New Guitar- Project

[darwinohm]

I have had an offer on a new John Mayer Strat for about 4 months. It was in a box store and had been there for 3 years, a 2008 build. It had a bowed neck and being the opportunist that I am, I decided that this would be a good project guitar. So, about a month ago, I stopped back and told them my offer was still standing. Now, keep in mind that when Fender sells to a dealer the dealer has 15 days to resolve any warranty issues. The bow in the neck was slightly more than .035 and was not playable. They had figured out that the truss rod wasn't going to fix this one. The bottom line is that they take a beating as no one is going to pay MAP price for this thing and then have it fixed on warranty. So, they sell it to me at a huge discount (smiling} and I bring it home. It is pristine and I am now the original owner of a new guitar and I decide that I will check Fender and their warranty. I take the neck into an authorized Fender center and they contact Fender and the claim was denied because I bought it on closeout. I fully expected this but it was still a new guitar with a defective neck. So, no hill for a climber and I decided not to deal with Fender but instead took it to my friends at American Guitar and Band, my G&L dealer. I asked them if they could have their tech steam the neck and lets see what happens. They said sure and gave it to their tech. This is a quartersawn neck and it was not twisted but a perfect bow. They called me today and it was done. It is perfectly straight and looks new. I assembled the guitar tonight, did a complete setup and this baby is perfect. The question remains, will it stay that way? If not, I will put a new neck on it. It is worth the risk and it has been fun. If I had been Fender, I would have at least talked it over as I had 17 of them as recently as 3 months ago. Anyway, we are lucky on this forum to have people to respond to issues that people have with any of the G&Ls they have purchased.

The tone on this Mayer Strat is unlike anything I have ever heard from Fender. It is silky smooth when in the middle position with tone all the way up. When you back the two tone controls back to 6 it is almost an eerie sound, almost the chicken picking tone. I don't know how to explain it but it is different. This is especially noticeable when playing the higher registers. I have to confess that I don't know much about John Mayer but know that he is an outstanding guitarist. So, that's my story tonight. There is another whole story on the warranty issue but I am not sure it would be appropriate to post it here. -- Darwini

Here it is

[Michael-GnL-Michael]

Beautiful guitar and yet another interesting guitar story.

I definitely prefer either of the G&L (Sperzel or Schaller-G&L) tuner options over so many other brands. My rejection of them is primarily aesthetic. These just do not look good and they appear to have a 19th century technology that you would think is outdated.

John Mayer is a much better musician that his pop celebrity status would lead one to believe.

[blargfromouterspace]

Well done Darwin. I hope that neck stays true and straight. If not you can always get a new neck from USACG.

I played one of those John Mayer strats when they first came out and it was a very, very nice feeling and sounding instrument.

[Michael-GnL-Michael]

I wish I wish I wish G&L would step up and offer replacement necks.

[CGT]

Dare you tell us what you paid, Darwin? That's a gorgeous instrument. I have to say that aesthetically, I like the way the tuners look, especially the convex oval buttons (keys?) There's something classic about the design that can't be matched by the merely efficient Schallers.

[darwinohm]

Yes, I paid $700 and this was a new guitar, hang tags, Mayer in case bag which is awesome, best I have ever seen and probably better protection than a case. But here is an update.

This neck had .035 to .037 bow. With the strings remove it dropped back to about .027 and the truss rod was tight. First off, this is a quarter sawn neck and if the wood bends you have issues. With that in mind I decided to have it steamed, which by the way is quite successful in many cases. This neck was perfectly flat when I put it together last night and I tightened the nut a bit to give it some backbow. I put it all together last night and did a complete setup. This baby played. I fully expected it to change overnight when sitting with tension. Last night I noticed at bedtime that it would fret out on the top 5 or 6 frets. It was already changing. This morning I checked the relief and it was about .015. I removed the neck this morning and did more adjusting. The truss rod is still adjustable (Vintage adjustment at the base) and it had been readjusted and plays wonderful. The jury is still out on this thing but I suspect it may be quite stable at this point. We are getting into the season where the neck will become more flat here in Minnesota. So, I will report on this thing as it progresses. My plan is to purchase a new John Mayer neck (e-bay) or buy a Warmoth with stainless fret and the build that I want if this thing doesn't work out. This guitar was purchased to play and not be resold so a Warmoth neck would not be an issue. I had a spare set of vintage locking tuners which I installed when I assembled it last night. This is an interesting project to me and it is a sweet axe but as I said, the jury is still out. -- Darwin

