Busted: Neck Screw Goes Through Fretboard!

Learn more about Warmoth's Contoured Heel Option here: warmoth.com/gu...

[@javiergambinoloureiro7472]

Maybe this series would be more interesting if you showed any means of solving or hiding the problem for those who may have already screwed their build.

[@warmoth]

Hmmm....not a terrible idea!

[@JohnHorvath73]

That's a simple fix for this problem.. Change out the screw for one that's shorter, file/sand the rough spot back to flat, string the guitar and play on because you're never going to see/feel it enough to make a big deal out of it.

[@pulsehead]

Came here to say the same thing.

[@michaelb.42112]

@@pulsehead Same here !

[@MixingGBP]

Yep. You would be amazed how often either you can fix a given mistake for an invisible repair or repair it in such a way as to look like it was meant to be in the original design all along.

[@angeldelalamo]

Dude, all at Warmoth, you're simply the best...

[@VoyeurGuitars]

"Not a Mythbusters level of explosion..." There's always dynomite Aaron! 😉

[@warmoth]

YES!!!

[@barnettg66]

I tried to remove a Warmoth mounted corian nut from a Warmoth vintage modern neck. I learned the hard and expensive way that you can't simply tap it out from the side. Broke the rosewood fret board above the nut. While that part could be (and was) glued back, the trauma of the experience ruined the neck for me. I sold it off for pennies on the dollar and ordered a new one with the TUSQ nut that I wish I had ordered from the outset.

[@JohnHorvath73]

One option for a video might be demonstrating or fixing the issues with converting a non-recessed Floyd body (with angled neck pocket) to a regular style tremolo. I recently bought a used body, got tired of the Floyd, filled in the post holes, and mounted an old-school trem. Well, that's all great, other than the angled neck pocket causes you to have to raise the trem off the body about 3/16", or use a silly amount of sustain/resonance killing neck shims to get the trem plate back down to the body.

[@logrinn]

Here's another (similar) idea for the Busted-series. The Strat body you've ordered has a swimming pool pickup route and you've decided to exploit the different pickup possibilities by putting some P90's in there. Without thinking about it you order Dimarzio P90's. Not traditional ones but rather their humbucking ones (DP154, 162, 169, 209 or 210). And these have the screw holes for mounting them in a body out to the sides - right where the swimming pool is deeper - ie you can't screw them down in a body with the pool route since the screw will (most likely) go through the body.

[@Swampster70]

Screwdriver bits designed for use in impact drivers (Milwaukee make some great ones as do similar companies) are engineered to grip the screw head better and not slip like this. Regular screwdriver bits are great for hand tools but not so great in drills and impact drivers. I want to see the one where you take a long hex bit and put it in the trustrod and then use a big impact driver to crank it hard and fast!

[@Riverdeepnwide]

Always enjoy your videos, thanks! I would be interested in seeing up close the faults of the scrapped parts to understand more of how things can possibly go wrong during manufacturing. 45 years in aerospace machining always trying for perfection but realizing the expected 3% rejection is just a fact of life helped me accept the inevitable slow downs and costs. Good on you guys for being real!

[@warmoth]

Ha! Imagine aerospace machining, except instead of aluminum or whatever, it's an organic material full of moisture, that swells, shrinks, twists, and warps. (I'm sure aircraft materials do too, to some extent.) Very tough to get perfection when your materials have a mind of their own.

[@scottpeters4401]

Grover Jackson said one time about building guitars,we are trying to create perfect tolerances out of a material that Won’t hold perfect tolerances….it’s wood..

[@neverbemoved74]

Great idea and always great to see you again, Aaron! I’d love to know what was wrong with each part you use in each video. Every busted part has it’s own story to tell! 🤪 You told us about the body, what was wrong with the neck?

[@warmoth]

It had some tear-outs along the ends of the fretboard that could not be fixed.

[@NGH99999]

Good series. Going to save a lot of tears. 😂

[@agentling1]

Nice one, I enjoyed this! How about what happened to me - I made a 25.5" scale LP back in the day and couldn't figure out why the Bigsby B7 I'd ordered didn't fit. It was about an inch out of line with the relevant holes. Oh yeah, Les Pauls are normally 24.75" scale. Facepalm! Had to go for a 'floating' B5 with V5 Vibramate to solve. Then I ended up deciding I didn't like the Bigsby and went back to fixed bridge/stop tailpiece.

