Maxed out truss question?

[DWBass]

Just curious, can anything be done to a neck with a bow and maxed out truss?

[Rocky McD]

Yes, the neck can be straightened and a spacer can be placed below the truss nut to free up some threads.
Rocky

[T-Bird]

Hi.

If the problem is the threads running out, the remedy Rocky McD gave will work.

If the truss rod is a dual acting, or if the anchor end has come loose, it has to be replaced.

Regards
Sam

[DWBass]

Thanks for the replies. Just found out someone had used some kind of lubricant which softened the wood in critical areas so this remedy is not working. Neck is officially toast without an expensive truss replacement!

[202dy]

Originally Posted by DWBass

Thanks for the replies. Just found out someone had used some kind of lubricant which softened the wood in critical areas so this remedy is not working. Neck is officially toast without an expensive truss replacement!

Toast? Probably not. That is, unless the wood were subject to enough moisture to turn it to punk.

The effect of oil on the end grain will cause the wood to compress more than normal. That is exactly the situation that causes the bearing plate to move further along the truss rod (toward the bridge). That is what is meant by running out of threads. The good news is that the aforementioned tip of using washers will work. It may require several to get the job done.

[DWBass]

According to the tech...........he tried 2 1/4 inch spacers & said they just kept sinking in. The wood is rotten.

[202dy]

Originally Posted by DWBass

According to the tech...........he tried 2 1/4 inch spacers & said they just kept sinking in. The wood is rotten.

How unusual.

Without seeing the instrument it is impossible to comment further. However, before spending money on another neck, it might behoove you to get a second opinion from another qualified tech.

[T-Bird]

Hi.

Originally Posted by DWBass

The wood is rotten.

That's a bummer.

Originally Posted by 202dy

How unusual.

IME, unfortunately not.

Most of the setup instructionals (at least back in the day) just told the DIYers to lubricate the threads. There seldom was any warnings about damaging the wood.

Almost all of the readily available household lubricants (WD40, CRC 56-6 etc.) contain quite a few wood damaging components. One squirt is 10 times too much, a well soaked q-tip is too much also.

If the neck/instrument is a valuable or exeptionally good player, I'd probably drill the rotten wood away and use a hollow dowel to repair the neck.
Requires some special tooling and/or expertise though, so the price may be probihitive on a less valuable instrument.

Regards
Sam

[DWBass]

The neck is from a 1985 Fender Jazz Bass Special. It's a shame beause the bass itself, although full of wear and mojo, is a real player and extremely lightweight! The current owner is going to put another neck on her!

[202dy]

Originally Posted by T-Bird

Hi.



IME, unfortunately not.

Most of the setup instructionals (at least back in the day) just told the DIYers to lubricate the threads. There seldom was any warnings about damaging the wood.

Almost all of the readily available household lubricants (WD40, CRC 56-6 etc.) contain quite a few wood damaging components. One squirt is 10 times too much, a well soaked q-tip is too much also.

If the neck/instrument is a valuable or exeptionally good player, I'd probably drill the rotten wood away and use a hollow dowel to repair the neck.
Requires some special tooling and/or expertise though, so the price may be probihitive on a less valuable instrument.

Regards
Sam

This is in fact, highly unusual.

Not quite sure what day it is to which you refer, but in the sixties, seventies, and eighties, few if any user manuals from a manufacturer advised lubing the truss rod threads. The few repair manuals available then (Sloan, Teeter, Kamimoto) recommend Vaseline and white lithium, or stand mute on the subject.

As far as WD-40, CRC, and other common lubes, a quick check of their respective MSDS sheets reveal nothing along the lines of a chemical that turns wood into rotten punk. Maybe you could shed some light upon this.

Your idea to drill out the offending wood and replace with a hollow dowel is an interesting one and certainly worth consideration. The Stew Mac Truss Rod Rescue Kit is perfect for removing the wood. Center drilling the dowel on a drill press or horizontal boring machine is simple enough. Careful gluing should make for an excellent repair.

