To reset or not to reset neck? 50s Levin

**sys** · 02-28-2024, 06:47 AM

Hi all, looking for advice regarding getting a neck reset on a '53 levin royal.

I purchased the instrument sight unseen about a year ago, and right off the bat noticed a small bump around the 14th fret on the high strings. The guitar showed no neck angle problems, and generally sounded much bigger and fuller than my other Levin Royal from the same period. And considering that the few notes that were affected were only slightly muted, I figured I'd just live with it as a quirk of the guitar, and it has been my main instrument since. And for what it's worth, it was bought at ridiculously low "as is" price, so no harm no foul.

However a few weeks ago I noticed a gap between the neck heel and the body, and figured I'd bring it in to see if a neck reset was going to be needed. Went to two luthiers.

Luthier 1 - My go to guy for most regular work. He is cheap, honest, and always tends to find the simplest solution to any problem. His take was that the neck angle was still good enough (though obviously had moved a bit in the past), and that the new separation was mostly due to the very dry weather we have had around here. He suggested to simply add some glue there and be done with it.

Luthier 2 - known as the go to guy for archtop (and classical) guitars around town. His view was that the neck is mostly being held by the dovetail by now, with the glue mostly gone, and though it will probably hold for a long time without becoming unplayable, once the joint starts moving, the sooner you do a neck reset the better. He quoted me 350 euro for the job, which frankly seems to be reasonable.

I'm curious what people with experience getting this kind of work done would do. Is a neck reset always a win win situation? Any horror stories of people disliking the way a guitar sounds and plays after the work?

**Franz 1997** · 02-28-2024, 07:58 AM

It's worth checking to see if your guitar has a bolt-on neck; many 50s and even 60s Levin archtops are actually bolt-on, although it's not at all obvious. To find out, you need to examine the neck block from the inside somehow, perhaps with a mirror and torch. If it is a bolt-on neck, you then have to access the bolts via the tail-block, usually through the strap botton hole. The bolts are adjusted with a long rod which you push through the guitar.

How do I know this? because at one time I bought a 50s or 60s Levin 353 archtop and wanted to adjust the neck angle. Once i discovered the bolt on neck, I had to make a rod to adjust the bolts through the body- but after that, shimming the neck angle was easy.

I'm not saying your particular guiitar has this unusual feature, but it's worth checking to find out. Good luck..even some luthiers don't know about the Levin neck joints.

**pawlowski6132** · 02-28-2024, 08:15 AM

I don't speak from a ton of experience but I've owned many acoustic archtop guitars and my thought is, it's never a question of should You get a neck reset it's just a matter of when.

Do it as soon as you can afford it. That quote you got seems dirt cheap.

I wouldn't hesitate.

**sys** · 02-28-2024, 08:35 AM

Originally Posted by Franz 1997

It's worth checking to see if your guitar has a bolt-on neck; many 50s and even 60s Levin archtops are actually bolt-on, although it's not at all obvious. To find out, you need to examine the neck block from the inside somehow, perhaps with a mirror and torch. If it is a bolt-on neck, you then have to access the bolts via the tail-block, usually through the strap botton hole. The bolts are adjusted with a long rod which you push through the guitar.

How do I know this? because at one time I bought a 50s or 60s Levin 353 archtop and wanted to adjust the neck angle. Once i discovered the bolt on neck, I had to make a rod to adjust the bolts through the body- but after that, shimming the neck angle was easy.

I'm not saying your particular guiitar has this unusual feature, but it's worth checking to find out. Good luck..even some luthiers don't know about the Levin neck joints.

Unfortunately the royal, soloist and deluxe did not have that feature. And in fact have non adjustable truss rods. Though I am aware the 3xx models did. Thanks though!

One day I'll find a decent deal on a 325 with two pickups... cool guitars!

**ThatRhythmMan** · 02-28-2024, 01:04 PM

Originally Posted by pawlowski6132

I don't speak from a ton of experience but I've owned many acoustic archtop guitars and my thought is, it's never a question of should You get a neck reset it's just a matter of when.

Do it as soon as you can afford it. That quote you got seems dirt cheap.

I wouldn't hesitate.

FWIW, Mark Lacey once told me that Gibson archtops almost never need a neck reset.

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**wintermoon** · 02-28-2024, 01:09 PM

Originally Posted by ThatRhythmMan

FWIW, Mark Lacey once told me that Gibson archtops almost never need a neck reset.

