Neck doesn't 100% fit, what to do?

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12-10-2018, 09:07 PM
JamesB606

4 Attachment(s)

Neck doesn't 100% fit, what to do?

Hey all,
just got the kit and opened it up.
Wanted to do a mock build and realised the neck is very tight. This kit is the TL-1TB kit but I asked Pitbull guitars to swap the standard neck for a 27" to make a baritone guitar.
I think with some force it will go in, but i'm hesitant to try this incase i damage the neck/socket.

Should the neck slide in easily or should there be some resistance?
If I need to adjust the heel/socket how do I go about this?

I'm a complete novice so the more detail/advice the better!

P.S. I asked for a 27" scale length as I want to make this guitar a baritone (again I'm a complete novice so no idea either way) but the neck seemed smaller than I expected so I measured it and the length from the nut to the end was about 19" or 490mm. Is this right? Figured I should ask now and check before commencing anything.

Added some pics.
Attachment 28541
Attachment 28540
Attachment 28539
Attachment 28542
12-10-2018, 09:17 PM
Dedman

Scale is measured from the nut to the 12th fret,the distance from the 12 th fret to the bridge should be the same.
Neck fit should be snug but don't force it. You may need to sand slightly. I haven't had any experience with the baritone necks yet so I'm unsure if this is typical.
12-10-2018, 09:31 PM
JamesB606

thankyou for letting me know, now i know!

Whats the best way to sand it? any resources I should look at?
I read the instruction book but I found it hard to understand because of the lack of pictures/videos.
Reading it is one thing but it would be good to see someone do it so I can have a visual reference.
12-10-2018, 10:37 PM
chrissyinbkk

might want to leave it a few days to settle in.... difference in humidity etc....
13-10-2018, 08:00 AM
Dedman

Quote:

Originally Posted by JamesB606

thankyou for letting me know, now i know!

Whats the best way to sand it? any resources I should look at?
I read the instruction book but I found it hard to understand because of the lack of pictures/videos.
Reading it is one thing but it would be good to see someone do it so I can have a visual reference.

I don't own a video camera sorry :p :D
13-10-2018, 09:13 AM
Brendan

Quote:

Originally Posted by chrissyinbkk

might want to leave it a few days to settle in.... difference in humidity etc....

Worth doing... Neck should be tight, but you don't want to break things getting it in...

Can you give us a measurement from the nut to the centre of the 12th fret (metal fret), that will give the best representation of the full scale length.
13-10-2018, 09:18 AM
Brendan

Check out the PitBullGuitars Youtube channel - plenty of videos here:
https://www.youtube.com/user/PitBullGuitars/videos
14-10-2018, 11:14 AM
JamesB606

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dedman

I don't own a video camera sorry :p :D

Haha all good mate! Wouldn't expect you to whip out the camera for me. I meant more along the lines of something already up on youtube that would be a good source for me to see how someone would shave the socket back.
14-10-2018, 11:15 AM
JamesB606

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brendan

Worth doing... Neck should be tight, but you don't want to break things getting it in...

Can you give us a measurement from the nut to the centre of the 12th fret (metal fret), that will give the best representation of the full scale length.

Yeah its almost 13.5"
Checked out some web pages after a good search - Scale length is just that measurement x2 yeah?

Also thanks for the youtube link. I'll have a look through and see what I find!
14-10-2018, 01:02 PM
wazkelly

Suggest wrapping some masking tape around the bridge posts so that they sit firm in the pre drilled holes then you can place the bridge on top..... 27" scale length should be from mid point of high E bridge saddle to inner side of nut on treble side. Once you have this lined up suggest marking around neck heel with a pencil where it overlaps on the body so that you know where to enlarge neck pocket to make things fit.

Doesn't look like any fret board overhang and wondering if you will be using a scratch plate or going naked with just a pickup ring around neck pickup? If the latter then level of precision with enlarging neck pocket becomes extremely important. Either way, slow and steady with frequent checking is best way to tackle this. Hope you have a sharp chisel. Understand you may be tempted to use power tools as that will be quicker but doing things by hand may prevent digging in a bit too far beyond the finish line so to speak.
14-10-2018, 01:59 PM
JamesB606

3 Attachment(s)

I had a go at trying to fit the neck into the body.
Was incredibly snug and actually caused a bit of wear and tear.
I'm not too fussed with it as long as it wont affect tone or playability.
Took some photos to show.

