Neck shims

[ed morgan]

thorough thread about shims + tone:
I shimmed my neck (and the sound changed)

Thanks, good read. I wish I was only dealing with a 2mm gap. I have about 1/8" till my saddles touch the bottom and at my last fret I have close to 1/2" gap. It's an $80 bass so I hate to put $10-20 worth of shims in it.

 

[Picton]

Thanks, good read. I wish I was only dealing with a 2mm gap. I have about 1/8" till my saddles touch the bottom and at my last fret I have close to 1/2" gap. It's an $80 bass so I hate to put $10-20 worth of shims in it.

Exactly.

That’s why you don’t put $10-20 worth of shims in it!

Remember what you’re fixing with shims: action. You don’t do it to change tone, and you won’t. My feeling is that any change in tone you’ll hear is subjective, and a placebo.

 

[Andy Daventry]

I spent a couple of quid on a small pack of hardwood veneer offcuts years ago and it's met all my shimming needs, whether necks or under saddles in acoustics since then.

 

[c-had]

What if you don't need to change the angle; but actually raise the entire neck. I just got a 1973 Hohner P bass and it's in pretty good condition. The problem is the neck is too thin and sets too deep into the pocket. I can't get my tuners low enough. I used a couple of popsicle sticks the full length of the pocket and that seems like the solution. Obviously I don't want to use popsicle sticks. Any advice here?

 

[Turnaround]

Why do you want to lower your tuners? If you are talking about lowering the saddles, then changing the neck angle is the best way to go.

 

[byacey]

Plastic cards like debit, shopping gift cards, old credit cards, or hotel room cards work nicely for shims if you need a little more thickness than business cards.

 

[Rabidhamster]

What if you don't need to change the angle; but actually raise the entire neck. I just got a 1973 Hohner P bass and it's in pretty good condition. The problem is the neck is too thin and sets too deep into the pocket. I can't get my tuners low enough. I used a couple of popsicle sticks the full length of the pocket and that seems like the solution. Obviously I don't want to use popsicle sticks. Any advice here?

create a new thread and post photos and any mods

 

[byacey]

Plastic cards like debit, shopping gift cards, old credit cards, or hotel room cards work nicely for shims if you need a little more thickness than business cards.

Another good source of shim stock is Arborite / Formica samples that many countertop suppliers have, free for the taking.