Pre-Made Necks: Utilitarianism or Cheating?

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Hip Bone Bellaire on July 24, 2011 at 1:28pm

SHANE~~~~~~ DAMN~~~~

 

I Like It!  Maybe Next year in Rochester!

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Permalink Reply by Printer2 on July 24, 2011 at 2:37pm

What? You mean you can buy a neck, I did not have to bother finding the wood, determining how to cut the headstock (if that is the right term), figure out how to clamp the fingerboard onto the rounded neck...

 

Actually that is as far as I got. Need to fit it to the body and then do the frets. First build, not going too bad.

 

 

Really if I was smart I would be playing my six string that I paid $650 for. Don't know why I do these things, life would be much simpler if I just went out and buy them. I might buy a neck if I was doing a six string, but for a guitar with a $1 box for a body, just does not seem right.

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Permalink Reply by Shane on July 24, 2011 at 8:33pm

I'm kinda drunk right now, so I'll post another comment in here.  DERP. 

 

CHOOT 'EM, 'LIZABET !!!!

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Permalink Reply by colin mcgrath on July 24, 2011 at 10:23pm

So, my harshness had nothing to do with Shane's post. It had to do with the several ounces too much of liquor that was in my blood stream and mixed with personal frustration. I understand the thought of NO RULES, it is what makes this such a fun nation and hobby. And Jeff, I have chosen to not medicate my issues with either prescribed or recreational drugs...so it does make for an itchy finger sometimes. Joke well received! Shane you may have some luv, but just remember I ain't putt'n out, hahaha

 

Oh I want to DERP too. !deRP!

 

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Permalink Reply by Shane on July 26, 2011 at 1:50pm

I needs me some more derp juice...  Gotta run to the beer distribt'r today.

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Permalink Reply by mark bellamy on April 23, 2012 at 6:06pm

I havent been a member long and just saw this,what type of neck would you use?  how would you decide which type to put on.  i am inexperienced at this .  I was forced out of the army due to injury and always wanted to build musical instruments, specifically cbg and banjo and other type re-purposed material instruments/folk instruments.  I am still looking to find that pie pan banjo that pops up in google from a makers fair.

Mark

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Permalink Reply by Leroy Ginter on January 3, 2013 at 12:44pm

I'm in the very new-to-this camp. And also very late to this discussion.  I've built 2 CBGs so far. The first was a slapped together piece of garbage. :)  Not much effort.  Not much positive result.  The neck was a hunk of lumber.  And the box was a a bit of scrap wood with a pizza box for the back.  Looked like garbage, and played the same.

The second build had a neck from an old Kent guitar.  It looked nice but I still had lots to learn.  It's an acoustic that plays more like an electric.  

I have recently acquired another acoustic guitar that I want to use.  I'd like to build the neck  myself but want to build this as a gift and I think that I'd be better off using the harvested neck.  I wasn't thrilled with how I attached the neck on my second build and I was wondering if anyone had pictures of how they attached an acoustic neck to a box.  There are probably many different ways.  I just like to know what others have done and what worked for them.

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Permalink Reply by MBliss on January 3, 2013 at 1:32pm

Man, you did dig up an oldie......

I'm not going to re-read the whole thing, so excuse me if I repeat something already posted into this thread. Well as I recall there were some things not to be repeated anyway........

My immediate thoughts about what you propose are that the two major obstacles are how to join the neck to a box, and how to get the scale length to work out for a fretted instrument. Neither are impossible to conquer, but both create a situation where just making a neck might be the same or less intensive a project IMO!

 

Anyway, one of the most simple joinery solutions would be to fit a neck block to the box, drill and dowel, glue and screw from the inside of the box.

 

Theres several possible solutions for the other problem and some have been addressed elswhere on this site, the easiest is probably to find (or build) a box longer than the average cigar box.

 

I saw a punch box/oak neck CBG in an "antique shop" a few weeks ago. Typical looking build, slab head, grommets, metal corners, hardwood bridge and nut. Fairly attractive build. Picked it up for inspection, slackened strings, no neck set so the action was way high as you moved toward the bridge, I didnt even bother to try to tune it up and check the intonation, but it looked quite off by eye, looked at the tag- $325. Now I wont knock that, but I will say, for that price I would gladly build a guitar with good intonation and action, a piezo, and have a practice amp you could plug into and try that thing out! Hell, I'd even throw in a KLB instructional CD for that price!

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Permalink Reply by Wichita Sam on January 3, 2013 at 2:07pm

Lero6y,

Since you "still have a lot to learn" after two builds, my question is what's the rush?  Why not drop back and build a 3 stringer properly (lots of free instructions available) and learn the basics that goes into a stringed instrument.  Then, step up to learning how to fret on a 3 or 4 stringer.  May take several builds but the CBGs will be yours.

 

If you eager to have a 6 stringer that is yours (well only partically, since you didn't build the neck),  I would suggest you scavenge an electric, try to do a bolt on attachment (much easier to get right) and voila.... there it is....

 

or, if you are eager to have a 6 stringer CBG acoustic that is really playable (and playability is more important than you having built it), then buy one.   The learning curve is steep and you're likely to go through enough $$$ trying to get it right that you could just buy one.

 

If you decide to build, it's easier to learn in smaller steps and more gratifying... of course ask for help along the way....

 

the best,

 

Wichita Sam

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Permalink Reply by Leroy Ginter on January 3, 2013 at 5:07pm

Thanks for your reply.  The reason that I'm leaning toward the premade neck is because I would like to make this as a gift for my niece.  She's graduating in spring and I'd like to make something that is definitely playable.  I do have full intention of building my own neck and I do realize that I won't get it right the first time.  Fret-less would be the easiest but I want to try my hand at fretting it.  I just don't think that I can build enough to get good enough so that she will like it enough.  But that is my plan.  And I have been accumulating boxes for a while.  I wish that they were bigger boxes but that's the way it goes.  I can't stretch them.  The way the neck is set up, the bridge has to be off the neck.  (25 1/2" scale.)  It's not ideal but I'm not sure what else I can do.

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Permalink Reply by Dave Hill on January 3, 2013 at 2:28pm

Hey Josh, I totally agree. You have to screw it up a few times for before you become good and skilled at what you do. I think it was Emerson that said..."I never encountered failure, just minor setbacks"

Yeah we have all been there! I guess its what makes building a guitar soooooo addictive......Dave

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Permalink Reply by David L. on January 3, 2013 at 2:37pm

I recycled an old beat up 12 string neck for a nephew who has wide fingers so wanted a wider than normal 6 string neck.

It was interesting to do but a bit time consuming using a photo slide box (12" long to fit the scale) and wood to metal dowels (screw it into the wood then use a nut on the other end) so I could bolt it on (in the end I also glued it as a belt and braces measure).

 

Wooden dowels and glue would have been quicker - but others had commented on the wood to metal dowels so I wanted to give them a go.

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