Fanned-Fret Conversion Strat Neck

[JohnH]

Nice work B'lark

[B'Lark]

Nice work B'lark

Thanks John

Quick update before I sleep, don't think I have a ton to add word-wise so pics shall do most of the work

Snipped the fret-ends



Trimmed the excess off the headstock, and cut back the veneers on the top to allow for the fretboard



Made a template for the headstock shape from the original neck because it would be easier to do that than use the actual headstock and deal with two necks stuck together



Routed most of the headstock shape with the newly made template

[B'Lark]

But oh dear, can you see the first oopsie??



When I rough-cut the shape with the bandsaw, it didn't do the cleanest cut, so when I was routing this part of the Walnut popped off. Won't be a tough thing to fix though, and it won't be too obvious when it's stained



Second oopsie. I thought I was touching the wood when I got to the end-grain, but I wasn't, and the router took a bit of a bite out. It's not too drastic though, fortunately, so all will work out.

Then with the Truss rod all sorted and everything fitting in place nicely, the fretboard was glued on.



Flush heel!!!!



I am glad it all managed to fit together rather nicely, but I will say though: I'm never doing the frets before attaching the fretboard again, it causes too much worry and feels like a bit of a leap of faith that it will all fit together properly. But it's on and looking good, so we're good for now, and happy days.

Now I'm gonna collapse. Be well, everyone, and may you have a lovely day

[blinddrew]

Good effort!

[FrankenWashie]

But oh dear, can you see the first oopsie??



When I rough-cut the shape with the bandsaw, it didn't do the cleanest cut, so when I was routing this part of the Walnut popped off. Won't be a tough thing to fix though, and it won't be too obvious when it's stained



Second oopsie. I thought I was touching the wood when I got to the end-grain, but I wasn't, and the router took a bit of a bite out. It's not too drastic though, fortunately, so all will work out.

Then with the Truss rod all sorted and everything fitting in place nicely, the fretboard was glued on.



Flush heel!!!!



I am glad it all managed to fit together rather nicely, but I will say though: I'm never doing the frets before attaching the fretboard again, it causes too much worry and feels like a bit of a leap of faith that it will all fit together properly. But it's on and looking good, so we're good for now, and happy days.

Now I'm gonna collapse. Be well, everyone, and may you have a lovely day

Yeah, I found that fun out with the P.E. SV, although mine was more due to the poor first up glue job allowing the board to separate from the neck. It’s amazing how much bow the frets induce in the board.


Wonderful work B, that is looking amazing.

edit: btw what glue are you using for the veneer/fretboard?

[B'Lark]

Thanks guys

btw what glue are you using for the veneer/fretboard?

Titebond II I believe. It's been put in other, smaller bottles though so I am not 100% certain

[Sonic Mountain]

Really enjoying watching this. Building my own neck is definitely something I want to have a go at.

[B'Lark]

Really enjoying watching this. Building my own neck is definitely something I want to have a go at.

Thanks Sonic! Do it!! It's been enjoyable for sure, and I've learned a good few things from it too!!

On the final stretch now, should finish it up on Tuesday if nothing major happens, and if my tuners arrive...

First order of the day was to level out the fret ends, then rout the bulk of the neck to the fretboard



Then touch up the spots between the fretboard and the routed section of the headstock



With that done, I decided to abandon cutting off a new bit of veneer and gluing it to the headstock to tidy it up, and just turn the stuff-up in to something more interesting! Quite pleased with how it turned out, honestly



Then finally, shaping the neck. Got most of that done today, but will need to finish it up next week.



Now that's my sort of neck thickness there haha

So yea, finishing up the neck carve, popping tuners on, bit of staining and oiling is all that's left! I'm super keen to be able to use it

[FrankenWashie]

Thanks guys



Titebond II I believe. It's been put in other, smaller bottles though so I am not 100% certain

Interesting...where does the black colour come from?
Fantastic work to watch and its wonderful that you have documented it so well for the Forum, Thank you for that effort. It may spark a spate of Scratch build necks. (I'm looking at you @Sonic Mountain. You too @Andy40)

[B'Lark]

Interesting...where does the black colour come from?
Fantastic work to watch and its wonderful that you have documented it so well for the Forum, Thank you for that effort. It may spark a spate of Scratch build necks. (I'm looking at you @Sonic Mountain. You too @Andy40)

That I'm also not sure of. I've always forgotten to ask, Matt (the guy running the building classes) just calls them black veneers. I will try to remember to ask about both of your questions on Tuesday.

And no worries!! If I can inspire people to do their own things along these lines that would be amazing and more than I'd ever expected to come from sharing my experiences And as always, thanks for the kind words, I really do appreciate it all