Nightmare Warwick Custom $$

dbassdan · #1 03-12-2013, 02:41 PM

I had a custom Warwick Corvette $$ made a few years ago and it has been a nightmare to maintain and play because of the neck constantly moving even in the slightest change of temperature. Has anyone had similar issues?!!! I really dont want to sell it and hand my problems to someone else but it seems like my only option.....

xring · #2 03-12-2013, 03:09 PM

I'm not able to help, but I do know that on my '99 Corvette fretless 5, I tweaked the truss slightly when I bought it new, and haven't touched it since. It's been extremely stable. My Bongo 5 was another deal altogether...

fretno · #3 03-12-2013, 03:17 PM

is it a Wenge neck ? If so that would be highly unusual that wood is like Steel .

bubinga5 · #4 03-12-2013, 03:25 PM

wood is a very complex organism, even when sawn and dead.. ever piece is different and will react differently in different climates.. or even in the same climate..

beggar98 · #5 03-12-2013, 03:27 PM

My Warwick was perfectly set up when I bought it and I've never touched the truss rod, though it could use a little adjustment now- 15 years later. I'd contact Warwick and see what they say.

Daywalker · #6 03-12-2013, 03:31 PM

I'm gonna go out on a limb and guess that you were just unlucky in this instance. I've owned 6-7 different Warwicks and I've never had any issues like that...

spade2you · #7 03-12-2013, 04:02 PM

What are you doing for temperature or humdity control?

Bruce Johnson · #8 03-12-2013, 04:27 PM

Question:

How is the truss rod set right now? Is it very tight or very loose? My guess is that it's loose. Necks that are overly sensitive to the weather often have that loose truss rod condition.

If that's the case, the fix isn't too hard. Basically, you tighten up the truss rod until the neck begins to backbow. Then, leaving it like that, you re-level the frets. What you are doing is shifting the loaded condition so that the truss rod is carrying part of the load, like it's supposed to. That reduces the ability of the wood to move around as the weather changes.

What causes this condition? It's not a bad neck. It's just a little bit bent. The neck naturally backbowed a small amount, just enough to get into the "dead zone" of the operation of the truss rod. A common problem, and not a real big deal to fix.

Now, if the truss rod is really tight right now, or if you can go from tight to loose and the neck barely moves, then you have a different and bigger problem.

Lublin · #9 03-12-2013, 04:32 PM

According to it's previous and original owner, '98 Thumb 5 BO hasn't been adjusted since new. It's perfect, even now.