how important is the shim?

[resol]

just got a bass shipped body and neck separate. was shipped with a shim - does it have to be exactly where the shim was originally? there is an imprint on neck joint of the body clearly showing where the shim had been originally (from the factory). but i think it may be slightly off when i screwed everything together...does it really affect anything, it at all?

i'm kinda concerned - but from what i can see - the bass plays fine and sounds fine... should i get it checked out by a bass tech? i'm scared about things such as neck warping...

[GlennW]

Shims usually lay flat in the neck pocket at the end of the route (towards the bridge). If you're satisfied with the action I wouldn't worry about it. If you feel that the strings are too close to the body/pickguard you could reinstall the shim, which increases the neck angle, and raise your saddles accordingly.

Warping has nothing to do with shims, so don't concern yourself with that either. HTH

[202dy]

Warping is not usually caused by a shim. A rising tongue is caused by shims when coupled with an over tightened bolts. But even a rising tongue will normally take quite a while to develop.

If one has assembled an instrument and it plays well their work is done.

If one is truly scared about any procedures they perform on an instrument then it would be wise to form a close relationship with a top flight tech.

[resol]

like you described - the shim imprint was towards the bridge, with two holes where the screws go...

so in only affects action? the action seems tad high. but thats the opposite of what you're saying, isnt it? clearance between the strings and body seems ok...

is it ok to take off the neck again and rejoin a few times over? does it affect neck stability? not too confident with these things...maybe its better off going to a bass tech

[Dee_01]

Go for it. You'll be fine taking the neck off, don't even worry about it. High action, you say? Then either use the shim or lower the saddles. Personally I prefer not to use a shim if possible, it means maximum contact between neck and body.

[pkr2]

Originally Posted by resol

like you described - the shim imprint was towards the bridge, with two holes where the screws go...

so in only affects action? the action seems tad high. but thats the opposite of what you're saying, isnt it? clearance between the strings and body seems ok...

is it ok to take off the neck again and rejoin a few times over? does it affect neck stability? not too confident with these things...maybe its better off going to a bass tech

Emphatically no, it's not all right to remove and replace the neck a few times unless certain precautions are taken.

When replacing the neck screws, unless you are careful to put the screws back into the threads already cut into the body by the screw threads, about two or three cross threadings and you'll be repairing stripped out screw holes in the body. Start the screws into the holes the first turn or two with finger pressure only, unless you have developed enough feel with a screwdriver to know that there is no cross threading.

The shim only serves one purpose. If the saddle rollers are all the way down against the bridge plate and the strings are still too high, the shim changes the angle of the neck, relative to the body, to a position that brings the range of correct string height adjustments into range of the adjusting screws.

"clearance between the strings and body seems ok..."

What you are dealing with by using a shim is the clearance between the strings and the fingerboard, not the strings and the body.

[resol]

thanks for the advice pkr2

i havent yet done anything. the clearance between the strings and fingerboard seems normal

i just wanted to determine how big an effect the shim had on the instrument as a whole...i'm getting weird visions of the little shim doing damage to the neck cost i put it together wrong - maybe i'm just paranoid...

[pkr2]

Originally Posted by resol

thanks for the advice pkr2

i havent yet done anything. the clearance between the strings and fingerboard seems normal

i just wanted to determine how big an effect the shim had on the instrument as a whole...i'm getting weird visions of the little shim doing damage to the neck cost i put it together wrong - maybe i'm just paranoid...

You can put your fears to rest. Practically all manufacturers, even of high end basses, use a shim routinely if needed, without any ill effects.

More basses are damaged by overtightening the neck screws than are damaged by the use of a shim. I've seen plenty of fender type necks with a raised tongue that didn't have a shim in the pocket.

Enjoy your new bass.