Acceptable Neck Joint on New Cutlass?

[carterscott]

Hello,

In addition to the strange volume control issues I'm having on my new Cutlass (see here), I also noticed a potential issue with the neck joint this morning.

On closer inspection, the neck is off kilter by about 1-2 mm on the lower bout. Here are some pictures to show the issue. The issue is a little hard to see because of the charcoal frost finish, but I think these picture show it clearly:

Two questions for the gurus here:

1. Would others be willing to accept this on a new Cutlass? It seems like the neck joint should be perfect on a $2000+ guitar, but maybe this is within manufacturing variances?
2. Is this fixable by adjusting the neck pocket?

Thanks!

 

[DrKev]

That's look just fine to me. There is always a little variance in the final neck and neck pocket sizes from piece to piece. That has to be taken into account in defining the machining specifications. Clearly you have to err on sometimes having more room than perfect to avoid having some cases of too little space (in which case some necks may not fit some bodies at all). It's an issue that affects all bolt-on neck guitar manufacturers and nothing you won't see on similar priced instruments on other brands.

 

[Astrofreq]

Hey there!

First off, that is a gorgeous guitar and congrats on scoring such a beauty. I'll say that it is so hard to tell without holding it as too how much it impedes anything. Now, I'm chiming in because I had the same issue with my Cutlass, but it was considerably more overlapping in the joint. I contacted Customer Service and they fixed me right up and now mine is what it should be as far as what is allowable for factory specs. Again, hard to tell yours without holding it, but I know first hand what you are experiencing. I won't tell you what will or won't be done, but contact CS because they are top notch and are eager to help.

Daniel

 

[TripHazard]

My 2cents, if youre not 100% happy, go back to the store and talk to them. Check out another cutlass and compare, and ideally try another cutlass through your amps to see if that volume issue is the same.
Ive just checked the neck pockets on mine and they don't look like yours - barely any ridge at all.
What i will see is that i'd be ok with what you have shown

 

[Astrofreq]

Here's what my neck joint looked like before EBMM fixed it, just to give you a comparison.

http://fingerchili.com/cut1.JPG
http://fingerchili.com/cut2.JPG
http://fingerchili.com/cut3.JPG

 

[xjbebop]

I really like that finish!!

 

[carterscott]

My 2cents, if youre not 100% happy, go back to the store and talk to them. Check out another cutlass and compare, and ideally try another cutlass through your amps to see if that volume issue is the same.
Ive just checked the neck pockets on mine and they don't look like yours - barely any ridge at all.
What i will see is that i'd be ok with what you have shown

Thanks for the reply! Unfortunately, there aren't any other Cutlass HSS RS models in stores in my area. But I may ask if the store can have another one shipped from their distribution center as a replacement.

 

[carterscott]

Here's what my neck joint looked like before EBMM fixed it, just to give you a comparison.

http://fingerchili.com/cut1.JPG
http://fingerchili.com/cut2.JPG
http://fingerchili.com/cut3.JPG

This looks almost identical to what I see on my guitar. Did you email customer service to get the process started?

 

[tbonesullivan]

That looks about normal, maybe 1mm? The neck can shrink and grow a bit as well. It definitely looks far better than what radrock posted, which looks to be 2-3mm of overhang.

but, what's important is that you are happy. Definitely email CS, and take a picture with a ruler if possible.

 

[Astrofreq]

This looks almost identical to what I see on my guitar. Did you email customer service to get the process started?

Yes, I contacted customer service and they were fantastic. Definitely shoot them a friendly email.

 

[carterscott]

Thanks to everyone for your help and thoughts! I contacted EBMM customer service, who said the neck pocket looked wrong to them based on the pictures. They were very helpful and offered to process a warranty claim. But, since the guitar was still in the return period from the store I purchased from, I went ahead and returned it.

 

[Astrofreq]

I’m glad you got it worked out. I bought mine from a store that wouldn’t let me return it. Thankfully, EBMM stepped up to the plate and made it right.