how short is too short for necks?

[qotsarock]

Been lurking for a while and dreaming of buying a CNC machine for guitar builds. I searched a bit and can't find an answer to this question, so thought I would make it my first post.

If I bought a table with an x-axis of 14", is it possible to route the backshape of a fender style neck in two steps? In other words, route roughly 1/2 the length, rotate/reposition the neck and then finish the rest of the neck? Or is it just too much work to do it this way?

Thanks!

[Drassk]

It's doable, it's just more work to fixture and program. Lots of people machine their necks in multiple setups. The more setups, the more likely you'll have to deal with transition marks etc. from part misalignment, though.

[wbegg]

You could lay it out on a diagonal and machine, depending on the machines Y distance. a 14 x 14 table would allow machining on a 45 degree angle of about 20 inches, still probably not enough for a guitar neck though.

This is the method I use to machine bass necks on my machine, as opposed to re-referencing my stock on one axis.

To figure out maxium diagonal distance, take the sqr root of (Xsquared+Ysquared)

[qotsarock]

It's doable, it's just more work to fixture and program. Lots of people machine their necks in multiple setups. The more setups, the more likely you'll have to deal with transition marks etc. from part misalignment, though.

Thanks. How does one handle the transitions in the CAM software? Can you 'pause' the program midstream to reposition the piece or do you need multiple programs, one for each position?

[ger21]

Multiple programs.