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Post by rickS on Mar 7, 2007 16:46:22 GMT
I'd be interested to know others' views on the use of graphite neck-reinforcement (I have this on my tricone)?; seems to me that since the original reinforcement was a steel tube, graphite should do the same job but better, & probably better than a truss-rod, since the whole thing is one rigid unit - & I assume Mr King uses graphite because it's the best option?(& he should know!). Would the Dopyeras approve?..
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Post by Anders on Mar 7, 2007 19:30:16 GMT
Anders - a great idea - switching cones of both my Duolians, so that one is all original (unaltered neck/fingerboard plus an original cone) and one quite different (new fingerboard+trussrod+NRP cone). I have already thought about doing that but I have a Highlander pickup installed in the NRP cone and the bridge heights may be different in each guitar. May still give it a go though ! No time at present to tinker with these things. Also, I prefer to try and keep an original cone in its original guitar. Hi, didn't mean to try the cone swap as a permanent solution, but it would be a great experiment. For an experiment, just swap the whole saddle-biscuit-cone assembly and don't worry about an optimum string height. As long as you can sort of play it and get an idea of the cone, it's worth it. And a pretty quick job; changing the strings would be the most time consuming. Anders
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Post by Dave King on Mar 9, 2007 7:50:10 GMT
Hello Rick
The only reason I sometimes use the Graphite in later national necks is because some of them are made from Poplar (Tulip Wood not from a tulip tree !!) Its incredibly soft although its a hardwood and not particularly good at staying straight at the best of times, especially with something like 180ibs of tension on it.
Dave King
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Post by rickS on Mar 9, 2007 10:14:28 GMT
Hi Dave, thanx for the response - I understand that about the later, softer-wood necks, but presumably if you're looking to refurb an early mahogany neck that's banana'd, replacement of the original steel-tube reinforcement with graphite is the route you'd go? Or would you seek to stick with steel tube? ie, will the different material noticeably affect vol/tone, in your experience? I'd be suprised if it did, to any discernible degree, but you'll surely know better than I..
best,
Rick
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Post by Dave King on Mar 9, 2007 11:21:22 GMT
Its generally accepted that just about anything you do to a guitar will change the sound, being able to hear the difference is a different matter. Slotted headstocks sound different to flat headstocks, being able to tell the difference in a blind test would be pretty difficult I guess, not a position Id ever put myself in !!. The mahogany necks seem far more stable than the Tulip wood ones, Id probably try and reglue the original steel tube. We have a lot of adhesives available to us now that stick steel to wood. As ever there are always exceptions, some mahogany's are pretty close to the density of Tulip wood in that case Id maybe go for the graphite.
I'm not sure Id know better than anyone else, maybe Ive seen a few more than some of you. There are however a number of players on here that would know better than me. One springs to mind that claims he knows the sound of all the guitars that hes owned. And Ive absolutely no doubt that he could .
Dave King
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Post by LouisianaGrey on Mar 12, 2007 7:03:00 GMT
It puts me in mind of something Simon Mayor said - Yes, there is a difference in sound between a flat-backed and a bowl-backed mandolin, but if you can tell which is which just by hearing them then you need to get out more.
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