[willross]

That's an Asian-built guitar, right? I see the "CE" & "Dispose of Safely" stickers on the back plate. Great looking Alder body? Basswood?


Cheers,

Will

[darwinohm]

Will, it is an American artist model. It actually has a very nicely grained alder body. Glad to hear you like the Parker. Lefties are always difficult to find. Is that your first compound neck?-- Darwin

[willross]

The neck is great. Lightest hog-bodied guitar I've ever owned. Look at the 4-bolt plate. Aren't those stickers reserved for imports only? "CE" means made in China, right? The other sticker is due to the heavier regulations regarding disposal.


Cheers,

Will

[darwinohm]

Will, I don't know what CE means but all my American Fenders have that. Maybe someone here knows.--Darwin

[Craig]

Will, I don't know what CE means but all my American Fenders have that. Maybe someone here knows.--Darwin

This link should provide the answer: http://cedirectory.com/ce-mark.php.

Hope this helps.

[darwinohm]

Thanks Craig, I had no idea and was wondering myself what it meant.-- Darwin

[willross]

Thanks, Craig. I have just never seen these stickers on domestic products; only ones made in Asia. Does G&L have examples of this sticker on guitars sent to the European market? Does anyone else have pictures of US Fenders, etc with these stickers? I'm learning something new every day...


Cheers,

Will

* I did a little research and it looks like Fender has been putting those stickers on at least since the late 90's. Great guitar!

[darwinohm]

Time for an updated on the steamed neck. I got it back a week ago and set it up and it changed considerably within the first two hours. I readjusted everything the next morning with about .008 neck relief. It had changed again to about .014 relief stringed up. I then noticed that when inspecting, I was convinced that the truss rod adjustment was bottoming out inside the screw. I drilled two washers and slipped on the truss rod (great fit) and started over. I could now easily adjust backbow and put it back together. I now had .008 relief but expected it to change over night and it did go back to .014 to .016 by the next morning. I decided to check it daily and make no adjustments and see if it would stabilize. It did and today I readjusted the rod, (still have adjustment) and now have .008 neck relief. This is pretty sweet for a vintage style neck and less than Fender recommends. I will continue to monitor and report on what happens. She plays sweet right now. The first morning after I noticed fret out on the high notes. That was a clue that a significant change had occurred. It has become stable and the jury is still out but I think that it is going to be fine. I was prepared to replace the neck but may not have to. I think that this particular rod was a bit too long for the neck, therefore the bow from hanging for 3 years with basically no rod tension. The place where I bought it told me the screw was bottomed out. This is a cap screw with a thick cap. I think these rod screws should have been drilled all the way through. So, if it is stable after a month, I will tweak it to about .005 and I will be a happy camper. -- Darwin

[Lefty]

Darwin,

Sounds like you are making great progress with that neck. With a little luck, it will be fine now?

[louis cyfer]

