Ducky's STA-1HT

[Ducky]

Hi Guys,

The weather and family commitments are easing so I'm thinking its time to start my STA-1HT. Going over everything tonight I noticed a couple of things and the questions started to flow.

First up the grain pattern of the ash body is way to good to cover up with a opaque finish so that ended the argument in my head of which way to go


As with the Neck pocket fit, really well machined in my eyes


1 thing i'm a little unsure on is the fretboard. It seems to fall away on the lower side. Do people think this will be an issue? I'm wondering if it will effect the action later on. Any help would be greatly appreciated


I'll do a full mock up on the weekend and get some plans nailed down before i start sanding. Also sorry if the photos are garbage I'm in the dark with that sort of thing

Until then cheers, Ducky

[Simon Barden]

As long as the radius is even and you've got a similar profile on the fingerboard at the nut, then you should be fine. The height adjustable saddles will take case of any small height discrepancies. But if the neck is twisted so that the curve goes the other way at the nut end, then you do have a problem that you can't easily fix and you'd be best sending the neck back for a replacement.

But it currently looks like you've got a slight back-bow to the neck. I'd use a straight edge along the neck to check, then adjust the truss-rod until it's straight (you'll need to loosen the truss rod off to reduce the back-bow, so turn the hex key to the left/anticlockwise). You shouldn't need to turn it much, but the truss rod tension may slightly affect any twist in the neck, so it's best to start off with the neck straight.

Then look down the length of the neck and see if it looks twisted. It should have the same curve all the way down. If the two ends of the neck are sloping in different directions, then you'll never get the guitar set up well. If in doubt, take some photos for us to check.

[FrankenWashie]

HSH Eh? Nice.

The board does seem slightly canted toward the treble side. I would concur with Simon on the back bow, get it straightened up and then see if you actually have twist or if it is just a slight fall off on the treble side. As long as its even down the length of the neck its shouldn't be an issue.

[Simon Barden]

HSH Eh? Nice.

That's just the way it's routed. The standard kit comes with three single coils.

[Kick]

I see it is a bolt on neck. You can do a complete mock up build to check your neck radius.

[Andy40]

Well done ducky on the Hardtail buy. I love the warm tones mine produces.
I'm sorry I don't get much time on the forum these days but theres more than enough talent on here to answer any questions.
If you get stuck or want to know something that's not on my build diary just PM me.