Neck dent repair?
 

I have an indention in my neck where it must have been bumped. Its around the third fret just under the dot. My thumb can feel it and it drives me crazy.
How would I go about filling it in? Not wanting to strip the whole neck.
Thanks.

When I worked in a cabinet shop we'd put a damp rag over a dent and put a hot iron over it. Then we'd just sand it flush. Worked great on unfinished wood, not sure what your neck finish is, so it may not work.

If you can't steam it out,which i'm not sure will work for you.Not really a sure fire way to undo that kinda damage.I dented my maple neck and it left a good sized long 1" indentation about the same location as you speak of. i cleanded the finish out of the dent mixed maple sanding dusk with epoxy filled it sanded it smooth ,but this was on an oiled p bass neck if you have a thick poly finish on it this may not work to your satisfaction You'll always know it's there but the options are limited.

Its a squire neck with a satin finish.

My cleaning lady did this to my otherwise pristine Ric 4003 in Blueburst (special "color of the year" for 2005)!!! :scowl:
She no longer works for us.

I left it "as is". We all have scars.

I was thinking a plop of crazy glue and carefully sanding flat.

Right answer, if the finish will not permit steaming.

It is called a drop fill. The idea is to overfill the dent. Use medium viscosity CA. It may take more than one dose. After the first dose, spritz with accelerator. Wait ten minutes or so for the chemical to evaporate. Wipe clean. Repeat.

When sufficient material has built up and cured it is time to level. Files are the best tools for this job. Carefully file until the fill is level. Then switch to a razor blade scraper.

The razor blade scraper is a single edge razor blade on which the edge has been turned into a hook. Take the blade and run the edge across a HARD steel rod at a slight angle to draw out the hook. Hold the new tool between the thumb and forefinger of both hands while pulling the blade across the leveled fill toward (or away from) you. Continue until the fill is just proud (.002" - .005") of the surface.

Switch to 600 grit wet or dry paper on a hard block. Use a few drops of water to float the grit and CA away from the repair. The area that you are sanding will end up larger than the original dent. That's o.k. because you will continue to work up through the grits until the gloss level is correct. Use rubbing compounds to buff out. If a high gloss is desired (not in this case, just to be thorough.) use a course of finer and finer compounds.

An alternative to traditional abrasives is Micro-Mesh. The grits start at 1800 and go to 12,000. For a matte finish, you will not use all of the grits. For a perfect high gloss, use finest compounds and a show glaze to finish.

This is what I do to fix dents in the necks that I've picked up used. Works great and is easy to do. Just take your time sanding the CA glue back down once it's dry.

Wow thanks. That was detailed. I have most of what you described.

Ive seen steaming work on YT.

Now there's the right answer from a seasoned pro!

Drop filling with medium viscosity CA (gel will do as well) is very easy and highly effective. Just be patient and it's a very cheap home repair for one of life's annoying problems.

One thing to add to 202dys scraper: put masking tape around the blade in two strips leaving the center exposed too cut. When you drag it across the drop fill it will automatically stop scraping the fill at the right height with no danger of messing the finish of the good area. The tape glides smoothly across the good flat finish

This is some great info does it work on the headstock as well? and could someone go over how to use the steam method?

I had a cheapo guitar with a dent in the neck and I used some P.V.A. glue mixed into some hardwood sawdust and that filled the indent and another small ding with a sand down and a drop of varnish it gave it a smooth finish very cheaply. I have another cheapo acoustic currently with a nasty ding in the back and I shall probably do the same again! Obviously the high end instruments require equally high end treatment as explained by 202dy. I also have a Dano U2 with paint removed from part of the bout but no dents or dings. It is just a paint job. Take your pick which way you wish to approach your indent on your bass neck. p.s. my 3 basses are all O.K.