Quartersawn Neck: Pros and Cons?

[Philly Q]

Just putting together another Warmoth project, and as usual I'm spending hours trawling through the Showcase.  There are 2 or 3 necks I like the look of, and one of them happens to be quartersawn maple (with a rosewood board).  I've never owned a quartersawn neck, but this is what I've READ:


Pros:

Quartersawn will be stiffer, therefore....
Soundwise, it may increase brightness, resonance, sustain and overall "liveliness".

Cons:

It may be so stiff that the trussrod is ineffective, unless it's a thin neck (this isn't!);
Despite the stiffness in an up/down direction, it might, in theory, bend or warp sideways;
The neck mounting screws may be more likely to rip out of the wood (hmmm...);
The neck may be heavier (I don't think I believe this one, but could be a problem with a dual-action trussrod);
The sound may be too bright.


On the face of it, the cons outweigh the pros, but I suspect a lot of them are scaremongering by the "flatsawn was good enough for Leo Fender" brigade.

Luthiers, any thoughts?

 

[WezV]

fender style neck right... dont worry about it.  its a little more stable but rarely too stiff .   thats with maple anyway, quartersawn or flatsawn both work well for fender style necks. 

rarely is a modern trussrod ineffective if installed well, and warmoth will do it well!
i doubt it will bend sideways but i guess you never know - what force is going to make that happen?
quartersawn maple still holds a screw better than a lot of other woods
you wont notice the extra few grams of a 2 way truss rod
tone will not be too different, you would get just as much variation between two flatsawn necks


if you start talking about woods like mahogany, well then flatsawn is not really stiff enough on its own and quartersawn become a lot more important

[Philly Q]

i doubt it will bend sideways but i guess you never know - what force is going to make that happen?

Yeah, exactly, I thought it sounded like bullsh!t.

fender style neck right... dont worry about it.

Yep, basically a Fender style bolt-on, but with an angled headstock in this case (scarf jointed).

Thanks Wez, put my mind at ease!  :D

[FernandoDuarte]

+1 on I don't believe that there is a difference in tone, basically one is just turned 90° to the side than the other...

[FELINEGUITARS]

There is a difference in tone and response in my opinion

I like quartersawn necks that are stiff
The attack on a note is quicker  with less "sag"
There can be a sense of more brightness too

I deliberately make a lot of my 3 piece necks so that the grain is quartersawn in each piece

If a neck shrinks it wont warp but will get narrower a bit

[Philly Q]

Thanks for the advice, guys.  Neck ordered.   :D