Slim Taper neck - what exactly does that mean?

[johnnyvn 0]

Hi all,

 

OK. Slim Taper Neck.

 

We've all heard the term. But what does it actually mean?

 

Is it slimmer in width? Is it slimmer in depth? Is it both?

 

If it is slimmer in width, is it that way up and down the whole neck?

 

If it is slimmer in depth, is it that way up and down the whole neck?

 

Or does it taper at one end of the neck more than the other?

 

Does it taper from a "fatter" profile near the body to a thinner one by the nut? Vice versa?

 

Any thoughts would be appreciated!

 

Thanks,

 

John

[Pesh 14]

Hi all,

 

OK. Slim Taper Neck.

 

We've all heard the term. But what does it actually mean?

 

Is it slimmer in width? Is it slimmer in depth? Is it both?

 

If it is slimmer in width, is it that way up and down the whole neck?

 

If it is slimmer in depth, is it that way up and down the whole neck?

 

Or does it taper at one end of the neck more than the other?

 

Does it taper from a "fatter" profile near the body to a thinner one by the nut? Vice versa?

 

Any thoughts would be appreciated!

 

Thanks,

 

John

 

My understanding would be:

 

We've all heard the term. But what does it actually mean? My understanding is that the "slim taper" refers to the entire neck dimension, not a part of it compared to the equivalent part on another instrument.

 

Is it slimmer in width? Is it slimmer in depth? Is it both? Width has remained pretty constant from when Gibson started making electrics; early-'50s LP's had quite chunky necks, in terms of depth, which are now often referred to as "fatnecks", "boatnecks", "baseball-bats" and other such terms. In '59 the neck was a bit slimmer than the previous '58, and then in '60 it was slimmer still (this is still referring to depth, not width).

 

If it is slimmer in width, is it that way up and down the whole neck? Again; as best I know; the width has remained quite constant (ignoring 2015 guitars and the 2016 HP guitars). There may have been occasional adjustments through the years, but this would have affected all lines for that year.

 

If it is slimmer in depth, is it that way up and down the whole neck? Yep; the whole way up and down. If you have something with a '50s fatter neck and a '60s slimmer neck; the '60s slim will be less-deep at the first fret and at the twelfth, and all points between and after. It's not slimmer in just 1 section, like frets 1-5, and then the depth is the same at 12.

 

If others can weigh-in, hopefully that'll provide a complete answer. And they could correct me in any places I am mistaken.

[BigKahune 438]

.

Adding to what Pesh has provided -

"Taper" refers to the sides of the neck shape being tapered back away from the edge of the fretboard. In the shapes below, look at the 60's oval/'C' and then look at 60's slim taper - you can see that the profile of the slim taper quickly curves under the fretboard when compared to the 60's oval. This makes the slim taper neck feel quite a bit slimmer than the oval/'C' shape even if the thickness is similar. A few years ago Gibson came out with the 30/60 neck which is .030" thicker than the 60's slim taper. I have a 60s slim taper on my 1965 MM and a 30/60 on my 2010 ES-359, and that .030" definitely makes the 30/60 feel fatter. It doesn't take to much in terms of measurements to make a big difference in feel.

 

 

.

[johnnyvn 0]

.

Adding to what Pesh has provided -

"Taper" refers to the sides of the neck shape being tapered back away from the edge of the fretboard. In the shapes below, look at the 60's oval/'C' and then look at 60's slim taper - you can see that the profile of the slim taper quickly curves under the fretboard when compared to the 60's oval. This makes the slim taper neck feel quite a bit slimmer than the oval/'C' shape even the thickness is similar. A few years ago Gibson came out with the 30/60 neck which is .030" thicker than the 60's slim taper. I have a 60s slim taper on my 1965 MM and a 30/60 on my ES-359, and that .030" definitely makes the 30/60 feel fatter. It doesn't to much in terms of measurements to make a big difference in feel.

 

 

.

 

 

Push and Big, thanks so much for the awesome descriptions. Big, those pics are worth a thousand words, right? Really cool to have that info...thank you both...