
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The main motivation of Leo Fender to use the bolt on neck, _wasn't_ to make repairs easier for the consumer. It was to make the manufacturing process _cheaper_ . As Leo explained it, if the neck got screwed up during production, you didn't have to scrap the entire guitar. The side benefit, for the player, is a replaceable neck.
Which doesn't help me as the necks on most of my guitars is the reason for owning them in the first place.
...so I'm mostly screwed on that count.
No, just get a matching neck of the same size and finish. It's cheaper than buying a new guitar 🤣
Nice pun
chicken & egg question or same difference concept ... both ending in a guitar with a bolt on neck (actually a neck with fastener screws during Leo's tenue, some
copies use a bolt & tap system).
screwed? no you mean bolted on.
Direct from the Horses Mouth;
Warmoth glues and presses the frets into place, resulting in a very stable and durable fret job.
We then back-bevel the fret ends to about 30°, and polish them to a smooth finish. We can also leave the ends square and unfinished if you request it.
Warmoth does not perform fret leveling. Most Warmoth necks are playable as they are received and do not require fret leveling. However, because wood moves with changes in temperature, humidity and string tension fret leveling may be required. This is best done after the neck has been strung up to pitch for several days and allowed to adjust in the assembled state. For this reason, Warmoth leaves this fine tuning to the end user.
I have had excellent luck with Warmoth necks and I'm sure one could be played as is
I wore the frets out on my original Strat neck that I had when I was 13. My dad ordered me a new Fender neck at my local shop and I was rocking again in a week. I have had 3 different necks and multiple different pickups over the past 18 years. I saved that original neck and I’m glad I did for the possibility of learning how to do a refret in the future.
That's the way to look at it. After you learn to refret, level, crown & polish, you can find a body to go with it & have a spare & you can make it look original or relic
You must be a helluva player...to wear out a neck by 13...you musta put so much time into your finger muscle memory !
I've NEVER worn out my frets! (Nearly 50...played on & off since 13)
@@lueysixty-six7300this guy could also be playing with solid steel strings. Most guitars are built using nickel-silver as the fret material. Most modern strings are nickel plated steel. If a person strictly only plays using “vintage style” pure nickel strings, the fret wear over time will be extremely low. Unless a person either re-frets their guitar or replaces their neck with one that has steel frets, modern strings are going to cause the frets to wear down faster the more you play. The nickel plated steel strings at least have the nickel plating that reduces the amount of fret wear that occurs vs using pure steel strings.
It’s only fairly recently that many guitar companies are now offering steel frets as a stock option on more models while steel ( whether nickel plated or not) had become the most common electric guitar string material for many decades now.
Triggers broom😊
@@lueysixty-six7300 Really? Did'ja have a bad day or something? Throwing shade on a person because 'you' haven't warn your frets is awfully 'petty', don't'cha think? When I was young, I would send my main guitar for a level crown and polish 2-3 times a year. And, yes... I played/practiced every waking moment of every single day. Sometimes up to 14 hours a day. And, yes... I was pretty darn good. Don't be like that, man. It makes our community look bad. Music and guitar should be FUN! :)
I'm a repair guy and a builder, and honestly I completely agree with just replacing the neck. In the long run, it's much more affordable for the player to place an order for a new neck from Fender, Warmoth, etc, because serious structural repair can get astronomically expensive. Just ask anyone that gets work done on their vintage Gibson's that don't have the option of un-bolting the neck lol
I love this. My luthier is also one of my good friends gave the sad news that my MIM tele is on its last fret level, which in my world should last a few years, but then said the same thing as you. I was a bit pissed at first, but he said all the same things. I just have to get around the fact it wouldn’t match the body, and yes my fear of it not being a magic neck. I’m coming to grips with the fact that it’s just a MIM. It’s all silly, but I love that neck. So I’m finally at the last stage of grief with acceptance and when the time comes I’ll buy a new neck. Great stuff.
