Salvaging bad DIY epoxy on fretless job

[mikeboth]

18 months ago I make a half-arsed attempt to epoxy my SX fretless neck ... it actually worked out pretty ok except in a few spots, however the 'few spots' make it unplayable. I've found it's possible to remove tiny 'chips' with my nails, but that will take forever to do for the entire neck. Is there any easier way to get the epoxy off? I would prefer to salvage the neck as other options aren't really economically feasible right now.

[62bass]

There's no chemical stripper that you can use at home that will remove epoxy. I'd suggest a heat gun and scraper except the intense heat might melt the glue holding the fingerboard to the neck and that would be no good. The heat could also warp the neck and damage the finish on the back of the neck.

The only other option I can see is to sand it off down to bare wood. You want to do this so that you don't create any low spots on the neck, so you'll need to use a sanding block about 12" long, that's perfectly flat. I have one I bought from Stew Mac for a lot of money that is a hardwood block with handles with a thick sheet of float glass (reputed to be perfectly flat) laminated to it. It does work well. You could make your own. You'll need to remove the nut to do the sanding. I'd start with 120 grit and when the epoxy is off, finish up with 220 grit to get it smooth. You have to maintain the same curvature on the fingerboard and this requires careful work. Some guys suggest using a radius block with sandpaper for this. I can do it with a flat sanding block but it can be tricky. You need to sand with long, even pressured strokes the full length of the fingerboard. It's sort of like using a wood plane.

You'll have to decide if you're capable of doing the job yourself. Taking it to a tech might be more expensive than buying a new neck.

If the epoxy didn't stick to the fingerboard when you did it there could be a few reasons--improper ratio of resin and hardener (catalyst), dirt, oil or wax on the fingerboard, oily wood fingerboard and probably a few others. Just in case you want to do it again.

[Jaco D]

This is what I would do.

1. Take the neck out of the bass.
2. Take the nut out of the neck (now you have a reason to replace the stock plastic one with a Graphtech, bone or whatever nut you prefer).
3. Use a Dremel contour sander to slowly scrub away epoxy till you get to the fretboard surface. This might take a while. You could use a larger palm sander but you must be really careful to stop when you reach the fretboard surface. The problem with a palm sander is the sanding surface is too wide for the neck. If you're not careful you could flatten-out the fretboard radius. Not only is the Dremel not as wide as a palm sander, but it also has a sand paper jig (don't know if that's the right term) that has a shallow radius in it). That radius might not be perferct, but it helps in sanding a non-flat surface. This might look like "using a spoon to dig a foxhole", but if you're like me who gets carried away with the job at hand, this helps.
4. Once you're through, get those long sanding jigs at hardware stores (again, don't know what they're called. They look like rectangular concrete plastic trowels with clips on both ends to hold down the sand paper) and give the surface an even clean-up.
5. I've heard some people use Cyanoacrylate (crazy glue) instead of epoxy. Maybe it's something you could experiment with. It has the texture of water and dries fast evenly so you don't get the lumpy feeling of epoxy. Of course, you have to build it on by layers to get a thick surface.

[mikeboth]

Thanks guys, that's great info. Sounds like I'm really better off just getting a replacement neck from Rondo - I'd spent maybe as much just getting the tools to do a proper fixup job, not to mention the time involved to sort things out also.

Cheers!

[62bass]

Originally Posted by unbeliever

Thanks guys, that's great info. Sounds like I'm really better off just getting a replacement neck from Rondo - I'd spent maybe as much just getting the tools to do a proper fixup job, not to mention the time involved to sort things out also.

Cheers!

That's exactly right.

[PilbaraBass]

if it's just a "few spots"...it's not hard...

sand paper + level sanding block + elbow grease...

don't take all the epoxy off...just level it and apply a couple of thin coats (leveling between coats)...

finish it with progressively finer grit paper and smile...


time spent 4 to 6 hours...money spent $20 - $40

satisfaction factor? HUGE!!!!

[Turnaround]

Originally Posted by PilbaraBass

time spent 4 to 6 hours...money spent $20 - $40

satisfaction factor? HUGE!!!!

Experience? Priceless!

[mikeboth]

Thanks for the further tips / encouragement. To be honest, I have so little free time I'm likely to wuss out and just buy the new neck; however, I *will* re-examine the old neck before deciding how to proceed. The problem is I already have a list of 'projects' that isn't getting shorter ... remember it's been 18 months since I put the bloody epoxy on in the first place!

[Jaco D]

Does Rondo sell replacement necks? Hmmm, I didn't know that.

[crazyfish]

Originally Posted by Jaco D

Does Rondo sell replacement necks? Hmmm, I didn't know that.

Yes they do! http://www.rondomusic.net/partsbodies.html

[jackson_bass]

Site looks good. I haven't seen it before (or i forgot). I couldn't find if they have a minimum order on the site though, , , , anyone know?