[@oceanaxim]

Just wanted to mention: I see many people using a power driver to drive screws with the clutch setting too high (or leaving it in "drill" setting) and stripping out the screw hole. I also see many people letting the driver run too fast or long causing the bit to hop out of the screw head (cam out). Don't be THAT guy.

[@warmoth]

Agreed! Though I wasn't too worried about it on this "build". ;)

[@oceanaxim]

@@warmoth I gotcha ;). Looking forward to more episodes!

[@FC-cz6zd]

Guilty as charged...

[@LeviHeizer]

I had to be extra careful with mine; contoured heel, 720 mod, and scalloped fretboard. 😬

[@carpey750]

although watching this video hurts my soul, it's good information on why to use the proper tools and hardware.

[@ch4os82]

Cracking a roasted maple neck without drilling correct size pilot holes 😅

[@michaelkrutz5737]

I worry about it when I'm piecing together another old model series Charvel for my collection. That angeled neck pocket can cause the same thing with long screws. This series will be awesome!

[@TommySG1]

I've seen videos of dudes mounting string trees and going through the headstocks as well but that's too similar to this example. Anyway, dig the feeds and the parts!

[@WayneMemphisMojo]

I did that with a string tree screw

[@TommySG1]

@@WayneMemphisMojo sorry to hear that man. Whenever I’m doing this sorta stuff I just take an extra moment to somehow mark the drill bit, on the bright side… that’s something I’m sure you’ll never do again 🤙

[@WayneMemphisMojo]

@@TommySG1 I'm over the learning mistake, at this point it's added "builder character" to the guitar

[@MillerCustomGuitars]

Gotta drop a guitar with a tilt back headstock to see if it breaks

[@jamesfetherston1190]

Think Gibson will allow that? Warmoth doesn’t have a license from them.

[@waskele.wabbit717]

I'd still buy that guitar what's your bottom dollar?

[@Streamline35]

Great idea for a series. It would be cool to see different (incorrect) methods of drilling/putting screws into guitar finish and how they crack it/wreck it. That was one of the scarier parts of the one guitar build I've done so far.

[@warmoth]

Got that on the list! :)

[@DaveWestGuitar]

Put in threaded inserts but one at a few degrees off axis. The ensuing fix is hair raising. The machine bolt will wants to cross thread if you're lucky enough to be close. Definitely a job for a drill press and someone who has practiced installing these in hardwoods.

[@homegrownson]

Glad it was your neck and not mine, maybe all Contour Bodies should also have as Standard Equipment a set of contour Screws

[@warmoth]

You know we did it on purpose, right?

[@homegrownson]

@@warmoth yes and appreciate you used a parts neck for demo

[@luisownerbr]

Warmoth's junk parts are better than my main axe lol

[@michaelb.42112]

Oh man, I'd LOVE to look through their "Non sellable" parts. I'm SURE I could make a killer bass.

[@ronmorey3475]

Man, I sure could have used this video yesterday. My 17th fret is drawing blood. I guess it's time to join that death metal band and work it into the act..

[@Liushenfanushui]

Arron is such a nice guy!

[@Barney5G]

As a scientist, I don’t know how you knew we call every piece of equipment “… of science” anyway I gotta get back to my toilet of science

[@Swampster70]

The toilet of science - that's where most anti-vaxx research is done by those that decried common core math, right? :P

[@Unzbuzzled]

Great video. I’d like to see a Busted video about cranking on a truss rod until the neck snaps.

[@warmoth]

Got it on the list!

[@TheVampireKit]

Cool series - looking forward it. Learning from others' 'mistakes' is helpful. Often tutorials etc. only show the successes. I do have a topic suggestion if you're not already planning for it. It's not a big one, and might not make for a very dramatic video, but can be very frustrating and less than ideal to fix. I bought some replacement tuning machines that have a little screw to secure to the back of the headstock. The originals had the two pins on the machine heads that sit in little holes in the back of the headstock, and don't use a screw. Anyway, I used a pointy file that I had filed thin and sharp to make some pre-holes before putting the screws in, rather than pre-drilling with a small drill bit, which I should have done. So one of the screw heads snapped of just before properly seating (because the pre-holes weren't deep or wide enough I guess). Now I can't get the headless screw out to replace it. I tried drilling it out on a drill press, but the bit kept moving to the side and nicking the wood so I stopped before making a mess. At this point, the tuner's nut on the front of the headstock is keeping the tuner in place, but it bothers me that an otherwise perfect upgrade was ruined because I didn't pre-drill the holes.

