I put one of the Stewmac Maple Fender Strat replacement Necks (5714 - Compound radius, maple fingerboard) on my JTV-69....this is actually a Mighty-Mite neck made for Stewmac...note: the compound radius allows me to do all the string bends on the upper neck with no buzzes.

http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Bodies,_necks,_wood/Electric_guitar_necks/Replacement_Neck_for_Strat_Guitar.html

What a difference!!!  I love this guitar now.  This is what it needed (at least for me).  It now plays and sounds wonderful...  I'm sorry I could not live w/the default setup but for $200 (Neck+Schaller Locking Tuners), it's a drop-in replacement (no shims needed for the neck pocket).

This will only work on the JTV-69.  However, it's the ticket as far as I'm concerned!

MerlinFL wrote:

 

What I personally found is that the "scratching I felt in that area when bending strings was due to the EXTRA HARDENED Fret wire being EXTREMELY SENSITIVE to my guitar strings getting worn or a bit "rusty".  I'm NOT talking about MONTHS between string changes, but only  about a week or two weeks if I'm not playing as often or as "hard".

What I don't understand is how strings can rust? Are they not coated so that this can't happen? I have never had strings go rusty on me, and sometimes YEARS go by before I change the strings on certain guitars.

Having said that, I recently bought a guitar from someone who had a Telecaster that had these same rusty strings that you describe. I thought that scratchy feeling was caused by rust on the frets, but he showed me how it was on the under surface of the strings... so I have experienced what you have described on someone else's guitar.

So is this about the humidity of the environment where the guitar lives, or about playing with sweaty hands and the moisture remaining underneath when (and if) you rub the strings down?

Again, I ask, aren't guitar strings supposed to be coated to prevent rusting?

sparkyERTW wrote:

 

...but for the most part you're just looking at nickel plating, which although it is corrosion resistant will sill go with time.

Yeah... nickel plating!! That's the coating I was referring too... a metal that is not supposed to rust!

sparkyERTW wrote:

 

Some people have more 'acidic' skin than others.  You clearly don't if you can get life like that out of your strings, but I myself find the oils my skin produces to be pretty hard on strings (and watches; if it's not good quality stainless steel, my watches look antique in a matter of months).

Indeed, my strings seem to last forever, and sometimes I don't even change the strings when they are dead because I kind of like the tone they give. Strings get changed when I am dissatisfied with their performance, which seems a quite a long time in most cases.

In regards to skin acidity, I'm not sure where I'm at. I wash my hands a lot and always play my guitars with clean hands, so sweat is not something my strings get to experience much of. But I no longer wear white shirts because my sweat permanently stains them in no time. Even with deodorant, the under arms of a white T-shirt will be stained after only a few wears. Darker shirts only from now on.

guitar4u wrote:

 

Thanks Rich! I know you are very busy and I do appreciate the willingness to help. That last "NOTE" from Line 6 about not covering damages in transit was a bit of salt in the wound and set me off a bit. I really need to stop posting when I'm that frustrated. It's not productive and generally just makes me more irritable. This whole experience has been more than I bargained for. I hope you guys finally get it right because I really want this guitar to work. It's such a cool concept!

Ha, believe me, I have to be careful about posting too. It is super hard to read passion and inflections on the internet. I actually didn't think you were that ****** as much as you were passionate about the product. Thank you for deleting it from your original post. You did not have to, but I do appreciate it.

I did talk to the JCJCJC and he is going to jump in here and explain. It is what I remember from Fernandes. He is just much better at explaining than me.

trickypicky wrote:

 

Rich,

Totally get what you're saying.  Honestly, I'm hoping that I'll like the neck however it comes out of the box.  But if it turns out I don't, then I have a few reasons why I would choose a new neck over a fret job:

1. Given the issue that some folks are having, the nut width/spacing on a new neck is one way to overcome the "problem". (I'm looking at 1 11/16" nut).
   
2. I LOVE how Strats 'n' Teles play. 
3. I prefer a 9.5" radius.
4. I prefer an all maple neck (which, looking at Mark C's picture, the maple really looks nice on the red 69, I think it'll look even better on the LPB)
5. I like a satin finish (You mentioned earlier the 59 has glossy and the 69 & 89 have flat finishes, do you mean the 69 & 89 have satin finish? Just to clarify for me...)
   
6. I prefer the look of the Strat and Tele headstocks (except for the comically large CBS headstocks).

 

No offense taken, everyone has thier own asthetic tastes.

Oh, yeah, it is 1 5/8ths. That would be the main reason I would do a new neck. The funny thing is, you say you love how Strats and Teles play and almost all of them are 1 5/8ths. You could have a 9.5 radius put in when they are refretting the neck. Maple is cool. We do want to come with some maple necks one day for sure. Yes, flat finish = satin finish. I love it too on my Lakland. Can't argue with you preferring the strat or tele headstock. I, by contrast, love my Lakland because it is not a Fender headstock. To me guys like Tyler and the guys at Lakland etc have more in common with Leo than the current company does. So to me, my Lakland feels like it has more legacy than a custom shop Jazz. Don't stone me! Thank you for taking the time to let me know.

Line6RichRenken wrote:

 

The core is still steel, so when you see rusty nickel strings, you will notice the rust protrudes from underneath and comes up and around the nickel.

Does this mean that the nickel plating has been worn off where the strings rub against the frets? That's some heavy duty usage. 

Since I would suppose that the steel would have to be exposed in order for rust to set in, I think it's safe to say that anyone who is getting rusty strings may not be changing them often enough.

But then again, maybe that nickel plating scrapes off more easily than I thought.

Hi,

I can understand your frustration and please know that we (Line 6 Customer Service) is on your side. Damage claims with UPS are very tricky (the shipper is responsible for the claim, but it has to be initiated by the receiver, call tags change who the shipper is, packing has a big impact regardless of who the shipper is, etc), We put that message in there to make sure that anyone who is using UPS to ship takes certain precautions.  We do absolutely insure every shipment, but we aren't always the shipper.  Again, the reason for that message.

So, sorry we set you off and thanks for revising your post.

As for your guitar, we'll take care of it and we will make sure that we resolve any issues and get your Variax working.

Thanks for your patience and please know we are here to work with you.

Thanks

JC