My only argument for refretting an old neck is if you are crazy in love with the feel/shape of the neck. Buying necks, most often online without checking it out in person first, is a little bit of a gamble. It's like the favorite worn pair of jeans, you just love them and wish they would last forever. But a new neck has it's advantages as Matt says. My view is you should do what you want to, be it a refret or a new neck, but should understand the risks for each. Besides, it's guitars and it's fun!
If can afford it, a refret is probably ok….but keep in mind guitar builders will of course promote buying a new neck just like repair shops are inclined to promote repair work
There are instances. I had a 1983 62RI strat (the famed 82-84 Fullerton years), and I’ve just never ever played a guitar with a neck as nice as that. To this day, those necks alone still go for 3 grand-ish. I’d never replace that neck, and am still seeking out necks from 54 or 62 reissues from 82-84
@@ramencurry6672nice
Leo Fender was a genius. We have him and Les Paul to thank for modern music. Leo's bolt on neck and everything about Fender instruments made them affordable, practical, and readily available to the masses. A Fender is a "Lego guitar" you can make it anything you want with that "piece/part together" construction. And like the point of your video clearly states, it also makes repair a lot easier. I have 2 Gibsons I'm going to have to re-fret if I want them to be playable again, well because set neck. BTW thanks for the tip with the scale change deal from 25 1/2 to 24 3/4, I'd really love a strat with the 24 3/4" scale so my hands feel Les Paul and my ears hear Leo's SSS Strat tone, that and a 12" profile and 60's Gibson frets, I hate tall frets, hell make them stainless steel so they wear less. Damn man, when you talk you got me getting ideas on how I can burn more cash on more guitars. Never ask you to repair a guitar, I might ask you to build me one though. Funny how some people don't realize that making something is very different than repairing something.
Thanks my friend, you are 100% correct about the difference between building and repair. I have so little experience with repair that I hate to work on my own guitars much less a customer's.
Not lot of people know about Leo Fender having a machine that put in frets sideways. So if you pull frets out could rip out wood badly I assume.
Does
The "vintage" people drive me nuts. If you want to PLAY the thing then don't be afraid to get parts that work. You can keep the original parts and still have a working instrument. I got into it with a guy over his vintage pots. He was offended that I suggested he put new ones in. He thought it was "butchering" the guitar to do that.
C'mon that seems totally crazy
Old CTS pots can possibly be fixed, depending on the problem or condition, in the right hands... but that doesn't mean it's worth it to you or me.
I think it all depends on whether it's a so-called player grade vs. collector grade. IMO, for players they might as well buy something nice, newer and more reliable. For example, for the money, a Fender Custom Shop '60 Whatevercaster probably makes much more sense than a pre-CBS '60 Fender Whatevercaster.
Me: I can build my '60 Whatevercaster very similar--quality and specs.--to FCS's version and for a LOT less money and have fun doing it.
Well hell even “player grade” can mean well over 10k. It’s all crazy. Either it’s a tool or a great toy but this collectible shit kills me.
Right??? Imagine driving a car and never replacing damaged or worn parts...
@@aperezdeal People have wrist watches valued that much and more. It doesn’t matter. 300’ super yachts with helicopter pads and support boats are infinitely more ridiculous to me. They’re so big now one the latest things in naval vessels is to make the small one look like mega yachts for disguise.
I bought a neck from Amazon made by Eart for $250. It came with a free body, pickups, electronics and tuners. Fully assembled. Love the neck. Think I'll replace the pickups.
Eart are incredible, stainless steel frets too.
Pickups are placebo dude
@@RUclipsisaids69pickups are the guitar
Refret-ing a guitar neck makes sense if you love the neck and if you’ve worn down the finish the exact way you want. The only way to go then is stainless steel frets so you’d never do it again
Great advice! I have cheap guitars and am not squeamish about keeping anything original but the keep your vintage neck and play the new one is very good advice and could be said about pickups as well.
Most Fender necks don't come with stainless frets so yes I would re fret when the frets are worn. I am not sure if you have seen the cost of Warmoth necks they are nice but they are pricey. A twist I would replace. but fret work is worth doing in my opinion.
