Crooked neck plate?

[Rnr..........4]

Hey, so I finally got round to getting a new CS Fender but the neck plate is crooked. Very sad that such an expensive instrument would have something like this. Would this be a deal breaker for you all and return it or would you keep it? I bought online so was not able to inspect. Obviously investing in such an instrument you have to think of resale value down the road.

 

[shojii]

I'd keep and consider it as a CS tribute to the post-CBS pre-Bill Schultz years....

 

[blowinblue]

Neck plate is perfectly straight. Bass is crooked. Return bass. Keep neck plate.

M. M.

 

[Killing Floor]

Can you even return a CS? if it’s functional?

Good luck. That would bother me even though it’s clearly not a functional or structural issue. Sorry. Best of luck.
I know I’ve been critical of Fender due to some issues I’ve had on new gear but for the premium of CS that would be tough to swallow.

 

[Rnr..........4]

Can you even return a CS? if it’s functional?

Good luck. That would bother me even though it’s clearly not a functional or structural issue. Sorry. Best of luck.
I know I’ve been critical of Fender due to some issues I’ve had on new gear but for the premium of CS that would be tough to swallow.

Exactly how I feel. Premium price. Don't see how this would pass their custom shop. Ridiculous and not happy about it. I was cleared to return for a refund but hoping for no restock fees. Dealer claims to inspect before shipment so clearly they missed this.

 

[jd56hawk]

That's just plain sad.

 

[eastcoasteddie]

It still holds the neck on, right?
I’d keep it.

My ‘96 L2500 6-bolt plate is also kind of crooked. Or maybe the neck joint of the body above the plate was shaved crooked. Ask me if I care.

 

[barginkov]

I think it's absolutely unacceptable on a custom shop instrument. If it was a 150 dollars
I would say , what do you expect
But At that price point. ..its ridiculous that left the factory like that. My opinion of course

 

[bajaandy]

It seems to me that there is a tenent in lutherie that the luthier spends just as much time and pride on making the instrument look just as good as it sounds. You don't generally see high end instruments that just "sound" good but look like crap. (Well, most of the time anyway.) That would most certainly bug me, but it probably has absolutely zero effect on the sound of the bass.

 

[Clark Westfield]

Now you can see why Lull, & Sadowsky “boutique clone” instruments exist.

I’d be livid with a CS like that.

Return it and move on.

 

[Rnr..........4]

It's going back to the dealer. I also reached out to Fender and sent along that picture.

 

[Rnr..........4]

It seems to me that there is a tenent in lutherie that the luthier spends just as much time and pride on making the instrument look just as good as it sounds. You don't generally see high end instruments that just "sound" good but look like crap. (Well, most of the time anyway.) That would most certainly bug me, but it probably has absolutely zero effect on the sound of the bass.

To be honest I compared it to my Classic 60s Road Worn Jazz (MIM, Nitro, etc) and that sounded way more beefy and growly than the pickups on this Custom. While it has it's own relic styling unique to it.. I do think these are overrated for what they are essentially. The quarter sawn neck, while super stable, looks weird and pixelated too.

 

[7dollarbologna]

 

[gg22]

Finish on the back is crooked too.

 

[Clank Plank]

I wouldn't stand for it.

 

[Rnr..........4]

 

[lowphatbass]

That’s horrific man. The screw heads look “aged” while the plate is so fresh and so clean. Not sure what’s going on with all that but something ain’t right…The screw heads don’t even look like they fit the plate very well, like they’re too small.

 

[MattZilla]

As someone else said…

This is why some are more than happy to pay close to or above a plumber’s wage to instrument makers like Sadowsky & A-C: to get an instrument made with care.

I’m curious to see what the fixtures they use look like to see how those holes can be off by such a visible angle.

[edit] At work I’m filling in in QC for a few weeks and I just had to call out a CNC operator of twenty years the other day for improperly torquing down some little ~2x2x3” parts such that, on the final pass of cutting what’s supposed to be a flat surface, the part was getting pulled up and the cutter was digging down ~0.040” in. I don’t know how he didn’t notice it before handing me the parts. We have quotas that’re tough to reach because there’s issues getting enough castings, and I think ours is the only machine shop in town that doesn’t drug test but pays the least. Maybe Fender is the same- low pay but you “don’t get punished for having a life” and the customers usually don’t get punished for the workers’ lives spilling into their work.

Get better pictures taken. That should go back to Fender and swapped with another one.

 

[Rick_Bass]

I would fix it. That would drive me absolutely crazy. And I would never buy anything "New" from that company again.

 

[Bruce Johnson]

Have you tried loosening the screws, twisting the plate to the left, and holding it there while you re-tighten the screws? Often, there's enough clearance in the holes in the body that the neck plate can be shifted out of position like that if you aren't paying attention when you tighten the screws. Sloppy assembly technique, but not necessarily sloppy machining of the holes.

If necessary, you can slightly enlarge the holes in the body to get the neck to seat on there straight.