[@gil_evans]

Try to break: - trussrods - headstocks (maple vs mahogany, straight vs tiltback) - laquer with different solvents or mechanical - warp unfinished necks with dryness or extreme temperatures - strip screw holes in soft body woods - strip screw slits with different qualities of screws - potentiometers by heating them up too much when soldering

[@Heavenreck]

Most issues I have had and learned from mistakes over the years are wiring and electronics. Other than that does building a perfect guitar and setting up over the weekend only to have your child drop it from a rack for it to get seriously chipped count as a suggestion haha

[@windsurfmaui8239]

First, how did you know I wear pearls? Second, there are no unresusible parts. Please just put all those "broken" parts in a big box and send them to me!!! You can make your damaged "don't do this at home" using CGI. Last, glad to see a new video we missed you. Happy holidays and a Great New Year to you, your family and all the Warmoth crew.

[@MetalGuru965]

A similar issue is for someone trying to spot and drill mounting holes in a blank body and neck. I've seen a few project guitars for sale on Reverb where some dufus has drilled on through the fretboard in that scenario.

[@nellieinnm]

This is not busted material, but im about to complete my first Warmoth build, and im thinking about screwing pickups directly to body verses the plastic ring/suspension. How about a video comparison of tone between the two options? Kind of a Les Paul theory. Love your channel, and the guitar you guys built is literally a dream come true for a “lefty’s” lifetime of limitations

[@warmoth]

I have that exact thing on the list!

[@jamesmarkham7489]

I actually did this on my first project bass. I put a hole right through the middle of the 12th fret. I named the bass "Wash". Still one of my best instruments.

[@warmoth]

Yikes! But a good lesson: a mistake in assembly isn't end of the world.

[@ravecaster]

Would love to see a "Busted!" video where you build a double-neck without using a reverse headstock on the bottom neck. ;)

[@richsackett3423]

Screw came out of the wrong side on the scary picture, which is kinda funny really.

[@donald-parker]

I'm glad you mentioned you were using junk parts. My first reaction when I started the video was "ARGGGGGGG - NO!!!". It brings back memories of many, many years ago (before internet and youtube) where late night broadcasts of Don Kirshner's Rock Concert was one of the (very) few places you could see big acts perform, and I watched, to my utter horror, Ritchie Blackmore DESTROY 3 strats on one song. He smashed them, threw them up in air without even bothering to catch them ... and at the time I was working all summer washing dishes at a local restaurant to save up enough money to buy my first good guitar. I never got over feeling Ritchie Blackmore was a dick after that. Having said that ... do you sell any of your "junk" parts?

[@papilobi]

Will it ever be possible to see Warmoth making a sculpted shredder's cut heel option?

[@papilobi]

Maybe for a limited season? :(

[@davidrees1840]

Yeah, maybe they can copy Jackson or EVH since they're owned by Fender.

[@hchoe741]

That baritone in the back....🤤

[@davidrees1840]

I was waiting for you to try to turn the guitar over after driving the screws. I once helped a friend assemble an Ikea dining table where we had to screw the legs into the table top; we ended up using the wrong bag of screws and you should have seen his face when he can't flip the table over, puzzled for 2 seconds, then it hits him. Anyway, for parts you supply, maybe dip the 2 longer screws in red wax, or use inserts and bolts.

[@loganpayne6086]

Will there be a bust a nut episode? haha! Anyways I just finished building a Warmoth Strat in Daphne blue with a matching headstock. Beautiful craftsmanship on all the parts.

[@warmoth]

LOL. I'll have to come up with something, just so I can use that title!

[@Riverdeepnwide]

@@warmoth I just did a 12 string nut today, all was well until the final few thousandths cut to depth on the D octave and “Zingggg” the nut slot suddenly buzzes, not on the fret but in the slot itself. Since I’ve taken care of the cussing and swearing already, maybe you gentlemen have some finessing pointers for us? Thanks for these great videos.

[@DaveWestGuitar]

Could do a how-to-fix a slop drop of superglue on a gloss finish so that it is undetectable.

[@miketurner58]

Split a roasted maple headstock while installing some tuners. And no I haven't done that.

[@warmoth]

Got that one on the list!

[@johncbeer]

An even greater travesty is that we have 24 hour news and satellite channels, instead of Warmoth.

