lightweight without neck dive

[Singlebladepickup]

I'm thinking of assembling a parts jaguar with a solid rosewood neck. I want it to be as light as possible, without causing neck dive. How much should I expect the neck to weight, and is there a certain minimum weight that the body should be relative to that? I'm looking at a body that is 3 lb without any hardware or paint and wondering if it will be too light...

[Horsefeather]

This doesn't answer your question but I thought I'd just throw it out there that roasted maple necks are apparently quite light due to the moisture removal so if you prize lightness over species, that might be a viable option for you in keeping the neck and body balanced.

[Singlebladepickup]

thanks, those roasted maple necks look quite nice. I actually just love the look of rosewood and the feel of raw wood. Also, if species' of bodies and necks have anything to do with sound, a rosewood neck might tame the brightness of a swamp ash body which is what I was thinking of for my jag project

[hpr_hpr]

Not sure what the neck would weigh but simple physics says that if the body is the same weight as the neck the point of balance would be somewhat forward of were the neck overlaps the body (the exact point depending on the form of the body and to a lesser extent the headstock, it will be right in the middle of the point of balance for each of the parts). Warmoth makes rosewood necks so an email or call to customer service may at least give you an idea of what the weight would be.
If you're going for as light a possible ... any roasted neck will be lighter than the non-roatesd version with the same wood through removal of a large percentage of the moisture . . . and if you price lightness over the exact wood species . . . rosewood has a density of 0.82-0.90 depending on the exact species and maple is 0.6-0.75 . . .taking the average a maple neck will only be 80% of the weight of a rosewood one . . . and I wouldn't be surprised if roasting would subtract another 5% or so (dried wood having a moisture content of 10-15% or so if I remember correctly. Also a roasted maple neck doesn't need a (heavy) finish so that's some weight you can subtract as well . . . . . maybe roasted maple with a rosewood fingerboard.
As for taming the brightness of the body, mahogany has a density 0.5-0.85 depending on the species and should help with that, maybe with a bocote or goncalo alves ... or even rosewood finger board.

[Embenny]

Most maple necks weigh in the vicinity of a pound. A loaded Jag body rarely comes in under 5lbs, even thinline. The extra 250-375g (or half to 3/4 lb) of a rosewood neck should not make it neck-dive, especially since that weight is evenly-distributed along the neck. It's not like clamping 3/4 of a pound to the headstock.

That is, unless you've got some really weird combo of specs (e.g. no Jag plates, one Wilde micro-coil as the only pickup, and a hardtail strat bridge instead of a Jag bridge and trem), along with the giant Gibson robo-tuners on the headstock.THAT is a guitar that might neck-dive.

If you're using the chrome plates, vibrato, etc, I really wouldn't expect any problems.

A Mustang using that neck, though, could probably make it onto the Olympic diving team...

[Singlebladepickup]

Ah, ok. I was looking at this swamp ash jag body that was only 3 lb 1 oz and wondering if that was too light or if a body that light would affect the sound. I'd rather have a heavier guitar with no neck dive, but I'd love a lightweight sherwood green jag with all rosewood neck. Daydreaming about selling my avri (which isn't backbreaking) to make my dream guitar, but worried I'd get a beautiful guitar with neckdive and no resonance (unlike my avri).

[Deed_Poll]

Weight loss from heat treating maple is fairly minimal - maybe 5%? There's certainly more variation between boards than there is between kiln dried vs heat treated.

I'd be looking at using a lightweight truss rod, heel adjust, maybe take the headstock down towards 1/2" thickness. Also use some nice lightweight Klusons. But I designed mine that way because I like the design philosophy as much as anything.

A nice lightweight neck tends to result in some attributes I find appealing in a guitar - I don't like the neck too stiff, I like to be able to feel a good bit of resonance through my fretting hand and I like to be able to waggle it for a bit of subtle vibrato.

I certainly avoid large / heavy 2-way truss rods. I like the idea of the neck playing more part between the truss rod and the string tension - I feel like I can hear the neck better that way, if that makes sense, whereas a double rod I feel is kinda balancing against itself and taking a lot of the load on its own, not applying such a load on the neck itself as a structural member.

My neck design is a heel adjust Gibson style rod with a plug between the shaft and the fretboard. Basically like a Gibson, but without an angled head, and with the truss rod adjustment at the heel. I cut an adjustment groove in the neck pocket sothr guitar can be setup fully without the pickguard in place, so you don't have to keep removing the neck and undoing / winding up the strings.

[Shadoweclipse13]

thanks, those roasted maple necks look quite nice. I actually just love the look of rosewood and the feel of raw wood.

For the record, the roasted necks usually don't have, and don't need a finish, so they still feel raw.

[Singlebladepickup]

Cool. I like the look of them too, except some I saw on stratosphere. I don't remember for sure but I think they were official fender? Like some new model. The color looked sickly

[hpr_hpr]

The color of a roasted neck (and any wood) depends a LOT on the finish. I have a mahogany body and a roasted maple neck that I both got unfinished and they look A LOT alike without the finish . . . So the blah / sick color, may have been an unfinished neck possibly? And while a roasted neck may not NEED any finish, I think the wood looks a lot better - and tends to attract less grunge - with at least some oil.

Unfinished neck & body



And then some oil (OSMO poly X) on the neck



And then with the body stained (mahogany) and finished with oil (also OSMO poly X)

[charmillionaire]

Can you tell me if this guitar neck dives at all, or is it perfectly balanced? I ask because I plan on buying parts for a similar hardtail jazzmaster build with a mahogany body, fender/schaller tuners, and a strat bridge. I’m hoping the body would be heavy enough to keep the neck from diving.

Thanks!