Comparing Necks

[fronobulax]

So I like numbers, precision and repeatable analysis. If I want to compare two guitar necks what are the measurements I might want to take? I'm interested in comparing the necks, not, for example, the action or how much saddle is left.

Scale length.
Length of the nut.
Width of the fingerboard at some known place - 12th fret, perhaps?
"Thickness", also measured at the nut and 12th fret?
Anything else that would be useful?

I also know profile makes a difference and I seem to recall C and V as being common descriptions. Are there others?

I am interested to see whether there is any difference between my bass necks and someone who knows of Mrs. Fro's interest in a F-30 wanted to know how the neck differed from her D-25 and that is hard to answer without an F-30 available. Measurements are the next best thing.

Thanks.

 

[GardMan]

When I was trying to quantify/compare differences in the necks of my dreads, I decided to compare measurements at the 5th fret... width, thickness, and "circumference," using a string to wrap the neck just behind the 5th fret. My first attempts lacked sufficient precision to make any conclusions, and I never got back into it. I sort of concluded that my fretting hand could distinguish very small differences...

 

[fronobulax]

I sort of concluded that my fretting hand could distinguish very small differences...

That is going to undercut the benefit of the project, I suspect. Thanks.

 

[capnjuan]

You'd need something like this to duplicate the radius ... varying radii at that ... at several points along the neck .. and transfer them to paper from which you can then do arithmetic. You'd also need a caliper to measure the depth at, say, the odd frets ... or the even ones. String will give you circumference but if it's the distinctions like V-shaped or C-shaped you want ...

Agree with Dave that the hand will discover all the subtle differences but ... if it's science you're after;

 

[poser]

The radius of the fingerboard might make a difference.

 

[dapmdave]

The radius of the fingerboard might make a difference.

Right. And compound radii are out there, too.

Dave

 

[krysh]

...I also know profile makes a difference and I seem to recall C and V as being common descriptions. Are there others?...

You also refer to a D shape which will be a more flat neck than a C (shredder neck against baseballbat , to talk extremes)

also some modern guitars have asymetric shapes.

usually nut width and width at 12th fret are the important measures.

more here:
neck shapes
and here:
neck shapes 2

 

[fronobulax]

more here:
neck shapes
and here:
neck shapes 2

Thank you very much. Very useful information and all in one place.

 

[krysh]

glad to help, jamie.

 

[krysh]

but dave still is 2 posts ahead. :mrgreen:

 

[adorshki]

So I like numbers, precision and repeatable analysis.

In fact I do too, and I've even had an informal survey going on necks for quite a while now. Necks are probably goint to be the one place where PRECISE repeatability is almost impossible for any factory that used a belt sander and hand-finishing of each individual neckstock. Westerly was that way. The very nature of the process guarantees variation although I trust the craftsmanship of the individuals to keep the variations within a desired set of tolerances. This first came to my attention when I realized the reason D40 was ever so slightly harder to play than the D25 was because in fact it became slightly thicker at the 3rd fret, visibly so, but only on when carefully inspected. So the observation about "feeling" the difference is true. The point about simple circumference measurements at certain frets being meaningless without a definition of the profile is also true.
If I recall correctly Doc Spivey mentioned a profile gauge with multiple moveable plastic pins that could be conformed to the neck profile. That would be an ideal way to measure several variables at once, ie total depth including fingerboard and actual radius at any given fret.

I am interested to see whether there is any difference between my bass necks and someone who knows of Mrs. Fro's interest in a F-30 wanted to know how the neck differed from her D-25 and that is hard to answer without an F-30 available. Measurements are the next best thing.
Thanks.

Subject to the caveats I mentioned, I applaud the idea. It might also be useful to know how necks are finished in New Hartford for the purpose of determining whether to anticipate variation arising from the finishing (sanding) process.

 

[capnjuan]

You'd need something like this to duplicate the radius ... varying radii at that ... at several points along the neck .. and transfer them to paper from which you can then do arithmetic.

If I recall correctly Dec Spivey mentioned a profile gauge with multiple moveable plastic pins that could be conformed to the neck profile.

It's a contour gauge. Low on Ginkgo Biloba :?

 

[adorshki]

You'd need something like this to duplicate the radius ... varying radii at that ... at several points along the neck .. and transfer them to paper from which you can then do arithmetic.

If I recall correctly Dec Spivey mentioned a profile gauge with multiple moveable plastic pins that could be conformed to the neck profile.

It's a contour gauge. Low on Ginkgo Biloba :?

:lol:
Having never seen one I couldn't tell what it was you posted. My reference to Doc Spivey was from an inquiry I sent him about the neck profile on his D40 a few months back, when I was trying to figure out if a "chunky" neck was maybe a D40 signature trait.
Since then I've come to realize "chunky" is in the hand of the holder... :wink:
In any case, that's exactly what Jamie needs.
And personally I'd LOVE to see how much variation there is out there based on actual measurements with one of those things.

 

[capnjuan]

... Having never seen one I couldn't tell what it was you posted ... Since then I've come to realize "chunky" is in the hand of the holder... :wink: In any case, that's exactly what Jamie needs. And personally I'd LOVE to see how much variation there is out there based on actual measurements with one of those things.

Given the number of possible variations in necks ... and in hands ... and in styles of play ... statements like: 'I really loved the neck' are just about meaningless. And ... in this day and age, inquiring about someone's hand is close to asking ... you know ... something personal ...... :wink: Cheers!

 

[fronobulax]

Fascinating. I actually asked an interesting question and am learning.

Given the neck profiles posted by Krysh above, anyone want to say which profile best fits a D-25 (early '80's) and a 2010 F-30?