SX Necks

FreeSpirit · #1 03-29-2006, 03:31 PM

Would an Sx neck fit on a 2003 MIM Fender body? I want to see what a fretless neck would sound like on my fender, and was going to swap necks with my sx fretless jazz, but was just wanting to make sure before I took them off, perferiably not to find out they dont fit.

bearcubs9497 · #2 03-29-2006, 05:01 PM

It might, then again, it might not. If it doesn't, just carefully sand the neck pocket until it does fit.

Nedmundo · #3 03-29-2006, 07:54 PM

I tried putting an MIM Fender fretless Jazz neck on an SX P-bass copy, and it didn't work. The neck pockets weren't the same width, but, more importantly, the screw holes didn't line up. I thought they would from a quick visual check, and figured the measurements would be standard -- but no, the holes were a couple millimeters off. Even if the screw pattern had matched, the Fender neck may not have worked because the SX holes aren't centered relative to the neck's width.

So I bought all Fender parts to go with the neck intended for the SX. I'm out a few hundred, but I'll have an unusual Fender P-bass with fretless J neck, constructed from new MIM parts with an American Series pickup.

FreeSpirit · #4 03-29-2006, 08:31 PM

Nedmundo-I wouldn't expect that to fit, because you are going from a jazz bass to a persicion. The two necks even if both are made by fender are different sizes. I am looking to go from jazz bass to jazz bass. Looks like I will have to try now, i'll see how it goes.

flatwoundfender · #5 03-29-2006, 08:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FreeSpirit

Nedmundo-I wouldn't expect that to fit, because you are going from a jazz bass to a persicion. The two necks even if both are made by fender are different sizes. I am looking to go from jazz bass to jazz bass. Looks like I will have to try now, i'll see how it goes.

actually lots of people put jazz necks on precisions and vise versa, I'm pretty sure fender made necks will fit just fine with basses.

dave120 · #6 03-29-2006, 08:46 PM

Fender J and P necks do usually interchage with no issues as the pocket dimensions are the same for both. The same applies to SX J and P necks being able to swap with each other.

I don't think there's been a general consensus on whether SX necks fit Fenders and vice versa. Some people say they do, some say they don't. Fender necks should fit in SX pockets because SX neck pockets are wider (2 9/16 vs 2 1/2), but there may be gaps on the sides, and as mentioned above, screw holes may not line up. This can be fixed because it is just wood that can be filled and re-drilled, but it depends how much effort you want to put into it.

FreeSpirit · #7 03-29-2006, 09:49 PM

So after unscrewing both necks, I foun d this out. An Sx neck does not fit on a MIN Fender body with out any alterations to the neck. All this work for nothing now.

duckbutter · #8 03-30-2006, 08:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FreeSpirit

So after unscrewing both necks, I foun d this out. An Sx neck does not fit on a MIN Fender body with out any alterations to the neck. All this work for nothing now.

What would you need to do?

62bass · #9 03-30-2006, 09:05 AM

If all you want to do is see how your MIM Fender sounds as a fretless, go to a large music store and try a fretless Fender.

If the necks aren't interchangeable, make your SX more Fenderlike by putting in Fender replacement pickups.

FreeSpirit · #10 03-30-2006, 02:12 PM

No music store around here ever has fretless Fender jazz basses. Mind you there is only one music store that carries Fender. WHat I think would of needed to be done was shave a bit off the sides of the neck butt.

dave120 · #11 03-30-2006, 02:40 PM

I would shave the neck down rather than the body since a Fender body is worth more intact than an SX neck is.

FreeSpirit · #12 03-30-2006, 03:03 PM

I meant the butt of the neck on the SX(I didn't know what to call it.) I wouldn't go near my Fender body with a file. I just dont want to shave down the neck on my sx because then it would be too narrow for the sx body. So, i'm just going to wait and order a fretless sx jazz neck then shave it down to fit the fender.

senrats · #13 04-01-2006, 03:33 PM

Dang this is disappointing. I was hoping to do a clean no hassle swap.
I have Fender jazz bass deluxe, but I wanted to put a maple/maple SX jazz neck on it (with in-lays)... then move the Fender maple/rosewood neck to the '75 style SX ash (wood) body.

I planned to make the Fender deluxe sort of like a Geddy and make an interesting fretless with the SX bod/ Fender neck.

Any advice on how to tackle this?
Do I need to adjust the relief before taking the necks off?

I've been playing a while, but never ventured into alterations and advanced setups.

Hambone · #14 04-05-2006, 05:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dave120

Fender J and P necks do usually interchage with no issues as the pocket dimensions are the same for both. The same applies to SX J and P necks being able to swap with each other.

I don't think there's been a general consensus on whether SX necks fit Fenders and vice versa. Some people say they do, some say they don't. Fender necks should fit in SX pockets because SX neck pockets are wider (2 9/16 vs 2 1/2), but there may be gaps on the sides, and as mentioned above, screw holes may not line up. This can be fixed because it is just wood that can be filled and re-drilled, but it depends how much effort you want to put into it.

I've done all of the research for this using several different SX necks, Warmoth necks, and several Fender bodies. Search for my lengthy treatise on the subject.

dave120 · #15 04-05-2006, 09:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hambone

I've done all of the research for this using several different SX necks, Warmoth necks, and several Fender bodies. Search for my lengthy treatise on the subject.

Oh trust me your posts have been regular reading material for me Hambone

It's a big part of the reason I decided to hot rod my SX is because of how good a platform you say it is for those things, and you're right!