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I think reality is somewhere in between but skewered closer to the almost never side.
We've seen our share w them reset, hate to think they were done unnessecarily.

I'm no Levin expert but squirt a little glue in is isn't usually a fix I'd recommend.

**ThatRhythmMan** · 02-28-2024, 01:10 PM

Originally Posted by wintermoon

I think reality is somewhere in between but skewered closer to the almost never side.
We've seen our share w them reset, hate to think they were done unessecarily

I’ve seen a couple that needed a reset, but they honestly looked like they had a bad angle from the factory.

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**wintermoon** · 02-28-2024, 01:14 PM

Originally Posted by ThatRhythmMan

I’ve seen a couple that needed a reset, but they honestly looked like they had a bad angle from the factory.

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Yeah, I've seen many bottomed out Gibson bridges but usually not something a little sanding wouldn't cure.

**Oscar67** · 02-28-2024, 01:17 PM

If I understand correctly, both luthiers you consulted indicated that the neck has moved or will move. If that’s the case then personally I’d get it over with. The quoted price seems low.

**deacon Mark** · 02-28-2024, 01:24 PM

I agree with Mark Lacey Gibsons rarely ever need a neck set and like TRM says if they do it was probably not done correctly at factory new. In this case just get the neck reset the price is not bad at all.

**sys** · 02-28-2024, 01:40 PM

Originally Posted by Oscar67

If I understand correctly, both luthiers you consulted indicated that the neck has moved or will move. If that’s the case then personally I’d get it over with. The quoted price seems low.

I think both think it probably won't move in the foreseeable, but it certainly has. I was slightly hesitant only because the bridge is still plenty high and it plays well, but I think I am gonna go for it. Thanks everyone.

**carlones** · 02-28-2024, 04:49 PM

Originally Posted by Franz 1997

It's worth checking to see if your guitar has a bolt-on neck; many 50s and even 60s Levin archtops are actually bolt-on, although it's not at all obvious. To find out, you need to examine the neck block from the inside somehow, perhaps with a mirror and torch. If it is a bolt-on neck, you then have to access the bolts via the tail-block, usually through the strap botton hole. The bolts are adjusted with a long rod which you push through the guitar.

How do I know this? because at one time I bought a 50s or 60s Levin 353 archtop and wanted to adjust the neck angle. Once i discovered the bolt on neck, I had to make a rod to adjust the bolts through the body- but after that, shimming the neck angle was easy.

I'm not saying your particular guiitar has this unusual feature, but it's worth checking to find out. Good luck..even some luthiers don't know about the Levin neck joints.

Hi Franz!!

I have a Levin 335 (57's) with this system, bolt-on neck.
The truss rod is stuck and I think if I could unscrew the neck I might be able to fix it.

The guitar is marvellous, especially plugged in (I put an RC1100 in it).

I know that the screws are tightened with a long rod that is pushed through the guitar, but I haven't gotten any information on how to do this. I have taken it to luthiers in my area but have not gotten anything.

I would appreciate any tips you can give me.

Thanks in advance.

**Franz 1997** · 02-29-2024, 07:22 AM

Originally Posted by carlones

Hi Franz!!
I have a Levin 335 (57's) with this system, bolt-on neck.
The truss rod is stuck and I think if I could unscrew the neck I might be able to fix it.
The guitar is marvellous, especially plugged in (I put an RC1100 in it).
I know that the screws are tightened with a long rod that is pushed through the guitar, but I haven't gotten any information on how to do this. I have taken it to luthiers in my area but have not gotten anything.
I would appreciate any tips you can give me.
Thanks in advance.

It's around 20 years since I had the Levin, so I might not remember all the details, but:
- I can't remember exactly whether there was a hole already in the bottom bout of the archtop, or whether I did it through the strap button hole, but I remember it wasn't difficult to insert the rod.
Maybe there is an adjusting hole already there, under the tailpiece?
-I had to make a long rod to fit the neck bolts. I did this with a long metal curtain rod I already had, maybe of 1cm diameter. I bent one end into a handle, and I shaped the other end so that it would fit into the recess ( hole) in the neck bolts. To do this, I filed the other end of the rod down to a square =shaped end of about 5mm x 5mm square
-As far as I can remember, the recess in the bolts was square-shaped, and so the rod fitted well enough to turn the bolts. It didn't have to be an exact fit.
-after that, adjusting the neck angle was easy; I just made two small shims out of wood veneer, and tightened the bolts again.
I hope this helps.