About 5 guitars in and some higher-than-usual action on my builds, I'm trying to wrap my head completely around the idea of angled necks/heels. As near as I can tell, the idea of angling a neck pocket, or using a shim, seems to really come into play if you want to use a bridge that sits higher off the soundboard than the fretboard + frets (for example, a banjo). Then, while I looking at some of my cheap Strat/Tele copies, I realized none of them utilize an angled neck pocket. I had one of those DUH moments : if it's possible to design the neck/fretboard so that it sits far enough above the soundboard to match the height of the bridge, why do luthiers bother with angled necks? Am I completely missing some design flaw that an angled neck fixes, beyond matching for high bridges?
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Hi ScottyC.
I haven't built any six stringers, but for a 3 or 4 stringer, I think your neck design with the tapering tail end should work just fine, especially if you are using a fairly hard wood. My thinking is that you will be splitting the load between two points on your box when you bolt the neck on. I assume you will be bolting the neck to one end of the box at the heel, and then the tail end of the neck to the tail side of the box. Since the heel side is already bearing a lot of the load, the tail side doesn't really have to be all that beefy. But then, for a 6 stringer, the loads maybe much bigger. I also like the elegant lines of your neck drawing. Too bad they'll be hidden inside the box.
My builds use a bit of scrap wood that I glue onto the tail end of the box a little bit elevated to make the neck tilt downward a bit, and then with a size M8 machine bolt and nut for the bridge I can get real low action. The problem I had with one of my builds is the stress on the bridge piece made the 2mm veneer top bend inward and I lost the capability of using by 10th and 11th frets (diatonic scale). To fix that, I glued on a 3 inch x 3/4 inch by 2mm piece of veneer under where the bridge sits and so far it has solved the problem. On all my new builds I now add this piece on the soundboard underneath the bridge to strength it as standard.
-Rand.
Close Scotty, but thats going to end up too thin at the tail end without some additional material.
You could add additional material in the box area as one solution.
Heres some shots of another solution. Its not clear, but if you cant see it you can probably imagine what it works like.
At 2 degrees of neck set, and with the fingerboard at about 1/4" above the box, the bridge is going to end up at about 9/16 to 5/8" high or so with what I would consider a "medium" action suitable for combination fretting and slide play.
(If anyone is interested, the highlights of this build are covered here)
Hey everyone.
I have a hard time visualizing verbal building plans, so i went ahead and made a rough drawing of what (i think) a few of us have discussed, in terms of a neck-through design that angles the neck:
The approach I take is to do my work on paper first. Pocket or through neck, this can be done with a simple drawing on paper with a rule and protractor. From there it becomes visual as to what a particular angle is going to net you on the instrument. Then you only need to measure the difference from both ends. It does however require that you be able to cut tapers when doing through necks in a box design.
gibson do not do it to get over raised pups , gibson raise pups so theyre close enough to the strings ! A neck angle is a lot more work than routing the pup slot a 1/4 inch deeper, especially when you're getting the router out regardless
gibson do a big tall bridge on their electric guitars because they came into the electric guitar business from a background of building 'real' archtop jazz guitars, as opposed to Leo Fender who came into the business from a background of steels and amps.
witness the budget pauls - juniors and specials have a lesser neck angle and the dog ear pups. This is a much easier way to build an axe, obviously. Is a neck angle worth the extra effort? is a taper worth the effort? these are the questions, there is no doubt whatsoever it gives you a more comfortable to hold, nicer to look at axe.
Well, that may be true. I kind of like the Gretsch tune-o-matic bridges, and I was hoping one day to make use of one...
There you go. I do a little different, but the result is exactly the same. And you did yours with a coping saw. WOW. that is not easy.
Scotty, take a real good look at his photos.
-WY
Mark Bliss said:
See Jef Long's photo in this thread. they are neck thru design.
-WY
Scotty C. said:
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