best neck wood

[David Jayne]

have you compared the weight to another Warmoth neck of a different wood? i only ask as the oversize steel truss rods they use have a fairly substantial weight in comparision to those from other companies

No. But I am aware of the truss rod, and also the steel stiffening bars. What I can say is that I will never buy a neck from them again, because they must have known it would end up so heavy but they didn't warn me. It is not useable for a bass guitar at all, literally. Maybe I'll make a Barker type bass out of it, dunno. Sucks because the sustain is insane with NO dead spots. But stupid heavy, just nuts.

 

[Mikey R]

Looking at other sources, some of those figures look like "best case" numbers. For example, for doug fir, the FPL of the USDA shows the MOE to be 1.49-1.95 Mpsi, depending what part of the country the samples were taken from.

For SYP, according to the Southern Pine Council, it can be any of more than four different species, and dimensional lumber will have an MOE of 1.4-1.9 Mpsi depending on the size and grade selected. By the FPL, the four main species show a range of 1.75-1.98 Mpsi.

The FPL agrees with the 2.01 figure for yellow birch, but Link Removed are from 1.15-2.17. So if you have control over what species you're buying, fine; but if you're just buying "birch," maybe not so good!

And this is all without counting the individual tree factor. Every maple does not show an MOE of 1.83 Mpsi.

So, rather than the way you put it, I'd be more likely to say, "southern yellow pine and douglas fir can be stiffer than hard maple."

It seems that you always get different figures depending on what you read, Ive no doubt that your sources are the more authoritive.

I would guess that stiffness isnt the only factor. maybe the more 'growly' neck woods have a non-linear stretchiness (that is a word, my spellchecker agrees!), causing some 2nd order harmonics?

Just wanted to suggest some off the wall species for consideration

 

[Mr. Majestic]

I have sawed through thousands of board feet of hard maple, soft maple and southern yellow pine and I would definitely have call BS on pine being stiffer than maple, esp. hard maple. Just my opinion.

 

[billoetjen]

I have two Warmoth necks made of wenge (unfinished, meaning: no finishing product applied). NOTHING feels like it. It's almost like it's not even there. Admittedly, Warmoth did all the hard work for me of shaping and smoothing them. How they get it so free of splinters is a mystery to me.
Wicked solid, stable, and lively to play. Likewise, it's FAST.

 

[Webtroll]

Gibson Thunderbirds, mahoagany necked, that a reason a lot of people do the Fenderbird mod, for the maple neck.

I thought it was from JE breaking the necks on his TBirds and having Fender necks mounted, but that's a guess and not an informed comment. I like mahogany and wenge both. If there's one thing I don't like about wenge it's the weight; I swapped out a maple Jazz neck for a wenge neck and it now has a little neck dive tendency that it didn't have before (even with Ultralight tuners). I still like wenge, but be aware of what can happen. Were I to do it again I'd probably get a lighter weight bass neck with a wenge fingerboard.

 

[odin70]

You should try different woods and make up your own mind. I can tell you what it like but i wont help you much.
I can also tell you what kind of women i like or my fav color..

Ok...Padouk is my choice

 

[pilotjones]

It seems that you always get different figures depending on what you read, Ive no doubt that your sources are the more authoritive.

I would guess that stiffness isnt the only factor. maybe the more 'growly' neck woods have a non-linear stretchiness (that is a word, my spellchecker agrees!), causing some 2nd order harmonics?

Just wanted to suggest some off the wall species for consideration

Yeah, actually I'd say that the book you've got pulled at least a few of its numbers from the FPL, and in some cases took the "best numbers" only. And in any case, a test on one piece of wood is a test on that piece of wood.

Nordstrand did a bass with a Spruce neck. LeCompte did a bass with a pine body, but I don't remember whether it had an unusual neck material.

 

[Mikey R]

Yeah, actually I'd say that the book you've got pulled at least a few of its numbers from the FPL, and in some cases took the "best numbers" only.

"best numbers" only - serves me right for not checking second hand references - thanks for setting me right before I made an expensive mistake!

And in any case, a test on one piece of wood is a test on that piece of wood.

good old +/- 20% rule, check before you buy

Nordstrand did a bass with a Spruce neck. LeCompte did a bass with a pine body, but I don't remember whether it had an unusual neck material.

Also, Gus guitars and basses are made from cedar - the lighter English grown stuff makes the body whilst the heavier, stiffer Canadian grown stuff makes the neck. But the whole thing is laminated in carbon fibre, so I guess thats where most of the structural stiffness comes from.

 

[Darkstrike]

I thought it was from JE breaking the necks on his TBirds and having Fender necks mounted, but that's a guess and not an informed comment. I like mahogany and wenge both. If there's one thing I don't like about wenge it's the weight; I swapped out a maple Jazz neck for a wenge neck and it now has a little neck dive tendency that it didn't have before (even with Ultralight tuners). I still like wenge, but be aware of what can happen. Were I to do it again I'd probably get a lighter weight bass neck with a wenge fingerboard.

Yup, as I remember that s why JE done it, but IIRC I've read about a lot of guys swapping for the maple neck, for tone, and thats why some like the gothic thunderbird, already has the maple neck.

I could always be wrong.

As for wenge, I have a Cort full wenge neck rosewood board, mahogany body(I think), zero neckdive, awesome feel, so until this thread, I didn't even know wenge was heavy.