What's the deal with Non recessed Floyd roses and a angled neck pocket?

GT1-Reach

Junior Member
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Hi guys,

i am currently building my first partscaster made out of a Warmoth Neck and a MJT Body. I thought i had think this through enough, but one Thing slipped through.

My guitar was/is planned to have a non recessed Non fine tuner floyd rose. Yesterday i build it up and than it striked me. Of course i have to say, the guitar is not Setup in any way at the Moment, i will my luthier let do this.

The guitar is pretty much unplayable because the strings are way to near to the fretboard, beginning at around the 8 or 9th fret until the 17th or 18th fret. After short inspection i saw that the neck sits in an angle in the pocket. of course this is a angled pocket Body. i wasnt Aware of this. For someone who was pretty much hazzle free regarding floyds until now, i never read something about a angled neck pocket before or stumbled upon this topic. yeah, where i'm living, right?  :icon_biggrin:

I start to wonder why you would Need this angle? Please tell me if i am severly wrong here, but i think without an angle this guitar would be pretty much good to go.

On monday i will go to my luthier for the Setup and i will ask him what to do. I am not a big fan of neck shims (technically they might work well, but i cant stand the thought that a guitar Needs a shim to work at all). Or maybe its just a Setup Thing? maybe the neck Needs adjustment? I dont know, but i think its not a Setup Thing here. If this guitar would Need a shim, would it be possible to just eliminate the angle by sanding it down? of course done by my luthier.

Or am i totally wrong here?

Of course hard to tell without any Pictures, i will post photos of the guitar and the Problem in some hours when i am home again.

Greetz!
 
A non-recessed Floyd (including NFT) requires an angle in the neck pocket otherwise it would be difficult to achieve a low action.

Again a neck pocket angle for this type of bridge is needed unless it is recessed. You would have bigger problems if the neck pocket, in this case, did not have an angle.

See also here: http://www.unofficialwarmoth.com/index.php?topic=30535.msg430002#msg430002

From your description, if the strings are low between the 8/9th fret to the 17/18th fret it sounds like the neck does not have sufficient relief and needs a truss rod adjustment.

Have you done truss rod adjustments before?

I would assume you perhaps have not done so and as you say you have not done any set up yet it might be better to take it to your luthier/setup guy to help you out.


 
My first build had a body that had a route for a standard 2 point Strat trem. I had all intentions of putting a flat mount Floyd on it. I did and found out quick you need an angle for a flat mount. I did the old playing card trick and made a "ramp" of 5 cards cut at progressively shorter lengths. You can definitely see the neck at an angle against the body but not anything like you're describing. I would say the difference from front to rear of the pocket was maybe .030". The neck that was originally paired with that body might have been a little thinner as well.
You could try the opposite of what I did and add some height at the front of the pocket as a test. I've used about anything I could find over the years. Business cards, matchbooks, cards etc.
 
It is not the angle that needs looking at it is the relief and set up of the neck and the overall guitar. From what the OP has said that is where to look, the pocket angle is a red herring in the analysis at this point.
 
stratamania said:
It is not the angle that needs looking at it is the relief and set up of the neck and the overall guitar. From what the OP has said that is where to look, the pocket angle is a red herring in the analysis at this point.

Agree.  I think the hardware is correct.  Check you neck relief.  You may have it real tight creating a backbow.
 
I've ordered many bodies and necks (always thru the site) from Warmoth over the years and I only build using both Warmoth parts (neck and body). All my locking trems are decked flush on top and dive only. When ordering, if you want the Floyd Rose route, the post holes and the back cavity done, you have to choose that angled neck pocket option. Every single body I've ever received w the angled pocket, has always made the angle a lil too steep and there's always fret out somewhere above the 15th fret. Yes, I always have plenty of relief.

I just rout down the angle a bit, them re-fill the neck pocket w a glued in Mahog slab, then re-rout it to 5/8" deep. If it still needs to be finessed from there, the small .25 angled wood shim from Stew Mac usually gets it right. The next body I order I think I'll call in and try to get it done w out that angled pocket. Drives me nuts.
 
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