Exactly, I have Fender AM Pro II necks on my two Strat builds (partscasters) and they’re much more costly than a refret. $700-$800 for a new neck, or about $400 for a refret with stainless steel frets and you never have to worry about them again. Same thing goes for a Warmoth neck if you got it decked out. To me it’s a no brainer, but I don’t use inexpensive necks on my builds. But with twisted, and not worn, but severely damaged necks, just replace the damn thing.
The main thing about neck repairs whether it is to re-fret or change the entire fretboard is to keep the serial number and the "authenticity" of that particular guitar, which is something that the owner of an US-made Fender guitar would likely do, or even for a MIM model. Authentic Fender replacement necks cost between 300 to 700 bucks and I think that a refret would cost less than that, considering it is "easier" to refret a bolt on neck that you can separate from the body to do the job than a neck-through or set-neck.
Why can't you also keep the old neck for "authenticity". Would even be a good story of how old and damaged it is..
@@northyland1157Of course that is also an option.
The problem with Fenders is serial number placement on neck. It can be overlooked that body and neck may not be originals. A shop here had to buy back the used 'authentic' guitar they advertised and sold me as 'original'. It turned out to be a partscaster when we (I) ran the serial number on Fender's website.
Wow, excellent video!...I learned a few cool things. Thank you for taking the time to do this video!
Matt. The best start to any video I’ve seen, fully understand where you are coming from. And a really good video subject. Best wishes from Wales Mike.
But I love my heel-adjust truss rod! Why would I just stick an allen key in a simple hole, when I can slacken all the strings off, take the scratch plate off, make an adjustment, put the scratchplate back on, tune the guitar, and hope I got lucky?
You certainly can get a replacement neck with heel or headstock adjust
Not frustrating at all.
I agree. Collectors have decided that the highest resale value comes with everything original, with all date codes verified, unfortunately including the finish. If you refinish a guitar and it looks exactly like it did when it was original, the resale value goes down. Crazy.
Isn't that true for anything with a vintage community?
I know it is for vintage firearms.
All original Colt pistols for example are pretty spendy
@@TexasToastGuitars Yep, collector communities want things in museum condition, regardless of what the original designer wanted. It's the crossroads of compulsive behavior and money to burn.
We are all going to die and what is going to matter at the end of the day isn’t that we had the vintage finish on.
In the 70s and 80s there was only a few older guitars with a premium price. For me I don't consider 70s and up vintage guitars to me they are just Used Guitars. Dude I have a 1999 vintage guitar.Please spare me.
Refretting is much cheaper than a new neck, at least where I live. And with a new neck I still have to go to the luthier for the setup.
I know a guy with a broadcaster it twisted up because it had no trussrod. so he got a new neck from fender in the 60s. Sounds awesome.
Ive got a 1990 SRV strat that developed a twist in the neck. I tried everything to get it fixed. Lots of advice from all sorts of places. Nothing really worked. I finally ordered a NOS replacement and it has given the guitar a new lease on life. Ive fallen in love with it again.
I have a Stratocaster neck that was autographed by Dick Dale on the headstock. I absolutely love the feel of this neck and I'm able to do my own fretwork so when the time comes I'll do it. I'll probably do stainless steel frets and never worry about it again.
Excellent topic. People need to remember that fender necks from the beginning to around 1982 had frets installed sideways and not the standard press-in method used on other guitars then or now. Gotta be careful removing those sideway installed frets. The whole manufacturing process that Leo used was for replacement and not repair. So you're right, don't jack with fixing a valuable vintage neck, simply save the original neck and pop in a new Fender OEM, Warmoth or other replacement neck. That's a better option in my opinion for most situations and preserves the value. Plus it's less expensive and quicker usually. There are always exceptions though and sometimes personal preference and sentimental value outweigh logic.
Thanks my friend, it does kinda suck to have to replace a neck and I get it. People will have to do their own cost benefit analysis
I think I agree for the most part. I think one exception in terms of refretting would be with an ebony neck, but you may have a sensible opinion on that too.
