Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
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.
Warmoth with graphite rods, experienced opinions
- Thread starter stuntbass77
- Start date
I'll sort of agree - the issue is you want to make sure you don't go past where you want it, which is easy to do. If you have a neck that you love the feel of, having that side by side with the one you're working one (and a set of calipers so you know where you are at various points along the neck) will help you make sure you get where you want, without going past it. Yes, that kind of detail means it takes more time. And with several grades of sandpaper involved....it costs a bit more than $2, but...it's still not expensive.
In a town with a selection of great guitar repair shops, the one I use says he's n-e-v-e-r had a problem with a Warmoth neck, and he'll say they are the only builder he can say that about. And he's seen everything.
If you want a great neck with superior stability, consider the new Fender roasted maple necks. I have two J necks, and they are really great. Dead straight, and super stiff. I recently changed the strings on one from 40-100 to 45-105, and I didn't need to adjust any aspect of the setup. The action is super low, and nothing buzzes. I attribute this to the fact that the wood is treated before the neck is made, so however straight it is planed and leveled at the factory, that's how it stays. I've had lots of necks with graphite rods before, and these necks are vastly more stable.
I'll have to disagree with you there. Like you said, different strokes for different folks, but I have had 6-8 Warmoth necks, all P Bass width, 2 Slim Tapers (1 Fretless, 1 Fretted). I will ALWAYS order the Slim Taper from here on out, I love'em! TBH, I adore Warmoth, its all I play now!
Another satisfied disagree-er here - the slim taper P necks from Warmoth are all I play (aside from one fretless neck, and my 5's with are their assymetrical neck). OK, I have huge hands, that might be part of it.
Looks impressive. I wouldn’t mind learning a lot more about what you did with that. I’m a lifelong student of passive wiring and tonestacks.
Any chance of you doing a thread on it over in the pickups & electronics sub-board ?
Some further detail on my Warmoth neck...
Warmoth headstock design, 10" radius, Quartersawn maple neck, wenge fretboard, carbon fiber rods, 1.5" nut, slim taper neck profile (.790" at first fret, .920" at 12th fret), no binding, no inlays, standard side dots, 6230 size frets (Fender vintage - small frets), Graphtec black nut, clear satin nitro finish.
The only negative I can find is that the fret edges are a little "grabby" along the side of the fretboard, like they haven't been completely smoothed.
Price as configured with shipping and tax was $535.42 a little over a year ago.
Warmoth ain't cheap, but the bass it went on (a Warmoth Z body with BadAss III bridge, Nordstrand P/J and Hipshot Ultralite tuners) is my favorite sounding and playing 4 string ever, bar none.
Warmoth headstock design, 10" radius, Quartersawn maple neck, wenge fretboard, carbon fiber rods, 1.5" nut, slim taper neck profile (.790" at first fret, .920" at 12th fret), no binding, no inlays, standard side dots, 6230 size frets (Fender vintage - small frets), Graphtec black nut, clear satin nitro finish.
The only negative I can find is that the fret edges are a little "grabby" along the side of the fretboard, like they haven't been completely smoothed.
Price as configured with shipping and tax was $535.42 a little over a year ago.
Warmoth ain't cheap, but the bass it went on (a Warmoth Z body with BadAss III bridge, Nordstrand P/J and Hipshot Ultralite tuners) is my favorite sounding and playing 4 string ever, bar none.
Last edited:
I went with the standard profile J on my PJ, and I like it a lot, but I was specifically looking for something that kind of sat in-between a J and P neck. There *are* times I wish it were a little slimmer, but it's still really manageable and comfortable.
Roasted flame maple neck, graphite rods, rosewood, blocks & binding, with Hipshot ultralights. It's really light, stiff, and resonant. Good stuff.
Roasted flame maple neck, graphite rods, rosewood, blocks & binding, with Hipshot ultralights. It's really light, stiff, and resonant. Good stuff.
Thanks for all the responses! Last neck I had from warmoth was a roasted maple/maple. It was a beautiful neck and ready to play out of the box. I also used hipshot tuners which does make a big difference in the feel of the neck, less neck dive. I never was able to bond with it sonically and the weight and profile didn’t agree with me as I hoped. Keep in mind this was made for a walnut body that was going to be loaded with Bart BC pickups. I did try it on my jazz but also didn’t bond with it sonically on the jazz as well. I realize after all my experiments with neck swapping that I’m a maple/rosewood guy. I really wanted to love maple/maple necks but all seem to bright for me, love the lower miss the rosewoods gives. In a mix nobody could tell but playing by myself I find I can. I don’t gig anymore and just write and record my own music ( acoustic, bass, vocals, and a little djembe or other form of basic percussion ). Off topic but it’s funny I prefer a P in most mix situations ( except modern jazz and funk ) but when I play alone I prefer the sound of a jazz. I like it’s sound as a stand alone instrument, I’m more inspired by it’s tone. I have also found Warmoth necks never move and I have only adjusted one truss rod on my many necks from them I’ve had over the last 20 years. They also do a very good job at installing the nut and it’s height as well. Most players would probably find the height they come in just fine. If you want slammed to the deck action you may want to file the slot down just a bit. I use dremell attachment sanding bits from eBay and they come with several different widths and work well ( cheap price as well ). I would telling anyone doing this to also pickup a cheap pair of calipers to help choose which bit for each string slot ( they are also cheap and come in handy for other uses ).
Another beautiful neck ! Love the look of the flame maple roasted and binding. Considering how well made they are and a lifetime of playing you can get out of one ( not to mention the options) they are well worth it.
That’s really cool mod, great job ! I would love to have one made but need to save for a neck .
Just swamp ash fro Warmoth (chosen for its light weight), and a bit of fun with staining, sanding back etc to get the pronounced stripes. Part of the cool factor is that it's also a 1 piece body - it's assymetrical in terms of grain pattern, and has no seams anywhere.
wait are we posting pics now . I've had many Warmoth necks over the years and never once was I disappointed. I still have a few here but This is my current fav. A 32" Warhead in Ziricote & Ebony . I installed Luminlay on it awhile back too .Gold frets option The Body is a Warmoth SSB P in Sugar Pine .w/ PNW pickup . Finish by Pittman Guitars aka Tb's Paul Slagle
The graphite rods have the same strength as steel for less weight, I'm not sure why steel would ever be preferable. I've had a Warmoth fretless J parts bass for 35 years, well before CF was commonly available (except on a Steinberger) and it's been incredibly stable over the years. I think there may be some small % of marketing hype in CF bars, but they certainly do no harm, and have no negative effect on weight. I've built two basses with CF bars, so far, so good!
oh fyi the SSB's do not have bars ,only a truss rod . Just in case you go for a SSB in the future
Thanks! I went roasted maple because I strongly prefer the feel of an unfinished neck, and Warmoth won't warranty a regular maple neck without a finish but they WILL warranty a roasted one.
The cost difference for roasted vs. flamed roasted wasn't that much past that so, might as well?
Pretty sweet! I thought it might be ash. And finding a single piece body is pretty cool too.
Regardless of all that, you did a beautiful job on that finish.
Latest posts
-
Uber Eats class action lawsuit alleges their priority delivery is a scam- Latest: monsterthompson
-
-
-
