Warmoth Jag/Mustang Neck on Squier VM Jag?

[myramyd]

Hey Everyone,

I've searched long and far and can't find the answer, so thought I would ask here. Does anyone know if the Warmoth Mustang/Jaguar necks would fit the Squier VM Jaguars (and Mustangs)? Are they a special fit only for the Warmoth bodies or were they also designed to replace Fender-spec short-scale necks?

Yes, the scale lengths are the same (24"). The neck pocket appears to be close, but wondering if the screw holes and other things would line up.

I've built 3 different Warmoth guitars before and cross-bred some Strat necks with Fender bodies before, but this exact pairing doesn't seem to have any info out there.

I have a Squier VM Jaguar that I really love, but the neck feel is a little weird at times and the fretwork is passable but not the best (I've already worked it over). The guitar itself actually sounds incredible. Probably a credit to the pickups, but the basswood body actually resonates decently. I may have just lucked out with it. The finish on the body and the pickguard are also excellent (white with tortoise pickguard). The neck is a little narrow at the nut and the back shape is fine when I'm seated but standing up it doesn't quite feel right. I think it has a slight V profile, which hurts my hand a bit. It took many tweaks on the truss rod at first to straighten it out and it's still pretty sensitive to temperature. Otherwise it's not too bad. I got it back when they were still $299.

I guess the question is whether the Warmoth necks fit the more standard Fender Mustangs/Jaguars. If they do, it might be a fit here. I've thought about picking up a Squier Mustang while they are still cheap and doing a neck swap there as well.

Anyway, if anyone has any knowledge on this fitting/pairing, I would appreciate it! If it won't work, I can just live with it.

J

 

[Logrinn]

I tried a Fender Jaguar today at a music store and because I always  play 24" necks (I have 3 Warmoths) I have some experience with them. I would guess and say no.
Of course the Squier might be different, but I get the feeling that the Fender necks are not as wide at the neck pocket area as the Warmoths. Meaning that I doubt that the Warmoth neck would fit the Fender (and probably Squier) neck pocket.
I guess the only way to know for sure would be to get hold of a Warmoth neck and try and see if it fits.

 

[myramyd]

Yeah, I'm kind of wondering if the Warmoth neck is a bit wider at the heel. I would need to take the neck off the Jag to really get accurate measurements. I've been off by a few MM on other builds and it was no dice. That's why I'm wondering here. I know there are some degree of "standards" to most of the Fender bodies, aside from special models but can't find any good info on Jaguars and Mustangs.

J

 

[Cagey]

All Warmoth guitar neck heels are 2 3/16" wide, even the "super wide" neck, so what you need to measure is the pocket you want it to fit into.

 

[myramyd]

Thanks Cagey,

I will see if I can get a good measurement then. Next time I change strings I will pull the neck off. I may even be able to pull another Strat Warmoth neck off and see if the heel and screw holes match up. That should give me the answer.

For some strange reason I thought I had seen a note somewhere on the Warmoth site saying the Mustang/Jag necks were only for Warmoth bodies. But I must have been wrong.

Will report my findings back here in the future in case anyone else has the same question.

Appreciate the input!
J

 

[Cagey]

What they say is:

Mustang/Jaguar Replacement Necks

These replacement necks use the same heel dimensions as our standard necks. However, they DO NOT work on standard-scale bodies due to their much shorter 24" scale length. Both the Mustang/Jaguar Strat® and Mustang/Jaguar CBS replacement necks have a rounded heel shape.

Perhaps that's what you saw.

 

[myramyd]

Hey Cagey,

That may be what I saw and just didn't read it all the way through before. I thought it was strange that in my internet and forum searches that I couldn't find ANY info about someone swapping a Warmoth Mustang/Jag neck to any Fender or Squier Mustang/Jag body before. Just questions relating to that statement above. It's pretty obvious you can't interchange scale lengths at will and I found a lot of posts relating to that, but not actual swapping 24" scale Warmoth necks to 24" scale Fender/Squier bodies.

J

 

[Cagey]

Well, you can change scale lengths just by changing necks, but only within a certain range. For example, Warmoth sells "conversion" necks that will let you have your choice of a 28 5/8", 25 1/2" or 24 3/4" scale neck on the same body. But, the 24" neck goes too far. Although, if memory serves they will work with their 7/8 scale bodies. So, you could build a very short Strat or Tele.

