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Stripped neck on a Jem7VWH - Advice needed

3K views 19 replies 16 participants last post by  Drew 
#1 ·
I've done a search on the archive and can find no old threads on this subject. My apologies if this is a duplication.

My 7VWH needs a set up. This is something I will be treating myself to for Christmas. At the same time, however, I was thinking of stripping the back to a natural finish as I love the feel of those old unfinished Jem necks. I am not particularly concerned about how this might affect the resale
value of my guitar as I have no intention of selling it for the foreseeable future.

Has anybody done this themself or is it a job best left to a professional guitar repairer/luthier? Am i likely to lose the side position markers as they seem to be painted onto the edge of the board?

Any input would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Matt
 
#2 ·
Stripped neck on a Jem7VWH

the neck unfinish is a D.I.Y project for anyone with basic mechanical skills and some patience. The Guitars:TECH/SETUP area outlines how it is done. It is best to do BEFORE a setup since the neck should be removed. This has been widely discussed but search various keywords to locate the discussions. Good luck... glen
 
#5 ·
Stripped neck on a Jem7VWH

I did mine according to the instructions in the Tech area, Matt and it's really easy... If you're too cautious (like I was) it'll just take you twice as long and still turn out great! :) I can't imagine how you could really mess it up if you're at all carefull...
 
#6 ·
Stripped neck on a Jem7VWH

I decided to take the jump and strip my 7V neck about 1.5 years ago, and since then, all my other guitars have had their necks sanded.

I went and followed the Jemsite.com method, which got me started very well, but when I used the 0000 steel wool, it felt like the original finish was back on, it was just too smooth, I wanted to really feel the wood. I think the lowest grade of sandpaper I used at that time was 220, after sanding again AFTER the steel wool to bring it back to a rougher texture, I decided I wanted it a little more rough, 150 grit sandpaper worked fine.

I could see where it would be easier to take the neck off, however it can be done without taking it off as long as your careful around the AANJ so you don't end up scratching the guitar.

I've left mine totally unfinished as well, no Tung oil or anything. I'm going to put some on another guitar, to see how it affects the feel of it, but right now I absolutely LOVE the way my 7V feels. It hasn't 'greyed' like I heard it would or anything like that, but I know with a lot of sweat, over time it could happen, so I'd like to prevent it.
 
#7 ·
Stripped neck on a Jem7VWH

Thanks for all the advice and encouragement guys.
I've been to the Tech/setup section and had a read and it all seems to make sense. I have just one more query before I take the plunge on this.

It recommends in the tech section that the edge of the fingerboard is masked of with electrical tape prior to sanding.
Is the edge of the board on a VWH clear coated or raw ebony?It's really hard to tell because the neck is really well worn in and the edge of the board has a real sheen. If it is clear coated would I be OK to sand the edge of the board back too? Am I likely to remove the position dots if this is the case as they seem to be painted rather than inlayed.

Sorry to be a total wus about this :cry:. My Jem really is at the top of my guitar heap and I want to make sure I am totally confident before I take the plunge (even if it does take twice as long Jimi :))

Matt
 
#8 ·
Stripped neck on a Jem7VWH

Matt,
The tape is to protect the side markers and the edges of the frets. The side markers are inlays and will get scratched easily.

Don't sweat doing this yourself. It isn't that bad. But I, and everyone else here, would recommend you remove the neck before starting. Just to be on the safe side. Then start with 150 grit sand paper and remove the finish. Keep a damp (not wet) sponge handy and wipe the neck every so often. This will also show you where finish still needs to be sanded. The whole job, from removing the neck to sanding to reattaching the neck will take about an hour...maybe less.

Have fun!!

Jimm>:thumbsup:
 
#10 ·
Stripped neck on a Jem7VWH

If you do scratch the side markers then don't worry about it, just go over them with progressively higher paper grits up to 600/800 or so.
When I install inlays on a board I do so halfway through the radiusing so I can continue and sand them down flush with the radius of the board, which also applys to the side markers.

The good thing about Ibanez is that they don't finish their necks with ludicrous amounts of coat.
It's quite easy to remove.

