'66 JM with neck thinner at 12F than 1F?

Discussion of vintage Jazzmasters, Jaguars, Bass VIs, Electric XIIs and any other offset-waist instruments.
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MechaBulletBill
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Re: '66 JM with neck thinner at 12F than 1F?

Post by MechaBulletBill » Thu Jul 05, 2018 7:02 am

Marc wrote:
Thu Jul 05, 2018 6:46 am
I think the only advantage of an 'A' neck would be for someone with pretty small hands and I would certainly avoid a vintage piece with that spec - you'd probably have to pay more for it as well.
I'm not in any way an expert on this stuff, but I think it can sometimes go both ways. The A-width is undesirable for a lot of the vintage buyers market (middle-aged dudes with big hands and creeping tendonitis/arthritis - the same people who have influenced the industry these days to favour 43mm minimum nut width) but, like left handers, the relative rarity can increase perceived value.

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rexter
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Re: '66 JM with neck thinner at 12F than 1F?

Post by rexter » Fri Jul 13, 2018 11:02 pm

MechaBulletBill wrote:
Thu Jul 05, 2018 7:02 am
Marc wrote:
Thu Jul 05, 2018 6:46 am
I think the only advantage of an 'A' neck would be for someone with pretty small hands and I would certainly avoid a vintage piece with that spec - you'd probably have to pay more for it as well.
I'm not in any way an expert on this stuff, but I think it can sometimes go both ways. The A-width is undesirable for a lot of the vintage buyers market (middle-aged dudes with big hands and creeping tendonitis/arthritis - the same people who have influenced the industry these days to favour 43mm minimum nut width) but, like left handers, the relative rarity can increase perceived value.
I’m with you on this one Bill - my ideal neck is narrow at the nut but quite chunky/deep. The narrow nut width late 60s Gibson necks that most people complain about feel gorgeous to me. Continuing the OT subject sorry

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Re: '66 JM with neck thinner at 12F than 1F?

Post by offsets4life » Wed Jul 25, 2018 10:48 pm

Enzo wrote:
Tue Jul 03, 2018 8:09 am
I had a 1966 Coronado like this. It was really thick near the headstock. I heard fender did that to make the big mid 60’s headstock less prone to breaking.

Just my 2c worth of personal interactions w/ 60s Fender necks.
63 JM is what i've come to regard as the "normal" profile.
42mm B nut width, 'C' shape which is kind of flattish at the back.
But not as flat ( front AND back) or broad feeling as an early 60s Gibson. For lack of a better description.
There may only be 1.0-1.5 mm difference in the two shapes. But you can definitely feel it.

Also have a 64 Jag, the neck on that one may actually be one of the odd 40mm width.
Feels skinnier overall in the hand. But it's a B neck :derp:

The odd ones that i've personally owned were a pair of Duo-Sonic IIs
Both 66 models, one short, one long...

The22"job had an A nut.
Hated it, my fingers are slightly smaller than average, 'cos I'm shorter than average.
But crowded up on the open chord end.... yeesh.
The remarkable part of that neck was the headstock thickness. At least 1/16" up on the pre 65 models. :wtf:
The long scale 24"on the other hand, was a gem of a neck.
B neck, 42mm nut, Nice straight profile down the back.
Almost no taper, and a slightly rounder profile at the back.
Kind of like a Japanese RI back profile, but wider. Probably a mm or two thicker than a Japanese neck too.
That neck on a Jag would have killed.
I should have kept that one. Ah well...

On topic, I also had a 67 Tele Custom.
My best friend has it now.

It had a neck similar to that described in the OP's post.
B neck 42mm wide nut.
But the shape...
The open chords position had an almost V profile to it at the back, then it started to taper down from around the fourth fret to the 12th, after which the shape is similar to the Jag and Jazzmaster from 12th fret up. All original lacquer.
Un mussed -with.

And the headstock was also thicker than most.
One appraiser said the neck may have been made from an old, pre-CBS blank ( re: the cowboy chords shape ), and THEN he pointed out that it had an L-series pickup. ???
He said that may have actually been factory leftovers being used up...

Apparently, Fender under CBS weren't above using what was at hand to get stuff out the door.
Some of those 69 Bitsa models had pots dating from 66 or so didn't they? I recall reading something like that somewhere.
If there may have been a staff shortage or transfer that day/ week, then it makes some sense that neck shape may vary from maker to maker.

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