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Neck scarf joint - which way?

Posted: Sun Apr 03, 2016 2:34 pm
by Stray Feathers
I'm about to start on necks and I'm confused after seeing here and elsewhere builders gluing neck scarf joints differently. Some glue the peghead to the underside of the neck, others glue the neck to the underside of the peghead. Is there a right or wrong to this? These will be mahogany slot heads with veneer tops, and it seems 15 degrees is pretty standard for the headstock angle.

Re: Neck scarf joint - which way?

Posted: Mon Apr 04, 2016 5:33 am
by MaineGeezer
I've wondered about that too. I've never made one, but in thinking about it I decided that the strongest way to do it would be to glue the headstock piece on top so the fingerboard would get glued over it. It also seems to me that less of the joint surface will get cut away when shaping the neck if it's done that way.

Whether any of that thinking is valid I leave up to those who actually know what they are talking about!

Whichever way one does it, one could inset a couple strips of carbon fiber across the joint to strengthen it.

Re: Neck scarf joint - which way?

Posted: Mon Apr 04, 2016 10:01 am
by Ben-Had
This is how I glue mine up. the scarf joint ends up being in the middle of the head stock. I have both a face plate and back plate to strengthen the joint. I sand in a volute and it ends up looking like the second pic.

Re: Neck scarf joint - which way?

Posted: Mon Apr 04, 2016 2:08 pm
by Stray Feathers
It seems the most common approach is like yours Tim - that's the way it is done in books by Cumpiano and also Sloane. I am also using Jonathan Kinkead's book, and he glues a piece of the neck material on the underside, like stacking the heel, and then cuts the headstock as if it were being cut from a solid piece. That runs the scarf across the middle of the peghead and also seems to use more wood. I think I will go the "conventional" route, but this thread on the forum (and others elsewhere) had me wondering: viewtopic.php?f=48&t=5824&p=28491&hilit=scarf#p28491

Bruce

Re: Neck scarf joint - which way?

Posted: Tue Apr 05, 2016 6:44 am
by tippie53
I have seen them done both ways. When you think about it , you have a large gluing surface and that is where the strength of this joint lies. Capping it with a veneer add a great deal of strength.
I have done them both ways in my early days and the necks are solid still after 18 yrs

Re: Neck scarf joint - which way?

Posted: Tue Jul 25, 2017 9:19 pm
by Sunset
Gluing the peghead to the top of the neck and then gluing the fretboard onto the top of the joint may provide a more secure method in that the fretboard is thicker than the face-veneer method that is used for strengthening the joint when the peghead is glued to the underside of the neck? Many headstock veneers can be thinner than fretboards. Just a thought.