ShortScale.org

Sadly, the Bronco neck was not usable.

So I am back on the hunt for a neck for the Mullet-stang.

what went wrong with it? it's really a pain trying to score shortscale necks for good prices.

weed_killer wrote:what went wrong with it? it's really a pain trying to score shortscale necks for good prices.

Some kid refretted the neck and used the wrong frets and cut through the fretboard. My local tech checked it and wouldn't touch it. The repairs would exceed the value of the neck. StratoNuclear was awesome on the deal and is taking it back.

Well that didn't take long. I just won an ebay auction for a 1969 B Mustang neck. I ended up getting it for $128 It's missing the decal, but I have one so I can apply and clear coat it no problem. I will have to get F tuners to match the holes, though I could use the ones I am getting from Dave.

Did 1969 Mustang necks have white buttons or chrome buttons on the tuners? I will probably do white ones unless I find a deal on Chrome tuners.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... fresh=true

great deal on that neck.

this comp stang has white buttons.



if you plan on doing a matching headstock, i'd do white.

hotrodperlmutter wrote:great deal on that neck.

this comp stang has white buttons.



if you plan on doing a matching headstock, i'd do white.

So pretty. Red is my favorite color and the matching headstock and competition stripe just sick.

My 1969 Mustang neck came in today. Seems in good condition. I will add the decal and clearcoat the decal this weekend. I will have to slightly enlarge the neck pocket because the 1969 neck is apparently more like the Jaguar neck in terms of heel width. No biggie. Those 70's Fender student models had smaller pockets and smaller neck heels. The neck was refinished nice enough, though I wish it was more tan. I would get some tinted nitro clear if I could confirm the refinish clear was also nitro. I don't think it's good to nitro over poly finish. I might ask the seller. Not terrible just all my other necks are much darker. Reminds me of the neck on the old Squier Jagmaster. Maybe some Tru-oil is all it needs. Good neck for less than $150.




Pics of new neck

sexy neck

A drop of lacquer thinner on a hidden part of the neck, will confirm if it's lacquer or not. Lacquer will melt, poly will do nothing.

You can spray nitrocellulose lacquer over poly. Fender used to dip their guitars into a vat of Fullerplast (definitely not lacquer). You don't have to worry about chemical reactions, because once poly cures, it can never dissolve again. Acrylic lacquer on the other hand is hit or miss.

Just be sure to sterilize (w/ lighter fluid aka naphtha) anything you spray, you don't know what the person before you did to the neck.... nah, nothing bad, just oils and shit. And hit it with misty light coats of clear. Heavy coats may shock the existing finish (wrinkles).

That body wouldn't take my Jagstang neck either.

I am ready to lay to decals down, but I am really considering getting some tinted lacquer and darkening the neck first. All my other necks seem so much darker compared to this one.

Your just around the corner from Bill at ReRanch, right?

Joey wrote:Your just around the corner from Bill at ReRanch, right?

Yep. I am about 5 miles from him, but I think he does it out of his house. I will probably order some in a bit. I have some normal clear left to apply the decal so I don't darken the decal too much.

I left work early to meet the cable guy and he left so I had some time to work on the Mustang.

I taped and masked the neck for nitro tinted clear tanning session. I then used my dremel tool to slightly enlarge the control cavity and neck pocket so the 69 Mustang neck would fit into the smaller 70's neck pocket. I put all the parts back on and everything now lines up perfectly. I can now use the drill press to drill the mounting holes for the pickguard, trem and control plates.

On the neck, I am going to slightly darken the neck with tinted nitro clear, wetsand, apply the Mustang decal and regular clear coat over the decal.

Progress

I hit the neck with 5 light coats of tinted nitro clear. Then I wet sanded it to smooth out the finish. The neck is definitely darker, but not quite dark enough for what I want. I am going to hit it with a couple more coats to darken it more.

Right now the neck feels kinda like a smooth satin finish, but I am wanting a little more glossy feeling to the neck. Probably just shy of the Japanese glossy finish.

Is the key to getting a glossy feel simply the amount of gloss sprayed on the neck?

Do I simply need to apply enough clearcoat to build up a thicker layer in order to increase the glossiness of the neck?

Great deal on that neck. Sheet hot.

+1. Nitro on poly never solly

You spray lots of coats to make sure you have plenty on there so when you wetsand you don't sand through it. Shine comes from wet sanding down to a fine enough grain that you can buff it. Gloss paint makes it easier, but you can get either satin or glossy just by how far you go with buffing. You can also take a glossy finish back to satin by using 1500-ish grit. Clothes and skin oil may remove paint, but the dirt is what makes it dull. Old finish is full of surprises.

I have been using RR for years now but I still go back and read the 101 section every once in a while to make sure the fumes aren't softening my brain pan.

I have a set of wet sanding pads that start at 1500 and go up to 12000. Makes a very gradual sanding process. I don't think I sanded through, but it definitely needs more coats. If 1500 makes gloss go satin I will start with a finer pad like 2000 and get finer from there. I compared the neck to my other necks (nitro Allparts tele, AVRI Jaguar, CIJ Jaguar SH) and it's still not dark enough.

Day 2 of spraying tinted nitro went way better. Unloaded the rest of the nitro can on it. I definitely laid down some gloss tonight. It looks as dark as a 65 RI neck. If it is still not feeling glossy enough, I will use some clear coat so not to upset the color.

What's the best method for buffing the neck after I wetsand it?

I sanded the clear-coat on the neck with 3200 and 6000 grit sanding pads. The neck only needed minor sanding, mostly on the headstock to reduce the "orange peel" effect.

I also applied the Mustang and offset Decals to the neck and let them dry. I will clear-coat over them this week, sand the finish and polish the entire neck. I then will plan on letting the neck sit for 3 or 4 weeks to harden the finish. I am thrilled with the overall results. I go the neck the shade I was looking for and applied the decals properly. I learned from my Telecaster build to not let the decals soak too long in the water or they have a tendency to tear. On the Telecaster sticker, I let it soak 30 - 40 seconds and it tore in half but I was able to fix it. I only let these decals soak for 20 seconds and it worked much better with no tearing.

I'm watching this thread for tips on how to complete my own neck finish, so please keep updating this.

I don't have any sanding pads that high of grade, though, just 800/1000/1500/2000 paper, and then some buffing compound. Do I really need to go up as high as you did?

Pens wrote:I'm watching this thread for tips on how to complete my own neck finish, so please keep updating this.

I don't have any sanding pads that high of grade, though, just 800/1000/1500/2000 paper, and then some buffing compound. Do I really need to go up as high as you did?

No. What you are using should be okay. Just go slow and don't sand through your finish. My neck finish came out really good so I wanted to use something really fine just to smooth it out, ,and address the orange peel. I got these cool MicroMesh sanding pads at a woodworking shop that start at 1500 and go to 12000! (bought them as a set) They worked well. I might hit the whole neck with the 12000 when it's all done. I also use the coarser Sandpaper when necessary.

http://www.rockler.com/product.cfm?page ... cro%20mesh

On my last Telecaster project, The neck was finished and I simply applied the decal and clear coated over it. Just make sure to not soak the decals too long or they can rip. I found a photo of a Mustang neck online to help me with sticker placement. I trimmed the excess off the sticker and staged it before actually applying the stickers.

Don't forget to lightly sand along the tape line where the rosewood meets the finish to smooth it out after you remove the tape. the finish gets a little heavy and rough at the edge of the tape.