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Full contact, precisely tapered
To change the angle of a bolt-on neck, players and repair shops have used shims for years. We've seen everything from matchbook covers to guitar picks stuck in neck joints.
Those kinds of shims create an unwanted gap under the heel of the neck: a dead air space where humidity condenses to swell the wood. As Dan Erlewine describes in his Guitar Player Repair Guide:
"This gap may cause an upward kink in the neck. And many players feel they lose tone unless firm contact is maintained between the neck and the body."
Dan creates tapered shims that cover the entire heel of the neck. With these Bolt-On Shims, that work is done for you. Attention repair shops: Making a quality shim takes time. Keep these on hand for a quick turnaround on this common repair.
These shaped shims fit most neck pockets with a rounded heel.
This set includes 3 hard maple shims, each at a different taper for changing the pitch of any bolt-on neck:
- 0.25-degree shim offers the most versatility – stacking them will let you really dial in the neck angle you're after.
- 0.5-degree taper is the one you'll reach for most often – it works great on Fender and many other solidbody guitars.
- 1-degree taper is great for basses with a post mounted bridge.
Dimensions: 2-1/2" x 3-7/8" (63.50mm x 98.43mm)
Taper specs (approximate):
0.25-degree tapers from 0.030" to 0.019" (0.76mm to .048mm)
0.5-degree tapers from 0.028" to 0.008" (0.71mm to .020mm)
1-degree tapers from 0.060" to 0.010" (1.52mm to .025mm)
David Puddy
Reviewed in the United States on February 22, 2024
They are what you expect. A full neck pocket shim that helps to set your action. They were too wide for the neck pocket on my bass, so I needed to trim them a little. Be very careful as they are extremely fragile. I got the 3 pack with multiple sizes, but if I had to order again I'd probably order the .25 pack and stack them as needed.It's nice they're wood, but a more durable material might go a long way, especially for the price.
fred
Reviewed in the United States on January 7, 2024
I've use business cards, match books, guitars picks.They get the angle correct, but I was never completely happy.I installed a StewMac 0.5 degree bass shim, and holy crap, it's like a brand new Sadowsky.I had to sand the edges a bit and they are priceyBut goodness, they are worth it
D. Jimenez
Reviewed in the United States on November 30, 2023
If the holes don’t line up, good luck cutting new holes. The shims crack along the lines of the pre-cut holes. If you must buy, buy the blanks with no holes. Maybe they won’t crack. I’ve been working with wood products for decades and have worked on numerous basses. Over priced for these shims.
engineering_enthusiast
Reviewed in the United States on July 28, 2022
So I got these for a Squier Bass VI and first things first: these are the wrong shims for a Squier Bass VI.For a Bass VI, you need the guitar version, not the bass ones. But I was able to make them work, and they really did transform the instrument. (Along with a shiny new Staytrem bridge.)There was no negative impact on tone, and they are pretty easily shaped to fit the contour of the pocket. Could I have use a few business cards for free? Yes. But I’m happier with the results of these shims.
Customer
Reviewed in the United States on June 13, 2022
These makes shimming a neck easy. With a little trimming using an X-acto knife and sandpaper, the shims fit a Fender bass neck cavity perfectly without gaps. Shipping was very fast. Highly recommended
Angela
Reviewed in the United States on February 15, 2020
I know the engineering and set up to create these takes time and money, but after tax, they’re $15 each... I can see they’re laser cut so I know the work is precisely done, it’s just a lot of dough for three little pieces of maple veneer so I can’t quite give it 5 stars. Griping aside, they do their job handsomely.
Edward C Carr III
Reviewed in the United States on April 20, 2020
The shim fit great, will have to trim outside for aesthetics. I used the .5 shim to get a better angle in my fretless bass. Plays so much better!
BfloBassist
Reviewed in the United States on April 3, 2017
Note: these are cut to *increase* the neck angle relative to the body and are not easily reversible to *decrease* the neck angle. The 'long' end (side with the larger space from the screw holes) is the thin side and will not easily reverse without a lot of trimming to allow the 'thick' side of the piece to be placed where the neck meets the body heel. This will also leave a gap between the neck and the body heel as the piece will not be long enough to cover the heel when reversed and cut to fit the neck pocket.Having said that, they are very nice quality build with a very smooth finish and well planed for flatness. It is easy to trim the thin side to the size of your neck pocket using just simple household scissors, leaving a very clean cut. The screw holes line up very well for Fender-sized 4-bold necks (includes Ken Smith Design basses) with only a little trimming. Much better than using little pieces of veneer shims.
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