Uneven rosewood fretboard glued joint

No

 

send it back , especially since there is a problem playing it because of that . I would think it needs a fretboard resurface and refret to correct it. If it's more than cosmetic send it back .

 

If sanding the fretboard creates higher action, lower the saddles and the nut. But if the relief is right now and the board is level don't sand it - it will do nothing of value, only create sawdust and cost you a refret.

 

So you understand what's going on, this neck has had the fingerboard resurfaced (to flat) to correct for a backbow. At some time in the past, the neck warped into a backward curve; the center was high. So, somebody pulled the frets and recut the fingerboard surface, making it flat again. Then they refretted it. That's why it looks the way it does, thinner in the center and thicker at the two ends. Because the fingerboard is. But the top surface of the fingerboard, and the tops of the frets should be flat now. That's why the surgery was done.

If the frets are now flat and level, then you should be able to adjust the setup, and it should play nicely. The thinness of the fingerboard is just a cosmetic thing that you can ignore.

If you are having trouble with the setup, and can't get the relief and action into a playable range, then the frets may not be level any more. The neck may have moved some more or some frets may have lifted up, or something. The frets should be checked and re-leveled if needed. There shouldn't be any need to pull the frets and resurface the fingerboard, unless the condition is really bad.

From here, it sounds like the neck needs a good fret level and dress, and a correct setup.

 

If it's a brand new bass, thats a pretty serious factory defect, return it yesterday! Plenty of Fish in the Sea.

 

if this is a new bass I would return it ASAP.

 

Hold on, don't return it just yet. I'm searching for the right meme to put here about the importance of context.

 

I don't see why that should be the case or how it makes sense.

1. The arch or sweep of fretboard radius should start where the edge thickness of the fretboard is consistent.

2. If what you're asking were in fact the case or true, due to consistent taper down the neck, the geometry would not result in your fretboard being thinnest at the middle of the neck, between the nut and the last/20th fret.

I suspect the finished thickness of your fretboard, thinnest in the middle, is a function or result of something else in Fender's work flow in making the neck. It could be a fundamental mistake being repeated in the line of production.

 

That’s a factory eff-up, plain and simple. If a fretboard has a continuous radius along its length, the board may be a hair thinner at the bridge end, because the farther the edges are from centerline, the further they “ fall” from the centerline high point, but they don’t start thick, get thin, and the thick again. That must have been bowed when the fretboard was machine surfaced. Are you sure it wasn’t a return or “second”?

 

Sometimes I feel the urge to apply for a Fender factory job in Corona just get inside for a while to see how the sausages are really made.

Then I think of the 1 to 1-1/2 hour commute and 'just-for-the-hell-of-it' becomes too hellish.

 

If it were me, I'd be prepared to insist that Fender make it right, even if I had to be a dog-with-a-bone about it.

If it were me, I would have also paid for it on a credit card so I could dispute charge, if need be.