A quick question of a rather nerdy nature. I tried a used Fender P today in a shop which, despite a rather low but easily sorted out action, sounded great with plenty of bump and looked cool too. I noticed an extra hole in the neck plate on the back with an allen headed bolt in it which the guy in the shop said was a neck tilt adjustment. I assume this is to do away with need for shims. Anyway, I was wondering if these neck tilt adjusters were notorious for causing any problems with neck joint stability. I notice the new Fenders don't have them; did they get rid of it because it undermined the neck joint? Slightly dull topic I know, but any advice anyone has would be greatly appreciated.
If Im not mistaken, these microtilt necks were in 70's basses, only jazzes, I think. They had the 3 bolt necks, as do the 75 Reissues, but Im not sure if the reissues have the microtilt. I actually know very little about this, anything I know is from reading online.
Early '80s Precisions had 4-bolt neck joints with Microtilt adjustment and are not known for stability problems. The neck stability issues for which '70s Js and Strats are notorious stem from the 3-bolt joint, not the Microtilt. The necks tended to sag toward the floor.
Also, the two Peavey basses I've owned have been both bolt-on and both had neck tilt adjustment. I don't know if they still utilize this feature.