Neck and tail blocks

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banjoguync
Posts: 12
Joined: Thu Nov 19, 2015 1:15 am

Neck and tail blocks

Post by banjoguync »

Ok, My first build and Ive got the top and back braced up and the sides attached with the blocks and kerfiing glued on. I have noticed that the tail block is centered just fine BUT the neck block is off to one side. Its not crooked but the bottom and top of the block is off the centerline (where the sides meet) by about .040 or so. What should I do, should I offset the top and back .040 on the tail block as well to make the neck sit center of the body or will that small amount make a difference?
MaineGeezer
Posts: 1711
Joined: Wed Aug 13, 2014 12:14 pm

Re: Neck and tail blocks

Post by MaineGeezer »

Have you cut the dovetail in the neck block yet? If not, just cut the dovetail centered on the body.

I assume the dovetail is cut though, and that is what is off-center. I defer to John and others who actually know what they are talking about, but one way I think you could fix it is to shave 0.040" off the relevant side of the dovetail and add a shim on the other side to shift the neck over. On second thought....maybe not. The luthier I'm working with cuts his dovetails loose and shims them to final fit, but we're talking maybe 0.01" loose. 0.040" might be a bit much. Still, if you shaved the socket in the neck block and glued a shim on the other side of the socket, what would be a problem?
Don't believe everything you know.
Anything is possible if you don't know what you are talking about.
When things are bad, try not to make them any worse, because it is quite likely they are bad enough already. - French Foreign Legion
Diane Kauffmds
Posts: 3246
Joined: Sun Mar 09, 2014 8:13 pm

Re: Neck and tail blocks

Post by Diane Kauffmds »

As Maingeezer said, if the block is off center, but you've not cut the dovetail, then just cut the dovetail on center; the block won't care. If the dovetail has already been cut, first and foremost, check to see where the center of the dovetail, not the block is located (never assume that a precut dovetail is centered). This is what you need centered, not the block. If the dovetail is dead center, then all is well. If not, heat/steam will unglue the block, then it can be recentered. A regular old steam clothes iron will put enough steam/heat into the area to get that block unglued. I keep an old steam iron, just for this purpose.

As you can tell, I've had a little experience with this problem. LOL
Diane Kauffmann
Country Roads Guitars
countryroadsguitars@gmail.com
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