Do Warmoth strats need alot of work to play well?

[Joe1166]

Once the guitar is fully assembled and set up do the Warmoth strats play just like a high priced fender strat. Can the Warmoth strat be set up with low action? I read somewhere on the warmoth website that the frets have to be professionally worked on to accommodate low action.

 

[BigSteve22]

Welcome Joe-

I've only built one Warmoth, a strat, so I'm certainly no expert, but I've been playing for 50 years and done a fair amount of work on my axes over the years.

My neck came needing very little work. The fret ends were kind of rough, and needed a fair amount of fine filing to get them where I wanted them. The nut was cut way too high, as I expected, putting open chords out of tune. As I didn't have a proper set of files, I took the completed guitar to a pro to re-cut the nut. Cost me $40. If you want a complete fret level, it will of course cost more, but mine didn't require it.

My action is set low, <.050 @ the 12th fret on the low E string . Plays wonderfully. Just be careful during assembly, make sure the neck pocket is clean and that the neck fits snugly and flat on it's base.

I don't play professionally, but for me, the action and playability is right up there with the best of them.

 

[Tonar8352]

I always send my guitars to my favorite set guy for a complete fret dressing and final set up.  They are exceptional when they come back. Exceptional!!

 

[sixstringsamurai]

Short of fret ends needing a bit of dressing, the necks I have bought have been playable out of box.
But mind you I do all my own work.

Be aware, they DO NOT drill for pickguards / pick up rings / Strap pins / output jack plates /  tuning machine screw holes.
so if you're not comfortable drilling into your new $200+ body, I would recommend sending it out for assembly.

I personally think that for the price point you can't beat warmouth, and I would put either of mine against any american made guitar anyday of the week.

 

[stratamania]

Most parts necks are playable, but with stainless steel frets and the final touches added by someone who knows what they are doing or is willing to learn how to do it themselves Warmoth necks can be up there with really high quality stuff.

If you have not done fret work before, consider the tools could cost more than outsourcing the job.

Also if you buy tools to do more than one guitar, practice first on something that doesn't matter.

 

[Cagey]

Once the guitar is fully assembled and set up do the Warmoth strats play just like a high priced fender strat. Can the Warmoth strat be set up with low action? I read somewhere on the warmoth website that the frets have to be professionally worked on to accommodate low action.

Properly set up, they'll play pretty good. You won't be disappointed. But, to get to "high end" you need to have the frets professionally dealt with. Warmoth only installs and bevels the frets. They still need to be levelled, re-crowned, dressed and polished if you want the lowest action and highest playability possible. It's not that they're that far off - after all, the frets are being installed on a freshly machined fretboard. But, you'll still always find some frets that sit a tad high. Without taking those down, you end up running a higher action than you might want. Then, a bevelled end feels a bit rough so you really want those dressed.

For instance, these frets are just bevelled...

while these have been dressed/polished...

Once all the frets are good, then you can properly set up the nut. Warmoth cuts them well, but the slots are a bit shallow to allow for adjustment depending on your string size and setup requirements.