Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by the anonymous pick on May 27, 2013 at 11:29pm

thats  a   pretty  short   box  ..  so  i  would  go  with  a shorter  scale  (   measurement  from  the     mid   nut  to  mid   bridge   ) 

  i  like  24   inch  scale   myself  .

figure  out  where  you  want   the bridge  on  your    box  and   measure  out  24  inches  from  there .

 allow     and add the space  to  the  end  of the box  if you are doing  a  neck through   or  to  the end  inside .    and allow  a few   more  inches    for the  headstock  .

  if  you are asking   just  for  overall  length  to  buy  ..  anything   around  30  inches  would be  fine for  that  scale  . 

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by jeff burgoyne on May 28, 2013 at 8:20am

i did not think they came any bigger. as that is the size i got from the shop and i did not see any bigger ones oh well never mind.i am making the neck out of rimu a native timber real nice  colour and grain how long does the neck need to be say if i made it 24" to the front of the box then added a few more inches to go to the end on the inside of the box would that be right? i still need to know how many frets i would need to put on it. thanks

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by the anonymous pick on May 28, 2013 at 11:30am

this diagram  may  help --

it's  best  to   figure  out  where  you  want  your   bridge   first  ..

  obviously  if  you  move  the  bridge  back ,  the scale  would  move  with   it  and  you  could  use    a shorter      neck .   30  inches    would be  ok  for  you  over all .  you  can   always    trim  the  headstock.

22  frets is  the  norm  .

you   may  also  want to  factior  in   if   you  want    your  fretboard   extending  ontop   of the  box     or  starting  on  the   end   of  the box  .  this will  determine  your  length  needed  too.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Dan Sleep on May 28, 2013 at 11:58am

This may also help a bit too:

http://www.cigarboxnation.com/video/basic-neck-layout

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by jeff burgoyne on May 28, 2013 at 2:32pm

thank you i see now its my Brain aint working takes a long time to kick in it has to travel all that way up to the usa LOL!!!!

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Jim Woods on May 29, 2013 at 9:19am

Jeff,

I usually look at the range of how many frets I want past the box and the length of the "scale on the box" and work from there. 

I seem to like the bridge at 25% to 33% from the back.  This leaves me with 6.75" and 6" of the box with the scale on it respectively given your 9" box example.

Frets past the box for me ranges from 19 to 24.  We know these represent 33% and 25% remaining scale respectively.  A quick estimate for me is to look at a scale that is 3x or 4x the "scale on the box" measurement

So at the 25% bridge location, for the 19 and 24 fret necks I need 3 x 6.75" = 20.25"  or 4 x 6.75" = 27" scales

And at the 33% bridge location, for the 19 and 24 fret necks I need 3 x 6" = 18" or 4 x 6" = 24"  scales.

The 18" scale would make a tenor ( tuned to open C)  The 24" scale works very well for GDG tuning (very common)

You will add 4 - 5" for the headstock and another 5 to 7" to make the "thru neck" tail - usually starting with a 36" stick for a 24 - 25.5" scale. 

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by jeff burgoyne on May 29, 2013 at 11:44am

ok thats clear as mud i need to see diagrams then i can see what ya talking about. it takes a long time for the brain to kick in as i am so far south in fact the last bit of dirt before the south pole LOL!!!!

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Slowpaw Steve T on May 29, 2013 at 7:13pm

I usually make all necks the same length, 85cm.  : scale length 25.5 inches (Strat scale) , headstock 13cm, tail 5cm, you can use any sized box with this formula, it only affects the length of the fretboard - a shorter box will allow more frets and a longer box will allow less frets, usually between 16-21,  as long as they go to 12 !!  (-:

also doesn't matter if it's a two, three or four string i keep everything the same.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by jeff burgoyne on May 29, 2013 at 8:50pm

ok that sounds more like it so i guess for a first timer kiss LOL!!!!

• ▶ Reply