It's actually a pretty cool feature. Like the looks of a Strat or a Jazzmaster, but don't like the higher string tension or the added reach? Get a Strat or Jazzmaster neck with a compound radius, Wizard profile and a 24 3/4" scale. It'll make it feel like you've dropped down a gauge set and the frets are slightly closer together.  Comes in handy if you have small hands, or are old and arthritic like me  :icon_biggrin:

 

[Logrinn]

... Although, if memory serves they will work with their 7/8 scale bodies. So, you could build a very short Strat or Tele.

You sure can. Put a Mustang, 24" neck on a 7/8 Strat body.
And it's not short at all. It's perfect.

For me ...

It's the ordinary Strats that are too long  :icon_biggrin:

[youtube]hF5IN4YjARg[/youtube]

 

[myramyd]

Cool "mini" guitar!  :guitaristgif:

Okay, measuring the neck itself, still in place, the widest part seems to be about 55mm, so the pocket is probably 56mm, which is right on Warmoth spec. So it has got to be very close, if not right on. I'm tempted to try it, but will probably pull the neck off when I go to change strings next and do some thorough measuring and testing. I have a loose MIM Strat neck that I know is the same size, since I replaced it with a W neck a while back. So I assume if that one fits then a W neck heel would.

Yeah, I have a Warmoth Telecaster with a 24 3/4" conversion neck on it--all Warmoth build. Unfortunately I have had a lot of trouble with either the frets or neck straightness on it (still don't know) and haven't been able to get rid of the fret buzz no matter what I do. So I haven't gotten an accurate feel of whether I like the conversion necks due to the bad experience with it. I had a thread long ago about it, so I won't rehash that, but I have a few other (25.5") W necks that came after that were/are perfect from the factory. Didn't even have to shave the nut down on those.

J

 

[Cagey]

Not to take anything away from Warmoth, but their necks aren't perfect when they ship them, and they'll even tell you so. They leave final setup to the end user, because it's sort of a personal thing. Many can play their necks right out of the box because even without setup they're at least as good as most manufacturer's necks, but if you want it perfect, it'll need attention. Frets will need levelling and subsequent re-crowning, ends need dressing, and finally the whole thing needs to be polished. Nut slots are cut sorta narrow and shallow because they don't know what you're going to use for strings or how you want them to feel. So, your conversion neck probably just needs that attention. 

 

[myramyd]

Yeah, here was the thread on that--you and I were actually talking back and forth there as well: http://www.unofficialwarmoth.com/index.php?topic=22674.0

So, as you can see, I've already done a LOT to it as have several "professionals". I have actually done a couple more fret levels myself since that post and although it's not as bad as it was originally, the buzz is still there. It's bad enough that I can't use it in the studio. Live it's mostly okay if I don't play much in the 5th-8th fret areas. The fret rocker doesn't show any high frets any more, but the sitar buzz is still there and the notched straightedge shows issues with the fretboard--high and low spots. So the neck may just be warped or not even. I've tried everything from super high relief to super low, along with action higher and lower. Lower actually has less buzz, probably because the frets are more level than the neck is.

Sorry to dig up that old thread and go off topic, it just still kind of bugs me that I may have gotten a lemon and can't fix it. It was a "Screaming Deal" neck and has bonus birdseye. It looks great so it makes me super sad.  :sad:

J

 

[BigSteve22]

This may be a stupid question, but have you checked the bridge? I've had "sitar buzz" from a saddle because the bottom of one of the height adjust screw was not sitting firmly against the bridge plate. Could also be a rough spot, like a file mark, or maybe the string isn't breaking cleanly over the saddle edge.

Just a thought.

 

[myramyd]

Yep, on my third bridge as well. I started with an ashtray Fender 3-saddle brass bridge, then went to an ashtray 6-saddle bridge and am now on the Gotoh "modern" 6-saddle bridge. This one actually has better sustain and less twang, but the sitar buzz is just never ending.

The frets are stainless steel, which I've heard have a little more buzz than normal, but this is like fret-out sitar as you get when bending on a 7.25" radius in the higher frets.

I have taken it to 3 different recommended luthiers here locally and they did nothing to help it. I've spent what the neck is worth 3 times over now, when I really just should have gotten a new neck! I'm not sure I can say they are competent enough to deal with serious issues. I would probably need to ship it to Dan Erlewine himself to really fix it.

I also should say that I have 15 guitars and none of them do this even a little. I know the difference between buzz from low action/setup and just fret-out sitar.

J

 

[BigSteve22]

Maybe it's just haunted...........

???

 

[new-killer-star]

Might or might not be related but I was just watching this, and he suggested you can get a sitar like buzz / tone from the saddles (about 13:20 in):
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5oiKgXzDi2Q[/youtube]

 

[genxyde]

Warmoth says they make "replacement" necks, so it should fit. but you can always call them and ask.