Neck pocket, new guitars, tight!! Any ideas?

[NickHorne]

I have been trying, very cautiously, to get a little adjustment in the neck pockets of two brand-new guitars (Asat Special and Z-3), but these are both so tight that I am uneasy about even trying to move the necks at all, in case I take some of of the body finish with them!
I've seen John Toner's post on this topic, but these two are super-tight in there. Taking a neck out to clean / ease a tiny bit in there seems out of the question, it feels like there would be poly chips everywhere in no time, and two decidedly no-longer-new-looking guitars.
I can waggle my old WR about like I'd expect to, but not these guys!
Any ideas?

[Craig]

I have been trying, very cautiously, to get a little adjustment in the neck pockets of two brand-new guitars (Asat Special and Z-3), but these are both so tight that I am uneasy about even trying to move the necks at all, in case I take some of of the body finish with them!
I've seen John Toner's post on this topic, but these two are super-tight in there. Taking a neck out to clean / ease a tiny bit in there seems out of the question, it feels like there would be poly chips everywhere in no time, and two decidedly no-longer-new-looking guitars.
I can waggle my old WR about like I'd expect to, but not these guys!
Any ideas?

I've sent your post to some of my contacts at G&L. I will post the replies.

Stay tuned.

[NickHorne]

Thank you, Craig!
These are really nice guitars, but getting their setups thoroughly right is unusually challenging.
Both have no 4 necks. The edge setback is quite tight between frets 5 and 11 approx, and neck set is going to be critical to get them to play best.

[Craig]

Thank you, Craig!
These are really nice guitars, but getting their setups thoroughly right is unusually challenging.
Both have no 4 necks. The edge setback is quite tight between frets 5 and 11 approx, and neck set is going to be critical to get them to play best.

Hi Nick,

I passed this info on to the guys as well.

[NickHorne]

You good man; thank you!

[KenC]

Nick,

I've run into that issue on a couple of my early Leo-era guitars. After taking a tiny chip off my '82 SC-2 while setting the Micro-tilt, I've made it a practice to gently work a fresh razor blade around the perimeter of the neck pocket. That's prevented any damage to other guitars. As far as getting the necks out of the pocket, I've usually needed to remove all three bolts and tighten the Micro-tilt to nudge the neck out. Of course, that tip won't help with anything post-'98...

Ken

[NickHorne]

Ken,

What a good thought. Just like getting the finish to stay on the neck when taking a nut out.
I will keep that advice in mind!
In the short term, I'll have to wait for G&L to speak first, as these two are absolutely brand new, before I do anything with more than a screwdriver! The Special is almost right, although I'd like to get a little shift if I can; it's the Z-3 that really needs to move over more.

I'm sure it will end well and be great, all part of the fun of using guitars!

[darwinohm]

Nick, I wonder if these were built when the humidity was low. You probably have more humidity in the UK and everything has swelled a bit. I have also had some tight pockets that were a bit difficult to remove. I have never had a chip of paint come off and consider my lucky. It sounds like the string alignment on the Z-3 is an issue. I hope this gets resolved easily. I am surprised considering these are # 4 necks.-- Darwin

[NickHorne]

Darwin, that's a very good point you make about humidity; thank you. I was intending to be patient about a thorough setup with everything perfected, and you have alerted me to just how patient I may have to be!

[NickHorne]

The Special is now sorted and, rather incredibly, the culprit was the pickguard!
I must have been getting close to 10 kilos lateral force at the nut end when I decided any more adjustment force could be very unwise, and still the string alignment had not moved much at all.
Then on a hunch I slacked off the pickguard screws either side of the heel, plus their next neighbours, and pushed again; the pickguard bent up now, it was moving.
So, I began to remove the guard. It was very tight at the heel, and I had to remove the pickups and then ease the guard off very gradually and carefully.
Once the guard was off, the neck adjustment came easily, and after some very careful filing of the treble side at the heel, the guard now fits snugly but not too tightly around the heel in its new position. Filing a straight edge and a tidy radius was not a rush job.
Great! This now plays really well, couldn't wish for better.
The Z-3 remains to be solved; I'm hoping Craig's communications will elicit some help.

