Gibson with bolt on neck

[Ward Elliott]

HI......I've got an '87 Carlson signed Gibson in for a refret and I thought as long as I've got it here I should check to make sure the neck bolts are snug. There's no problem with them, I'm just trying to do a little preventative maintenance. Can anyone tell me what size hex wrench fits those bolts? It would save me an awful lot of trial and error when I go to make a long allen wrench for it. Thanks

[Big Joe]

You must be careful turning those bolts. You can tear the inserts that hold the bolts loose and then you are far worse off than now. The odds of those bolts needing adjustment are very remote. My advice is to leave them alone. You could end up with a mess that is very difficult to fix. Thank you.

[Ward Elliott]

Maybe I didn't state my intentions clearly enough. I have no plans to crank on the bolts, only to make sure that they are snug. But thanks anyway Joe.

[mandroid]

suggest A folding assortment will narrow it down to a)metric or b)fractions of an inch.
each set is folding , so none get lost. kinda like a pocket knife.

[pdlstl]

FYI - As I understand it, those bolts are there for the express purpose of making minute adjustments while the glue dries. At least that's how Weber is doing it now.

If that's the case, I'm guessing you could remove them completely (not that I'm suggesting that) with no compromise on the motise and tenon.

Betcha' Paula at Weber could get the answer you're seeking.

2¢...

[Big Joe]

If you take the bolts out the neck is likely to come loose or will in the near future. The mortise and tenon joint used in not very secure. Many of that era are having problems anyway after a decade. The bolts are not that securely placed. They should not be tightened or adjusted as any attempt may cause the neck joint to become loose. This is not something that should be adjusted or tightened. The bolts are not the problem with the joint. It is a combination of the joint, the reciever end of the bolt and the pressure on the joint. We have to repair these often and my advice is if it's not broken, don't touch it. However, to answer the question, the size is 1/8th inch allen wrench. One last thing. If you purchased the instrument new it has a lifetime warranty to the original owner, however, if you adjust the bolts it will void your warranty. Thank you.

[Ward Elliott]

I appreciate all the input. I finished the work on it and didn't ever check the tightness of the bolts. I would have had to make an extra long allen wrench to go in through the endpin hole, just decided not to do it. In response to Joe's message, the mandolin had been sold several times so it was no longer under warranty, but thanks for your concern. The actual problem with it was that the "f' holes were not centered on the body and the owner was going crazy trying to get the tailpiece and #bridge lined up with the strings centered on the fretboard. When he did get all them centered, the bridge would look off center, but in fact it was the "f" holes. I slotted a new bridge top slightly off center and moved the bridge back a little bit closer to center and everything's fine.