[@pharmerdavid1432]

I'm waiting for my Lindy Fralin (Mighty Mite) telecaster neck, on which somebody did exactly that - they drilled through the fretboard when drilling mounting holes. There is a little hole just behind the 17th fret, which was repaired well, so just a cosmetic flaw now. Fralin sprays it with lacquer and does a little scraping and sanding, but leaves it to the buyer to finish it. I've always dreamed of shaping a boatneck to fit my hand perfectly, with a soft-V, and now I get a chance. It was $150 instead of $260, and if I go slow it should work, and I may leave it how it comes if it fits my hand (they are supposedly a little less chunky than nocasters, but ~1" all the way down). ANYways, somebody did that damage for real, something an idiot like me likely would have done in any case, so they did it for me (ha ha ha)...cheers!

[@michaelkennedy2190]

I was clutching my pearls!!! Safety third!!

[@damienbevan9732]

Guitars cracking at the heel & thin neck screw threads vs thick neck screw threads

[@arrakeen20]

There’s a dude that has done this already and then had to take his warmoth to a luthier for repair

[@alanhorsturich-sass9252]

Will there ever be a video on the metallic pewter color?🤔

[@musterionsurly]

can you a do a video on what to do to fix the mistake after you make it? one on breaking a side adjust truss rod adjustment nut on a modern neck and how to proceed after would be fun. (i'm asking for a friend you understand hahah)

[@yoheff988]

Do you sell second parts of these kind?

[@paulfrombrooklyn5409]

If the heel on the body is contoured, why are you using a standard neck plate? You should use the individual washers. That would be the way to go. Not that it would change the fact that the screw went through the fret board but it would be the way to go.

[@OssianEMills]

... and Knowing is half the battle.

[@robmitchell1985]

The modern construction strat and tele necks come with quite a few warnings concerning the heel an side adjustment nuts. I'd like to see what happens when people don't follow those directions.

[@warmoth]

Great idea....added to the list!

[@IronLordFitness]

Will you offer Ibanez RG style bodies one day? Not the real ones I know but more edgy superstrats?

[@matthewf1979]

Glueing in a bolt on neck, then trying to remove it after it’s set up.

[@Col_MULLY]

Hey, Aaron. I was wondering why you used the wax since this was a destruction video? Could have killed 2 birds with one stone there.

[@warmoth]

You're right.....I should have just pile-driven those bad boys into place for MAXIMUM DAMAGE!!!

[@PFDarkside]

Aaron, have you done a tone test for short scale bass vs. standard? 34” vs 32” vs 30”?

[@daneph]

I was hoping for a solution or is it firewood at that point?

[@briandaniels4767]

Is that natural gloss finish on the back? What kind of wood?

[@ChrisD_GTR]

i would just like to say that i would totally buy factory second warmoth parts. maybe put them in a reverb shop? ofc no warranty, i wouldnt expect one.

[@Col_MULLY]

I second this. I’d buy the dimpled body.

[@kbkman7742]

A builder in Australia was selling guitars with drill through at the neck join like that, amongst other issues. I pointed it out and he blocked me. Some people are hacks.

[@rabmuir7065]

I had a neck that i thought it had fret sprout it was the same issue as this but the head was directly under fret.

[@spokes28]

I thought you were going to show the fix for the mistake. Wouldn’t that be useful?

[@Yupppi]

Can you tell more about waxing the screws? I haven't encountered this before in things where I get to screw things.

[@davidrees1840]

If you wax the screws or rub them on a bar of soap, they're easier to screw in and much less likely to break, esp. useful with parts that include cheap screws.

[@homegrownson]

Last Batch os Styrofoam peanuts was funky and sticky if not for additional packing sheets, it might have Ruined my body, have manufacturing check for peanuts that seem to be melting

[@skinball]

I ordered a roasted maple (neck and fretboard) CBS mustang/Jaguar neck back in may of this year (right before the website change. I don’t know if you guys at warmoth check comments but if you see this is there a way I can still get my $350-$370 neck?

[@ThatGuy2042_]

Well, I guess we get to find out what the silica gel packets taste like.

[@gilku4725]

Do you sell b stock parts for cheap? Might be nice to experiment on and learn from 😊👍

[@danielsgrunge]

Oh boy would I love all of that "junk" lol

[@eddiejr540]

“Junk parts” aka…Eddie Van Halen guitar parts😎

[@S.C.500]

You should do the one that happens when you have a pickguard with a 720 mod.