But I think people get so sentimental about every aspect of their guitar. I have guitars with set necks, there's one I want to make some changes too - if it was bolt on, I'd simply replace it
Great channel. You did inspire me to comment, the guy who never comments. Everything you said makes a lot of sense to me. That being said I just had my 96 made in Mexico Strat refretted. The sentimentals got me again. My Father Drove me a couple hours to to find one when I was twelve. I learned and gigged on it for almost 30 years now. I have other guitars now but It felt wrong replacing the neck altogether. It also felt wrong getting it refretted. I have a 3 year old now and If He wants he can learn on that same neck. Its a good neck. Thanks for insight.
Wow; people can be so crazy! Thanks for sharing your thoughts, ideas, and experiences.
Totally agree with you for bolt on necks. Set necks are still doable but not a lot of people save or make those necks to switch out. I've seen videos of resets and refitting set necks but they aren't done with cost savings in mind, eh. Thx
It's great we have the choice to repair or replace.
This must be my new favorite video title since infinity. You are a fun guy. Thanx for being.
The main reason a lot of people don’t replace the necks is because of resale value. The serial on most mass-production models is on the neck, and nobody wants to pay a decent price for a partscaster.
The beauty of fenders is that there are many that make replacements... try that with a Jackson or Washburn or other off brands
Great video. You are focusing this on replacing necks that are damaged or have some kind of fault but in fact one of the benefits of Fenderd bolt-on design is that you can easily replace a neck on a guitar simply because you want to try something different on a guitar that is lacking Mojo or just not working for you. There are many options including radius, neck shape (C V, U etc) wood, cut e.g. quartersawn, fretboard or what have you. Being able to keep everything else on the guitar the same but changing out the neck is one of the huge benefits of Stratocasters and Telecasters. And if you take care of them and buy quality necks they retain their value.
Thanks for a very sensible and common sense approach to neck replacement
Makes sense, simple cost to benefit ratio. Hell buy a new one and then learn by trying to fix the old one on your own. If you screw it up, no loss you replaced it already.
A twist in a rosewood neck doesn't matter, a pro luthier will re-surface the radius before refretting. On a maple neck however it will ruin the original finish on the fretboard and you may be charged extra for spraying the fretboard. Watch-out many wannabe luthiers just use a long flat aluminum beam and do a so-so job. Make sure you see with your eyes, in your luthier's shop, the correct long radius block with your guitar's correct radius.
I agree, the man speaks truth. I am a hobby guitar builder, not a pro like Texas toast. I have whittled out a neck from Maple sticks, installed a truss rod and glued on a precut rosewood fret board, beating in my choice of fret wire. Not any more.
You cannot do one or two a year and come out ahead.. You can get generic necks already built with a rosewood and a truss rod for the price of a good piece of maple that is wide enough for a headstock without gluing. Even if I have to change the radius and refret the generic, it is cheaper and faster than home made.
Thats exactly it... Leo made it a bolt on so it can be replaced easy... We lost our way loll
Your Logic is right on. That's what I did with two fenders. Worked great and the swap was much quicker getting done.
Luckily, I can do refreting and change tuners and nut myself! Broken,wore out necks twisted necks I replace! Thanks 😊
I get the sentiment here, but if I wear the frets down on my artist series fender Strat the edge, I’m going to want it refretted. It’s got his signature on there, it has the large 70s headstock etc…I don’t want some other company’s neck on it.
I have an old Squier Affinity strat in my collection, and it had the super skinny neck with the 40mm nut. Hated it, as I have huge hands. So I got a new neck. Thing plays fantastic now.
I gave my neck what I call a ghost shim.
It's a 2mm wedge shaved out instead of adding a shim.
I also removed the hardtail and added a Schaller adjustable tune-o-matic and a Jaguar trem.
To a mini Jazzmaster.
I just wish the nut was wider, apart from that, it's a lovely instrument to play, it REALLY forces you to play with only the required pressure to fret the note, anything more will be fretted sharp, so it's awesome for practicing.
And going through my Spark go, it sounds like a full sized guitar.
