A Bolt-on neck problem

[smeghead]

hi guys, i have a bit of a problem with my SRV fender strat. the 4 screws which bolt the neck to the body are coming loose. by that i mean the wood is wearing away from where the screws have been screwed in and out of their holes too much/carelessly (i bought it from someone else).
is there something i can do to 'fill in' these holes/make them secure/make sure it doesn't happen any more? one of the screw holes has already worn away so i only have 3 screws holding the neck to the body. not ideal!
any help would be greatly appreciated!

[curtisstetka]

Welcome to TFF.

Are you talking about the neck or body here?

If it's the body, I wouldn't worry too much about it. As long as the screws are tight, the neck is being held securely to the body.

If it's the neck, what I would do is squirt a little wood glue into the hole along with a couple pieces of toothpick. When you put the screw in, it'll bite into the toothpicks and compress them into the hole where the glue will then hold the wood forever.

[smeghead]

thanks for the welcome, and for the advice.
the screw falls out completely, so it's probably both neck and body.
i'll try the tip you gave me, sounds good. however, the reason i discovered/tormented this problem is that i was adjusting the truss and contemplating a neck shim. therefore, i may be taking the neck on and off a couple of times still before i get things how i want. would the glue/toothpick not hold in place if i keep taking the screws out?
sorry for the silly questions.

[Don]

thanks for the welcome, and for the advice.
the screw falls out completely, so it's probably both neck and body.
i'll try the tip you gave me, sounds good. however, the reason i discovered/tormented this problem is that i was adjusting the truss and contemplating a neck shim. therefore, i may be taking the neck on and off a couple of times still before i get things how i want. would the glue/toothpick not hold in place if i keep taking the screws out?
sorry for the silly questions.

It'll hold up fine.

Here's a tip for the future-

Whenever I re-assemble anything with wood screws I turn the srew counter-clockwise until I feel it drop into the existing thread and then I turn it clockwise using the same threads as the previous assembly.
This way, the only time the threads strip is if the pilot hole was too big in the first place or if I get crazy and overtighten the screw.
I've done this for 20 years (don't ask about the 20 years before that) and it works well.

[Mesotech]

If the existing hole is far too gone for the toothpick trick, you'll need to pull the neck, drill out the holes to fit a piece of dowel rod into them. Cut the rods long and plane them down after the glue sets. Then you can make new holes that will hold firm in the future. Try the toothpick route first, it's far less complicated and has a real good chance of success.

[smeghead]

It'll hold up fine.

Here's a tip for the future-

Whenever I re-assemble anything with wood screws I turn the srew counter-clockwise until I feel it drop into the existing thread and then I turn it clockwise using the same threads as the previous assembly.
This way, the only time the threads strip is if the pilot hole was too big in the first place or if I get crazy and overtighten the screw.
I've done this for 20 years (don't ask about the 20 years before that) and it works well.

great tip! thank you!

finally, can anyone share any images or maybe just elaborate on the toothpick/wood glue tip?

[Mesotech]

I don't know of any images, but I'm sure some exist somewhere.

The technique is to basically fill the hole with short pieces of toothpicks that don't extend above the hole into the air. Fit your pieces dry while laying the neck down face first. Once you have the hole to where it looks tight enough, squirt in a few drops of woodglue into each hole, place the body onto the neck and insert the screws.

The screws will push the toothpicks against the existing wood of the neck, the threads will cut and force the toothpick to fill the gaps, and the glue will bond the toothpicks to the existing wood. Once dry, you can pull out the screws again and the toothpicks will stay glued inside the holes.

[melody]

This guy may have some pics for you to see and its a cool site anyway. www.guitarnuts.com

[curtisstetka]

I've used the toothpick trick plenty o' times on guitars - just not with the neck before. It's great for stripped strap button holes.

[Camoradi]

....so it's probably both neck and body.

The toothpick trick is the way to go on the neck.

But a word of warning, and this may seem counter intuitive, but the screws should fall through the holes in the body without any interference at all. So don't try to 'fix' the body if they already do.

Why is this? Well, if you had a screw thread in the body the screw will just as likely tighten into that as into the thread in the neck, so the screws wouldn't pull the neck down tight onto the body. Give the screw a clear run at it by having slightly oversized holes through the body and it will be bound to put all its torque into the neck/body joint. This is how it was designed by Fender, but often the body holes get gunked up with wood shavings and paint.

[billhart22]

If the existing hole is far too gone for the toothpick trick, you'll need to pull the neck, drill out the holes to fit a piece of dowel rod into them. Cut the rods long and plane them down after the glue sets. Then you can make new holes that will hold firm in the future. Try the toothpick route first, it's far less complicated and has a real good chance of success.

I just had to go the dowel rod method in mine. I am glad that I did, because it is totally solid now. You have to be a "little" handy to do it though. In addition, I pre-drilled the dowels after putting them in, UNDERSIZE of the screw size to prevent splitting from too much pressure from the screw.

[toobalicious]

If the existing hole is far too gone for the toothpick trick, you'll need to pull the neck, drill out the holes to fit a piece of dowel rod into them. Cut the rods long and plane them down after the glue sets. Then you can make new holes that will hold firm in the future.

this is the best fix... BTW, please make sure you are using hardwood dowels for this, lol. you can find hard maple if you look hard enough.
like these: maple dowels

a

[cdw2000]

Actually, the very best way would be to buy a plug cutter:

http://woodworker.com/cgi-bin/FULLPR...ARTNUM=880-749

OR

http://woodworker.com/cgi-bin/FULLPR...6&LARGEVIEW=ON

And cut your own plugs so that the wood grain is crossways to the end of the cylinder (called a face grain plug).

http://www.woodzone.com/tips/plug_cutter.htm

If you use a standard dowel, you will be screwing into the end grain which will be weaker. This should be okay using a maple dowel, as long as you don't take the neck on and off too many times, but a face grain plug would be better.

[redcoats1976]

there was an article in vintage guitar mag awhile back where someone put metal anchors into the neck and used machine screws thru the body.it had the same problem you are decribing and the owner takes it apart frequently to travel...