Members riovine Posted July 2, 2006 Members Share Posted July 2, 2006 Ok, so I know I see guitars that have what are described as 3 piece or 5 piece necks, and I know there is a lot of discussion about the merits of that as opposed to a 1 piece neck. But my question is much simpler, in a 3 or 5 piece neck, what/where are considered the individual pieces. Is a neck with a separatly joined headstock and heel block and a solid neck shaft considered a 3-piece neck, is a 5-piece neck the same as the above but with three pieces laminated to make the shaft. Thx... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members JasmineTea Posted July 2, 2006 Members Share Posted July 2, 2006 I don't think one piece necks have any advantage over multiple piece necks. If the pieces run the length of the neck, like THIS, the advantage is a neck with better stability, less likely to warp. As for things like scarf joints and dovetails like you see on Taylors where the neck and head are joined, the only disadvantage is visual. The joint is actualy stronger than solid wood. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members riovine Posted July 2, 2006 Author Members Share Posted July 2, 2006 Got it, so it sounds like the separate pieces need to be running down the length of the neck. If you had a guitar with a sepatate headstock, and a separate heel block (not sure if I'm using the correct terminology here), but the length of the neck was one piece of wood glued to the headstock & heel block, even though the entire neck from end to end was made with 3 separate pieces of wood, it would still be considered a one piece neck and not a 3-piece neck. BTW, you had to torment us with that Olsen, didin't you... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members JasmineTea Posted July 2, 2006 Members Share Posted July 2, 2006 Originally posted by riovine If you had a guitar with a sepatate headstock, and a separate heel block (not sure if I'm using the correct terminology here), but the length of the neck was one piece of wood glued to the headstock & heel block, even though the entire neck from end to end was made with 3 separate pieces of wood, it would still be considered a one piece neck and not a 3-piece neck.? I don't think so. One piece is one piece. If it has a joint by the heel or the nut, it's not one piece anymore. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bjorn-fjord Posted July 2, 2006 Members Share Posted July 2, 2006 You guys have pretty much covered this issue. The only thing I would add is that sometimes the heel-block is constructed with a stack of individual 1" pieces and this is sometimes a consideration when speaking of a 3 piece or 5 piece neck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members riovine Posted July 2, 2006 Author Members Share Posted July 2, 2006 Thanks to everyone for replying. So, I don't want to beat this issue to death, but here's what I think I heard in all of this. If a neck is made of 3 pieces that run the entire length of the neck, from the top of the headstock to the heel block, that are laminated together lengthwise, it is considered a 3-piece neck. On the other hand, if a neck is made from 3 pieces, one piece for the headstock, one piece for the "neck" (i.e. between the headstock & heel block), and one piece for the heel block, all glued together at their respective joints, it is also considered a 3-piece neck. If that is true, it seems that the term 3-piece neck can be used to refer to drastically different neck constructions. Apoligies if I'm a little slow on this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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