M&T (bolt-on) Neck Angle

[RnB]

As I close-in on finalizing this one:

I must of had the neck off & on hundreds of times trying to get the geometry (neck angle, alignment...etc) to be OK. As it stands right now w/ 2 frets installed on the 1st & 12th frets, I am just shy of 1/16" w/ the straightedge atop the bridge. Is this sufficient or should it be a dead-on 1/16" or more...? The gap that was prevalent under the fingerboard became minmalized when I discovered that the bolt hole in the neck block could rat-tail filed down lower than it was. Thus, dropping the neck into place for a better fit. A revelation....

I went w/ a bigger fret size rather than the smaller vintage spec size (.092" wide & .048" tall), because I like what's on a Guild acoustic I have. The finish (nitro) is all but done except for a few touch-ups & polishing that I'll hopefully take care of this week. Then, it's on to mounting the neck & bridge, then setup (nut, saddle,tuners, leveling) ~ Oh Yeah...!

[johnnparchem]

You are just shy of 1/16" over the bridge. I think that is pretty good. If I am calculating correctly, 3 mm of action at the 12 fret, your saddle will be (2 * 3mm) + your shy 1/16" inch out of the bridge; more than 1/4". That seems like plenty of saddle to me.

[RnB]

You are just shy of 1/16" over the bridge. I think that is pretty good. If I am calculating correctly, 3 mm of action at the 12 fret, your saddle will be (2 * 3mm) + your shy 1/16" inch out of the bridge; more than 1/4". That seems like plenty of saddle to me.

Wish I knew the formula for figuring it all out... This is where I become dyslexic! If I read this right John, I should be OK?

I like my Low E to be 5/64" - 5.5/64" (5/64" = .08" = 2.032 mm) @ the 12th. Will there be enough saddle to lower the string to that height w/o sacrificing break-angle? Ideally, I'd like to see about 3/16" of saddle showing when all is done.

Rich

[tippie53]

I think you are about on the money.
The more you do this the better your eyeball gets

[RnB]

Just glued-up the neck. How long do I need to leave the clamps on...?

[tippie53]

depends on the glue tite bond 1 hr
Hot Hide 4 hr
and fish 8 hr

[RnB]

I used Tite-Bond John...

[RnB]

With any luck I should be able to get this one set-up over the weekend. Scraping the lacquer off the bridge area was a little harrowing. I used Tippie's method of removal as demonstrated in one of his YT videos, only I used a Fordham drill w/ the Stew-Mac router base that I altered w/ a plexi-glass bottom plate (I needed to alter it previously, when I did the bridge wing inlays.).

Finding a deep-throated clamp proved to be a venture, but I found a 4.5" C-clamp that had enough of a reach. I can't believe SM wants $27 for one Ibex Clamp while LMI has them for only $11! Being that the one found had a straight bottom & I needed clearance for the braces, I doubled-up 2 pieces of 1/4" maple to use for a bridge plate caul & covered it w/ wax paper...just in case! I stuck it up there w/ masking tape so I wouldn't have to fuss it w/ when the clamps arrived. I now know why John cuts a shoulder around the bottom edge of the bridge. Squirrelly thing wouldn't sit still... I removed the clamps a couple hours later to see if everything was OK & all seemed fine. I went ahead and drilled the rest of the pin holes & noticed some wet glue coming up. At that point, I thought it better to let it set overnight.

This week comprised getting a final fit for the neck & gluing it in place. I was using a hex bolt to hold the neck in place but that became a real nuisance. I picked-up some 5/16" furniture bolts that have a Allen heads to them, but needed to grind the head (diameter) down some for a good fit. Chucked it up in a drill & took it to a bench sander. I then made a cover plate for the neck block to hide it. Fretted & leveled the fingerboard. After all that, I got the tuners all set in place.

Question: What size taper does a peghead reamer have. It is 5 degrees? If so, can I use it to ream-out the bridge pin holes. I have 2 sets of pins & they both have 5 degree tapers. I have a 5-degree reamer coming, but it won't be arriving till some time next week...

[tippie53]

looks good

[johnnparchem]

That is a very nice looking guitar. Congratulations!