I've been playing since 91 and wish we had then what we do now, people have it so easy these days!
thank you! i have a 57' reissue strat (1983) that needs new frets. very low .88... after watching your video i'am going to go with a high end warmoth neck...compound radius... prep for roller nut, drilled for sheller tuners...and stainless steel high frets... the guitar will be a beast for a few more bucks.... your right just buy a new neck!
Rock on amigo
I always advocate for replacing the neck on bolt on guitars when applicable. I believe Partscasters are the best guitars possible because of the modular design as well as the countless companies making parts for “s” style and so on guitars.
I feel a refret isnt expensive compared to a new neck. Like if youre getting a basic replacement neck like mighty mite yeah its cheaper but youll need to do fretwork as well nut work before its ready to go. If you cant do a proper fret leveling, you have to keep that in mind as well.
Now if youre refretting a finished maple board then yeah it gets really expensive, if you go the refinish route.
Great informative video. Yeah, re-frets are so expensive now that unless you have a lot of money and the guitar is worth a lot of money ,in some cases you might be better off just buying a new guitar. For instance I wanted to re-fret my early 2,000's Carvin DC 127 with stainless steel frets because the frets are worn out. The luthier wants $800 to do it. I really like the guitar, but it's not worth much more than that. Unfortunately, you can't change the neck on a neck through guitar.
Ouch... 800 USD I haven't priced out a refret job in a while
That's a good opportunity to learn how to refret, the frets and tools for that aren't really that expensive.
i'm glad someone said it! DESIGNED to be replaced!!!
I am sending 3 brand new Fender Aerodynes back to Sweetwater. None of the necks are finished. The fret ends have original tooling marks on them and are like razors. One neck has dirt in the finish of the backside of the neck. 55 point inspections must be with blinders and gloves. I am looking for a Fender like strat and tele but with a proper fretboard and fret ends that don't tear up your hands. I also like the smaller neck profile, 'modern C'. I thought I was going to be a Fender guy.
I priced new Fender necks and they are crazy expensive. It's far cheaper to just buy a new squire Strat/Tele and cannibalize it for the neck. In my case, a friend gave me a Tele neck that I fitted onto my Frankenstrat. Had to strip off 7 layers of pink and purple paint, plug a bunch of holes, chisel out the body, a few other things..
But it worked great!
I agree with nearly everything that you say. They were designed to be changed and taken to bits. The only bit I don’t agree with is that we accept that every new neck needs to have a level crown and polish. I know this to be true because every neck that has ever come my way has needed one! But we should r accept this really. Great video, thanks for it.
Honestly i think that you are spot on with your advice.
I had several dented frets on my Telecaster neck and considered having it refretted, but decided buying a brand new neck was the better option, and it turns out I was right. It was cheaper, required no extra effort, and I did it all from home. Now if only my Gibson copy with similar issues had a bolt-on neck...
I’m agree with you. Very well explained. Cheers.
thank you Tex ... ps. LOVE the roasted neck
I had a Player Telecaster with a maple neck that I wanted a new neck for that was a dark rosewood with a bone nut. It was beautiful and cost about $450. I sold the maple one for $285. So for $165 I had the neck I preferred with dark rosewood and Gotoh Vintage Kluson-style tuners.
Wish I knew this 40 years ago when I wore out the frets on a '76 black Strat. I traded it on a newer model like a used car. My first electric. Wish I still had it. Good times. Good sounds.
I get it. I'm refurbishing my first guitar I build in 1982. It's taking a very long time. Everyone tells me "just buy a new guitar." They don't understand.
I have a 1961 strat - a replacement neck, replacement body and replacement electrics, it has that 'vintage vibe' that only a '61 can
I'll bet it is an awesome guitar too.
