Who buys Showcase Vs. Custom necks and why?

[NutBehindTheGuitar]

Who here buys necks from the showcase as opposed to a fully custom neck and why?

To me I don't understand why the showcase even exists. Why would you pass up on the chance for a fully custom neck?
Now the showcase does exist, it contains hundreds of necks, and clearly is a sucess, but to me it's a mystery.

Now from browsing the showcase I see you get basically four options on your showcase neck

Fret: This is a very important option. To me stainless steel is a no brainer, and fret profile is very important
String Nut: Also a very important option, especially as the options includes Earvana
Tuner hole: Not very important. If you choose the wrong size you can normally expand the existing hole, or add a spacer if you want to go smaller.
Finish: Important to some people (obsessional to some people) but personally I’m agnostic on it. Now I tend to choose fretboard woods that don’t require a finish, and I like roasted maple for the neck so I’m pretty much unfinished by design.

Current lead time on a in stock, no paint showcase neck is two weeks. Lead time on a no paint custom neck is six weeks.

So, the difference is a month. But also, it’s not like you call up Warmoth, pay for overnight shipping, and have your neck in a day or two. If your inner child is yelling “I want it now!” two weeks or six weeks isn’t going to make a big difference. Presumably your inner child will have moved on to new demand.

By going with the showcase you are giving up the neck profile, radius options, and all the cosmetic stuff.

All the necks I have ordered from Warmoth (5 in total) have been custom order and Superwide, and truthfully it’s the Superwide option that I can’t get anywhere else

Now currently there are 773 Strat replacement necks in the showcase. 594 with a 43mm nut width, 699 with a 10 to 16 compound radius. So maybe if you’re looking for a 43mm neck with a 10 to 16 compound radius, you can get exactly what you want off the shelf.

But still I don’t see it as a big deal. You’re going to be banging on this neck for ten years or more. What’s a month at the start of the process ?

Tell me about your experience, and why.

I’d also be interested in hearing from official Warmoth about the percentage of necks sold as custom, versus showcase.

 

[ghostrider25]

I buy both; time is definitely never a deciding factor.

The specs I want are pretty common:

• Standard thin
• 22 frets
• 10-16 compound radius
• Modern medium nut width
• Schaller holes

It's not hard to find necks in the showcase that match those.

Sometimes something really cool pops up in the showcase or something that will match well with the body that I plan to use and I'll buy it. Also the element of WYSIWYG that is hard to be discounted when it comes to this kind of thing. You're buying a custom one on faith that it will look good... even if you pick a UC board, you have no idea what the shaft wood will look like.

Reasons I've bought custom have been:

• A really cool UC fretboard is available and will be perfect
• There aren't any/many showcase necks with a specific wood I have in mind
• I want a less common inlay material
• I want an off-menu option for something

 

[mayfly]

I've bought showcase necks several times - and I prefer an unusual profile (boatneck). I usually go for a 'screaming deal' one, because as long as the basic dimensions are right and the wood / finish I want is there, then I'm not too fussy. This way it's cheaper / faster.

 

[NedRyerson]

I never buy Showcase necks because the inlays are usually boring dots. In the rare, rare instances they're not dots, then something else about that neck doesn't fit my aesthetic. So I always go custom.

 

[ruscio]

I've only ordered one custom neck from Warmoth, which turned out great, even beyond expectations, but I was really nervous about ordering something pricey, with shaft and fretboad wood upgrades that I couldn't see before buying. I prefer the showcase and it usually works fine b/c I prefer pretty common specs.

When I first (re)discovered Warmoth, in 2015 or so, I was really into scalloped necks and they routinely stocked some in the showcase. I soon learned to scallop necks for myself as the showcase seldom had a scalloped neck in it.

 

[MikeW]

Personally, I love the Warmoth Wizard profile, I'm only using SS frets, and have a preference for the LSR nut, but that isn't a dealbreaker for me.

So if I'm looking for something from an exotic wood, or with different material or shape for the dots, I know it'll be custom. However, the last three necks I've purchased have been from the showcase, and all of them have been Roasted Maple shafts with either Rosewood or RM fretboards. There's typically enough choices that I can find whatever is on my mind without needing to go with a custom neck.

I've had a couple customers that have done necks from exotic woods as well, so those have always been custom, but in general, we can find what they are looking for from the showcase.

 

[teleme01]

My 1st neck was showcase ebony on ebony, standard thin 43mm
2. Showcase bucote on roasted maple, standard thin 42mm.
3. Screamin deals, rosewood on roasted maple, standard thin, 42mm gibson scale
4. Roasted sale, rm on rm, standard thin, 43mm,
5. Custom, padouk on wenge, standard thin, 42mm, gibson scale
6. Custom, ebony on wenge, standard thin, 42mm, gibson scale
7. Exotic sale, canary on Canary, standard thin, 43mm.

