Stripped out neck screw holes on Jazz bass body

[Sparker]

Hey I just picked up a used jazz bass body (probably a Squier body) off of craigslist with the intentions of installing my MIM jazz neck. To my surprise all of the the body screw holes were stripped out. I went ahead and installed the neck. The screw threads on the neck are holding everything together. My question is should I go ahead a dowel the stripped out screw holes on the body or should this be ok?

Thanks!

 

[Matt Liebenau]

The neck screws should pass through the body with out threading into it. They should only thread into the neck. Unless the holes in the body are completely wallowed out and the screws are flopping around in there, don’t worry about it.

 

[bholder]

should this be ok

This.

 

[CGremlin]

What Matt said, but I think I'd go one step further and drill the neck for metal inserts, then use machine screws to bolt it onto the body.

 

[96tbird]

Open body holes allow fo 100% of the screw clamp force to be exerted directly on the neck and result in the best possible contact of the neck and pocket floor.

Threaded body holes should be drilled out immediately because you’ll never get good neck to body contact on reassembly. They are simply a cost saving measure at the factory where the neck is clamped to the body and screws set in one operation saving costs in time by having a separate operation to drill out the body before placing the neck. Mass production woes to the end users.

 

[sissy kathy]

What Matt said, but I think I'd go one step further and drill the neck for metal inserts, then use machine screws to bolt it onto the body.

That is a good repair if a screw is stripped, by why go to that effort for holes that are serviceable. You are just adding more parts to a joint that ideally should have none; in a perfect world all instruments would be neck throughs and there would be no joint at all.

 

[JLS]

"The screw threads on the neck are holding everything together."

That's how that works...

" Unless the holes in the body are completely wallowed out and the screws are flopping around in there, don’t worry about it."

That would be better than what the OP is describing.

 

[CGremlin]

That is a good repair if a screw is stripped, by why go to that effort for holes that are serviceable.

So they don't ever become stripped.

 

[Lownote38]

So they don't ever become stripped.

I have basses that are up to 50 years old and not one of them has ever had the neck screw holes become stripped. I've certainly taken the necks off of them a number of times as well.

 

[Relsom]

Open body holes allow fo 100% of the screw clamp force to be exerted directly on the neck and result in the best possible contact of the neck and pocket floor.

Threaded body holes should be drilled out immediately because you’ll never get good neck to body contact on reassembly. They are simply a cost saving measure at the factory where the neck is clamped to the body and screws set in one operation saving costs in time by having a separate operation to drill out the body before placing the neck. Mass production woes to the end users.

Yeah, I was wondering why or how the body holes weren't open to allow the screws to slip through from the get go. Those bastards!

 

[walterw]

Yeah, I was wondering why or how the body holes weren't open to allow the screws to slip through from the get go. Those bastards!

on all too many cheaper guitars they apparently just clamp the neck to the body, drill the four holes through both, run the screws in and call it done like they're building a deck

i all the time have to take these apart and drill out the body holes so the screws slide through like they should

 

[fhm555]

on all too many cheaper guitars they apparently just clamp the neck to the body, drill the four holes through both, run the screws in and call it done like they're building a deck

i all the time have to take these apart and drill out the body holes so the screws slide through like they should

Yep, every MIM J i’ve had needed this done.

 

[sissy kathy]

Yeah, I was wondering why or how the body holes weren't open to allow the screws to slip through from the get go. Those bastards!

They might have been. I built a Warmoth a couple years ago and the screws slipped right through when I received the body. After the finish was done I discovered they no longer fit and had to redrill the holes.