Time for an updated on the steamed neck. I got it back a week ago and set it up and it changed considerably within the first two hours. I readjusted everything the next morning with about .008 neck relief. It had changed again to about .014 relief stringed up. I then noticed that when inspecting, I was convinced that the truss rod adjustment was bottoming out inside the screw. I drilled two washers and slipped on the truss rod (great fit) and started over. I could now easily adjust backbow and put it back together. I now had .008 relief but expected it to change over night and it did go back to .014 to .016 by the next morning. I decided to check it daily and make no adjustments and see if it would stabilize. It did and today I readjusted the rod, (still have adjustment) and now have .008 neck relief. This is pretty sweet for a vintage style neck and less than Fender recommends. I will continue to monitor and report on what happens. She plays sweet right now. The first morning after I noticed fret out on the high notes. That was a clue that a significant change had occurred. It has become stable and the jury is still out but I think that it is going to be fine. I was prepared to replace the neck but may not have to. I think that this particular rod was a bit too long for the neck, therefore the bow from hanging for 3 years with basically no rod tension. The place where I bought it told me the screw was bottomed out. This is a cap screw with a thick cap. I think these rod screws should have been drilled all the way through. So, if it is stable after a month, I will tweak it to about .005 and I will be a happy camper. -- Darwin

fender unfortunately has some major manufacturing issues with their necks. they crank the trussrod before sanding the relief into the fretboard, so there is barely any adjustment left in them. by drilling the truss rod nut through and putting on washers the situation can be solved most of the time. my tech says he sees this in 70-80% of fender necks. i bought an srv signature strat with the brazilian rosewood fretboard for 400 bucks that had the same issue. he fixed it up, and i am a very happy camper. those pups on the mayer sig strat are very nice sounding, different from other strats.

[darwinohm]

Interesting comment Louis. I suspected that was the problem after the second adjustment. I believe that it is going to be just fine and yes, this Mayer sounds different than any Fender that I have heard. I also like the SRV. I have always have been intrigued by the EJs but this may be the last Fender. We will see.-- Thanks for your input.-- Darwin

[darwinohm]

Louis, It is now 10 days since the last truss rod tweak on the JM and it is stable as a rock. You mentioned that the tech fixed your SRV. Fender puts a wood insert in the truss rod nut hole and it appears that it would have to be removed to remove the nut. Is that what he had to do? I am curious. hanks-- Darwin

[louis cyfer]

Louis, It is now 10 days since the last truss rod tweak on the JM and it is stable as a rock. You mentioned that the tech fixed your SRV. Fender puts a wood insert in the truss rod nut hole and it appears that it would have to be removed to remove the nut. Is that what he had to do? I am curious. hanks-- Darwin

i'll ask him.

[darwinohm]

Just an update on the steamed Mayer neck that I adjusted back in mid October. I have been measuring it weekly and it has been totally stable. It is 6 weeks since it was last adjusted and Thursday I gave it a final tweak and this neck appears to be totally well at this point. I may ultimately add one more washer but it is now perfect. Keep in mind this a vintage truss rod with the adjustment at the base of the neck and has to be removed to be adjusted. So, I recommend that you are sure what is wrong before giving up on that neck you may be having problems with and this one was brand new. For a Strat, this Mayer is really sweet. I must confess that I am lusting over an ASAT Z-3, tobacco burst, semi hollow, f-hole, with GOT maple fretboard neck , natural binding on the body which matches the neck perfectly. The bonus is that it has gold hardware. I don't have GAS but it is criminal to leave one like this homeless. I am thinking of a good justification to present to the chief procurement officer. Zapco Ed, could I store it at your house for a while???--Darwin

[louis cyfer]

i asked my tech, and he said when it's the biflex trussrod with the insert holding it so it can exert force the other way, you can't do the same things with it. if you drill out the insert the trussrod stops working.

are you saying the mayer strat needs to be stored at ed?

[darwinohm]

Louis, I was joking with Ed if I get a new one.

Thanks for the info from your tech. Most of my Fenders have the insert in the neck and maybe they all have the biflex rod in which case their is no way to fix. I never understood the need for the biflex as I have not had a neck ever go the other way. -- Darwin

[louis cyfer]

Louis, I was joking with Ed if I get a new one.

Thanks for the info from your tech. Most of my Fenders have the insert in the neck and maybe they all have the biflex rod in which case their is no way to fix. I never understood the need for the biflex as I have not had a neck ever go the other way. -- Darwin

i have had some necks go the other way. shouldn't happen, but sometimes it does.