Quote Originally Posted by Simon Barden View Post
6) Any neck is already being pulled back into the end of the pocket under string tension with considerable force. Slackening off the neck screw slightly under tension will allow the string tension to move the neck back as far as the neck screws allow. Then re-tighten them. On an electric, you've got a typical total of around 100 pounds/45kg of tension, on a bass, its nearer 200lbs/90kg. Once you've got that much force pulling the neck into the body and you let the screws move as much as possible under that force, then those angled screws really aren't going to be able to do much more at all.
This is all I'd do after drilling a proper pilot holes in the neck and clearance holes in the body. My experience has been that the body holes generally need a little enlarging to clear the threads properly.

Quote Originally Posted by Groovyman32 View Post
I put the ferrules in and clamped the neck in to make sure the bridge is still in the right place. The strings run over the pickups okay when they're mounted in the new pick guard so that all seems good. I noticed there is still very small gap (0.5mm) at the front of the neck pocket (I thought I'd fixed that) - should I attempt to fix this?
It will make no sonic difference, and your pickguard and fretboard extension will make this invisible. I'd leave well enough alone, particularly since everything else appears to be in alignment.

I can't tell you how many times I have created some new problem by trying to solve one that was practically invisible.