Neck joint, is it normal?

[Dodomoon78]

Hi, my girlfriend gifted me with a prs se hollowbody ii piezo peacock blue. I’ve never seen a neck joint like this, is it normal? I mean the vertical line on the middle of the heel. Thank you

 

[WEDGE]

Looks like two pieces of wood used to make the neck and you can see the seam.

 

[Uncle Bob]

Normal for some guitar necks to be made of multiple pieces of wood, definitely.

Normal to be able to see the join like that, not really, but it won’t make any difference.

That binding though... drool Congrats on the new guitar!

 

[Dodomoon78]

Normal for some guitar necks to be made of multiple pieces of wood, definitely.

Normal to be able to see the join like that, not really, but it won’t make any difference.

That binding though... drool Congrats on the new guitar!

Thank you,
I can see and feel with fingertip the wood joint but is absolutely specular on both sides so I think it’s made on purpose

 

[Uncle Bob]

Maybe. That would be a new one on me, but every day is a school day!

 

[garrettb]

It's a heel splice. It's a tried and true practice to build up the heel without having to start from a larger neck blank.

In this case they didn't do a great job with the cosmetics, but it should be perfectly stable.

 

[Proteus]

Sorry. Hate to be the raincloud over the parade, but that doesn't look right to me. I've never seen that on a PRS, and when I've seen it on other guitars, it's been on old tired ones and eventually meant trouble.

That doesn't mean there's anything wrong with it structurally. Could be completely sound. But I'd want to get a PRS dealer/tech's opinion. Maybe contact the PTC directly and send them the pic.

It's surely abnormal, at least cosmetically. If it turns out it suggests a deeper problem, and your girlfriend got the guitar new from a dealer, then there might be a warranty issue to pursue. If it was used, and/or from an individual...well, let's hope it's not a structural issue.

If it's not, and you love everything else about the guitar, all is well.

 

[CrimesAgainstMusic]

From what I understand (and its not much) ...The SE neck is made of multiple pieces of wood. The scarf joint where the headstock joins the neck, and maybe others. Looks like the heel on yours needed a piece added to make it deeper. Probably no more likely to be a "problem" than any of the other joints that you cannot see . Some dealers will let you return for any reason...

But on a SE HB you will find the appearance of the top to be a huge variable. If yours has nice flame ... forgetaboutit and play on
One, with a more "acceptable" heel, may be totally bereft of flame in the top . If "flame don't matter ?

Don't know about you, but on these guitars (I'm up to 2 HBII 's now) the top is what's happenin. I never see the heel . (But I'll take a quick look).

Hi, my girlfriend gifted me with a prs se hollowbody ii piezo

But the girlfriend ... is definitely a keeper !!!!!

EDIT Update

OK. ON my oldest HB II.. (1 yr old) .if I look really really really hard ... I think there is a piece added to make the heel deeper. Would not be surprised if they are all made that way (multiple pieces of wood ?) Yours just appears to be a mite more noticeable. BUT I'm sure the PRS guys will be shaking their heads over the mention ... On the "newer" one (1 week old) I have to look even harder, but I think its there.

Lets see your top ? Is it flamey/stripey ? If so Hug the girlfriend, and play on !

Just her hug anyway ! The Damm guitars are up to $1,600 bucks now !

BTW... to get a single piece neck, ... Get a $6,000 + Core Mc Carty HB ( but I'm not sure the neck plays any better ) ...


.)

 

[DISTORT6]

Sorry. Hate to be the raincloud over the parade, but that doesn't look right to me. I've never seen that on a PRS, and when I've seen it on other guitars, it's been on old tired ones and eventually meant trouble.

That doesn't mean there's anything wrong with it structurally. Could be completely sound. But I'd want to get a PRS dealer/tech's opinion. Maybe contact the PTC directly and send them the pic.

It's surely abnormal, at least cosmetically. If it turns out it suggests a deeper problem, and your girlfriend got the guitar new from a dealer, then there might be a warranty issue to pursue. If it was used, and/or from an individual...well, let's hope it's not a structural issue.

If it's not, and you love everything else about the guitar, all is well.

In the past, PRS has used the same manufacturing technique on Brazilian rosewood necks.

