How to make a guitar neck fast?

[Progman]

I want to make my SG's neck faster becsause I have so much more freedom soloing on my crappy Ibanez RG 120, but my SG is such a killer guitar so I don't want to let it go or waste money on a different one. I really hate how the neck is binded. Some days I have great soloing days on it but most of the time, I have trouble playing fast. I can play fast runs with ease on my Ibby RG. I have already tried sanding it. Did I do it wrong? It feels glossy again.

 

[D.G.]

"Trouble playing fast" is a blessing, not a curse

Seriously, put your Ibanez away. ONLY play your SG. Take it to a reputable repair person and have them set it up. After a year of only the SG ask the question again and see what your answer is.

 

[Scumback Speakers]

The first thing to do is to make sure the frets are level, if not get them leveled/dressed & polished. Make sure the neck has a very tiny bit of relief. I like mine around .010 in the middle (9th-12th fret), just enough so that you don't have strings rattle or buzz when you stretch strings.

Switch to lighter gauge strings. Lots of people give me crap for playing .009 - .042 or .046 strings but if you have decent tuners (and string winding techniques) they'll stay in tune with light gauge strings. I played in cover bands for 9 years, five sets a night...you can't play 10's or 11's as the lead guitar player unless you're doing pushups using only your fingers.

Once you get the neck relief and frets dialed in, get it properly intonated with the lower action you've set. Intonate the guitar AFTER all the previous things are done.

Then you're ready to play fast...on a fast neck.

 

[EADGBE]

Polish the back of the neck with this.

 

[JDouglee]

Sticky on the back of the neck? Maybe it's still curing. Wipe it down alot, it'll go away after awhile. Oh yeah, and what Jim said.

 

[tooter007]

Ditto on the setup suggestion, makes a world of difference.

If it's the sticky back that you are referring to of the finish versus the unfinished/satin Ibanez neck, that can be resolved but you will devalue your instrument if that matters to you. If not, plenty of info about doing the satin treatment to your neck. It can be done right with great results. Some guys do the steel wool thing, there are other methods as well.

Good luck!

 

[Jim Soloway]

The Ibanez has a flatter radius, larger frets, a flatter profile, a satin finish and no binding. There are good reasons why its easier to for you to play faster. That's what it was designed for. I think feel is really important and the Ibanez may have a feel that suits your playing better than the Gibson. If you really like that feel (and a lot of non-Gearpage people do), then you might want to take a look at some of the higher quality guitars that Ibanez make in their shredder models. One of them may give you the best of both worlds: better tone than your RG120 and a better feel than your SG.

 

[Flyin' Brian]

Use this on the back of the neck.

http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Tools/S...Finishing_Pads.html?actn=100101&xst=3&xsr=282

 

[Ed Alvarado]

The Ibanez has a flatter radius, larger frets, a flatter profile, a satin finish and no binding. There are good reasons why its easier to for you to play faster. That's what it was designed for. I think feel is really important and the Ibanez may have a feel that suits your playing better than the Gibson. If you really like that feel (and a lot of non-Gearpage people do), then you might want to take a look at some of the higher quality guitars that Ibanez make in their shredder models. One of them may give you the best of both worlds: better tone than your RG120 and a better feel than your SG.

That sure makes sense to me!

 

[cowboytim]

I've seen Jeff Beck use white powder of some sort....I use baby powder rubbed into my hands.
Great to use if you just washed your hands and you are playing guitar soon after.

 

[VHS analog]

I really hate how the neck is binded.

Binding doesn't make the neck slower. If anything it makes it faster.

A pro set up and fret dress will make a big difference.

 

[Tracer Tong]

Guitar hands. It's good stuff. Keeps your hands healthy and slippery in a good way.

 

[Todd Lynch]

Guitar hands. It's good stuff. Keeps your hands healthy and slippery in a good way.

Never heard of it. Just ordered some. Thanks.