[DWBass]

Thanks for all the replies but I believe the current owner does not plan to put any more money into repairing the neck. Maybe sometime in the future but for now, he's going to put another Fender neck on the bass.

[bwest9]

Originally Posted by 202dy

This is in fact, highly unusual.

Not quite sure what day it is to which you refer, but in the sixties, seventies, and eighties, few if any user manuals from a manufacturer advised lubing the truss rod threads. The few repair manuals available then (Sloan, Teeter, Kamimoto) recommend Vaseline and white lithium, or stand mute on the subject.

As far as WD-40, CRC, and other common lubes, a quick check of their respective MSDS sheets reveal nothing along the lines of a chemical that turns wood into rotten punk. Maybe you could shed some light upon this.

Your idea to drill out the offending wood and replace with a hollow dowel is an interesting one and certainly worth consideration. The Stew Mac Truss Rod Rescue Kit is perfect for removing the wood. Center drilling the dowel on a drill press or horizontal boring machine is simple enough. Careful gluing should make for an excellent repair.

The clarity is appreciated.

[vejesse]

Horizontal boring machine? I'd say that's overkill. If you insist on clarity are you talking about a lathe?

[202dy]

Originally Posted by vejesse

Horizontal boring machine? I'd say that's overkill. If you insist on clarity are you talking about a lathe?

Not at all. A horizontal boring machine is sort of like a drill press that is laid on it's side. The advantages are less run out and more precision. It is much easier to clamp a workpiece to it. Especially a guitar neck. Most bench top drill presses will not allow standing a thirty odd inch neck vertically. That would take a floor model drill press. Then there is the hassle of designing a clamping rig to hold the neck. If you want to use a power tool for this job, this is the one to use.

[vejesse]

I clicked on your link. That's a neat looking little machine and I can see it working for cutting around the truss rod. But after aligning the neck to the spindle you'd still have use a specially sized cutter with a hole in the middle. The Stew Mac cutter is basically a counterbore with a hole for interchangeable pilots. You can buy the Stewart Macdonald tool set (big $$$), make one yourself or maybe even find a counterbore tool with a 3/16" interchangeable pilot hole from an industrial supply catalog. In this case, there's no need to align the neck with the machine spindle because the pilot hole guides the cut. This is the way to do it - check out Don Teeter book #2. And drilling out the dowel in a lathe would be the way to do that of course.

By the way, Google horizontal boring machine or mill. Common usage: It's a giant machine meant for drilling holes in very large castings.

[202dy]

Originally Posted by vejesse

I clicked on your link. That's a neat looking little machine and I can see it working for cutting around the truss rod. But after aligning the neck to the spindle you'd still have use a specially sized cutter with a hole in the middle. The Stew Mac cutter is basically a counterbore with a hole for interchangeable pilots. You can buy the Stewart Macdonald tool set (big $$$), make one yourself or maybe even find a counterbore tool with a 3/16" interchangeable pilot hole from an industrial supply catalog. In this case, there's no need to align the neck with the machine spindle because the pilot hole guides the cut. This is the way to do it - check out Don Teeter book #2. And drilling out the dowel in a lathe would be the way to do that of course.

By the way, Google horizontal boring machine or mill. Common usage: It's a giant machine meant for drilling holes in very large castings.

Agreed on all points. Don Teeter's book is an excellent resource. Never personally used a lathe (don't own one) for boring but have seen it done.

It is true that they are often large industrial machines. They are used in wood shops, too. Most often in cabinet shops where they use multiple heads to bore a line of holes all at once. When I googled horizontal boring machine, the first link was for Shopsmith. The second was the one in the embedded link.

As far as making a tool based on a Stew Mac design, it's a pretty simple equation. Add the material cost to the cost of your time to make the tool. Discount it two percent. Amusingly enough, that's just about the price of the tool from them.