Advice on neck contour change

[scuzzy]

Good Morning LC. I have a bass I bought from China that is a nice sounding bass, but the neck is early 00's warwick chunky I would prefer more of a USA peavey cirrus/millennium or MTD asymmetrical neck profile, and I figured, why not learn to carve a neck on one that is already done.

What rasps and advice would you recommend? It is 1 piece, solid maple.

Thanks.

 

[T_Bone_TL]

why not learn to carve a neck on one that is already done.

Just be wary of the truss rod that you won't know exactly where it is, since you didn't build the neck. You don't want to find it when carving.

Many folks like the Shinto rasps, but given that you're only refining the shape rather than starting from a beam, that might be overkill, & big files and sanding blocks might be plenty.

 

[Beej]

I agree with going slow and using mild tools, since it's effectively a finished neck that just needs some tuning up. If you know the TR type, then you can possibly get a sense of where it runs and where you can carve. If it's a modern double acting double rod, then you can measure the slot depth at the access point (heel or neck) and you will know how deep that slot runs under the fretboard for the length of the neck.

If it's a single acting single rod (ie Fender style), then I would personally mark lines about 3/16" away from the centerline down the back of the neck, and then don't touch that area down the middle. From there you can remove from the shoulders back to the middle and change the feel of the neck that way.

For this work, I'd personally be using a finer half-round file (than bastard cut) to trim away the fat. From there I can usually go right to 220 grit paper.

Here are my neck carving tools:
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Angle grinder with flap wheel, bastard round file and 2nd cut half round file, plus a block of 60 grit. This is for rough carving, but reshaping takes just the half round and some 220 grit.

 

[Bruce Johnson]

I agree with Beej; to slim down an existing neck, you really only need a decent half-round file and some rubber sanding blocks.

But, if you are really curious about the tools for shaping bass necks, we have a whole thread all about them:

https://www.talkbass.com/threads/best-tools-for-neck-carving.1543769/