Lamination separation in neck

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Author Message gleech New Username: gleech Post Number: 1 Registered: 1-2011 Posted on Wednesday, January 12, 2011 - 11:54 am:    I have a five piece maple neck on my '97 Epic. I have noticed in the last few months a ridged separation in the joint below the D string. It runs the length of the neck, disappearing just before the body joint and the head stock. It is tall enough to catch a fingernail on. It doesn't seem to affect playability. Should I be concerned and if so, what to do? I've had the Epic for 4 months, my first Alembic, and absolutely love it! mica Moderator Username: mica Post Number: 7153 Registered: 6-2000 Posted on Wednesday, January 12, 2011 - 12:39 pm:    Without seeing it, I can't tell if what you are describing is the wood shrinking or delaminating. Delamination is quite rare, and shrinkage is normal and expected, so it's likely to be shrinkage. Especially since the finish on the Epic is so very thin, that boundary between two laminates can feel rather sharp. gleech New Username: gleech Post Number: 4 Registered: 1-2011 Posted on Wednesday, January 12, 2011 - 1:32 pm:    I have had some shrinkage with the winter dryness. I had to dress fret ends with Stew-Mac fret file to eliminate sharp ends. I'll keep an eye on the neck, and move to Belize... I thought about a photo but it was very hard to capture. You can see a line in some lighting, not in others. thanks. gleech New Username: gleech Post Number: 5 Registered: 1-2011 Posted on Wednesday, January 12, 2011 - 1:41 pm:    I have had some winter shrinkage. I had to dress the fret ends with a Stew-Mac fret file. I'll keep an eye on the neck and move to Belize. gleech New Username: gleech Post Number: 6 Registered: 1-2011 Posted on Wednesday, January 12, 2011 - 1:43 pm:    brain fart double posting. got a weird server message. sorry dfung60 Senior Member Username: dfung60 Post Number: 469 Registered: 5-2002 Posted on Wednesday, January 12, 2011 - 8:05 pm:    Sounds like normal shrinkage to me too. If the bump doesn't bother you, then there's nothing to worry about. If it does bug you (and doesn't go away when the seasons change), then you'd address this by refinishing the back of the neck - the gap can be sanded out in the process and probably won't reappear. I actually kind of like when you can feel the laminates in the back of the neck. It takes quite a while for it to develop and only shows up when the instrument has a superior thin finish! David Fung