Headstock Reshaping

[MajorMattMason]

Now that I've finished my 7/8 T-Style build, I must admit I'm still sorely tempted to reshape the headstock to something, ahem, more traditional. The Warmoth 7/8 neck is impeccable and I'm very happy with it .... but .... it is a Tele, right? My intention is to collect informed opinions about how "right" or "wrong" this might be as well as anecdotes from those who have succeeded (or failed) in this endeavor. I welcome all comments and suggestions regarding this topic, especially from the demigods! Thanks guys!

 

[rgand]

Re-shaping is no big deal. Both of these have been re-shaped. The top one was a paddlehead and the other was a CBS.

 

[rgand]

Oh, yeah. This one was a bogus shape I re-did to make it more Tele-ish. It was done many, many years ago and I just shot it with Varathane. Note more yellowing on the headstock than the rest of the neck.

 

[rgand]

One note here. Before I sacrificed a $300+ neck to the router, I experimented on an old neck that had a bit of a twist in it. The router flicked off a bit of the tip I really wanted to keep. Now I finish shape mine on a spindle sander. It's a bit less risky. That first one I did years ago was roughed in on the bandsaw then finished by hand with a rasp and sandpaper.

 

[Fat Pete]

OP - do you mean right and wrong in an ethical sense? If so, it seems that most people aren't too worried about using the big F's headstock shapes, as it's so widely done. The more contentious thing is people using their logos.

On the practical side, as others have said, as long as you're careful it's not a difficult task. Personally I prefer the template and router approach.

 

[amon]

I re-shaped the headstock on a cheap SX Tele once, to resemble the Fender outline.  Came out fine, but since I hadn't owned a real Telecaster before that, I didn't realize that shape has a tendency to fall through wall hangers.  Should have left it alone.