MS Anniversary model part 6

Fitting the neck

Now I’m getting to the stage where it all starts looking like a guitar.  I’ve built up the neck and head, shaped the heel (and stamped serial numbers on the inside) so it’s ready to fit.

First I have to cut the body to give access to the neck.  Below the body is ready to receive the neck, the neck ready to go into it, and the wedges I drive in to hold it very securely in place are lying alongside.  The red strap will be tightened to hold the neck in place while I apply glue to the whole assembly and drive in the wedges.

Heel block stamped 57th MS model, serial no 521, Anniversary Model 8

Neck, body and wedges ready for assembly

Neck in place, mahogany wedges driven in and neck locked against the soundboard with little spruce wedges

The last process: gluing on the ebony heel cap. Now it stands overnight before I begin fitting the fingerboard

Fingerboard fitted and (some time later) Wengé neck shaped.  Wengé  is tricky to work. The grain runs both ways, when planing or chiseling, there is always grain against you so the blade wants to dig in. It’s abrasive, so quickly blunts tools used on it, and the dust is not good.  If you get a splinter it should be taken out soon; left in, the flesh around it will fester.

But Wengé makes lovely necks; it looks and feels great, is very stiff, and helps the guitar sound great.