Bare Knuckle Pickups Forum

Forum Ringside => Tech => Topic started by: dave_mc on March 04, 2011, 08:47:26 PM

Title: BC Rich Gunslinger Retro question
Post by: dave_mc on March 04, 2011, 08:47:26 PM
Hi everyone,

My new BC Rich Gunslinger came today, and it seems to be very nice, but I was checking it over (bought it online), and it looks to me like the neck is set into the pocket at a bit of an angle? Never seen this on a guitar before, but I wanted to check here first in case it's meant to be like that. Any ideas? I've got some pics to show what I mean:

(http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e28/dave_mc/Gunslinger1.jpg)
(http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e28/dave_mc/Gunslinger2.jpg)
(http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e28/dave_mc/Gunslinger3.jpg)
(http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e28/dave_mc/Gunslinger4.jpg)


Also, the trem is also set at an angle to accomodate the neck- is this a problem? Normally I'd set the treble side of the trem a little lower than the bass side, just so I get a slightly lower action on the higher strings, but this is a really obvious angle- it won't do any harm to the trem, will it?

Thanks in advance for any help you can give me :)
Title: Re: BC Rich Gunslinger Retro question
Post by: Afghan Dave on March 04, 2011, 08:55:32 PM
OK, I have the exact same guitar and I am sat next to mine as I type so...

I think you have a shim in the bass side of the neck pocket.

I have approx 1mm clearance gap of the fretboard over hang above the body consistent from bass to treble.

Any more questions just ask.
Title: Re: BC Rich Gunslinger Retro question
Post by: dave_mc on March 04, 2011, 09:10:45 PM
Thanks Dave, I was hoping you'd see this.

I thought there might be a shim in there... not entirely sure why, though. When I look at the neck joint, from the back, there is like a slight gap in the neck pocket, so it might just be a shim.

I'll wait and see what feline or wez say, if they see this- just don't want to get into a situation where the seller tries to blame me, in the off-chance that there is something wrong with it and it's not just a shim.
Title: Re: BC Rich Gunslinger Retro question
Post by: Afghan Dave on March 04, 2011, 09:14:07 PM
Glad to help, it should all work out.

These gunslinger necks are f**king great in my opinion.
Title: Re: BC Rich Gunslinger Retro question
Post by: dave_mc on March 04, 2011, 09:34:29 PM
yeah, hopefully, just want to keep myself in the right, just in case there's something wrong with it. But hopefully there isn't, I mean I don't want to have to send it back, I like it :D

And yeah, the neck's very nice, very fast. :D
Title: Re: BC Rich Gunslinger Retro question
Post by: Madsakre on March 04, 2011, 10:40:45 PM
buy this. my friend needs money :)
http://www.dba.dk/elguitar-bcrich-gunslinger/id-72051500/ (http://www.dba.dk/elguitar-bcrich-gunslinger/id-72051500/)
Title: Re: BC Rich Gunslinger Retro question
Post by: WezV on March 04, 2011, 10:50:02 PM
doesnt look like anything major - but i wouldn't be happy about it arriving like that.  Is it new or second hand?
 

first thing i would be doing is taking the neck off and seeing what was in the pocket.  if it is a bass side shim, get it out and replace with a full width one
Title: Re: BC Rich Gunslinger Retro question
Post by: FELINEGUITARS on March 04, 2011, 11:11:05 PM
It's not altogether a problem

if there is a shim in there that is only on one side I would remove it - or replace it with one that goes the full width

It could be that the neck pocket is deeper on the treble side in which case it sits a bit low (not optimal but not a terminal problem)
Title: Re: BC Rich Gunslinger Retro question
Post by: dave_mc on March 05, 2011, 02:50:36 PM
madsakre: haha, i want to get this one sorted first :lol:

stig^ thanks :)

wez and feline: thanks, I was hoping you guys would see this. To answer your questions/points: it was supposed to be new. I bought it off an ebay business/guitar seller, and it was described as new. So yeah, as you say, I'm not really happy about it arriving like that. I also don't really don't want to do anything major to it in case it gives the seller a chance to claim that I was the one who damaged it.

I've shot off a couple of emails to bc rich and rosetti (their distributor here), just to see what they say- though I suspect they won't answer until Monday.

Someone pointed out on another forum that the bass side shim (that's what I now suspect it is, as you've both suggested- the neck pocket isn't a 100% tight fit at the bass side, so there might well be a shim under there) might have been done to stop buzzing on the lower strings, if the fretwork were dodgy- might that be it? If so, isn't that a bit of a half-assed fix?

I appreciate that it's not the end of the world (though as I said, I'm a bit concerned that (a) it's been done to try to disguise some other fault and (b) that the cover-up itself appears to be a bit half-assed), but I guess, would you be happy with it had you bought it new, Jonathan? (I'm not being sarcastic or anything like that, it's a serious question, I want to know what you think :) )

I guess the only other question is, what's the worst that could be wrong with it?

As I said, it's supposedly a new guitar- I don't want to have been palmed off with a b-stock one or something like that.
Title: Re: BC Rich Gunslinger Retro question
Post by: Afghan Dave on March 05, 2011, 03:04:59 PM
I would loosen each opposite & opposing screw on the gunslinger angled neck joint by a couple of turns till I could lift the neck up out of the pocket by 5mm and look inside with a torch or good light. Then re tighten in the same manner.

You would know more and not disturb anything.

ONLY MY OPINION
Title: Re: BC Rich Gunslinger Retro question
Post by: dave_mc on March 05, 2011, 03:53:09 PM
thanks dave... I was actually wondering last night if i could do something like that, if it'd let me see whether there actually is a shim in there or not. and it'd be a lot less bother than actually taking the entire neck off.

I'll wait to hear from bc rich etc. first, just to see what they say, but I'll definitely keep that in mind.
Title: Re: BC Rich Gunslinger Retro question
Post by: dave_mc on March 05, 2011, 05:06:25 PM
no worries, thanks dave. I'll not be doing anything until I hear back from BC rich first, so don't worry- I'll be erring on the side of caution. :)
Title: Re: BC Rich Gunslinger Retro question
Post by: Afghan Dave on March 05, 2011, 05:09:45 PM
Normal service has been resumed.
Title: Re: BC Rich Gunslinger Retro question
Post by: Ian Price on March 05, 2011, 08:23:54 PM
Praise the lord (and I'm not even religious!)
Title: Re: BC Rich Gunslinger Retro question
Post by: dave_mc on March 05, 2011, 09:00:32 PM
ah, slight update... to rub salt in the wound, the original shop which I was going to buy it from (but didn't because they raised their prices by about £50) has now lowered them again.

Darn. :lol: