NGD - neck finishing advice

robwright

Just bought a 2003 SG Standard that was cheap cos the neck had been reshaped to make it slimmer. Turns out it’s perfect for my stumpy fingers! 

My first question is regarding the new finish on the neck. The reshaping has been done well and the finish matches really well. The only issue is that are small ‘nibs’ of finish that are small but annoying! I’m guessing that I can just rub it down with the appropriate sandpaper or wire wool - my question is what is the correct gauge of sandpaper or wire wool? I don’t want to take the finish off, just make it smoother (and possibly more matt). 

My second question is regarding the bridge and tailpiece, both of which are really high. The action is superb - the lowest I’ve had on a guitar - so I am thinking ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’! Are there any issues to having a high tailpiece (I’m guessing the break angle over the bridge is probably quite important?). The pic below is from the ad but hopefully you can see the spacer that seems to be raising the tailpiece. 

https://i.imgur.com/EmhPplW.jpg

On the plus side, it plays great and has David Allen P51 pups. 

Thanks all 

poopot

if you have a low action and the bridge is that high, that neck angle is seriously wrong!... 

what’s happened to the guitar to throw that out?

WezV

would need a side on pic, but i suspect the tailpiece could be lower than it is currently.  the bridge doesn't look excessively high from that pic. 

 if the bridge is very high with a low action, then the neck angle has been set too steep.   it will have been built that way

Winny_Pooh

Re finish. You will need to progressively sand with wetted wet n dry on a small rubber block from 600 grit up to at least 1500, then use a polishing compound to get the shine back. 

mrkb

.  

Forget that- I misread the blurry photo.

xtedmanzie

If the nibs of finish are tiny then I'd start by rubbing it up and down the neck with one of those kitchen sponges that has the green rough surface on one side - that may be enough to do what you want. It will leave it with a satin feel.

robwright

Thanks guys - will try the green sponge first then do the wet and dry.

Further investigation has has uncovered more evidence of a bodge-job!

https://i.imgur.com/KgFOGs0.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/aqkfl1p.jpg

Not seen tailpiece posts like this before and the bridge posts aren’t in straight! The bridge is a Korean-made Sung Il which I don’t think would have been an original Gibson part????

I’m guessing I would be better off getting a decent bridge set and starting again? In which case, would I have to plug the existing holes? 

Luckily I didn’t pay too much for it and the David Allen pups are a real bonus! 

An interesting project! 

poopot

It needs the neck resetting by the looks of it. The angle is completely wrong.

No way was that set like that from gibson

NPP

from the first pick it looks like the strings aren't wrapped over the bridge - don't they go in from the front and then over the bridge, which would allow you to lower the bridge and retain the same action? 

Can't see very well what's going on so may be wrong here.

poopot

Has it had a refret? Can’t see the binding nibs in that first photo.

post some pics of the whole guitar... close ups of the bridge, fretboard, headstock etc...

WezV

poopot said:

It needs the neck resetting by the looks of it. The angle is completely wrong.

No way was that set like that from gibson

The bridge isn't too high, just the tailpiece... It doesn't need to be that high, but with the bridge tilting the tailpiece needs to be higher to clear the back edge

It needs the bridge holes plugging and redrilling so they sit correctly though.  The tailpiece should then work a lot lower

WezV

I imagine it's just spacers on the tailpiece studs... Take them out

Roland

I’m presuming that the bass side bridge post is set at an angle, rather than bent? If its stable, and the intonation can be set correctly then I’d leave it.

I can’t work out why the tail piece is that high. @ICBM might know. Conventional wisdom is that it should be set lower to give a better break angle over bridge saddles.

TTony

robwright said:

The action is superb - the lowest I’ve had on a guitar - so I am thinking ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’!

 [...]

On the plus side, it plays great 

What's your objective in thinking about changing it about?

Right now, you've got a guitar that has a superb action and plays great.  Easy option is  to enjoy it as-is and avoid the risk/hassle of trying to "fix" something that might result in a less playable guitar ...

Questions from your photos;

The tailpiece studs look like they're poking a long way out of the top of the body.  Why is that?    Combined with the wonky bridge studs, I'd wonder whether someone has bodged some modding on the guitar previously.    Can you set the tailpiece lower or are the studs too long for the body?  If it can be lowered, then your break angle from the bridge to tailpiece won't be an issue.

With the bridge, are the posts loose in the studs - ie perhaps a diameter mismatch or an imperial/metric mismatch?  If the post is loose, that could be why it's not perpendicular to the body.  If the post is properly fitted into the stud, then the stud is in at an angle, and replacing that it a bigger job,  I'd question whether that's worthwhile doing on a guitar that "plays great" as-is.

However, the bridge doesn't look particularly high - looks like maybe it could be 5mm lower if screwed right down again the body?  5mm is not an issue, so I wouldn't say that the bridge is too high at all.

robwright

Thanks guys - i’m going to go with @TTony’s advice and leave it alone for now. It plays great, the intonation is pretty good (even though it looks like it hasn’t been set properly) and the David Allen pickups are fucking gorgeous! Live with it for a few months and then have a think about whether anything ‘really’ needs doing. 

Sarge

You didn't get this from a certain Cleartone ebay seller by any chance? 

robwright

Haha! It does have an unmistakably wide fingerboard! 

Georg_Figel

as long as you can intonate it properly, the bridge studs should be no issue.

The bridge doesn't appear to be high, only the tailpiece is quite high. If you lower the tailpiece the strings will start to feel a bit tighter when doing bends.

Finish on the neck: 600 grit and above

Andyjr1515

It's interesting...

...a pro-player I once knew used to deliberately raise the tail-piece on all of his Les Pauls and SGs until there was almost no break angle of the strings over the bridge.  And this guy had dozens and dozens of guitars, including some real drool stuff.

He was adamant that it improved a number of aspects of both the playability and the sound.  While I could see the possibility of the former argument being at least credible, provided the strings didn't pop out of the saddle slots, I used to be highly sceptical about the latter.  But have to admit, the sound he got out of his guitars was pretty stupendous and through a number of amps of all sorts I heard him play on.  

So it's possibly quite deliberate, either by someone following the same path - or it might have been one of his


And it's interesting that it happens to play great, @robwright ;