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Review on Z 400 008 CR Threaded Stainless Internal by Brian Samaiyar

Revainrating 5 out of 5

Pro Guitar Tech Babblings

Placing 8-32 stainless steel inlays in the heel of each bolt-on neck creates the best neck joint you could ask for. This is a fairly simple process that offers excellent tonal transfer between the neck and body of an electric guitar. This sound quality really stands out for most gamers. It also makes it easy to remove and reinstall the neck, but you already know that from previous reviews. They don't tell you that. First, don't think for a minute that inserting 10-24 is better. B. in the neck of a guitar, as in most cases this results in the holes being too close to the edge of the neck. This may not be the case with some bass necks. While careful drilling can yield great results on huge inlays, do you really want to test your skills on your prized fretboard? This is entirely unnecessary as the tensile strength of this 8-32 pattern far exceeds your ability to tighten the bar. You can crush a tree with 8-32 gear if you are strong and stupid enough. Then, in my early daze, I was dumb enough to do this setup with a hand drill. I'm lucky it worked. Here's my advice. NEVER USE A COLD HAND DRILL, even if the eBay ad that gave you this idea says you can do it. Of course it is possible, especially if you do this procedure with your $59. The First Act guitar is made from 100% recycled cow cake. If you don't have a drill, find a friend that will do both electric and manual work (turning the main pulley by hand). You really, really, really need some kind of neck brace that you can use to attach the neck (frets down) to the drill press table so the neck is stable and straight while you drill. Aside from electrically drilling 1/4" pilot holes with a sharp 1/4" Forstner bit, this is the only time you'll need to use electrical power. The rest of the process is done manually by turning the drill press. You may need a second person to turn the pressure roller or operate the feed lever. I personally do this alone and hope no one is watching me as it can look weird turning the pulley by hand, applying downforce to the press feed lever and holding the bar. SAFETY NOTICE. When turning the drill by hand, first consider unplugging the drill. It's always a good idea before getting your hands into something that likes to take your fingers off and ruin your guitar playing experience. DRILLING HOLES FOR 1/4" INSERTS. The Forstner bit perfectly indicates where you are going to drill. While centering the bit, you can manually touch the hole lightly and the bit will naturally draw a perfect circle around the existing pilot hole. Wood Adjust the drill speed so that it is slow enough not to burn the wood. Carefully set the Forstner depth of cut to the ground, no more than 1/4" from the depth of the board. Immediately set the depth gauge afterwards (so you don't forget this). DO NOT drill deeper than necessary. This simply loosens wood unnecessarily and can create new fretboard openings for all those hot phrases you play. You will almost certainly need to trim the 1-3/4" stainless steel screws to the correct length - all you really need is at least 3 threads to fully engage when screwing screws into inserts 4 or more is just unheard of Seriously .better but can give more satisfaction/confidence) As the wood shrinks over the years the 3 thread engagement can become a 4 thread engagement Apply some downforce when turning to start the faucet. The threads will start cutting so you can stop the downforce. By the way, a "bottom tap" is just a flat-bottomed tap (no point) so it can thread to the bottom of the hole. You can usually turn a normal tap into a bottom tap on a grinder. By now you are probably telling yourself that the male thread of the insert is 5/16-16. So that's the answer you want to use, except you're wrong. Of course it will work, but not optimal for this guy. e installation. The 5/16-18 threads will be further apart than the male threads of the stainless steel insert. This will give you perfectly timed threads at the beginning of your tapped hole, but then they will start to misalign with the external threads of the insert as it cuts deeper into the 1/4" hole. This will shift the male thread of the insert. cut into bare wood. REALITY CHECK. The whole point of the insert's external "cutting" strings is that they must cut into fresh wood in order to be properly planted. With the 5/16-18 tap, you can do this towards the end of a few spins on landing. Also, do not install the insert deeper than the correct depth the FIRST time. heel neck surface. BTW AGAIN. by tapping the holes, this prevents chipping around the hole when inserting the inserts. Countersinking to avoid spalling is unnecessary and useless. INSERT INSTALLATION. If you only have a pair of flare nuts and an 8-32 ground 4-side thread washer (to prevent slippage in the chuck), use them to install the inserts. But if you want something that works a lot easier, just use an 8-32 x 1/4" or 1/2" hex head screw to put the insert in place. Hand drive it in firmly into the chuck on a drill press using a suitable Allen key screwdriver (usually a 9/64 Allen key). This will block it and the screw will come out effortlessly once the insert is perfectly seated. Just a quick counter-clockwise push on the drill's main pulley loosens the hex bolt. No fuss, no fuss. And since a hexagonal screw does not require an optically disturbing washer, it is easy to see how deep the inserts have been driven into the wood. IMHO this is an easier way than the washer and nut method. McMaster Carr listed them as 91802A204 for 1-3/4" lengths and 91802A203 for 1-1/2" lengths. Both are 18-8 stainless steel Phillips machine screws with 8-32 threads. Some like to use a 1-1/2" stainless steel screw. Others like to use a 1-3/4" stainless steel screw and trim it to the perfect size if necessary. Also check Jamestown dealers. They are in Section # 8-32 S/S OP Mounting Screws Listed Oh yes, before attaching the neck to the body, consider using 4 insert washers instead of the standard 4 screw plate, as the standard plate can deflect under the high tension of your new neck joint easily deform. You could look for a very thick 4 screw plate. I think Callaham or a company called Tiapantone.com (probably defunct) can do it. GFS makes one but be aware that all theirs Parts are usually made by the cheapest Asian buyer Remember all these different bolting options require bolts of different lengths and hole depths Good luck. Try not to hurt yourself.

Pros
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