bolt -in kits?

[Pletcrum]

Can anyone tell me if the bolt-in kits are better than standard wood screws?  The bolt in kit have captive nuts that are screw into the neck, then bolts secure the body in place.

 

[Jusatele]

let's see, we have been using wood screws since the 50s, and now we have bolts. So are we worried that for 60 years we made mistakes and the wood screws did not work, or if we think it is a better neck joint?. I would say if you plan on taking the neck off it would be better.

 

[mayfly]

They work great for me, but I have B-Benders on my guitars and wank on the neck quite a bit.

For a regular guitar, it probably does not matter as much.

 

[Cagey]

Can anyone tell me if the bolt-in kits are better than standard wood screws?  The bolt in kit have captive nuts that are screw into the neck, then bolts secure the body in place.

It's a mechanically superior joint, and is tighter. Whether they translates into any sonic difference is debatable; there are some pretty wild claims out there. I've got them on all my guitars, but I put them together that way in the first place so I don't know what they would have sounded like otherwise. It's a more serviceable fastening scheme in that it doesn't wear like wood screw holes do, so if you find yourself removing your neck every so often you're better off with the insert/bolt setup.

So... better? I think so, at least for the reasons given.

 

[AGWAN]

I'm really worried about crushing the finish if I do inserts on a Warmoth painted body. I'm fine with still using a plate... but clamping it to drill... eek.

 

[Cagey]

You don't do anything to the body; the inserts go in the neck. You still use a plate, but the screws are different in that they're machine screws instead of wood screws. Once it's assembled, you really can't tell the neck/body joint has been modified. 

 

[rapfohl09]

Cagey what brand of kit are you using? Or do you put them together yourself? I'm pretty interested in these myself. Anything special you have to worry about for the contoured heel?

 

[AGWAN]

You don't do anything to the body; the inserts go in the neck. You still use a plate, but the screws are different in that they're machine screws instead of wood screws. Once it's assembled, you really can't tell the neck/body joint has been modified. 

okay. same concern applies. crushing finish when clamping the neck.

 

[mayfly]

You don't do anything to the body; the inserts go in the neck. You still use a plate, but the screws are different in that they're machine screws instead of wood screws. Once it's assembled, you really can't tell the neck/body joint has been modified. 

okay. same concern applies. crushing finish when clamping the neck.

Yepper - you gotta be careful sonny.

 

[Cagey]

You don't do anything to the body; the inserts go in the neck. You still use a plate, but the screws are different in that they're machine screws instead of wood screws. Once it's assembled, you really can't tell the neck/body joint has been modified. 

okay. same concern applies. crushing finish when clamping the neck.

You do have to be careful. In my mind, the concern wasn't the finish so much as it was crushing the frets from the sides, which would tend to pop them up.

I took a series of pictures during one of my installs - gimme a few minutes and I'll organize a post-load of them so you can see what's involved.

 

[AGWAN]

Awesome!

I thank you. Preemptively

 

[Cagey]

Actually, this is going to take a little longer than a few minutes - I've got to resize these things and upload them to my server. But, we'll git 'er done.

Test shot...

(click image to enlarge)​

This is the neck we're talking about. It's a Warmoth Pro made of Koa neck meat w/ an Ebony fretboard, gold 6100 frets, a flamed Koa headstock veneer, Schaller locking tuners and a gloss poly finish. Fine piece of work, cost me a jillion bucks. Didn't want to screw it up if I could help it <grin>

 

[Cagey]

Here's a series of shots I took when installing some threaded inserts in a Warmoth neck.

This is the neck we're talking about. It's a Warmoth Pro made of Koa neck meat w/ an Ebony fretboard, gold 6100 frets, a flamed Koa headstock veneer, Schaller locking tuners and a gloss poly finish. Fine piece of work, cost me a jillion bucks. Didn't want to screw it up if I could help it <grin>

Click on any picture to enlarge it - be aware that the full-size pics are 1600x1200.

​

You really need a drill press to do this right. For one thing, you want the holes to go in perpendicular to the neck. For another, you can adjust the depth of the drill so you don't inadvertently drill through your fretboard, necessitating the coining of new cuss words...

​

Also, you can see how the neck is being held in place on the stage. There's a clamp that looks sorta like this (I don't have a picture of mine, but this is the same unit)...

I simply covered it with a soft cloth to protect the neck's finish, and closed it up on the sides of the neck until it was just barely touching it. Not really clamped, just loosely held in place.


Here, you can see the first hole is drilled.

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You'll need some 8-32 inserts, an insert tool, and a variable speed drill motor.

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Also, it's a very good idea to have some thread lubricating wax. Otherwise, you're liable to destroy the inserts.

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Then, you just drive them in. S-l-o-w-l-y. Carefully. Be sure you're going in straight.

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Once it's assembled, it will look sorta like this...

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And here's a front shot.

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See? Piece o' cake. No damage, and life is good.

 

[AGWAN]

Nice! thanks again!