For a first timer I'd start with 240 grit to be honest and attach the paper to some leather or similar material so you don't rub through any areas (the leather will help with "snugging" itself around the neck shape)

Personally I go up to about 600 on the back of a neck and then 0000 wire wool.
After that I'll just add some tung oil for a little protection.

I know it sounds like a lot of work, but it really does make a difference and will also give you that added confidence to work on your guitar in the future.

good luck

Steve
 
#11 ·
Stripped neck on a Jem7VWH

The side dot markers on my 7VWH are definitely painted on. This is evident by the visible grain of the ebony flowing through the markers. I imagine if one were to sand the ebony, they would disappear. Dot markers on both my 777DY and DNA are inlays. My only complaint about the 7VWH is that the markers are painted, and seem to look faded when compared to other VWH's. Now my question is were they ever inlays? If so when did they switch to paint? --rvj
 
#13 ·
Good stuff. I'm almost confident to sand the back of my new old Jem10, but...

The back of the neck looks really dirty, and feels as if it is saturated with old sweat and dirt. (Ok, this is all probably just in my head, since i bought it 2nd hand from i guy i don't know, but the neck feels bad!).

I wonder how deep the wood will suck up sweat and dirt (how much i will need to sand off), and if there's another way to get the wood to spit it all out.

The tech at the store told me to just use a lot of water, but then he said that i really really should coat the neck after sanding it, so i no longer take his word for stuff like this. (-:
On the other hand, i can imagine that using oil or perhaps anything else that the wood really 'likes' to suck up, it will loosen the sweat and dirt in order to 'make room' for the oil.

Any sugestions? Or should i just sand a few mm off the neck?
 
#14 ·
Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think 10th anniversary Jem necks already come "unfinished" (bare).

I was going to do this, as I've read about the success alot of people here on this site have had with sanding their necks. But I've read elsewhere that an unfinished (bare, no oil, no lacquer) is more susceptible to warping. Does this happen?

wil..
 
#15 ·
No, you're right. The 10 neck is unfinished. If it were finished, it wouldn't be as dirty as it is now (or you could just wipe it off). The unfinished wood sucked up dirt. That's what i want to sand off now. That is, if there's no other way to make it clean pure wood again...

Unfinished will pick up dirt. I guess that's why the tech at the store told me i'd better finish the neck after i sand it. I could not make him believe it actually feels so much better that it's worth that little bit of 'greying'.

BTW, does anybody know if EVO had her neck sanded?
 
#17 ·
burt777 said:
BTW, does anybody know if EVO had her neck sanded?
Not sure, but EVO has had a few necks on her since her first neck (the one most loved by Stevie) cracked during a mishap in Australia. He decide to throw her to his guitar guy at the side of the stage (which he had done several times before). Mid flight the guitar cable and strap got caught up or something and the guitar was brought down hard to the ground cracking it's original neck.

I think she's on her third or fourth neck now (due to Stevie being unable to find a neck as nice as the original or something). :)

Damn Steve rocks so much. :D

wil..
 
#20 ·
I STRONGLY recommend a tung oil finish after you sand a neck. A bare neck is much more susceptable to climatic shifts- it's a 2 1/2 hour drive between my home and college for me, and every time i would come home for a vacation or return to school, I'd have to redo the setup because the bare neck on my 7620 (after i sanded it, of course) had shifted due to the humidity change. A good tung oil finish has rendered it almost perfectly stable.

Also, if you do 3 or so coats, sanding between coats, because tung oil is a penetrating finish, it still FEELS very close to bare wood, although possibly even smoother. however, the finish is still in the grain of the wood, so the neck is protected- I had to resand every two months or so since i first stripped the neck. However, i did a tung oil finish a couple months ago, and the neck still looks perfect.

So, it (im my opinion) actually feels slightly smoother than bare wood, it's less susceptable to humidity shifts because it is, in fact, sealed, and it protects the wood from oxidizing and from the oils and dirt on your hands. If there's a better neck finish, I'm not aware of it.

-D
 
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