Carving necks is one of my favorite tasks. Many luthiers do this with a jig and a router but I find this an intriquing experience one of a kind experience. The feel of a neck is tactile and very personal.
 First you must sand the top surface absolutely flat. The fretboard will eventually be glued to this and there can be no gaps. Then the nut location is drawn on at the break point of the neck and the crucial measurmemt from nut to where the body is joined at the 14th fret is carefully measured and re-measured. |  The tapers and shape of the head plate are drawn on the necks and then we are ready to rough shape them on the band saw |  The band saw is such a handy tool. Here I am cutting along those pencil scribed lines being sure to keep the line visible at all times. Making a piece a hair too wide is never a problem, Too small and you have big troubles. |  Now they are all cut to taper and a bit trimmed off the peg head. Shown here with the previously laser etched plates, we can begin the carving. |