I have a blonde ash '58 P bass, a '59 P bass, and a '63 J bass like that. 😉
If Fender made necks with stainless steel frets, roasted woods and offered a wider variety of neck profiles, I'd probably buy a Fender replacement neck. I think that a lot of the time, Warmoth makes nicer necks (certainly a far greater variety, and for a better price) but that Fender logo is worth a fair amount in terms of resale value, especially for left handed instruments. Even though a lot of manufacturers sell left handed instruments and parts with an upcharge, you can seldom recover much (or even any) of that when you sell it, even if it's a beautifully made & set up instrument.
This video was directed at me. I have a 62 Jazz Bass with a twisted neck. Normal people call it a 1994 '62 reissue, but I always forget that part. It has been sitting for 7 years waiting for me to have the neck untwisted. Maybe it will work. Maybe it won't. I want to play the bass. Hey!!!!! I have a GREAT idea. I can just get a new neck!!!!!
Well put. And for me the whole concept is really a no brainer. I mean aside from having to drill new holes and lowering the nut some it couldn't have been the easiest and least expensive way-to-go when I decided to do something about the twist on my guitar's neck. Yeah. And the old one sits in a corner hoping it will someday untwist itself.
I just slapped a Warmoth neck on my Fenderbird before I even knew the concept of fret leveling and dressing. Its the best action on the best neck ever. I have some curiosity now to put it on the bench next time I change strings and check the fret level.
I once heard a story told by S’more Dunkin goes like this ; “ back in sixties he was working at music store Ohio ,cold winter ,wood burning stove ,pre cbs necks and a pile of frets at the bottom “
This is the very reason i learned luthier work yrs ago. Comes in handy
Thanks for the info
That's the beauty of a bolt on neck. If they were NOT designed to interchange parts they would have glued it and even set necks can be replaced.
@TexasToastGuitars - Hey, Man - I totally agree with you. Refretting is costly, has some risk involved during the work including damage and sending the guitar somewhere else for a while. I'll go with stainless steel frets whenever possible to avoid this; the neck is the most critical piece of a guitar and IS the guitar IMO. Are you saying that owners of guitars with set necks and neck-thru-bodies are screwed? :)
I totally agree with you about just getting a new neck. That’s exactly what I did with my Tele, got a new Fender ‘51 U shape. Now it’s pretty much perfect but yeah, could use leveling, but it’s still good enough for me.
Warmoth straddles the custom build line. Yes there are a lot of material choice (less for bass) and mix/match selections. However, don't think they will do whatever you want, they won't. And some specs are not available in all selections. Check the pricing and delivery too. It may be more effective to get a Fender replacement.
true that some features aren't available on every neck however...there are a staggering number of choices. I was only using Warmoth as an example because people know of them.
Absolutely disagree. A refret costs me about E.100,-/ 120,-. A new neck by Fender or Warmoth would cost me at least E.275,-. This ofcourse is the situation in Europe, I know.
BASS player here, your absolutely right, but my 1970 something Samick bass, I did not want to change the neck.
Got a six string bass after dreaming about one for 29 years, played the six string while I hung the Samick in the wardrobe with some humidity, came back perfect..... 8 months later, yeah, I'm a freak !!!! You are right that replacement necks can be superior to the original.
I liked this! I've owned quite a few guitars, but the one that I like (and everyone raves about) is a guitar dubbed "El Cheapo." It's a mighty mite neck, ebony fretboard with jumbo frets. Plays like a dream. The rest of the parts are crap, but has great Kinman blues pickups. The thing is fantastic and I'm thinking about building another with the same neck. Nowhere near the price of a boutique or a name brand neck. Great video for me.
Long live bolt on necks! I've had some set necks, they are great, but beyond my meager talents to effect any substantial repairs, beyond simple truss rod adjusts,fret ends, and nut or tuner replacement.
All my bolt ons in the last 50+(yikes!!)years have proven sturdy, reliable, and fixable. By me. For cheap.
I have always thought it so cool that Leo didn't play guitar!
He approached it as an engineering challange, and he flat killed it!
Great video. And you guys who want to struggle with a 100% original guitar that doesn't work? oh well....that's how wall hangers are made.
You can just sit and gaze at your guitar-shaped sculpture....
