Carbon fibre rods are a common method to add strength to guitar and bass necks. There’s a fair chance that adding that second maple fillet would give me an even closer result but I’m all about playing things safe on this repair. You can read more in my, Like this? The channel had an odd kink and was routed to less than 1mm from the rear surface of the neck. Warm up your iron and set it to its hottest setting. The truss rod channel on this Gibson ES-335 had been improperly cut. Now you are ready to... 3. The templates and accessories are sold separately. Thanks a lot. . Okay, so that was the easy part. On a regular, unbound, neck, the wood of the fingerboard runs from edge to edge along the neck. I thicknessed a piece of maple to fit the truss rod channel. So, if you look along the side of your guitar or bass neck, chances are you’ll see twenty-something little slots that were cut into the fingerboard. A hand-drawn, illustrated guide to setting up your own Strat. However, in order to comply with privacy regulations, I also need you to provide consent to store and process the information you've entered. Check out these other great articles…, Repairing a damaged acoustic guitar bridge plate, Remove Blue Pencil Lines in Affinity Photo, Haze Guitars, 54 Rossberry Avenue, Lucan, Ireland, Neck Resets - Beginning to remove the neck, Free Social Distancing for Musicians Sign, Straightening a bowed neck: Truss Rod Operation, Straightening a bowed neck (with some complications). You'll want a flat and clear surface to work on while removing frets from the neck of... 2. Similar results can be achieved with a clothes iron and a clamp. And, let’s face it, what more can we ask for? Like I said weeks ago, this neck-straightening thing can get pretty involved. It was weird, challenging, and interesting. It’s composed of two pieces: 1) the base and 2) the sled. Straightening a bowed neck. How to Fix a Warped Guitar Neck Step 1: Removing the Strings from the Fretboard. Wrap an old t-shirt or sheet over the neck of the guitar. Let me illustrate what I mean here. I strapped the guitar into the Erlewine Neck Jig and used it to pull and hold the neck in a straight position. I plan to cut an arc along the length of the fillet to establish a curved ‘bed’ for the reinstalled truss rod. But, thing is, the music shop said it would be well over £220. Straightening a bowed neck: Correction and Reassembly, You are signing up for my email newsletter so the understanding that you'll receive emails is pretty explicit. I strapped the guitar into the Erlewine Neck Jig and used it to pull and hold the neck in a straight position. After setting up the jig, I use a fretboard heat blanket to soften the glue under the fretboard... Centering under the lowest point of a warp with a threaded neck brace, I can level the neck to its original position with the truss rod loosened. Recommended thickness is 5/8” MDF. As you’d probably expect, Stew Mac sells carbon fibre neck rods in a few useful sizes. Cutting a truss rod channel into the fillet BEFORE installing. Prepare your tools and guitar. While I’m confident that the newly curved truss rod will operate well, I want to give this neck every chance of remaining straight against string-tension. Download Truss Rods Made Easy for free. First order of business is to repair the damage caused when the truss rod broke through the rear of the neck. Fixing the depth problem means installing a fillet of wood that will sit under the truss rod. temporary routing jig to cut carbon fibre installation slots parallel to guitar neck truss rod. Guitar String Action & Neck Relief. Then the truss rod can be reinstalled and the second section of fillet glued in over it. I double-checked my fillet-bottom shape and glued it into the jigged straight neck. Guitar Workstation / Fret Press. That’s it for this one. Set up two bench clamps approximately 12 inches apart. Phone: (757) 582 0525Address3612 Ithaca TrailSuffolk VA 23435, Copyright © 2010-2020 Accu-Tech Guitar Repair LLC | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy. It’s too damn deep and, as is, it’s just not going to allow the truss rod to work properly. Guitar necks, especially on older guitars, can sometimes form a warp or twist from years of string tension while being stored in hot attics, closets or anywhere it gets hot enough to soften the glue under the fretboard. Installing carbon fibre neck reinforcements to correct problematic guitar neck. Check out Part 1 and Part 2 for more info if you're just joining us. When one side’s done, I rotate the router 180º around and cut a similar channel on the other side of the truss rod. I removed the fingerboard to access the neck face beneath and then removed the wood fillet keeping the truss rod in place. NECKSTRAIGHTENING. Jun 12, 2014 #1 I've got an Ibanez S470 which I picked up from a pawn shop a few years ago. This means that the fret slots also run from edge to edge. The sled moves along the rails while the router moves within the sled The depth of the cut is achieved by changing the router bit depth. Fret Bending / Straightening. I should note that all of this routing and glueing was done while the neck was held straight in the neck jig. And, since I’m about to glue in the new bottom section of that maple fillet, let’s look at a little trick that might improve my chances of straightening this neck. This X-Y router jig is ideal for planing a rough surface or thick-nessing a board. The 3.2 x 8.2mm (.125” x .325”) size is good for adding a reinforcing strip along either side of the truss rod. Lay your guitar flat, face up on your work table. Another couple of days settling time before stringing up and we’re still looking good. With easy access to the ‘internals’, this is pretty straightforward. Compare the diameter of a strand of hair with the diameter of a guitar neck, please. Step 2: Taking the Frets off the Fretboard. I can raise or lower up to three points under the neck for difficult to manage warps. Taking no chances here. Check your inbox for an email for me—you'll need to confirm your subscription there. When I remove the guitar from the jig, this should give me a head-start towards ‘natural’ straightness. Made from Aluminum this jig allows for precise neck alignment and control giving you a perfect neck joint. We started off looking at a Gibson ES-335 where the truss rod had burst through the back of the neck (around the nut-to-first-fret position). I checked straightness again and found that, even just adding this bottom section to the artificially straightened neck, the relief was definitely improved. Thread starter Invertiguy; Start date Jun 12, 2014; I. Invertiguy Member. Cutting a new fillet to correct problematic Gibson truss rod channel and warped neck. Guitar Nut Replacement & String Spacing . I don't do spam and you can unsubscribe at any time. And dig, I did. Guitar neck bending machines are designed to apply heat and pressure simultaneously to correct neck bends, but they are expensive. Since I haven’t filled the truss rod channel completely, I decide to make use of it to guide my router (Dremel tool mounted in a router base). I can worry about finish on it later on because I’ll be touching up around the fingerboard too. Fret Levelling + Notched Straight Edges. Then I shaped the bottom of the fillet to match the odd profile at the bottom of the channel. Jot down the distance. The router will cut a nice new channel parallel to the truss rod channel. Messages 162. Basically the guitar absorbed too mush moister, which made the neck bend upward right at the heal, (where the neck joins the body). Don’t forget that our neck’s taken on quite a bow and I need to keep that in mind as I proceed. I’ve roughly cut a piece of scrap pick guard material to the same footprint as the router base and double-stick taped it to the base. When I remove the guitar from the jig, this should give me a head-start towards ‘natural’ straightness. It might take a few minutes to come through so, don't worry if it's not there immediately. The Edge vise is specifically designed to work with the jig, it also doubles as a end graft tool. This meant the routed channels were straight and the newly glued carbon fibre rods went in 'straight'. Nothing much moving. They’re light and strong and work well. Carbon fibre neck reinforcement installed in Gibson ES-335 guitar. What if I straightened the neck before I glued in these new fillets? , This article written by Gerry Hayes and first published at hazeguitars.com, Tagged: guitar, bass, repair, luthier, warp, bow, neck, neck deformation. This is the same premise as a permanent for one's hair. Apply steam to the top of the fretboard. All seemed well so, back on it went (those Gibson fretboard ‘locating pins’ are quite helpful at this stage).