I bought the cheapest kit I could find on eBay - let's see if this was a good idea

[ThatCluelessGerman]

Hey guys,

thank you very much, very helpful replies as always!

I'm trying to get used to the neck before shaving wood away, but it was definitely a learning experience, as in THEORY, I was aware that different neck shapes exist, but this was the first time I actually really "felt" it. Same with the Telecaster sound. Yep, you read about the "twang" here and there, but you really need to play it to actually understand. After fiddling around on the settings, it started to sound quite nice, totally not what I am used to, but not bad.

Simon, you are right about the setting, but if I set the low e string any deeper, the fret buzz is VERY prominent. In this super high position, it is manageable, but of course I need to do something to fix it. The A string could get lower, but then the "thing" they rest on gets very uneven and the string almost slips down... So these two strings are a bit too high now.
I think the nut slot on my guitar is cut very deep, so I may not find a matching TusQ nut with the right height. That means I'd have to make my own which I find a bit daunting at my current experience level. But on the other hand, you gotta start somewhere, right? Need to wait until I have some money to spare for nut files, had to shell out 500 bucks for my car last week (check up and MOT).

[JohnH]

It looks great! All your effort persevering with the tru oil paid off

[ThatCluelessGerman]

Thank you John!

I admit I was close throwing it out the window once... But.... I'm not the temperamental type of person, so... sob a little, oil a little, repeat. ;-)

Regarding the nut: I dug out the nut that came with it and it's actually higher (around 1mm) on the bass side. So it's like that on purpose? I'm actually an idiot, because I should have seen that right from the beginning. I didn't really bother looking at it, just ordered a TusQ Telecaster nut and glued it on.. meh.

The bad news is that there is no matching premade TusQ nut I could use that would match the height I need. So I guess I need to make my own nut... oh dear :-)

[McCreed]

First I must compliment you on the overall finish. I know you struggled with some parts, but the presentation is outstanding!
The customised pickguard (whilst I'm not a steampunker ) looks great and the abalone top dome knobs work really well with whole colour scheme.

And I'll echo what Simon was saying about the neck and nut, but add a bit as well. From my experience, you can generally take off 1-1.5 mm of the apex without getting into problems with stability or interfering with the truss rod. And it's worth noting that 1-1.5 mm is a lot when it comes to how it feels in your hand.

However I share the same position as Simon in that a lot of the feel of a neck profile comes from the shoulder, not necessarily the overall depth (if that makes sense). I think a bigger change in how it feels can be achieved by sanding the shoulders and requires less "calculation" than taking down the neck thickness. And, as Simon mentioned, you can "eyeball it" and just go with what feels right.
Re-profiling can make a huge difference between a guitar that you want to play and a guitar that you feel obligated to play just because you made it.

I'm sure you can find an appropriate Tusq nut that would work for that neck. I've fitted Tusq nuts on several strats without issue (both Fender and ones I've built). And there's nothing wrong with shimming if it's done correctly. I use timber veneer, and once it's fitted and glued, it's simply an extension of the neck nut slot. Avoid using paper or cardboard though IMO.
Also, if the original plastic nut provides the right height, use it! At least for the interim. Yes, nut material is not insignificant, but a plastic nut is not instantly going to make a good instrument sound like crap. The tone of an electric guitar is far greater than just the sum of its parts. There are just so many variables, most of all beginning with the player.

Congratulations on completing your build. Good work!

[Simon Barden]

You will find that on a decent quality guitar that's been finished off by hand, the bass side of the nut will be slightly higher. The bass strings have slightly more amplitude when vibrating, so need to be slightly higher off the first fret than the treble strings. And you shouldn't have too much nut showing above the bottom of the nut slots. The slots should only be between half to a full string diameter above the bottom of the slot. The more you bend stings, the more you really need the overall slot height to be a bit deeper IMO. So I normally do the full string height on my guitars.

So by the time you have a slightly higher nut height on the low E compared to the high E, and a slightly deeper nut slot depth on the low E because of the thicker string, you do end up with the bass side of the nut being a bit higher above the fretboard than on the treble side. Not a lot, but it's something that you really should end up with, not start out with.

The higher the top of the nut is above the bottom of the slot, the more force will applied to the end of the nut if it gets caught on anything, and so more likely to break off.


Here's a rather exaggerated drawing of a good nut with the slots at the minimum required depth, and a bad nut with slots that are too deep:



You'd almost always cut the nut slots first, and then file the top of the nut down. The deeper the nut slots are, the more careful you have to be when filing it, in case the force from the file itself snaps off the two end 'teeth' of the nut, which are always the weakest teeth, being only around half the width of the other teeth.

The force ('moment') experienced at the points marked 'weak point' is the force at the top of the teeth times the distance from the bottom of the nut slot. So for a similar force applied at the top of the tooth, the deeper the slot, the more force will be applied at that the base of the tooth. You are very unlikely to break the end off a well cut and shaped nut, but I've seen it happen on a poorly-shaped nut with the slots too deep.

So if you find that the slots are getting too deep and are likely to get deeper, its a good idea to do an intermediate file of the top of the nut and reduce its height, to reduce the risk of breaking anything when filing after cutting the slots even deeper.

[colin2121]

Great looking finish. Well done.
All kits seem to throw up issues in some way or another but that finish does look the goods.
In terms of TUSQ nuts, I have found that they tend to be a bit short on height. I have fitted a couple and found that I needed to shim under the nut to get rid of fret buzz. Simon's advice on shimming is the best way forward to get some height.
I also tend not to glue in nuts until I have tested the level with strings. After I feel happy with the nut and how it is sitting I place a small dot of wood glue in the middle of the slot to prevent it falling out with re-strings but it is usually easy to remove if need be.

[PJSprog]

It looks good, TCG. Your perserverence has paid off, I think.

[Petebullgtr]

Hi TCG. Looks fantastic, you wouldn't believe it was a cheap kit from the photos.

Re. neck thickness. I just did exactly what you are contemplating with a TL kit I have just finished. Guitar all put together, neck finished with tru oil and I just couldn't take to the baseball bat so I took the neck off and went at it with a rasp and sand paper. Very carefully and nervously!!! I first took off a flat area across the back down to 20mm at the first fret and 21.5mm at the twelfth fret. I then rounded the profile using two cardboard cutout profiles I made from another guitar with a profile I liked. Lots of sanding with various grades later it felt to be the right shape. I re-finished with tru oil which blended in perfectly with the existing finish.

The neck feels and plays much better now. I have had no problem with the truss rod (that was an area of concern) but only have 9's on.

[McCreed]

That last post from Simon about filing the nut is spot on. (and with illustrations as well!!! )
The "sloping nut" method is the way I do it too.

I think anybody new to nut work (or even experienced ones) should copy & paste that one in the their reference materials folder! (everyone has one of those, right?)

[jugglindan]

That last post from Simon about filing the nut is spot on. (and with illustrations as well!!! )
The "sloping nut" method is the way I do it too.

I think anybody new to nut work (or even experienced ones) should copy & paste that one in the their reference materials folder! (everyone has one of those, right?)

+1

I use OneNote and just cut and paste from here. It makes it much easier to find critical information compared to searching the forum. Also makes it easy to keep things in categories like "intonation", "bridge placement", "nut", "sanding".

Definitely recommended.