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Precision neck ... Suggestions

ilansgroove

ilansgroove

Jan 24, 2012
997
874
paris, france
www.ilanonbass.com
#1
I got myself a Squier Affinity PJ as a project ...
I replaced everything but the body and neck ... Got EMG GZR PJ pickups , Gotoh bridge , Hipshot tuners and even the strap thing was replaced by Schaler clip ...

I'm pretty happy with the results , and I'm ready for the next level ... The neck !!! I want a nice All maple neck.

It seems that there are several options like Warmoth, Allparts, WD, Mighty might & Fender (there might be more I don't know of )

I want a quality neck, want it to improve the playbility of the bass and sound (if it makes any sense )

From what I've seen Warmoth is the most expensive , but expensive is not always the proof of quality ...

What would you guys recommend ? Can you share your experience with these necks ?
 
#4
Last time I looked Allparts was way more expensive than Warmoth but that has been a year or so ago.

A new Warmoth option is roasted maple which gives you the feel of a naked exotic hardwood without the extra weight or cost. Roasted maple doesn't need a finish.

For an easier finish job, get a rosewood fingerboard so that you don't have to finish the fingerboard. I normally tape off the entire fingerboard rather than try to finish the edge of the rosewood. Works fine if the finish is a thin clearcoat.
 
#6
Doner Designs said:
Last time I looked Allparts was way more expensive than Warmoth but that has been a year or so ago.
Click to expand...

They are if you buy them directly from the Allparts website, but if you look around, you can find them for much cheaper. I just ordered an unfinished one-piece Allparts Jazz neck from The Stratosphere for $136.

Doner Designs said:
For an easier finish job, get a rosewood fingerboard so that you don't have to finish the fingerboard.
Click to expand...

I finish all my necks (and some bodies) with Tru-Oil now. MUCH easier to work with than lacquer or poly. You can rub it on in many coats, and it also comes in a spray can. I usually rub it on the back of the neck and headstock and use the spray for the front of the headstock and fretboard (to quickly build up a heavier, glossy finish).
 
#8
buldog5151bass said:
Silly question. You "replaced everything but the body and neck". Now you are replacing the neck. Wouldn't it have made sense just to start from scratch?
Click to expand...
Actually no , cause I didn't have the money all at once, I wanted a Pbass sound ... Ordered the parts as I got the money but I had a PJ to play with from the beginning , saw and felt as it got better and better . The goal is to end up with a nice PBass and it was my project ...

Who knows , maybe one day I'll get a new body then there will be nothing left of that Squier
 
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#11
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bassguygt said:
It can be cheaper to start with a Squier even if you just use it for the body. Just bought a Squier P for $115 shipped; a Warmoth finished body is $325 minimum.
Click to expand...
I got my PJ for 185$
Then pickups were 140$
Hipshot tuners 100$
Gotoh bridge 30$
I think the strap holders were about 15$

So by now I spent 470$

The neck will be the most expensive upgrade ...
 
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#13
ilansgroove said:
I got myself a Squier Affinity PJ as a project ...
I replaced everything but the body and neck ... Got EMG GZR PJ pickups , Gotoh bridge , Hipshot tuners and even the strap thing was replaced by Schaler clip ...

I'm pretty happy with the results , and I'm ready for the next level ... The neck !!! I want a nice All maple neck.

It seems that there are several options like Warmoth, Allparts, WD, Mighty might & Fender (there might be more I don't know of )

I want a quality neck, want it to improve the playbility of the bass and sound (if it makes any sense )

From what I've seen Warmoth is the most expensive , but expensive is not always the proof of quality ...

What would you guys recommend ? Can you share your experience with these necks ?
Click to expand...
Warmoth makes arguably the best neck in the business, but they re heavy and expensive. I have at least 3 of them in 5 string. They're great. Required very little work to get it setup, only filing the nut depth. Frets were great.

USA Custom Guitars also makes a great neck; expensive but much lighter than Warmoth, and very high quality, too. And you can get all manner of fretboard radii if you prefer. I have one of them, but it required a bit more work to get it to high level of playability. The USACG comes without a nut, and mine needed a little fret work. But it's uber stable and light as a feather.

Mighty Mite makes a great cheap neck. I have two of them. I prefer the Jazz width. Actually, I have a mighty Mite all maple P-width neck that i am considering selling. watch the classifieds to see if I do. It's a great neck, I just like the narrower width.

And other than those three, I wouldn't bother. For cheap, Mighty Mite.

I dislike Fender so much I think it belongs in the bargain section. I bought one recently and the Mighty Mite fit better in the pocket than the Fender. I've never played a Fender neck that came anywhere close to a Warmoth or mighty Mite. But if you're going to buy a new Fender neck, I think I'd buy a whole Mexi bass and lose the Squier, parts and all. Or buy a used neck from ebay and go uber cheap.

Make sure your Squier neck pocket dimensions are correct for the neck you are getting. Squiers can sometimes be different.
 
#18
buldog5151bass said:
Silly question. You "replaced everything but the body and neck". Now you are replacing the neck. Wouldn't it have made sense just to start from scratch?
Click to expand...

I know the Q is for the OP, but I have done that as a way to spread the cost and the fun over a long period of time. This one took nearly 5 years to go from Vintage Modified Squier to the version pictured below. The neck is Allparts by the way but I mostly use Warmoth parts now.

There was no reason to replace the body. The original neck had the truss rod pop through the fingerboard, so it needed to be changed (I use really high tension strings).

IMG_0086.JPG


IMG_0087.JPG IMG_0093.JPG IMG_0092.JPG IMG_0089.JPG IMG_0095.JPG IMG_8426 CROP.jpg IMG_7742.JPG
 
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#19
my last project was a VM body , separate VM neck ... i wanted to try my hand at some fret work and rolling fingerboard edges ... leveled , radius sanded , worked on sharp edges , rolling went well ... also had a go at dulling the finish on the newer VM 3TSB body ... relic without stupid fake damage , mostly just dulled and sanded thru a few spots ... and tried 'fuming' hardware ( weird look - didn't like ) ... installed Fender Super 55 split coils , cts pots , orange cap , older Fender bent bridge, and put on some GHS tapewounds ... $300 all in ...

my point ... like you , i consider a different neck ... i have 2 other 5 stringers that have Warmoth necks = love them , but i bought them used ..! i've been thinking of getting a fretless neck ..? used ...

so i would agree with many that suggest the Allparts neck ... even used , they look like a good value ...! or even a MIM neck , ... or MIK neck ... but , when i look at those necks , they'd probably need similar work that i already did to my current neck ..! which wasn't costly - just time ..!

or , .. you could do some work on your frets/neck to make it 'feel' better ... at least gently level & polish , and oil up the fret board ( F-one oil ) it's a good learning experience .. are you looking for better neck wood ,.. or different fingerboard wood ..? better stiffer heavier neck wood seems to give a little better sustain ... the only think i've ever noticed with various fretboard woods is that some are easier to maintain than others on Fretted basses ..! never noticed much sound difference since the strings mostly make contact with the frets ..!! fretless seems a bit different .?
 
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