Warmoth Neck Finishes Question

[stratamania]

The best hole size to order for Hipshot Grip Lok tuners is the Schaller hole that Warmoth offers. Perfect fit.

Exactly. Just watch when you order, as Warmoth's "Schaller" hole has changed. The "new" hole is a straight bored 25/64". The "old" spec was 25/64" / 11/32" stepped bore. According to their web site, Warmoth will do the old style at no charge,  but you may have to ask for it. A phone call will allay any doubts. BTW, I love those tuners! Very stable...

Its the stepped bore, I was referring to.

I don't see the change you mention. (Do you have a link)

The straight bore 25/64" is the Sperzel bore, the Schaller option in the showcase and in the builder is the 25/64" / 11/32" stepped bore.

 

[Fat Pete]

The best hole size to order for Hipshot Grip Lok tuners is the Schaller hole that Warmoth offers. Perfect fit.

Exactly. Just watch when you order, as Warmoth's "Schaller" hole has changed. The "new" hole is a straight bored 25/64". The "old" spec was 25/64" / 11/32" stepped bore. According to their web site, Warmoth will do the old style at no charge,  but you may have to ask for it. A phone call will allay any doubts. BTW, I love those tuners! Very stable...

Its the stepped bore, I was referring to.

I don't see the change you mention. (Do you have a link)

The straight bore 25/64" is the Sperzel bore, the Schaller option in the showcase and in the builder is the 25/64" / 11/32" stepped bore.

It was, as BigSteve22 says, showing a straight bore on one or the other for a while recently, but has changed back. (If you look at 'more info' on the builder, it lists Schaller and Sperzel as the same, straight bore, option.)

 

[BigSteve22]

The best hole size to order for Hipshot Grip Lok tuners is the Schaller hole that Warmoth offers. Perfect fit.

Exactly. Just watch when you order, as Warmoth's "Schaller" hole has changed. The "new" hole is a straight bored 25/64". The "old" spec was 25/64" / 11/32" stepped bore. According to their web site, Warmoth will do the old style at no charge,  but you may have to ask for it. A phone call will allay any doubts. BTW, I love those tuners! Very stable...

Its the stepped bore, I was referring to.

I don't see the change you mention. (Do you have a link)

The straight bore 25/64" is the Sperzel bore, the Schaller option in the showcase and in the builder is the 25/64" / 11/32" stepped bore.

Link:
http://www.warmoth.com/Guitar/Necks/TunerHoles.aspx

 

[davegardner0]

Alright, I ordered my neck! Very excited about this. I attached the specs I settled on. Thanks for the clarity on the tuner hole sizes. I may end up buying new tuners right off though as I realized that the cheap ones I have aren't staggered which would mean I need 2 string trees. If I upgrade I'll get staggered tuners which mean I'll only need 1 (or 0?) and then I'd have a random hole in my headstock.

I should have said it earlier but this neck is to fix up my old Squier Telecaster Custom. The guitar has lots of sentimental value to me (my second guitar, bought it when I first learned to play about 15 years ago). But the neck is pencil thin sadly and just doesn't work for me at all any more. I did some research on the body (agathis) and it sounds like it's actually of decent quality with a mahogany-type sound and not plywood construction so for me it makes sense to pair it with a really nice neck.

Next I need to find some vector art somewhere to duplicate the headstock logo, hmmm. I really like the "Custom" lettering on the Fender Tele Custom headstock, I think I might combine the "Telecaster Custom" from that art (if I can find it) with my own brand lettering instead of "Fender". I've had good luck making waterslide decals in the past so I think it'll come out looking good. I might finish over the decal and do a gloss headstock face leaving the rest of the neck unfinished.

 

[Cagey]

Warmoth doesn't drill string tree holes in the headstock, so you won't have a random hole left over if you don't install a string tree.

Even if you don't get staggered tuners, you don't need a string tree. The key is a properly cut nut. String trees are a kluge that came into being when Leo Fender realized there was never going to be enough time on a production line to cut a nut properly. So, they just gave it a lick and a promise and installed string trees to keep the strings from popping out of the slots. Theoretically, a dealer should set up the guitar properly, or the new owner would take it somewhere else to have that done. Of course, in reality that rarely happened, and even when it did the trees were already there so we've always had to suffer Yet Another Reason for Strats to lose tuning ever since.

 

[davegardner0]

Warmoth doesn't drill string tree holes in the headstock, so you won't have a random hole left over if you don't install a string tree.

Even if you don't get staggered tuners, you don't need a string tree. The key is a properly cut nut. String trees are a kluge that came into being when Leo Fender realized there was never going to be enough time on a production line to cut a nut properly. So, they just gave it a lick and a promise and installed string trees to keep the strings from popping out of the slots. Theoretically, a dealer should set up the guitar properly, or the new owner would take it somewhere else to have that done. Of course, in reality that rarely happened, and even when it did the trees were already there so we've always had to suffer Yet Another Reason for Strats to lose tuning ever since.

Interesting. Yeah I guess I was assuming I needed 1 string tree for staggered tuners and 2 string trees for non-staggered, hence I'd have a spare hole if converting. But zero string trees sound even better! I agree they don't help tuning, I have 2 guitars right now with straight headstocks and I have a bit of grease on the backs of the string trees on both instruments.

I have the tools and know-how to cut basic nut slots. And I guess the break angle will be slightly less without the tree. How specifically should they be cut to eliminate the need for string trees?

 

[Cagey]

There's an article here that talks about cutting nut slots in more detail than you usually hear about. The only place I take issue with it is where he discusses slot sidewall height.

According to the author, if your sidewalls are too high, you can't see if the string is seated properly. Well, without cutting the slot in half to get a side section view of the interior of the slot, I'm not sure how you're supposed to see that anyway. Other than that, those walls can be a mile high and it's not going to impact the string at all. So, rather than have the string barely in place like it is in the rightmost view above, leave a little wall there so the string has something to bear against when you bend it, so it doesn't just pop out of the slot. Nothing as dramatic as illustrated above left, but more than a half-round depression as shown on the right.

I suspect that article was written many years ago, before some players started bending strings a whole step or more as a matter of course.

But, there's a lotta other good information in there regarding slot geometry and so on, so it should be required reading for anyone who's gonna cut a nut.

 

[Logrinn]

Staggered tuners, no string tree:

Works perfectly!

 

[stratamania]

Thsnks BigSteve and FatPete for the links. Most odd that in the builder and the showcase options the Schaller is two step yet on more info and the tuner page it is not.

Holy inconsistent web info Batman...