• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

question about tapering neck throughs

learning_towalk

learning_towalk

Supporting Member
Mar 15, 2004
1,012
229
40
Chattanooga, TN
#1
Do you taper all the way down through the body or just the neck.

Also if you do a single cut do you just taper to where the neck connects to the body on the upper horn then flat?

Sorry to post these questions but I have found lots of info on my own about neck throughs, but I did't see anything about you guys' preferences on tapering

be blessed.
 
#2
Preference is different for everyone, I taper my necks so it is square at the body joins, as seen below as an example.

AlchemyPrototype.jpg


there are others that taper all the way from the nut to the heel, it's all about preference.
 
#6
full length is better IMO since the fretboard has to be tapered all the way, and the upper horn's edge usually ends up being at around the 21st fret, so then you gotta sand that little part of the neck between the board and the upper horn, you followin? full length makes for a much cleaner look.
 
#7
T2W said:
full length is better IMO since the fretboard has to be tapered all the way, and the upper horn's edge usually ends up being at around the 21st fret, so then you gotta sand that little part of the neck between the board and the upper horn, you followin? full length makes for a much cleaner look.
Click to expand...

Depends on how wide you neck blank is. I make mine wider than the neck, like this:

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
 
#8
Musiclogic said:
Preference is different for everyone, I taper my necks so it is square at the body joins, as seen below as an example.

AlchemyPrototype.jpg


there are others that taper all the way from the nut to the heel, it's all about preference.
Click to expand...

Musiclogic looking at the pic you posted a doubt came to my mind. You said the neck is square at the body joints. The glued plane on the lower wing goes deeper in the neck than in the higher wing so the taper at the low side starts closer to the headstock than in the high one right? So do you use different angles to taper the neck?
 
#9
eleonn said:
Musiclogic looking at the pic you posted a doubt came to my mind. You said the neck is square at the body joints. The glued plane on the lower wing goes deeper in the neck than in the higher wing so the taper at the low side starts closer to the headstock than in the high one right? So do you use different angles to taper the neck?
Click to expand...

You calculate the taper from the bridge, not the body. How the body intersects with the taper is inconsequential. Unless the body is symmetrical, this is how it ends up.
 
#10
eleonn said:
Musiclogic looking at the pic you posted a doubt came to my mind. You said the neck is square at the body joints. The glued plane on the lower wing goes deeper in the neck than in the higher wing so the taper at the low side starts closer to the headstock than in the high one right? So do you use different angles to taper the neck?
Click to expand...

Eleonn, I use templates for my necks, and my bodies are cut to shape before the necks are tapered, so I use the body wings to set where the body joins the neck, and set stops so not to over cut the neck. After the body wings are rounded over, they are joined to the body, and the fretboard attached to the neck, then trimmed up at the body with the template, and the body is blended in to the neck.
 
#11
does taper affect intonation in any way? like how about on extended range basses where the neck tapers like 2x its width? or does it just work out because on a diagonal there is a greater distance between frets?
 
#13
uethanian said:
does taper affect intonation in any way? like how about on extended range basses where the neck tapers like 2x its width? or does it just work out because on a diagonal there is a greater distance between frets?
Click to expand...

Huh? The frets are parallel to each other and perpendicular to the center line. Intonation has nothing to do with neck taper. Fingerboards are generally slotted before they are glued to the neck.

I taper my fingerboard first, and then glue it to the untaped neck, and use a router to taper the neck using the fingerboard as a template. That's a fairly common technique.
 
#14
uethanian said:
does taper affect intonation in any way? like how about on extended range basses where the neck tapers like 2x its width? or does it just work out because on a diagonal there is a greater distance between frets?
Click to expand...
On parallel-fret basses, there is no problem because of the law of similar triangles. As you noticed, the outer strings are a longer scale than the center string, but the frets are also proportionally increased along the string, so the intonation is correct.
On a f*nned-fret instrument, careful attention must be paid to the string spacing in order to prevent the intonation problems you are considering.
 
#15
I've done one each way and tapering the whole length seems easier to me, but it's one design element among many and I can't see a hard and fast rule making sense. I'm at work on my first fanned fret bass and the realization of how important string spacing is in this application has come home to me as I glare at drawings, templates and lumber. It will theoretically be 33" on the G and 36" on the B and the fret slots are cut. I expect I will be slapping my forehead red as I proceed.
 
#18
pilotjones said:
On parallel-fret basses, there is no problem because of the law of similar triangles. As you noticed, the outer strings are a longer scale than the center string, but the frets are also proportionally increased along the string, so the intonation is correct.
On a f*nned-fret instrument, careful attention must be paid to the string spacing in order to prevent the intonation problems you are considering.
Click to expand...

ah that makes sense...
 
#20
it's always fun to do something like the 5 points neckswith Mahogany and Maple......5 points down in maple, and 5 points up in mahogany. Makes a very striking laminate set up, and is a great sales point. People always snap those up for twice that of a regular laminate neck.
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back