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New bass needs a shim

#42
It's not particularly tricky on a flat-topped instrument like a Jazz or a Precision. First you make a platform to sit on top of the bass with a cutout around the neck pocket. Put a business card (or anything that's the right thickness) under the platform at the end of the neck pocket and fasten the platform into position. This creates a tilt in the platform that's exactly the thickness of the business card. Put the router with a follower bit in it on the platform and adjust the depth until the bit just touches the bottom of the pocket at the butt end. Rout the pocket. You will take off nothing from the butt end of the pocket, and a business card thickness at the other end, nicely tapered and flat.
 
#43
Um, yeah, sounds tricky.

Again, in answer to the original question as to why this is not more frequently offered as a solution, I'm relatively certain that won't apply to most of us who probably have little-to-no experience with a router.

The nice thing about a removable shim is, you get as many chances as it takes to get it right. ;)
 
#44
As I said, if you are handy enough to make a proper tapered shim, routing the pocket is probably not a big deal. But that's a bit of a loaded statement on my part. A tapered shim isn't really that easy to make, despite what you see online.
 
#45
Turnaround said:
As I said, if you are handy enough to make a proper tapered shim, routing the pocket is probably not a big deal. But that's a bit of a loaded statement on my part. A tapered shim isn't really that easy to make, despite what you see online.
Click to expand...

Exactly ;)

I have a friend who is very good with power tools and has a nice machine shop in his garage. He and I have experimented with tapered wood shims. But I could never have done it on my own.
 
#46
I've been trying to wrap my head around what a jig would have to be to re-rout the pocket. First off, you couldn't use a regular router. You would need the much smaller base of a laminate trimmer to clear the horns, or else you would be up so high, your bit might not reach. You would need to clear the horns while making sure you are dead level on the other axis. The asymmetric shape of the horns/cutaways make a bit of a puzzle there. So sure, it could be done. But, it would be a few hours of work to make a jig you would use for 20 seconds. I'm sure this is why people use shims instead.
Turnaround said:
As I said, if you are handy enough to make a proper tapered shim, routing the pocket is probably not a big deal. But that's a bit of a loaded statement on my part. A tapered shim isn't really that easy to make, despite what you see online.
Click to expand...
 
#48
Does anyone have buzzing issues when they add a shim? Particularly in the last two frets or so? My brand new American Standard P needs a shim. I had to remove the last one i put in because of the buzz, although it did improve the action. It was made out of a business card as lots of you suggest, and it was positioned properly. It's hard to believe that this could still be an issue with an American Standard bass. It's going up for sale by the end of the day if I can't get it right. I'm confident in my ability to set up basses and all my others are exactly the way I want them to be. This Fender is incredibly stubborn though.
 
#50
Technotitclan said:
I understand where your coming from. If I had not experienced it I would not believe it either. It does sound extremely far fetched.

To answer your question no. I consider my hearing to be a 6/10. To be honest I was taken back when it happened. I had read arguments of full shim vs. partial and since I was in need of a shim I thought I would try both to see if there was any merit to either side of the argument. After I put in the full shim which as simply a maple veneer (chose maple because the neck and body are maple) cut to fit the pocket perfectly, I tuned it up and noticed it projected more and sustained longer. The bass was unplugged and my house was dead quiet at the time, being that it was about 4am. Amplified or in a noisy environment I am not confident the difference would be audible.
Click to expand...
i think what happened here is that the shimming some how bring your strings colser to pups but i am not sure
 
#51
This is simple. The action is described as much better, but with fret buzz. The strings are too low for the setup/fretwork. The bridge needs to be adjusted. The only reason to shim a neck is if the setup is out of the range of the bridge's adjustment. Once shimmed, the bridge can be adjusted.
 
#52
IMHO a shim causing a warp is complete bunk. I have guitars and basses both with shims for 20-25 + years and no warp. The only instruments I've ever had with the dreaded hump have been set necks.

Personally I prefer a neck with the proper angle set through shims over a bridge adjusted to the extreme end of the adjustment range. I fretless P for example, needed the saddle set so low that the screws would dig into my palm when I palm mute. I used a piece of veneer sanded until the saddles were in the middle of the adjustment range. It's been this way maybe 5 years, and I expect it will be that way for another 50 without any warping.
 
#53
After reading through this thread, this whole "shimming" idea had me very curious. Awhile back, I swapped out the stock bridge on my Squier VM Jazz for a BAII and couldn't get the action anywhere near where I like it. I love the tone and aesthetics on this bass, but it was a bit hard to love playing it anymore due to the string height.

Enter the shim - I used a piece of cereal box and also an index card to make a shim to fill out the area at the very end of the neck just shy of the neck bolt holes. Upon reassembly, I had to raise the saddles on the BAII almost all the way up! They were completely bottomed out before shimming. I may take out the piece of index card stock just to bring the saddles down a hair.

Bottom line for me was: Adding a shim has made my VM Jazz more playable that was ever previously possible, even better than when I was still using the stock bent plate bridge. Thanks to everyone who shared their knowledge and experience regarding the "almighty shim." :bassist:
 
#55
Turnaround said:
As I said, if you are handy enough to make a proper tapered shim, routing the pocket is probably not a big deal. But that's a bit of a loaded statement on my part. A tapered shim isn't really that easy to make, despite what you see online.
Click to expand...

Turn, If I wasn't an entire country down from you, I"d happily pay you to route out the neck pocket so it had a little angle and work as you described without shims....:roflmao:

I've written about this before. I own four basses...

98 EBMM SR5 Stingray
2000 MIM Fender Jazz V (converted to fretless)
2013 AM STD Precision V
2014 AM STD Jazz V

I've had to shim all of these basses so I wasn't bottoming the saddles on the bridge plate. In all cases, the B string and the G string saddles were sitting on the bridge plate before I shimmed them. Note that I wasn't trying to go any lower, but I noticed that when they were where I wanted them, they were either on the plate, or at least a 1/8" turn would have them sitting on the plate.

A single layer of business card is all it takes (on my instruments, anyway)

I use medium Ernie Ball Power Slinkys (050, 070, 085, 105, 135).

I DO NOT like a really low action. I like it just slightly higher than what the specs call for.

I adjust the necks so that there is a little relief, just enough to be able to tell, so the bridge saddles get adjusted a little lower (I guess that's the reason, I'm not a luthier by any stretch)

I've just resigned myself to be prepared to do this with a new bass, unless I happen upon a neck-through bass.
 

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