The most important feature for me is a carbon fiber lined neck with stainless steel frets. I absolutely hate it when a unstable neck is the real reason why a guitar cannot stay in tune (no matter what you do to the rest of the guitar).
Stainless steel frets all the way. Those carbon fiber rods really are proving popular now, I know I'll be asking for them next time I have something built.
this is spot on I have a mexican strat that ive spent years and hundreds of dollars modding and trying to compensate for the fact that i just never liked the neck but tried to fix everything else. i know now after building a partscaster from the ground up with a neck shim and a ebay neck built to an ibanez wizard profile you really can make any guitar feel speical.
I agree with most of this. Except when the cost of a refret was compared as more costly than a new Warmoth neck. A nice warmoth neck is like $300 to $400.
A refret from a good luthier will cost more than likely twice what a new warmoth neck will cost.
I have a pro that has fretted a couple necks for me for $350 apiece. The replacement fret wires are stainless steel, so it's unlikely I'll need to have them re-dressed or re-crowned again. His work was fine, too. No complaints or regrets.
A Mighty Mite neck that's licensed by Fender is under $200 the last time I looked.
@@TexanUSMC8089 Never tried them, but they look pretty good. Nickel frets though, so I would need them recrowned and levelled in 6-12 months, taking me back to step 1. No Fender logo either. Some people want those.
@@maxwellblakely7952 No. The local authorized Fender shop here does a re-fret for $300. Warmoth is $500 shipped.
fender sells replacement necks now on their website and they are on sale often!
I love the strat sound but haven't find a nice neck yet for my big hands
Warmoth is a parts company not a guitar company and necks are weird because a properly made neck isn't perfectly flat when it's made. It's intentionally slightly bowed forward when the truss rod is slack and it's not installed. If you dressed and leveled the neck before it's even been on a guitar, it would super wacked out when it flexes and settles into being under tension. Warmoth necks are actually super playable out of the box and only if you need 1mm Steve Vai action, would you "need" a fret level and dress job.
But your video is spot on. My wife didn't understand why I was buying a new neck for my Strat will I explained to her the difference between a fret job and buying a whole new neck and then she got it. The Les Paul had to go to a luthier for obvious reasons. ;)
I did have a refret on my graphite neck - with stainless steel frets. Best decision I've made.
Right On Bro!!!!
I have two Warmoth necks. I leveled both as there documentation said I should. Great necks!
I told a friend just the other day this same thing that was talking about refretting a mim strat neck.
I totally agree, with the exception of a valuable vintage Fender.
Do you have a link to that neck replacement company? I think you called them warmup? I have an old Ibanez that has a beyond repair neck, I had 2 luthiers say they couldn't even find me a replacement neck for it, so I'd love to find a replacement and install it and have that old guitar working again.
Respectfully disagree with the premise. An unbound re-fret on a rosewood board (like you’re showing) is going to be 400, maybe 500 bucks. Your existing neck already has finish on it, it’s already assembled, and you know the fit is good. It has been through the wonky adjustment period in it’s destination climate, and it survived. The wood has been gradually settling down and drying out, and it’s likely improving sonically. The finish is wearing some, so it’s likely feeling better to play. You have played hundreds or thousands of hours of music with the neck, and you have fond memories associated with that instrument.
So, let’s put that in a box under a bunch of other boxes and start over.
First, we need to use more wood and metal and shell and bone and glue and labor and packaging and fuel. And, we’re gonna need some finish and solvents and polishing compounds and masking tape. It’s okay. It’s just the planet.
Now, our new neck arrives in sunny, arid Colorado and starts it’s first year of freaking out, which will almost inevitably lead to fingerboard shrinkage, fret sprout, loosening/lifting frets and probably a ramping up at the heel end of the board, all of which add up to repair bills and time not playing the instrument, and the frustration of the ongoing changes in the playability, until all this stuff is resolved (like it is on the neck that you don’t want to re-fret).
This isn’t even getting into the question of whether or not the new neck is made with specific pieces of wood that are as good or better than that of your existing neck.
