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Does anyone have any experience or thoughts about the Warmoth necks with the adjustment screw in the side of the heel? Just got one for my Tele build and it's nice but guess I missed the part about "modern construction" in the ad. Got some gizmo in it that was developed by Gotoh for tweaking neck adjustments. I adjust all my necks to be 'dead' straight and leave them that way - no seasonal changes where I live so it's a non issue.
Nice neck though - fretwork is great and the ebony board is beautiful and does not appear dyed. Got it off their 'Showcase' and saved about $70 over a custom build. Perfect fit, too.
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09-07-2018 10:03 AM
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Nice Skip. Not to bash Warmoth, but I do not recommend their electronic components, especially the pots. If you notice you can see that they are labeled "by CTS." They seemed to be licensed products, but not actual CTS pots. Tolerances are way bad in my experience.
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Yeah, I have other sources for that stuff. I also use Bournes parts sometimes. I'm using some sort of Fender branded pots on this one - just have to see how they work.
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I haven't held one in my hands, but there's been plenty of talk on TDPRI comparing them to the more traditional heel or headstock adjustable truss rods. The most common comment is the one you have (the "modern" construction) has "more rod and less wood" in the neck and some people claim they can hear that. Beyond that it gets even more subjective.
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I've always said that if I can't hear the difference then it doesn't matter. I'm sure there are folks who say they can hear a difference just to make themselves stand out from the pack. I've got 73 year old ears - I'm not overly picky.
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I have built about a dozen Warmoth guitars and I always order the "vintage with modern construction" necks. I don't want to remove a neck for a truss rod adjustment. I keep my guitars in a climate controlled space so it's not something I need to do often, but even so, a different type of string or a desire to tweak the relief does occur. The side adjust necks seem okay; I had one of those once. But I just prefer the good old headstock adjustment with its predictable response.
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I have Warmoth necks on my tele and jazzmaster, also the "Vintage Modern" construction. I haven't tried one with the "side adjustment," but I doubt it would bother me.
The necks I did have Warmoth make me are outstanding.
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The only "Fender-style" guitar I ever owned that had any wood-to-trussrod ratio issues was an honest-to-God Fender '52 reissue. With seasonal change, I could hear the change in the sound of the guitar, and hear a rattle in the neck. It really pissed me off that a guitar that was that expensive (1991) was a dud. Mind you, when the planets were in alignment the guitar was magnificent. (other than the fact that the neck was rather thin)
Warmoth, etc., necks have all met my expectations.
The best I have seen/played have been Monty/Mechanic necks.
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I am in the middle of straightening out all my partscasters for their "final" iteration. It is really taking up a lot of my time and money, but I can get a bit obsessed with guitar stuff. They are:
A Tele w/ one Fralin P-92 in the neck position;
A hardtail Strat w/ Lace Holy Grails and a blend pot;
A Jazzmaster w/ Kinmans and conventional JM wiring except for dual volume and tone pots for the lead circuitry, Mastery tremolo and StayTrem bridge;
A 12 string Jazzmaster w/ Rose Picassos and three way switching with dual volume and tone pots.
I have changed a few necks out for ones made by Best Guitar Products. They are in the same neck of the woods as Warmoth and USACG, and even have some of their former employees. So far out of all the neck makers I like them best. I won't name names but I have tried necks from 6 different makers now. That is embarrassing.
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The only thing I really don't like about this one is it's lack of the "Tadeo Taper" from the headstock to the neck shaft. This used to be a deal breaker for me but I'm slowly learning to live with it.This one is better than most in that they did smooth off the sharp edge somewhat. Guess I could reshape it myself but we'll wait and see how it goes. Watched a video about the Gotoh thing and I guess it's nice if you mess with your necks a lot - I don't so it's just 'set it and forget it'. Would have had one made but they say they won't do 1-3/4" nut in the vintage style so I went with what they had made up to save some $$$.
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Used to irritate me, too.
Originally Posted by Skip Ellis
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I guess most of the younger generation doesn't even recognize the difference - they've only seen that ugly, sharp edge back there. I'd even pay a little extra for the hand work if someone would spend that extra 15 minutes getting it right. I'm still thinking about reshaping this one but maybe I can learn to love it.
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I've done 6 builds using the Warmoth/gotoh side adjuster. No issues. Do follow the instructions, there is a "zeroing" procedure that is difficult to do once the neck is mounted.
Lots of people seem to hate them, which is typical for anything not totally adhering to 1952 Leo F. standards, but I actually like the convenience and it is a double-action truss rod which I have also found handy with stubbornly flat roasted maple necks.
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I have the side-adjust screw. It's ok. You do need to follow the "zeroing procedure" but it's not difficult.
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This should clear things up a bit: Originally Posted by Skip Ellis
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BTW, I checked and they do a 1 3/4" nut on the "vintage modern" (headstock adjustment) neck, too. Originally Posted by Skip Ellis
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the gotoh side adjust thingee is old school mechanic tech brought to guitar...clever...but for those that know the problems that just a simple/single trussrod with bolt in the headstock can cause, it just seems like a bit too many moving parts... to possibly go wrong!
great for basses tho..esp 5 & 6 strings with massive tension
tho it is a lot of metal in the neck
to think that rick kelly (carmine st guitars) makes old reclaimed pine tele necks with no trussrod!!!..& they are super stable
alpha & omega
cheers
ps- rickenbacker has been using double trussrods for decades
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Keep in mind the the Warmoth side adjustment is just 'fine tuning'. You may still have to remove the neck to adjust the truss rod. It is good if your guitar started with a good setup and there is a slight humidity change that needs a little tweak. I have a great setup guy and over time discovered the travel with the side adjustment may not allow you to dial in your settings the same as a traditional truss rod. Ideally, you would have the side adjustment and the trussrod adjustment on the top.
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I have one of their necks on one of the first guitars I ever "built" nearly 20 years ago. Never had a problem and find it quite handy. No unsightly gaps at the end of the fingerboard with one of those weird disk things with holes and no adjustment at the neck end. If it lacks sufficient range, that is news to me. But then again this neck came damn near perfect relief under tension when it arrived.
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I've used them - they are fine.
For weight weenies, the extra metal makes them heavier than Warmoth's vintage or vintage/modern necks.
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i have a warmoth strat with the side screw adjuster. My feeling is that their vintage truss rod guitars capture more of the vintage strat sound but the more modern (and unfortunately better) truss rods don't nail the vintage tone as well. Probably due to more truss rod mass and a bigger route.
It works fine though.
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