Members elsupermanny14 Posted December 29, 2008 Members Share Posted December 29, 2008 Let's go with a maple neck, 22 fret, adjustable truss rod, all the standard stuff. Which one makes the better neck? How about rosewood? I forgot to add that it was for a Strat neck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DAFSTRAT Posted December 29, 2008 Members Share Posted December 29, 2008 Well I have not played a warmoth but I have played the new American Standard and American Deluxe. For me they are the best Fender necks I have played. I prefer the Standard over the Deluxe mainly due to the lacquer the put on the board. Very smooth to play and the tint looks beautiful. I actually sold an 08 deluxe neck to buy a Standard for one of my Strats. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Prages Posted December 29, 2008 Members Share Posted December 29, 2008 I prefer Warmoth, but if you're concerned with resale, the Fender is probably the way to go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Schtang Posted December 29, 2008 Members Share Posted December 29, 2008 yeah the American Std neck especially the 2008 is sublime. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members elsupermanny14 Posted December 29, 2008 Author Members Share Posted December 29, 2008 Warmoth has the compound radius necks, with less tendency to "fret out", their "Pro" line has double-acting truss rods AND the Gotoh fine-tuner on the bottom side so you can make small adjustments without loosening the neck. You can get the headstock inclined, and a lot of other options that you can't find elsewhere... and their QC is reputedly better than Fender's. They don't dress the frets, and something like 80 percent of their customers don't either.I have two right here. They're amazing necks, and they'll make the neck of your dreams for you.But, if the only thing that will do is a decal.... Did you dress your frets? If not does it make any significant difference? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members go cat go Posted December 30, 2008 Members Share Posted December 30, 2008 Without a doubt Warmoth wins this one. USACG is also up there. I have great playing Warmoth necks and I have never dressed the frets. Here are some of my builds: Here's the grain from the fiesta red strat: The grain on the sunburst strat: I didn't pay more than $300 for each neck. Amazing playing and feeling necks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ak47dragunov Posted December 30, 2008 Members Share Posted December 30, 2008 I personally love the Americans. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Doctor Morbius Posted December 30, 2008 Members Share Posted December 30, 2008 Without a doubt Warmoth wins this one. USACG is also up there. I have great playing Warmoth necks and I have never dressed the frets. Here are some of my builds: Oh damn! I just spooged myself! That's one hot looking Strat. I'm getting ready to assemble one that will look similar but it won't have the high end parts. Here is my inspiration. Feel free to PM me with what parts you used. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Alex_SF Posted December 30, 2008 Members Share Posted December 30, 2008 I only briefly played an American Strat neck a long time ago, didn't note much about it but it must have been fine. I've had two Warmoth necks that I put on a partscaster with a CIJ body: both were excellent. I'm sorry I couldn't keep the first, which was some of the most beautiful birdseye maple I've seen, finished in this amber stain, compound radius, and with a kingwood fingerboard which was even more stunning. It was too thin for my taste, however, with my aching size-11 hands. So I sold it for the $300 I paid for it and picked up another used one, big and fat like my arm, with 12" radius, basic Indian rosewood fingerboard, stainless frets, no fancy grain in the maple, and a little wear and tear, for $100 less. I love that neck, even if it isn't as pretty; sometimes I think of getting a custom decal made, but so far I've left it plain except for gluing an old Mercury silver dime to the back of the headstock to personalize it. Also thought about doing the shoe-polish amber treatment on the bone-white maple, but it's not a priority. Bottom line: either Fender or Warmoth will be more than adequate build quality. The only advantage of Warmoth is being able to customize it to the features that you want (or if you buy used, to find one that's been customized to the features you want). I went Warmoth because I wanted 22 frets, a dark (rosewood, etc.) fingerboard, compound or flat radius, and (after briefly experimenting with beautiful exotic woods only to find that the profile on the one I picked caused me discomfort) a fat, fat profile. The stainless "tall/thin" frets were a bonus; I also liked the jumbos on the previous neck, but if you order a new one, you can specify whatever frets you want instead of taking whatever Fender decides to put on theirs. Truss rod on my second Warmoth is fine also: it's the pain-in-the-ass vintage type, and it had been loosened completely before I got it, but it was really easy to dial in: I put just a little tension on it before installing, and only had to take it off to adjust it once, just a tiny bit, after my initial guess. (The neck's fatness and rock-hard maple construction probably make the truss rod mostly superfluous anyway.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Burningleaves Posted December 30, 2008 Members Share Posted December 30, 2008 For a basic "bare bones" neck you can't go wrong either way (imo). As others have mentioned, Warmoth wins with the "custom" options. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bgator Posted December 30, 2008 Members Share Posted December 30, 2008 Let me first say that I have no basis for comparison -- I do not currently own (nor have I ever owned) a strat. However, one of my favorite guitars is a tele that I bought a year or two ago with a Warmoth neck. The neck is rosewood and unfinished on the back, and I must say it is great. The biggest difference between this neck and a Fender is that is a compound radius compared to the much more curved 9.5 and 7.25 radius Fender necks. I really like this neck. It's very comfortably and easy to play. If you like relatively flat necks, I say go with the Warmoth. If you like more curved necks, go with the Fender. As for quality, this is as good, if not better, than Fender necks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members go cat go Posted December 30, 2008 Members Share Posted December 30, 2008 Oh damn! I just spooged myself! That's one hot looking Strat. I'm getting ready to assemble one that will look similar but it won't have the high end parts. Here is my inspiration. Feel free to PM me with what parts you used. Thanks Doc. Actually I'm really proud of how this one turned out. The whole thing was about $700 - $800. Sure I could have bought an American standard but no way would I have gotten the features on this baby. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Doctor Morbius Posted December 30, 2008 Members Share Posted December 30, 2008 Thanks Doc. Actually I'm really proud of how this one turned out. The whole thing was about $700 - $800. Sure I could have bought an American standard but no way would I have gotten the features on this baby.Looking forward to hearing about it. Clear some messages from your inbox by the way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Alex_SF Posted December 30, 2008 Members Share Posted December 30, 2008 Bottom line: either Fender or Warmoth will be more than adequate build quality. The only advantage of Warmoth is being able to customize it to the features that you want (or if you buy used, to find one that's been customized to the features you want). The other side of that is, however, a new Warmoth requires the extra effort and/or expense of (a) installing a nut, and (b) finishing the maple. Find a Fender that suits your needs, however, and it will be good to go. That was one additional reason I bought the Warmoth necks used: finding one that's already had that stuff done saves you the time, and you still get a pretty good cost break over a brand-new one. The one I bought & resold for $300, in near-new condition, would have cost over $400, bought new with all the same options & with Earvana nut installed & finish done by Warmoth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jkater Posted December 30, 2008 Members Share Posted December 30, 2008 I have little experience with Fenders so I can't compare but I can say that the compound radius on my Warmoth neck really works. The notes ring beautifully on every fret and no amount of bend can make it fret out. It's also beautifully finished: the unlacquered rosewood fretboard is polished to a shine, fret ends are perfect. no buzz in spite of low action. The headstock has a slight tilt making string trees unnecessary. Beautiful neck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members dcindc Posted December 30, 2008 Members Share Posted December 30, 2008 ^^^ CAN play! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jkater Posted December 30, 2008 Members Share Posted December 30, 2008 ^^^ CAN play! Who, me? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members dcindc Posted December 30, 2008 Members Share Posted December 30, 2008 FYeah! That's some beautiful stuff! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members PanaDP Posted December 30, 2008 Members Share Posted December 30, 2008 A friend of mine built a strat with a mighty mite soft-V profile neck. It's pretty freakin nice and those necks are quite a lot cheaper than warmoths. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jkater Posted December 30, 2008 Members Share Posted December 30, 2008 FYeah!That's some beautiful stuff! Thank you, dcindc! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Flogger59 Posted December 30, 2008 Members Share Posted December 30, 2008 I have little experience with Fenders so I can't compare but I can say that the compound radius on my Warmoth neck really works. The notes ring beautifully on every fret and no amount of bend can make it fret out. It's also beautifully finished: the unlacquered rosewood fretboard is polished to a shine, fret ends are perfect. no buzz in spite of low action. The headstock has a slight tilt making string trees unnecessary. Beautiful neck. I gots me one of these, and this says it all. I sold my American Standard to finance my 904, and I haven't looked back. It's much like the neck on my LP Heritage Standard, so swaps during a gig aren't unsettling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jkater Posted December 30, 2008 Members Share Posted December 30, 2008 I gots me one of these, and this says it all. I sold my American Standard to finance my 904, and I haven't looked back. It's much like the neck on my LP Heritage Standard, so swaps during a gig aren't unsettling. Hi Flogger! I was thinking of you and your 904 in this thread about high end strat alternatives. I posted my 904 there but it got dismissed as a "Yamaha Pacifica" (which, of course, it is) but which is understood by most as a 112 type low budget deal... I agree that the neck on this guitar is nice and chunky. Doesn't feel like a baseball bat at all, though. Unbelievable fretwork but who did it? the shop in Japan or the one in the US? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Faber Posted December 30, 2008 Members Share Posted December 30, 2008 I've seen maybe 3 new Warmoth necks and a good many new strats - one thing I've noticed. None of the Warmoths had overspray of finish over the frets, something I've seen on some strats Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members elsupermanny14 Posted December 30, 2008 Author Members Share Posted December 30, 2008 Warmoth only charged me $30 for installing and slotting a Graph Tech nut, no big deal.Also, you don't have to spend hundreds on Warmoth, if you don't need the fancy-figured or exotic woods. I bought a new Pro-series neck with a 1 3/4" nut direct from them for $135, plus the $30 for the nut. I found another Vintage Modern series (previously-owned but new and perfect, never installed or played) Warmoth neck with the Graph Tech nut already installed for $141.They're both just plain maple, but play just as well as the fancy ones... and you're pretty much not going to touch any neck with a Fender decal on it for those prices. People think that Warmoth is more expensive because they're tempted to pile on options and go for the fancy woods. Even used Fender necks go for much more IF you compare similar necks. Remember, with Fender, all those options just don't exist. You pay for that decal.I've worked with maple a lot (not guitars) and like the stuff, I've got some old tricks for staining and finishing it, and I'm not that crazy about heavily varnished fretboards, so the fact that they're not "finished" by default is actually a plus for me.I keep hearing "you can't go wrong with either one", or "you can't go wrong with Fender", but where is that coming from? While I've never heard of a single Warmoth neck with problems, who hasn't heard of Fender necks with issues? Go into any GC, you can find one with high spots, or sharp frets. or both. You know I agreed with pretty much everything you said. I haven't found the Warmoth necks to be expensive. Their maple necks start at like $170. As long as you don't get fancy and stay true to the utilitarian aspect of the neck I haven't seen them break $200. I see Fender necks on ebay going for well over $200 on a regular basis. And I don't give a crap about the "Fender" decal. I would probably just end up putting my own logo on it. Thanks for the input! I appreciate it. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members chiro972 Posted December 30, 2008 Members Share Posted December 30, 2008 yep I bought my tele neck unfinished and finished it with minwax wipe on satin poly. It is sweet. I also had them install the nut and put stainless frets on it. The neck is gorgeous birdseye maple with a bit of flame and pao ferro fretboard. It was shipped to my door for right around $200. Not the best pic, but here it is: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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