 

[Proteus]

To be clear, I'm not questioning that PRS uses multiple pieces of wood for heels, necks, headstocks, bodies, whatever. I've seen them. Lots of other manufacturers do the same thing. Not A Problem. Let's not waste good wood because we don't like glue joints.

What I'm pointing out is that it's vanishingly rare to see or feel the joint under an opaque finish. I can't begin to detect the joint on the heel of my SE HBII Standard - or on the great majority of guitars in the ridiculous assortment I've been fortunate and foolish enough to accrue over the years. I can just barely feel it on a Jay Turser semi from 15 years or so ago - and on a 99.00 Carlo Robelli nylon-string which has slid down a flight of stairs.

Both of those low-enders are structurally rock-solid, as far as that goes - but I think it's fair to point out that being able to see and feel the joint all the way around the heel is ... exTREMEly unusual.

None of this is to diminish appreciation of a fabulous gift from a gold-standard keeper of a girlfriend. While my wife has been at least tolerant of my guitar disease for nearly 50 years, and occasionally goes on acquisition road trips with me, what she brings me home from auctions is more along the line of Sears plastic guitars from the 60s, and Paper Jamz toys. (Mostly for the humor.)

I guess I agree with Dodomoon78 on this: I've never seen a neck joint like that either!

 

[KentuckyBoiledChiccan]

IMO not normal thinking PRS quality.

 

[Dodomoon78]

[/url] [/IMG] This is the rest of the guitar! I’ve already sent a message to prs customer service, waiting for a reply.

 

[Dodomoon78]

And the back

 

[CrimesAgainstMusic]

Whoa !

Nice flame !

2 xTra Hugs to the Gurlfriend !

Please check for yourself, But in my conversations with PRS Customer Service, even on SE's the warranty for the "chassis" (body/neck) is lifetime ...

Let us know what their response is, please ...

 

[Dodomoon78]

Thank you! Yes she’s a keeper (the guitar but above all the girlfriend)
Quite often I get very nervous with new and nice guitars: the fear of ruining them and the obsessive fear of finding some hidden issue eradicates the pleasure of playing them…
I think I’m on the border of OCD sometimes…
But in the end if the guitar plays fine and the neck joint is stable and durable… the only thing that matters is the joy it brings

hope customer care will say that the joint is ok, and if some trouble will surface over time i’ll rely on the good name of prs guitars

 

[Proteus]

Man, the flamed natural maple binding is the icing on that lovely blue cake, aesthetically speaking. Of course the icing wouldn't matter if the cake weren't delicious - but the flamey blue burstiness is popping with flavor.

I'll be watching to see what customer service says. I hope they say "the joint is solid, but that should never have escaped QC and we'd like to smooth and refinish the heel for you. Here's a Core Hollowbody as a loaner while we work on your guitar."

But gotta know how this gifting came about. Did she go shopping with you and buy it with you there...was it one she knew you had your eye on, or did it just come right out of the blue, as it were? Was it sprung as a surprise, or did you have an inkling?

 

[CrimesAgainstMusic]

Quite often I get very nervous with new and nice guitars: the fear of ruining them

I can relate .... Just wait until your ceiling fan decides to attack one

 

[Dodomoon78]

Man, the flamed natural maple binding is the icing on that lovely blue cake, aesthetically speaking. Of course the icing wouldn't matter if the cake weren't delicious - but the flamey blue burstiness is popping with flavor.

I'll be watching to see what customer service says. I hope they say "the joint is solid, but that should never have escaped QC and we'd like to smooth and refinish the heel for you. Here's a Core Hollowbody as a loaner while we work on your guitar."

But gotta know how this gifting came about. Did she go shopping with you and buy it with you there...was it one she knew you had your eye on, or did it just come right out of the blue, as it were? Was it sprung as a surprise, or did you have an inkling?

About 100 km from where we live there is a big music instrument shop called Essemusic. A mutual friend ask us to join him to a trip to Essemusic because he wants to buy a drum set. Unfortunately I cannot go due to work appointment, she went with him to buy a microphone and came home a few hours later with the guitar. She knew I like that prs model and when she saw it hanging on the wall she decided to gift it to me.