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Neck throughs and neck pitch

F

frianbisher

Dec 28, 2007
226
7
Milwaukee WI
www.myspace.com
#1
Hi all,

I am looking at starting my second build, a neck through fretless. My question is: Do I have to do anything to the pitch of the neck to account for the bridge height? I have heard that you have to sand the pitch into the neck before you glue on the fingerboard but I am not sure that info is correct.

My thinking is that this won't be needed. I would just glue the fingerboard on and have essentially no neck pitch, but I could be very wrong. This is only my second build and I previously did a fender flat style bolt on. I thought neck thrus were supposed to be a cakewalk in comparison.

Sorry if this is a common question and thanks for your help.
 
#2
Neck throughs a cakewalk compared to a bolt on....LMFFAO. Really??? You just said that? Whoever told you that has never built a neck through, much less a bass. There is so much more detail work to be done on a NT, and so much combined work that NT are much morer work than a bolt on. Bolt on's are done in seperate pieces, and worked as such. Anything done to a NT is done to the whole instrument, not just 1 part, so you might want to reinsert that idea in whatever idiot file it came out of.

Now to your question...the answer is it depends on whether or not you are going for an angled neck or flat. If flat, you need to compensate with how high the FB is elevated above the top to compensate for the bridge height, if doing an angled, you need to figure the pivot point of the neck to compensate for the bridge height minimum. Once you have these figured, you can begin you design process, as this is the main piece of information needed to start a neck through. ;)
 
#3
I asked much the same type of question a little while ago about neck angle and from what I have heard ( from those who know....I'm getting my first build together ) there is no real need for an angle. Having said that, I am opting for "flat" and as mine is also going to be neck-thru and fretless....seems the prudent way to go. Especially based on experience. Or lack of it : )
 
#4
Thanks musiclogic, I understand what you're saying...It sounds similar to what I've seen guys doing with carved tops. I'm a little peeved that one instructor at our school said they weren't even going to bother teaching us how do to neck through since it was supposed to be so simple...His statement, not mine. I'm losing faith in that guy...Anyway, since time is a big consideration I think I may just go bolt on again and save the neck through idea for later when I have more time to work things out...I have enough on my plate building three instruments right now.
 
#5
No worries Brian, don't lose faith, just glean what knowledge you can, as we can learn new things all the time, I do frequently, and I have been doing this for almost 3 decades. You will develop your own style ass you build more, it's all about becomming comfortable with what you are doing.
 
#7
On my NT build, I set the pitch by removing material from the body to give it a 2 degree angle relative to the neck. Take into account the height of the fingerboard off the body (plus string height), the distance from that point to the bridge, and the minimum and maximum height of the bridge.

This is where I got my 2 degree measurement, so I used a router and a 2 degree jig to set the pitch. Just keep in mind that if one measurement changes, all the other dimensions are affected.
 
#9
Hi, I always make the neck thru' section about 3mm thicker than the body wings. Then, with the neck section laying on its side, I draw a straight line through the centre. In a position that will not matter to the rest of the build, I hammer in some very small panel pins. I then cut the pins so only about 2mm is sticking out. Repeat this for the other side. After this and with the thru' section in a vice with the side and pins showing, take one of the wings that relates to the side your working on and position it such that the neck end of the wing is 1mm higher than the top surface, and the bridge end is 1mm into the thru' section back surface. When you have them perfectly positioned, press them together. (no clamps, hand pressure is fine). You will notice that the pins have made a mark and a very small hole in the body wing. Repeat the same for the other side. This system gives a perfect body/neck angle for a Hipshot/Fender bridge etc. Leave the pins in for glueing, as they will stop the body wings sliding about whilst you try to clamp them together. Remember to round over the edges of your body wings before glueing. This way you can make a perfectly straight thru' section with normal finger board but know the angle will be correct. After the glue has dried, dress in the body wings flush with the body section of the thru' neck section. I hope this made sense. Check out the thread http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f57/heres-one-i-made-earlier-my-blue-peter-badge-759442/ I made this bass in this way, but with a slight modification to allow for the book matched top.

Good luck, and keep us up to date with the progress. P.S. A full scale drawing before you start is a very good idea, and it lets you see the correct angles and potential problems. (it's better to do two or three re-draws, than waste wood and money).

Regards
Mike. :)
 
#10
#11
Son of Magni said:
After measuring the bridge height and fingerboard height I calculate the height required for the strings above the body and mark it on the side of the neck.

http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f57/custom-5-string-steve-402649/#post5283753

Then use a saf-t-plane to shave off the top of the body section of the neck at the angle required.

http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f57/custom-5-string-steve-402649/index2.html#post5287582
Click to expand...

Another excellent way to get the result you need. I've never tried it like this, but it sounds a good way to get results.
 
#12
Or you could do the "wing it" method like mine.

Glue the body sides on at a angle that looks good (the same on both sides however), then sand it all flat.

Proabably took me way longer than it needed to however. :p

Hmm...now that I think of it, given my lack of experience, you should just ignore the above idea altogether.
 
#13
One of the first neckthru's I used my joiner to get the top of the neck completely flat and didn't take in account of the bridge height and had to countersink the bridge. Wasn't my favorite lesson learned. Not that doing a countersunk bridge is a bad thing. I just think it's easier to get the angle than trying to make a template just perfect to rout out part of the body for the bridge to sit into. Good plan "B" though.
 
#14
Son of Magni said:
After measuring the bridge height and fingerboard height I calculate the height required for the strings above the body and mark it on the side of the neck.

http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f57/custom-5-string-steve-402649/#post5283753

Then use a saf-t-plane to shave off the top of the body section of the neck at the angle required.

http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f57/custom-5-string-steve-402649/index2.html#post5287582
Click to expand...

Also something that is not often discussed: In my first picture you might be able to see that I'm using the body wing to draw a line from the end of the fingerboard to the tail. In other words the angle is from the end of the fingerboard, not from the end of the wing. The neck end of the wing is actually above the level of the neck and is later merged down to the neck (before fingerboard installation) with a random orbital sander.
 

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