Avoid these neck pocket shims

[bremen]

Just received these and requested to return them - a request that was immediately agreed without question.

 

They're neither tapered nor solid maple (they're some sort of ply).

 

They're all over Ebay.

[tauzero]

I found the same thing a while ago - I think I posted about it on here.

 

Finished up using these: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/185779208770

 

 

Fitted with the screws going through the holes (as shown there). 

[NancyJohnson]

There was a lengthy thread here a few years back, honestly it should have gone to a vote...people paying stupid money for shims or just sticking a bit of cardboard/creditcard under the neck heel.  It was amazing how people would advocate using StewMac shims ("Noticable sustain," or something) when a playing card would have exactly the same result.

[Stub Mandrel]

They aren't completely useless... you could stack them up to make a ramp 🤣

[Woodinblack]

Indeed - I never knew people actually bought shims, and I have shimmed a few guitars and a couple of basses.

[Jean-Luc Pickguard]

I've never grasped the point of using these kind of shims over a piece of card, which I've always used with no issues.

 

I also have four fender guitars with microtilt adjustment. This system works well with no loss of sustain or other issues despite its seemingly bad reputation which might have more to sloppy 70s era manufacturing.

 

Edited June 13 by Jean-Luc Pickguard

[bremen]

Yes, I read some of those threads and there was no consensus (I know, I know) as to whether "ski jump neck" was a thing. I bought the ebay ones as they were cheaper than chips. As is often the case with ebay stuff that's cheaper than chips, I found out why.

[Woodinblack]

43 minutes ago, Jean-Luc Pickguard said:

I also have four fender guitars with microtilt adjustment. This system works well with no loss of sustain or other issues desipte its seemingly bad reputation which might have more to sloppy 70s era manufacturing.

 

I think the microtilt wasn't a bad idea in itself, i think it was just that at the time they did it, they also made neck pockets with enough play to allow small children to sneak past the gaps, so microtilt got the blame for it.

[BigRedX]

2 minutes ago, Woodinblack said:

I think the microtilt wasn't a bad idea in itself, i think it was just that at the time they did it, they also made neck pockets with enough play to allow small children to sneak past the gaps, so microtilt got the blame for it.

 

It was that coupled with the fact that Fender seemed incapable of fitting the Micro-Tilt striking plate flat, so the adjustment screw would tend to push sideways as well as up causing the neck to skew in the oversized pocket.

[neepheid]

The few times I've found it necessary to shim a neck, I've used an appropriate sized piece of wood veneer (0.6mm).  I went through a phase of applying wood veneer to headstocks.  CBA now, like

 

[JPJ]

I once bought a bass on here from a guy in Norway. I bought it for the Status neck and the upgraded pickup/electronics. When I took the neck off I found 50% of his library card tucked under the body end of the neck. My fear is I now owe the Norwegian library service considerable overdue book fees 😂

[rushbo]

The first bass I ever owned was a Hondo II Ricky copy. It was ace and I wish I still had it. I wanted to see how everything fitted together, so after peering under the scratchplate, I plucked up the courage to whip off the neck. Lo and behold, there was a 2p piece in the pocket, acting as a shim. It did the job.

 

 

 

 

[Jean-Luc Pickguard]

it must have been a tonecoin

[lemmywinks]

1 hour ago, Jean-Luc Pickguard said:

it must have been a tonecoin

 

Good for metal?

[rushbo]

9 minutes ago, lemmywinks said:

Good for metal?

Well played sir. Well played. 

[Stub Mandrel]

On 12/06/2024 at 14:47, Jean-Luc Pickguard said:

I also have four fender guitars with microtilt adjustment. This system works well with no loss of sustain or other issues despite its seemingly bad reputation which might have more to sloppy 70s era manufacturing.

 

And people who didn't understand the system trying to adjust the tilt without slackening the strings and neck bolts first.

[bremen]

1 hour ago, Stub Mandrel said:

 

And people who didn't understand the system trying to adjust the tilt without slackening the strings and neck bolts first.

Ouch, that's not going to end well

[tauzero]

The first bass I shimmed was a Hayman 40/40 that I put together from parts (my first bass). Piece of card. Worked, no issues between putting it together and selling it a few years later.

 

I stuck with through-necks for a good many years so shims were irrelevant.

 

Recently I've been through a bout of it. Bought a HB Dullahan guitar which had a high action, needed a shim. I splashed out on a Stew Mac one because of all the talk of ski jumps. Then I bought an Aliexpress acrylic bass which needed a shim. I got a set of the Ebay ones that one should avoid and for some reason one of them worked. Then I bought a cheap Chinese fan-fret headless bass which needed a shim and I (having worked out that neither of the remaining wooden shims from Ebay were tapered) bought a set of the brass shims and used one of those over the rearmost screw. Spot on.

 

My probably unfounded worry about card is that it might compress, hence using something a bit more solid. I've got another three of the brass shims of varying thicknesses so I'm set up for a while. At £4 for the set of four I'm happy.

[Maude]

For all those that say shim material has no effect on the tone, I can hear the difference between the suits of playing cards used.

Clubs, Hearts, and Diamonds are fine but Spades really shine when you dig in. 

[lemmywinks]

1 hour ago, Maude said:

For all those that say shim material has no effect on the tone, I can hear the difference between the suits of playing cards used.

Clubs, Hearts, and Diamonds are fine but Spades really shine when you dig in. 

 

Bah, you use playing cards?

 

I can hear the difference between the various types of junk mail that happens to be posted through my letterbox on the day I need to shim a neck. A local gardner's leaflet gives a natural, earthy tone for example.

[Stub Mandrel]

On 15/06/2024 at 00:49, lemmywinks said:

 

Bah, you use playing cards?

 

I can hear the difference between the various types of junk mail that happens to be posted through my letterbox on the day I need to shim a neck. A local gardner's leaflet gives a natural, earthy tone for example.

 

I find 'election communications' ideal. You can guess which give an aggressive tone, produce false notes or 'dog whistle' sounds...

[Obrienp]

I use bits of credit card as shims but I have to admit, I have never accounted for the effects of inflation.

[Count Bassy]

23 hours ago, Obrienp said:

I use bits of credit card as shims but I have to admit, I have never accounted for the effects of inflation.

I tried this, but found that the ATMs then wouldn't accept the remaining credit card.

[rogerzilla]

I have used these shims on Teles.  They are tapered, they absolutely do the job (allowing you to raise the bridge without also raising the action) and they can't be ply if they're that thin - think about what plywood is.

 

The edges usually need a bit of sandpapering to get them to fit with no overlap.  I think they are a compromise Strat/Tele fit, and the pockets of these guitars have different corners.

 

The advantage over a piece of card is that you get full body to neck contact with no gaps, and no risk of a kink in the neck over time.

[bloke_zero]

I would have thought the main advantage of maple over card was that it wouldn't compress as easily and you can taper it with sandpaper. Easy to get some maple samples from people selling veneers, then you can cut it the right shape and create the taper. I think that a good tight contact/fit is important for the neck pocket.