Noob needs help for replacement Tele neck

[HTT]

Hi,

I'm new to the the forum and new to custom necks. I am looking for advice for a new neck for my 2010 Std. Am. Tele. It is three-tone sunburst. It has a maple neck and maple fretboard. Standard alnico 5 pickups. It sounds absolutely fantastic, acoustically and plugged in. I hate the feel of the neck. I am looking to replace the neck reflecting dimensions of guitar necks I love. I am looking for specific advice for wood choices and whether a pro conversion to 24.75 scale length is a smart thing to do. I would like to keep the overall tone fairly consistent with what it has now, but the guitar could be warmed up a bit without much concern. I want a standard thin contour neck. 1 5/8 nut. I want a smooth, fast neck feel. Will Pau/Pau get me what I want? Pau/Pau is awesome to behold, but will it look weird with a three-tone sunburst and white pickguard? Any other wood combinations you would recommend? Would a 24.75 scale length throw the Tele tone off too much? I prefer 24.75 as a scale length for comfort and "feel". I could happily tolerate 25.5 if 24.75 would alter the Tele vibe too much. Thank you for your wisdom, neck Jedi masters!

 

[Cagey]

A three-tone burst usually looks best with a Maple 'board, but it's a rare day when Warmoth will put a Maple 'board on any neck meat other than Maple. I've only seen it once in 4 years.

But, if you want something that feels really nice, plays really fast, doesn't require a finish and still gives you a sorta-Maple look, then you might consider putting a Canary 'board on a Pau Ferro neck, or even Canary over Canary. It'll sound much like the Maple neck you have now... maybe slightly warmer. Tough to say. But, it'll play like a dream. Especially if you burnish the neck as lined out here, and put stainless steel frets on it.

Or, just get another Maple on Maple neck, but sized to fit you and with SS frets. It'll have to have a finish, but they do both satin and gloss finishes pretty reasonably, and do a great job of it.

 

[stubhead]

A Warmoth neck with their double rod will have a bit more metal in it than the Fender, so you can go warmer on woods, though that switch to 24.75" may be all the warming you'll need. My all time #1 "I-KNOW-it's-gonna-work" necks are maple/pau ferro board, which is slightly warmer than maple/maple, but not much.

Wood choices aren't really definitive, except when you get to something like a really soft "Indonesian 'mahogany'" which may never let much tooth through. I personally prefer a hard, bright sounding neck and body and shape the treble back later in the process, with speaker choice and amps and all. TONE KNOBS, for Pete's sake....

 

[DustyCat]

They told me I would stop growing sometime around my early 20's, yet, with all the blood rushing into them from so much more use (typing, guitar/video game playing) my hands have never been bigger.

I would Strongly urge you to check out a slightly wider nut (1 11/16"). TUSQ Black XL, so nice! "And then Lawd, we was so lovey dovey"  :cool01:

 

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

The standard thin will feel close to the same of what it's replacing, unless you're referring to the feel of the finish.  Your Fender neck with maple/maple is actually one piece of maple.  To replace it with a 24 3/4 conversion neck, it is their Pro construction, so a neck with the same wood for neck and fretboard is going to be 2 separate pieces glued together, as well as having the Gotoh side adjust mechanism.  Not a big deal, but a deal breaker for some, and even a WTF post for one unaware customer.

 

[line6man]

Pau/Pau is awesome to behold, but will it look weird with a three-tone sunburst and white pickguard?

It looks great! The SRV Strat and Jaco Jazz bass have Pau Ferro boards on sunburst bodies, albeit without white pickguards.

 

[Day-mun]

Buy a mint green or tortoise shell pickguard while you are at it, to go over to a darker neck... if you're worried about it.  :icon_smile: