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Precision neck ... Suggestions
- Thread starter ilansgroove
- Start date
So I don't know if I'm getting more confused or what LOL
So all of you agree with the high quality of the Warmoth necks , but other alternatives can be just as good with musickraft and USA custom guitars (never heard of the 2 up until today)
And Mighty Might is cheap, not AS good but good enough .....
I haveconsider had it not been such a cheap bass. I'm learning to do these things ...
But oil advise and finish is , I think, beyond my talent.
I want a neck that will feel as natural to me as my MM stingray neck ,maybe a little thinner (as per one of the warmoth options)
However there are some "options" on musickraft that are unknown to me (FB. Radius , fingerboard style - slub , FB EDGES) ... Not to mention the sized that I don't really know how to measure since I'm familiar with the metric system only.
So all of you agree with the high quality of the Warmoth necks , but other alternatives can be just as good with musickraft and USA custom guitars (never heard of the 2 up until today)
And Mighty Might is cheap, not AS good but good enough .....
I haveconsider had it not been such a cheap bass. I'm learning to do these things ...
But oil advise and finish is , I think, beyond my talent.
I want a neck that will feel as natural to me as my MM stingray neck ,maybe a little thinner (as per one of the warmoth options)
However there are some "options" on musickraft that are unknown to me (FB. Radius , fingerboard style - slub , FB EDGES) ... Not to mention the sized that I don't really know how to measure since I'm familiar with the metric system only.
That's one way to lighten a Squier body, but you need an FAA license to play it!
Mighty Mite necks are awesome and I've gotten them for as low as $80 in the TB classifieds.
Doner Designs
Steve Doner
- Jun 2, 2012
- 5,784
- 6,819
- Disclosures
- Doner Designs is an alias for Steve Doner
Since you asked so nicely with a double drool, here you go. Give me 20 minutes or so to get it populated with photos.
Old 442 Bass - Doner Designs Content
Warmoth necks aren't necessarily heavy. Roasted maple and grapite rods help - the best necks I've ever played. They don't come cheap, though - the ones I get are about $400. To me, worth it, but maybe not for everyone.
IMO Mighty Mite is as good as any except for Warmoth and USACG. I thin they're better than Fender, WAY better than Squier. The reason I think is that Warmoth and USACG are much better is that they have stabilizing rods inside the neck. Those are nice, eliminate dead spots but add weight - sometimes as much as a pound. If you're not looking for top of the line, then Warmoth et al might not be for you.
I use something called TruOil for neck finishes. It was developed for gunstocks, and is basically a wipe-on enamel/lacquer. It seals the neck. Look it up here. It's beautiful, durable, and feels almost like wood.
Yeah, the last MM neck I played was pretty chunky. I am not a fan, I prefer slim.
That is the "flatness" of the fingerboard. The higher the radius number, the flatter the fingerboard. Old Fenders used a very round 7.5" radius. Modern Fenders use a 9.5" radius. I can't tell the diff between 9.5" and 10" that Warmoth et al use . I believe Squiers are in the 10" range. As I recall, MM uses a 12" radius, which is a good modern compromise. My preference is for a 16" board - very flat. If you want to convert, just convert inches to mm - 10" radius = 254mm radius.
actually that said slab. as opposed to the neck being made from a single solid piece of wood. A slab fretboard is the only way to get a neck with a fingerboard that is a different material than the neck body/shaft.
what it says, the edges of the neck are more rounded or less rounded. More rounded is probably more comfortable.
C'mon, you can do a conversion... google is your firend.
but fyi: standard P bass necks are a little wider at the nut, usually 1.625", than Jazz necks, which are 1.5" wide at the nut. it's only 1/8". but you can really feel it. MM necks tend to be more P-bass like than Jazz bass like.
That is one classy looking instrument. I'm going to keep that look in my mind's eye for a future project. A very, very future project -- gotta finish the current one first!
I have a roasted maple with steel rods sitting right next to me and believe me, it's on the heavy side. But you are right - roasting makes it lighter, as do graphite rods.
D
Deleted member 165050
Guest
Is it just me seeing a parallel with the ship of Theseus here?
Anyway sounds like a cool bass
In the end, what I'm planning on doing with my Affinity (i'm in same situation as OP, just at the very beginning of the project) will still be a few hundred cheaper than a MIA fender, and it'll have all my desired alterations. It didn't make sense to me to start with a super expensive bass if I was going to change out the bridge, pickups, tuners, etc. Also, for "tinkerers" like me, it's about the journey just as much as the destination -- I actively enjoy the process of hunting down the parts I want and designing the bass to my specs. Also, I never sell anything, so resale isn't an issue for me.
MIA Fenders are, of course, amazing instruments.
Doner Designs
Steve Doner
- Jun 2, 2012
- 5,784
- 6,819
- Disclosures
- Doner Designs is an alias for Steve Doner
I have to thank you for that reference. I had not heard of it, and love the concept.Is it just me seeing a parallel with the ship of Theseus here?
Anyway sounds like a cool bass
And to give my answer to the paradox, no, it cannot be the same ship.
Having done this myself on an Affinity Jazz, I have to say that in the end it was a failed experiment. I liked the Affinity at first, it played great, but at the end of the journey, it just didn't sound like a good Jazz bass - I reckoned it was the woods involved, because Lord knows it had the best parts. I returned it back to stock and sold it.
Now, I usually build 'em from scratch - Buy the neck, sometimes buy the body, and go from there. I usually have a goal in mind... currently, it's to make as lightweight a P-bass as possible. Current project has a Mighty Mite neck and a Warmoth dinky-P body (bought the body rather than built is because I could predict the weight better that way). And 2 pickups rather than just the P. All put together, it weighs 6 lbs 15 oz. without finish. That starts tomorrow. And it plays and sounds really great.
As for the neck - I chose Mighty Mite specifically because it is a good neck and is lightweight. and inexpensive. I like this bass a lot so far.
Would a Warmoth neck be better? It would certainly play better out of the box, and would certainly be heavier - making the 3 lb body a neck-diver. but I have yet to do any fretwork so the Mighty Mite might be killer.
Mine has rosewood. and i LOVE the feel of the roasted maple on the back. Highly recommended, especially for people who live in areas like Florida where the weather is a killer for wood.
LOVE the nuke switch! and any man with a Spector Spectorcore gets a double thumbs up from me!
