What does "Neck-Thru" mean?

Guitars have many parts and features but the basic breakdown is simply a neck and a body. Traditionally, there are three types of ways the neck is connected to the body:

A "bolt-on" style connection is when the neck is attached by screws. This is referred to as a "bolt-on" even though actual bolts are rarely used.

A "set neck" has a pocket routed out of the body and the neck has an extension notch that fits into it. This is glued in place and provides a little better access to higher frets due to the lack of bulk material required for a bolt-on to attach.

A "neck-thru" is when a neck is built with an extension that runs the length of the body and provides the (center core) of the body. The rest of the body is attached to this core on each side by "wings." Sometimes a cosmetic strip separates them and this is referred to as "stringers," also sometimes called "rails." This type of construction is considered by many to be a superior build style for the smooth heelless access to the higher frets. It is also less cost effective to build which is why most companies that offer a neck-thru model have it in a higher price bracket with more high end features.

Videos

Neck Hand-Carve Demo

This video was made prior to the re-launch and has a teaser trailer at the end. I carve one side/half of a maple neck on a blank using no power tools. The original duration was 14 minutes but the video is sped up to 6.

Bound Fretboard Demo

This video is how I make a bound fretboard using wood (or Richlite) material for binding.

Fret Install Demo

Condensed demo of how I install frets into a bound board.

Truss Rod Rout Demo

There are many ways to rout a truss rod channel on a neck thru guitar. Here's mine.

(I left the misspelled word in the vid because I was too busy working on my next project to redo and re-upload it, haha.)

Hardwood Knob Demo

Making a potentiometer knob out of Purpleheart wood.

Yavcon #9 video description

I was nominated a while back on a social media platform to showcase a guitar and chose to do a video of this one. There is some technical info and terminology a beginner may find useful so I figured I would share it here. NOTE: This guitar was originally built with a hardtail bridge that required no neck angle. Several years later I decided to retrofit it with a Kahler trem. Since that requires a slight angle, I compensated by recessing it into the body.

NOTE: In the #9 Description video above, I reference neck-thru construction as having better sustain. This has been tested and considered to be scientifically inaccurate. (KIND OF) The test I watched showed one control batch. In my opinion, proper science dictates the testing of many control batches. Since each piece of wood is characteristically unique, It's impossible to measure which build style has better sustain without using the exact same piece of wood (which is impossible). If you build 3 guitars and test the sustain, the results are completely influenced by the differences in the wood. Even the same plank of wood can have different densities and characteristics on each side or end. Anyways, the differences were subtle and since neck-thru construction offers the best access to higher frets, it is still considered a premium feature. Rant over.