beerdragon Posted March 28, 2009 Share Posted March 28, 2009 In all the time i've been playing i have had to mess about or swap a neck on a bass. the time as come. i suppose this is a fairly obvious question but one i have to ask. when putting the neck back on and tightening the plate screws and fitting the strings tuning up etc, do you then have to give the screw another tighten?. i'm a bit wary of over doing it. ta. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
josh3184 Posted March 28, 2009 Share Posted March 28, 2009 (edited) I'd just tighten until you feel you've put enough force in it by hand, wouldn't have thought you could overtighten it unless you use a hammer to turn the screw driver no harm in giving it another little tighten once the neck is on! Edited March 28, 2009 by josh3184 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BOD2 Posted March 30, 2009 Share Posted March 30, 2009 It's always best to put all 4 screws in and tighten them by hand first. Then go round the screws and tighten each one a little, equally. Keep going round them all until they're all tight. Do NOT put one screw in and tighten it fully, then put the next screw in and tighten it fully etc. There's no harm in going back and tightening them a little later if they need it. Don't use excessive force and make sure your screwdriver is a good fit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delberthot Posted March 30, 2009 Share Posted March 30, 2009 As above. Don't go hell for leather and try to tighten it to the point where you are puffing and panting. You'll know exactly when it is tight enough. I use a Stanley ratchet screwdriver and it is clear when using one of those when something is tight enough. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted March 30, 2009 Share Posted March 30, 2009 If the sound you want from your bass could do with a better mechanical join between the neck and the body, try doing up the screws so that the neck can't move but the screws aren't fully tight. Then put the strings on and tune to pitch. Now tighten fully tighten the screws in the neck joint. This is a trick that is used on bolt-on neck guitars to get more sustain, but of course more sustain isn't always appropriate for the bass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_b Posted March 30, 2009 Share Posted March 30, 2009 The neck should be fully tightened before you put the strings on! Don't overtighten or you could strip the threads. Tight is tight enough BEFORE you get to the point where your veins are standing out!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lfalex v1.1 Posted April 2, 2009 Share Posted April 2, 2009 If you have a cordless drill / screwdriver WITH A CLUTCH OR TORQUE LIMITING DEVICE, use that. Determine what setting corresponds to "hand tight", and use that for the final tightening. I'm a real pain for overtightening things, and at least it's consistent! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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