So… besides being wasteful, expensive, time consuming, and unpredictable, you’re also tossing what little mojo you have imparted into the neck you already have.
If don’t like the neck you have, get something else. If you do like it, then a re-fret is just part of the long life cycle of that instrument. Take your neck to a qualified, experienced and a respected repair person, and love the results. Most importantly, go out and play music, a lot!
Thing is, at least for here where I live, doing a re fret is the same cost as a new neck and it can be stainless steel, the fender neck I just looked at is not stainless, it would also come with a full setup. And doing a fix on a neck break would cost me half the price without a cosmetic repair and still be cheaper with full cosmetics.
That is a great point all the work that comes with a refret has value as well
I have bought several necks from Warmoth over the years and even the less expensive options are damn near perfect right out of the box and with minimal work often play better than the originals.
I recently bought the least expensive Warmoth strat neck I could get, $203 to my door.
The quality was still top notch.
Only one spot on one fret was slightly high.
Couple passes with a crowning file and it was perfect.
I hear they make great stuff
Agree with most of this. I have several discontinued artist series guitars. I’d probably only spend time repairing those. 🎸
My neck is toast its not repairable. Its got a permenant dip in it and needs fret work. The difference in temperatures screwd it up. It was rosewood finger board. I found out maple is better for harsh temperatures.
I suffered an injury and require a neck with as little shoulder as possible. A thinner v profile would work great, and can’t find a ready-made one. The “Clapton,”the “soft v” are too thick. It would be nice to have one with some sexy wood binding too.
Where does one go?
Great question
Warmoth
Try modifying a neck that is close? I have taken the shoulder off of classical guitars a couple of times
I have a strat that’s on it’s third neck. It’s the way to go for sure.
Third neck!
That reminds me of all the necks EVH had for that Franken Strat
I agree 100% I'll level and dress my own frets, change a nut. These are maintenence items. If I were to change frets I would buy the tools and try it myself. I do not own and antique or special reissues I own a mouple MIM strats, and a 2010 American standard so all my stuff is of average value. I recently installed a 21 frett roasted maple neck on one of my MIM strats at a cost of $399.00 from Fender, and I love it. If I have a neck with a bad truss rod, bad fingerboard, or broken due to drop damage I would just replace the neck, and keep the old neck to go with the guitar if I ever sold it. I'd never try to make a wood repair on a fender neck. Just replace it as it is part of the guitars design.
I was getting tired of my 1952 blackguard's neck. 70 years of play, it was getting worn. I tossed it in the trash and have an ebay special on the way. Thanks!
Best fender i ever played was a mexi with an a $600 aftermarket maple neck without a finish on it. I cant remember the brand. It was something popluar 20 years ago.
the "I want to keep it all original because value" crowd sometimes misses the point that gluing the neck back together is also tanking the value anyway lol. Save yourself the trouble and just get a new neck. Explore a little even. A friend of mine has a 100% rosewood neck on his partscaster.
Who's "gluing the neck back together"?
I bought a couple cheap ebay necks for $55 for a couple partscasters. I just bolted them on and set the truss rod and intonation. The nuts were a little high but fender nuts are flat, i just sanded the back side down
I agree. Why refret a vintage neck that is replaceable. The vintage people are going to scream IT DOESNT HAVE ORIGINAL FRETS. Plus you can get a profile you like more, a radius you like more, a narrower/wider nut.
Also I was going to build my own neck for my tele.I have all the tools. But, It costs almost as much to build your own neck as it does to get a custom one from someone.
Are we gonna piss of the internet again ?....oh please do 🤣🤣🤣🤣
I man, I hope so
I’ve got a question for anybody who might be able to help me. I got a firefly telecaster, I’ve done some work on it, and I like it a lot. The only problem that I have, it’s not with the fire floor, it is with the width of the neck. It looks like all telecaster necks are 42 mm. I’ve got fat fingers and have realized that the 43 mm on a Gibson Les Paul allows me to play it better. My question is does anybody make a drop in telecaster neck that is 43 mm instead of 42?
Especially considering the cost of any repairs to a bolt on neck!