Off Center Neck

Please put your pickup/wiring discussions in the Electronics section; and put discussions about repair issues, including fixing errors in new instruments, in the Repairs section.
Michael Lewis
Posts: 1474
Joined: Thu Jan 12, 2012 1:22 am
Location: Northern California USA
Contact:

Re: Off Center Neck

Post by Michael Lewis »

Gentlemen, and ladies, the dovetail joint pulls the cheeks of the heel against the body with some force if you fit it properly. By making the under cut of the cheeks it makes fitting to the body easier because there is less material to remove in the fitting process and insures the neck has the most resistance to moving because it seats along the outer edge of the heel. If you don't under cut the heel you run the distinct risk of having more contact toward the center of the heel (high spots) and this WILL lead to a movable neck. The dovetail is NOT a weak joint if done well and should not wiggle or move with string tension or other normal use. Just try to take one apart. Whether you apply glue to the cheeks or not should not have any effect on the strength of the joint if properly fitted.
User avatar
Nelson Palen
Posts: 27
Joined: Fri Jan 13, 2012 11:27 pm

Re: Off Center Neck

Post by Nelson Palen »

Good to hear from you also, Michael! Do you prefer straight or tapered dovetail?
Edit: I use a straight but the body dovetail is narrower at the bottom end where the string load puts it in tension.
Michael Lewis
Posts: 1474
Joined: Thu Jan 12, 2012 1:22 am
Location: Northern California USA
Contact:

Re: Off Center Neck

Post by Michael Lewis »

I always use a compound dovetail (tapered from top to bottom - Martin style) because it is easier to remove if necessary. A straight dovetail is fine for production work once you have the set up for cutting them, and never need to take them apart. I would not use one. When removing a straight dovetail it offers 'resistance' all the way out, but when removing a compound dovetail once you get movement it releases quickly. The main problem with a difficult to remove dovetail is the time the joint is exposed to steam, and the inherent moisture absorption of the surrounding wood and potential damage it can cause. A typical Martin neck releases in 3 to 5 minutes, but the last straight dovetail I removed took more than 15 minutes and nearly destroyed the body in the neck block area. There was a lot of recovery work involved after that.

The main problem I find with the straight dovetail is that it has to be a close fit to work, which is fine for initial assembly, but in the removal process as the wood picks up moisture and heat to soften the glue it swells slightly and makes the joint that much tighter and more difficult to remove. Just my opinion.
Post Reply

Return to “Archtop Guitars and Bass Guitars”