[@warmoth]

Ha! Got it on the list! :)

[@soyborne.bornmadeandundone1342]

Hey! That's the body I ordered! You broke my guitar!!! lol jk jk.

[@warmoth]

That was YOURS???!!!! ;)

[@rjeric8185]

Definitely adds extra tone. Red tone

[@hchoe741]

Next: drive screws into roasted maple without pilot holes, or wax.

[@warmoth]

Yep....it's on the list! :)

[@valentino3191]

Use screws that are too big on roasted maple necks. Show what happens if you don’t pre drill the pilot holes for hardware big enough on roasted maple.

[@warmoth]

Got it on the list! :)

[@corneliuscrewe677]

Any chance you’d sell some of the stuff you “break” for a discount? I love to find fun repairs for misfit guitar parts!

[@warmoth]

Nope, sorry. That kind of stuff never leaves the shop!

[@corneliuscrewe677]

@@warmoth Well That sucks. I love being able to find fun and unique repairs.

[@bevinmodrak4997]

I love the idea for this series. But it's still going to be painful to watch.

[@johnstitt2615]

Is there any way Warmoth could sell pick guard blanks of the variety of colours they have ?

[@warmoth]

We already do: warmoth.com/hardware/supplies/pickguard-blanks

[@johnstitt2615]

@@warmoth Groovy. Thanks. ✌️🎸😎

[@johnstitt2615]

@@warmoth ordered a black pearl pick guard blank. ✌️😎

[@Maxime1602]

Cranking the trussrod

[@warmoth]

Added to the list!

[@scooterschneider]

Pretty sad that you have to tell people they won't need to be outraged. Welcome to the new reality.

[@warmoth]

It was all for jokes. :)

[@anyday82]

What was wrong with the neck? The neck was ruined :(

[@evanturpin1872]

Just ordered all my parts from warmouth for my first build about a month ago can’t wait until they show up

[@michaelb.42112]

Congrats !!! Warmoth has some MOJO for sure. I don't know what the elusive Cool-Aid is that they put into their parts, but I've yet to play a Warmoth that didn't inspire me.

[@reneotten7376]

So while I am waiting for the parts I ordered you are just playing around and destroying stock parts? This is outrageous!

[@warmoth]

LOL. Grab your torches and pitchforks!

[@PaulNaas]

I wish the Warmoth custom neck I bought hadn’t needed $200 of fretwork straight out of the box to make it playable. Very disappointed in the quality from such a well regarded company.

[@valentino3191]

Sometimes, they do need level/re-crown and polish to play perfect. That’s not necessarily a quality issue. Almost all necks need this when manufactured. If Warmoth provided that service, the necks would be $2-300 more.

[@PaulNaas]

@@valentino3191 this took far more than a level and polish, and we're not talking about "playing perfect," but being playable at all. We're not talking about the same thing.

[@anupjsebastian]

Hey some of your bodies have an angled neck or 720 mod and also the option to have a contoured heel. Will the shorter screws for the contoured neck still be compatible when you have both a contoured neck and an angled neck pocket or the 720 mod?

[@FC-cz6zd]

No outrage here, go ahead and tear em up!

[@warmoth]

YES!!!

[@allenmitchell09]

Screw together neck doesn’t sound nearly as cool as ….yeah, comes with a “Bolt-on” neck.

[@dshowmusic]

I'd pay something to get one of these junk parts - just saying ;-)

[@OmarBhoo]

Oh gosh. After watching the explanation I could not continue. I cannot stand to see damage being done to a guitar. I don't even like relics.

[@warmoth]

I don't know if you watched this far, but we only do "Busted" videos on parts that are already busted. It's like a demolition derby for guitars! LOL.

[@OmarBhoo]

@@warmoth yeah, I punched out early. Will finish it.

[@kiddcomet3563]

😂

[@niccullen4011]

I'd like to see an episode where you test whether cutting off all the strings under tension causes neck warping :)

[@richsackett3423]

it doesn't

[@diogotaira390]

oh you don't need to do that for real... just some photoshop will do it ... if you're thinking about destroying it, just donate to charity

[@warmoth]

If you watch the vid you'll hear me mention that the parts are all broken to begin with.

[@diogotaira390]

I did watch the video, but maybe I missed that part. Sorry

[@Relayer6a]

Are people actually that dumb to use screws that are too long?