[Craig]

The Special is now sorted and, rather incredibly, the culprit was the pickguard!
I must have been getting close to 10 kilos lateral force at the nut end when I decided any more adjustment force could be very unwise, and still the string alignment had not moved much at all.
Then on a hunch I slacked off the pickguard screws either side of the heel, plus their next neighbours, and pushed again; the pickguard bent up now, it was moving.
So, I began to remove the guard. It was very tight at the heel, and I had to remove the pickups and then ease the guard off very gradually and carefully.
Once the guard was off, the neck adjustment came easily, and after some very careful filing of the treble side at the heel, the guard now fits snugly but not too tightly around the heel in its new position. Filing a straight edge and a tidy radius was not a rush job.
Great! This now plays really well, couldn't wish for better.
The Z-3 remains to be solved; I'm hoping Craig's communications will elicit some help.

I'll pass this info about the pickguard fit on your ASAT Special to my contacts. I do know that the factory is extremely busy right now and many are working
the weekends, too. So please be patient for a reply. Can you provide some photos of the Z-3 showing the alignment of the strings along the fretboard and
any others which might help them see the alignment issue?

[NickHorne]

Thank you again, Craig.
I have some photos, but will take some more to clarify.
Then I'll have to get up to date and go on Flickr or similar, to post them...

[Craig]

Thank you again, Craig.
I have some photos, but will take some more to clarify.
Then I'll have to get up to date and go on Flickr or similar, to post them...

Really? ... how have you gotten away without posting any photos, yet?
See this post: Tutorial: Posting photos.

[Elwood]

Really? ... how have you gotten away without posting any photos, yet?

My thoughts as well.
( I bet you have some cool gear pics from over the years).

[NickHorne]

I really will make the effort to join the 21C
But will have to get into Flickr or similar first, and I've always something else I'd rather do... must now make the effort to fend off the insular-old-fart mentality for another decade or two!
The Special currently has its controls out, having a Jerry Donahue-style circuitry mod put in; this will take me a little while, as I'm having to dismantle and rebuild a 4-pole 5-way to get it narrow enough to fit in the tele-type rout. Fiddly and tedious, but can be done with tiny bolts in place of the rivets, reversing the wafers, and cutting the spacers down.
It's also a Blackburst, which will be a photographic challenge to get right. Great guitar.
The Z3 may turn out to be contentious QC-wise (hope not), and this is probably not the place for such issues. It is visually amazing.

[fianoman]

Nick,

My Legacy has alignment issues as well. I will have to check the pickguard issue you raised to see if that will help. Didn't even think of checking it. Thanks for mentioning it.

At this point, given that I didn't pay much for it, and how little time I have to play (!), I decided to turn off my OC switch and just enjoy playing it until I have lots of time to spend tinkering.

[NickHorne]

After a great many detailed measurements, and comparisons with some other instruments that I know well, I now have a decent insight into the setup of the new Z-3, its alignment, and what I need to do to make it see things my way. It's a mixture of an alignment change in transit and a couple of other setup factors that are by no means wrong, just not 100% how I will have them when I'm finished. Not a QC issue. It just had me very puzzled for a time.
Having said that, I will be very grateful for anything that Craig may be able to unearth about getting safely into the neck pocket to fine-tune the alignment a bit further without chipping anything. In any event, I've no doubt a really great setup will be perfectly do-able.
It does have one quirk, and it's one that I shall never mention again. Someone at G&L knows it's there, and now I do, but no-one else will know what it is. Because it doesn't affect the playabilty, sound or overall greatness of the guitar one tiny bit, its secret is safe.
It has a big, bold voice and is, I believe, unique; two very kind folk took time and trouble to help me get it made. I'll explain properly when I have some good photos to put up.
And it's off the hook QC-wise, for sure.