I have bought sale items, usually 43mm and custom 42mm. I prefer custom but sometimes the sales gets the better of me. I prefer gibson scale feel but I like the extra sparkle of the fender scale so sales are acceptable. My goto is standard thin 42mm gibson scale.

 

[Mitch]

I've only bought custom spec necks from Warmoth. All have been great and not something that you can find in the showcase. I have a 7/8 Strat , a Gibson conversion and two tilt-back Gibson conversions. However, if what you want is a straightforward replacement Strat or Tele neck with a standard thin profile neck and 25.5" scale, the showcase could be the way to go because you get to see the exact neck before you buy.

 

[Don O]

Like ghostrider and others, I buy both. Time is never a factor, I’ve had bodies and necks sitting on the shelf for years sometimes. The WYSIWYG factor certainly comes into play buying a showcase. Some just have that “buy me” in their DNA like the one below.

For the custom orders I have a “standard” set of features that give my builds a similar look across them. All are either ebony or Purple Heart fret boards.

 

[JohnnyHardtail]

The showcase seems like better value for money, but often there is a compromise if your preferred spec is not available. I experienced this before and in hindsight I wished I spent the extra for full custom specs. These days I don’t really look at the showcase anymore.

 

[Strat Avenger]

I buy only custom necks. I want every spec exactly to my preference.

 

[Wolfie351]

Two words: Screamin' Deals

 

[rauchman]

I guess it depends if the showcase offerings meet your requirements for what you're looking for. If they do, why would you order a custom neck then?

I have 3 W necks, one of which was custom. Personally, I like the very 1st one the most, which was a Screamin Deal, as it has the Wolfgang carve, and otherwise meets what I was looking for.

 

[aarontunes]

People choose the showcase for three main reasons:

1. They want to feel like they are getting it right now
2. They want to feel like they got it cheaper
3. They want to see the exact item they are getting

What's amazing to me is that people will wait years for an item with the exact right specs to show up, when they could have ordered it custom and had it in weeks.

 

[mayfly]

What's amazing to me is that people will wait years for an item with the exact right specs to show up, when they could have ordered it custom and had it in weeks.

Yea - I was waiting for that silver flake double bound telecaster body for way too long...

 

[NedRyerson]

Arcade reverse headstock with ebony board & bloody basin dots ain't showin' up in Showcase like....ever.

Wenge baritone Vortex with purpleheart board & pearloid diamond inlays definitely ain't showin' up in Showcase.

 

[TBurst Std]

Sometimes you order showcase as a limited item comes up. Like my Braz Ebony Tele neck 59 round back. I don’t think the W every even offered Braz Ebony off menu.

 

[Cheery Zeery]

People choose the showcase for three main reasons:

1. They want to feel like they are getting it right now
2. They want to feel like they got it cheaper
3. They want to see the exact item they are getting

What's amazing to me is that people will wait years for an item with the exact right specs to show up, when they could have ordered it custom and had it in weeks.

I know the general mode of operation is to fill the showcase with things that are sure-sellers, but my favorite is always the stuff that makes some kind of reference. I saw a satin shell pink mooncaster body with black binding in the showcase for ages and it was clearly a reference to Tom Delonge's signature Starcaster, and that's the kind of thing I love. If I were to see a goldtop Regal body with a neck and bridge p90 route and a humbucker rout in the middle, I would instantly recognize that sorta thing and feel that much more compelled to make the purchase because it feels special when Warmoth does something tongue-in-cheek (even if I'm not the biggest Who fan).

Anyway, to close off my ramble, the one showcase purchase I did make (aside from the chimera flake tele body) was a CBS headstock strat neck that shared 90% of its DNA with a Les Paul neck, and I loved the feeling of recognizing that from just the specs alone.

 

[aarontunes]

I know the general mode of operation is to fill the showcase with things that are sure-sellers, but my favorite is always the stuff that makes some kind of reference. I saw a satin shell pink mooncaster body with black binding in the showcase for ages and it was clearly a reference to Tom Delonge's signature Starcaster, and that's the kind of thing I love. If I were to see a goldtop Regal body with a neck and bridge p90 route and a humbucker rout in the middle, I would instantly recognize that sorta thing and feel that much more compelled to make the purchase because it feels special when Warmoth does something tongue-in-cheek (even if I'm not the biggest Who fan).

Anyway, to close off my ramble, the one showcase purchase I did make (aside from the chimera flake tele body) was a CBS headstock strat neck that shared 90% of its DNA with a Les Paul neck, and I loved the feeling of recognizing that from just the specs alone.

Yes!

The other things that end up in the showcase are customer returns or cancelled custom orders that were already nearly complete.

That's why you sometimes come across an inexplicably oddball thing amidst all the usual.

 

[Bob Hoover Ross]

I bought a showcase neck once, simply because it was exactly what I was looking for, was available immediately, and -- here's the kicker -- was cheaper than if I had designed that exact neck as a fully custom piece.

So next time I need a neck I'll definitely scroll through all the showcase options first just to make sure they don't already have what I want.