[SOLVED] Help: Warmoth neck similar to Jazzmaster American original?

[molul]

EDIT: after some research, the 59 Roundback is exactly the same as the Jazzmaster American Original's mid 60' C profile, with 1.650 but width and 9.5 radius.


Original post:

Hi! I'm making a Jazzmaster with Warmoth parts and I ordered a standard thin one, but I've been warned by my luthier that it might be thinner than what I'm looking for (mid 60's C shape, according to the specs).

Truth is, I ordered a Warmoth neck 10 years ago through a local "assembler" (more than a luthier) and it does feel thin in comparison to the one I was comfortable with (Billy Corgan's signature Stratocaster modern C shape) but I never knew which neck profile he ordered as he wasn't very transparent with the parts he ordered. I knew it was Warmoth much later when I modified the neck.

I have a few doubts. Hope you can shed some light:

-Is Warmoth's standard thin the same as Fender's modern C shape?

-Could it be that back in 2010, Warmoth's standard thin was thinner than nowadays?

-I seem to be more comfortable with thicker profiles, but the 59 roundback seems a bit too thick in 12th fret. Should I avoid that one?

 

[stratamania]

The profiles and thicknesses can be seen here.

https://www.warmoth.com/Guitar/Necks/BackContours.aspx

Perhaps look at the necks you already have and the measurements and do a comparison.

Only you can really answer  what you should try or should avoid.

https://www.warmoth.com/Guitar/Necks/faq1.aspx

 

[TBurst Std]

Here’s a link to a site that lists thickness of the modern c

Top left of chart
https://artisanguitars.com/fender-custom-shop-neck-profiles

 

[TBurst Std]

Comparing the 2 links, the W Std thin is closest. .020 thinner at both frets 1 and 12.
The ones bigger exceed the .020 difference.

 

[molul]

Thanks everyone. I'm dubious about the measures of the modern C and 65 strat C necks in that link. It says 1st fret is only 0.020" thicker than Warmoth thin but I'd swear I felt much more difference with the Warmoth standard thin. I sold the guitar but had a luthier make a copy of the neck (it's currently in progress) and he measured 21,06mm, which is 0,83".

Therefore, no Warmoth neck profile seems to fit what I'm looking for. But maybe I should change it to 59 roundback and maybe ask a luthier to sand it a bit before putting it on the guitar. Would that make sense or would that be risky somehow?

 

[Logrinn]

My 2 cents ...

1. I don't believe Fender is especially known for being consistent with their measurements. What someone might think a particular Fender neck is a thin one another person would find normal, because of their respective experiences with previous Fender's. Case in point - my Fender Super-Sonic Pawn Shop has a C shaped neck, that a friend of mine thought was like a baseball bat. Go figure.

2. We humans have extreme sensitivity in our hands and fingers and two necks that are "basically" identical might feel very different, when you try them "side by side".
Case in point - I built a guitar from scratch a long time ago that included shaping a neck by hand (or by rasp, file and sandpaper). When it was perfect I painted the guitar and the finish made the neck feel completely different. And I'm not talking about applying many layers of laquer on it, but still my hands could feel the difference clearly.
Another case in point - I have four -59 roundback necks from Warmoth and they all feel a little different. But they feel closer to my Super-Sonic C shaped neck than Warmoth's Standard Thin, of which I've had one.

So I think your idea of getting a -59 roundback and sanding it until it feels right might actually be a good idea.
The only problem is that if it's a luthier that does the sanding you wont really know if he takes off too much. Better instead if you sand it yourself.

 

[molul]

I wish I could dare sanding the neck myself but I might get arrested for what I would do lol

The good thing is, the 59 roundback seems thick enough for the luthier to have enough room to work. I'd send him measures of what I would like, so I think that should do.

Too good I realized this before the order arrived. The thing I like the least from my current Warmoth strat is the neck, and I'd have felt too silly buying the same again xD

Now I hope Warmoth can change the neck at no extra cost (well, apart from the $35 extra for the 59 roundback profile). Hoping for Justin's reply on Monday.

 

[molul]

Hmmm I wonder if the 0.02" difference could be covered by the polyurethane finish I want to apply to the neck. Does anyone know if this could be a solution?

 

[PhilHill]

Hmmm I wonder if the 0.02" difference could be covered by the polyurethane finish I want to apply to the neck. Does anyone know if this could be a solution?

I had to strip the finish from a Made in Mexico Strat a couple years ago. It basically came off in large chunks with a razor blade, some of those chunks exceeded .040 in thickness. A 32nd of an inch is .031. Now granted, the MIM fenders are known for how thick their finish is and that guitar I believe was a polyester type finish. Polyurethane usually isn't quite as thick, but depending how many coats you put on I could see it reaching .020 of an inch. However I'm not sure that would be proper solution to your problem. But I'm not one that believes in having thick finishes on instruments.

 

[molul]

This is becoming such a puzzle for me xD The standard thin seems thinner than what I'm looking for (although it could be compensated with the polyurethane finish) but the 59 roundback is way too thick on the 12th fret (but it could be sanded down to my liking). Arrr, so worried to order the wrong neck lol

Will investigate a bit.

 

[molul]

Well, I was able to measure the Jazzmaster American Original today, and the neck is around 0.860" on the 1st fret and 0.960" on the 12th (probably 0.01 or 0.005" less, as I measured it with the strings), so it's nearly identical identical to a 59 Roundback profile. Maybe the 59 is a slightly thicker but that's not a problem. I thought 0.860 would feel much thicker than this.

I tested it for a while and it definitely feels more comfortable (to me) than my current Standard Thin neck.

So that's it! I'm getting a 59 Roundback

 

[Cagey]

It's not just the thickness, it's the shape (profile). For example,  a "C" profile will feel thinner than a "D", even though the thickness is the same.

 

[molul]

Well, that is also confusing, as Warmoth's standard thin is C, this Jazzmaster is called "mid 60's C", and the Billy Corgan Stratocaster's was "modern C", and they all felt different lol

 

[Cagey]

Hands/fingers being the sensitive things they are, even very small differences can feel substantial, so descriptions aren't always worth as much as one might hope. You have a little more chance of knowing what to expect from modern parts made on CNC machines, as they're fairly consistent.

 

[molul]

I just noticed the neck also has straight 9.5 radius and 1.650 nut width. Justin from Warmoth is gonna hate me with so many changes in different emails ^_^U

 

[Rick]

You never know until try it,

 

[Rick]

Awesome!  How'd you find out?

 

[molul]

Well, a friend of mine has a Jazzmaster American Original and I measured the neck on 1st and 12th fret (0.8663 and 0.965; I guess the extra thickness is because of the finishing). The rest of specs were easy to find by googling a bit.

It's not exactly the same as Billy Corgan's signature strat (a bit thicker) but I'm sure the American Original feels great in my hands, so the neck I'm finally ordering seems like a safe bet

On the other hand, I ordered a local luthier a replica of Corgan's strat a few months ago, so I will be able to compare both soon, but I'm guessing I'll prefer the Roundback  :icon_biggrin:

 

[easymeow]

EDIT: after some research, the 59 Roundback is exactly the same as the Jazzmaster American Original's mid 60' C profile, with 1.650 but width and 9.5 radius.

How did the 59 Roundback work out? I'm also on the hunt for a Warmoth that lines up with the American Original Jazzmaster.

 

[molul]

Oh, I love it. I think I found my Warmoth neck for any future build. It feels just perfect