Metropoulos Forum

I was looking over some diagrams a wayz back and noticed that a Gibson/Epiphone type guitar is a neck set into a dovetail like pocket on the body with glue. So it is a neck in a pocket just like a Fender. Only a Fender is bolted on instead of glued on. Mind you that with the glued on neck you have a tiny thin film of glue seperating the neck wood from the body wood. Fender you have complete wood vibration transfer minus the holes that the bolts are in. So is the set neck thing just a bunch of hype? I mean it is the same. sept one is glued in and one is bolted in. But with the bolt you have no thin film of glue seperating the woods.

Why do I ask? I was looking on Warmoth and noticed you can build a Gibson type guitar but it will have a bolt on neck. But the cool thing is you can build the neck to your specs. Something you can't do with Gibson. I really can't see any difference or advantage of set neck (which is in a pocket) or bolt on.

Hi!
I have a Warmoth LPdc but with a bolt on neck. It's kinda like a fender neck but with a 3x3 head and varying raduis neck.
In some ways there is more sustain and feel in this guitar than my Gibson LesPaul. Mind you the body is chambered. If I did it again I'd get the 24 3/4" neck instead of the fender 25 1/2" neck. But the fact that it's bolt on wouldn't stop me.
Stew

Ed Roman thinks the same thing





its just that all the cheap budget guitars use bolt on, that it gets a bad name

I don't think you make really valid comparison because nobody is really building identical guitars with both methods and that the difference if there is one is inherently small.

By the way there is no more separation with glued in neck than a bolt in. When the neck is glued in it is under a great deal of pressure from the clamps and the glue is only taking up gaps where air would be all the high spots are wood to wood. So as to the percent of contact a glued in neck is greater than a screwed in neck. Plus the fact the the glue is on the sides and end as well. And good glue is very ridged making the joint exceptional stiff.

Some people have reported some improvement in their guitar when adding glue to their bolt in neck guitars. There was a thread on TGP about it.

Bluesgeetar wrote:I was looking over some diagrams a wayz back and noticed that a Gibson/Epiphone type guitar is a neck set into a dovetail like pocket on the body with glue. So it is a neck in a pocket just like a Fender. Only a Fender is bolted on instead of glued on. Mind you that with the glued on neck you have a tiny thin film of glue seperating the neck wood from the body wood. Fender you have complete wood vibration transfer minus the holes that the bolts are in. So is the set neck thing just a bunch of hype? I mean it is the same. sept one is glued in and one is bolted in. But with the bolt you have no thin film of glue seperating the woods.

Why do I ask? I was looking on Warmoth and noticed you can build a Gibson type guitar but it will have a bolt on neck. But the cool thing is you can build the neck to your specs. Something you can't do with Gibson. I really can't see any difference or advantage of set neck (which is in a pocket) or bolt on.

Wellll... the biggest advantage to a bolt on neck is the ability to either replace the neck easily if you want to, and also to shim it to obtain a better neck angle if you need it. The thin film of glue in a dovetail joint is a non-issue, because you are glueing two unfinished pieces of wood together, and most of the glue is either squeezed out of the joint, or absorbed into the wood. For all intents and purposes, its really wood against wood. A bolt on neck guitar MIGHT have no finish in the neck pocket of the body, but 99% of the time, theres finish on the neck, so there would actually be less of a pure contact than a dovetailed joint. Either way has been tried and proven a million times, and really, the type of bridge you use has a much bigger effect on string vibe transfer than the neck securement method.

Why aren't they bolting tops to body backs?

JD wrote:Why aren't they bolting tops to body backs?

JD wrote:Why aren't they bolting tops to body backs?

Well, there goes common sense right out the window.

A bolted on body top? Now that would be one ugly guitar.

Old saying: Better to be silent and be thought a fool than to open ones mouth and remove all doubt.

I've always seen finish on the back of my Strat necks, so that at least gets in the way of the wood to wood contact of a bolt on neck guitar. As for the sustain, etc. I feel my Les Paul models sustain longer than my Strat, Tele, Wolfgang...etc.

The set neck joint has more wood to wood contact in most cases, too.

Southbay Ampworks wrote:I've always seen finish on the back of my Strat necks, so that at least gets in the way of the wood to wood contact of a bolt on neck guitar. As for the sustain, etc. I feel my Les Paul models sustain longer than my Strat, Tele, Wolfgang...etc.

The set neck joint has more wood to wood contact in most cases, too.

So if you sanded the finish off the back of the part of the neck that goes into the pocket you'd be there right? Then it would be wood against wood. Also a good tight neck pocket fit would be important also. Is it the bridge set up and contruction and the scale length of a gibson or the set neck that makes it sustain. NOt to mention that mahogany neck and body. Dense heavy wood would also make a difference in sustain. Fender are light alder mostly. I still ain't seeing that the glued neck is better. I think it is the bridge and saddles and the heavy mahog and humbuckers and neck is also mahogany. Don't think it is the set neck doing all this.

Bluesgeetar wrote:Well, there goes common sense right out the window.

A bolted on body top? Now that would be one ugly guitar.

Old saying: Better to be silent and be thought a fool than to open ones mouth and remove all doubt.

Plus, if it was bolted on from the back, you could potentially have nut to bolt interference... (sorry, I cant help myself )

fillmore nyc wrote:

Bluesgeetar wrote:Well, there goes common sense right out the window.

A bolted on body top? Now that would be one ugly guitar.

Old saying: Better to be silent and be thought a fool than to open ones mouth and remove all doubt.

Plus, if it was bolted on from the back, you could potentially have nut to bolt interference... (sorry, I cant help myself )

Man that would keep you awake during gigs. Ouch!

Bluesgeetar wrote:

Southbay Ampworks wrote:I've always seen finish on the back of my Strat necks, so that at least gets in the way of the wood to wood contact of a bolt on neck guitar. As for the sustain, etc. I feel my Les Paul models sustain longer than my Strat, Tele, Wolfgang...etc.

The set neck joint has more wood to wood contact in most cases, too.

So if you sanded the finish off the back of the part of the neck that goes into the pocket you'd be there right? Then it would be wood against wood. Also a good tight neck pocket fit would be important also. Is it the bridge set up and contruction and the scale length of a gibson or the set neck that makes it sustain. NOt to mention that mahogany neck and body. Dense heavy wood would also make a difference in sustain. Fender are light alder mostly. I still ain't seeing that the glued neck is better. I think it is the bridge and saddles and the heavy mahog and humbuckers and neck is also mahogany. Don't think it is the set neck doing all this.

No, you

bolt on guitars doesn't necessarily have less sustain, but the attack is different. Usually it is harder and more pronounced. Because of this I would prefer a bolt on if I was going to play aggressive metal riffs

Ritchie Blackmore obviously thought theres a sustain difference. Didnt he glue the necks in on his strats for precisely that reason?