Dumb sanding questions

[Moo]

Hi,

So whilst waiting for my body finish to dry I've shaped my headstock and started sanding the neck of my kit. Just a few dumb questions about sanding the neck:
- do you sand the sides of the fretboard (as in where the small fret markers are) or should you avoid this? I'm worried I might sand off the fret markers - or are they inserts?
- I'm assuming you don't sand the fretboard itself... This would seem like a very bad idea. But still thought I should ask? (It's currently taped off to prevent damage)
- Finally, when I get on to applying my clear coat to the neck, what extent should it cover? As in, do I go right up to the edge of the fretboard? Do I coat all the way around the heel of the neck where it fits into the pocket? Haha you get the idea - basically, where do I need to coat

Thanks (and sorry for all the dumb questions haha)

[Andy40]

No dumb questions here Moo.

The side markers are about 1m deep, you wont sand them off but if you sand too aggressively on the side to the fretboard the fret tangs will stick out. just try to sand the maple. on an ST-1, I like to sand off a bit so my small hands can play Hendrix style chords.

You shouldn't need to sand the fretboard, it has been radiused to 12".

When applying DT, you don't need to seal in the heel, only the exposed parts of the neck and under the neck plate. tape off the fretboard and only apply it to the maple neck. when its cured and you take the tape off, there will be a small ridge between the maple neck coated with DT and the fretboard edge. I just smooth it out with some 2000 wet/dry grit, before polishing

[Moo]

Thanks Andy, much appreciated Got through it unscathed haha

[stan]

Some good advice there.
Leave the heal and neck pocket so the glue will give good adhesion within the neck join, sealing it will weaken the join, you want wood to wood .
A little sealer in there won't hurt but don't specifically do it

[Moo]

Some good advice there.
Leave the heal and neck pocket so the glue will give good adhesion within the neck join, sealing it will weaken the join, you want wood to wood .
A little sealer in there won't hurt but don't specifically do it

Thanks Stan,

Presumably you still cover the heel of the neck where it is visible above the body of the guitar? And am I right in thinking that for bolt-on necks you glue and screw? Thanks

[Zandit75]

No need for glue with the bolt on necks, they're designed to come off.

[Simon Barden]

Wot Zandit said.

You've had a bit of conflicting information above, because some people were assuming a glued, rather than screwed neck. It's fairly standard to apply finish to the whole of the neck (apart from a rosewood or ebony fretboard). This is a standard manufacturer practice. Obviously the finish around the heel area needs to be nice and flat, no lumps anywhere, so that it sits well in the pocket with maximum contact area. But avoid adding too much finish to the area that sits in the pocket as it may make it too tight a fit. A good interference fit is ideal, but you don't want to have to force the neck into the pocket.

It's also fairly normal for a bolt-on neck pocket to be left mainly unfinished - with the finish just running over the edges but no further. Maybe a single thin coat of clear to help seal the wood, but no more. It's an awkward area to work in, so you don't want thick uneven layers of finish that you can't easily get to to sand smooth. And again, with finish on the neck and the pocket, you can easily end up with a too-tight fit.

But for a glued-in neck, as much of the mating surfaces as possible need to be left unfinished, just bare wood, so that the glue penetrates and sticks well. You still need to just run the finish over the edge of the pocket edges (it really does help the finish stick at the edges), but only by 1-2 mm.