Attachment 28572
Attachment 28573

I was also wondering, in regards to sanding the sides down to fit the neck, how do I tackle the binding (see picture)? Is it best to cut it with a box cutter, or will sanding it back as well be fine?

Attachment 28571
14-10-2018, 02:04 PM
JamesB606

Quote:

Originally Posted by wazkelly

Suggest wrapping some masking tape around the bridge posts so that they sit firm in the pre drilled holes then you can place the bridge on top..... 27" scale length should be from mid point of high E bridge saddle to inner side of nut on treble side. Once you have this lined up suggest marking around neck heel with a pencil where it overlaps on the body so that you know where to enlarge neck pocket to make things fit.

Doesn't look like any fret board overhang and wondering if you will be using a scratch plate or going naked with just a pickup ring around neck pickup? If the latter then level of precision with enlarging neck pocket becomes extremely important. Either way, slow and steady with frequent checking is best way to tackle this. Hope you have a sharp chisel. Understand you may be tempted to use power tools as that will be quicker but doing things by hand may prevent digging in a bit too far beyond the finish line so to speak.

Yeah dont have any power tools so by hand is how its going to go!

I will be using a pickguard but from what I can see its only going to cover the bottom right corner of the pickup. Guess I'll have to be careful anyway.

Will I need to chisel it? From what I've read most people are saying sanding the left and right side of the socket should do... what do you reckon?
14-10-2018, 02:38 PM
wazkelly

1 Attachment(s)

Presume you will be using this pickguard?
Attachment 28577

Doesn't do much around neck pocket area as it looks like there are black pickup mounting rings.

From those shots it doesn't look too bad, just a wee bit tight and sanding either sides should be all you need to do. If it required a few mm widening that is where a chisel comes in handy. Wrapping sandpaper around a rectangular shaped pencil eraser may help to keep things square.

Still reckon you need to temporarily install bridge as mentioned before and also install the high & low E tuners so you can run some cotton or fishing line over the nut and down to bridge saddles. This helps to see how parallel everything is and whether neck is sitting too far to one side or the other. Very handy to know so that you don't sand too much on one particular side when the other may need more attention. This also helps with locating the 'Centreline' of the guitar too.
14-10-2018, 03:50 PM
JamesB606

4 Attachment(s)

Quote:

Originally Posted by wazkelly

Presume you will be using this pickguard?
Attachment 28577

Doesn't do much around neck pocket area as it looks like there are black pickup mounting rings.

From those shots it doesn't look too bad, just a wee bit tight and sanding either sides should be all you need to do. If it required a few mm widening that is where a chisel comes in handy. Wrapping sandpaper around a rectangular shaped pencil eraser may help to keep things square.

Still reckon you need to temporarily install bridge as mentioned before and also install the high & low E tuners so you can run some cotton or fishing line over the nut and down to bridge saddles. This helps to see how parallel everything is and whether neck is sitting too far to one side or the other. Very handy to know so that you don't sand too much on one particular side when the other may need more attention. This also helps with locating the 'Centreline' of the guitar too.

My only concern with the bridge is its a bigsby so I'll need to drive her into the body. I suppose though measuring the scale length will help me determine where to put the bridge in?

I had a crack at sanding the sides down today. SLIGHT improvement but it still feels a little off, doesn't seem to sit down where it needs to.

Here's some photos after my sanding.
The concern is it doesn't seem to sit super flat, and theres some gaps around the bottom side (closest to neck humbucker) of the socket/neck.

Attachment 28578
Attachment 28579
Attachment 28580
Attachment 28581
16-10-2018, 01:14 PM
JamesB606

Had a chat with some people and I reckon this is as good as its going to get!

Follow the rest of the build here

http://www.buildyourownguitar.com.au...566#post173566