Ok guys. I haven't done a build thread before so I guess I'm due, right?

This is a bass I'm building for someone who found me due to someone posting a link to me on his forum. Isn't the internet wonderful? Anyways, after some discussion we came up with this basic plan for the bass. My customer's tone requirements go kind of like this: smooth bottom not dominating, strong punchy mids, very crisp well defined highs. And visually, he doesn't like fancy, in-your-face, figured wood. Just something with a nice grain, with wide grain pattern.

So without going into all the details of the decision making process, here's my design to accomplish this:

General: 5-string neck-thru EADGC
Neck: Maple and Ebony
Body: Alder core with Swamp Ash front and back
Pickups: Norstrand dual coil - parallel
Preamp: Bartolini - vol/pan/treb/mid/bass
Hardware: All black Hipshot w/drop D
Finish: KTM-9 with trans dye (color TBD)

Pics, on the way...

sounds sexy, swamp ash has imo the best looking grain of any wood, in terms of simplicity

Should be sweet!

With my stencil templates Steve choose this for the front:

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/SwampAsh4.jpg

This is a fretless, and we are going with Macassar Ebony for the fingerboard. Steve liked the 3rd plank of these, sort of stripy but mostly dark wood.

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/fingerboardwood.jpg

After resawing and cutting the body parts out we have these actual choices:

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/ashbody1.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/ashbody3.jpg

Waiting for a decision on that but I'm going ahead and building up both bodies for now.

Nice! Especially that ebony!

Good to see a Thor build!!

Likin' it. :cool:

Thanks for the positive comments.

Here's some pics of the neck blank assembly. I don't seem to have any pics of the individual pieces. But they are all planed and sanded then the neck built up in my neck clamp. Maple, Macassar Ebony, and a Purpleheart veneer in the middle. The big piece of Purpleheart is part of my clamp. The other side of the clamp is 1/2 inch steel plate.

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/neckblank4.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/neckblank3.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/neckblank1.jpg

Looking great Karl - can't wait 'till it's my turn!!

Very nice looking so far. I do have a question though. Why did you use so many clamps at the ends and not in the middle, or is it an optical illusion? I've never built my own bass bedore, but seeing these I've got the itch to, again.

Pete

Hey Alex, your bass is pretty much complete - in my head. Just need to get it on paper for you. I'm trying...

Very nice looking so far. I do have a question though. Why did you use so many clamps at the ends and not in the middle, or is it an optical illusion? I've never built my own bass bedore, but seeing these I've got the itch to, again.

Pete

Actually you can't really see some of the clamps along the bottom. They're pretty evenly spaced.

I glued the body wings in two stages. First lay down the veneer, apply glue to the body and set the body on the veneer. Then veneer on top of the body and clamp it down under my cauls and a board to distribute the pressure.

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/bodyveneer.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/bodyveneer2.jpg

Stage 2: After that's set I glue on the front and back panels with my cauls on both sides.

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/bodyclamped1.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/bodyclamped3.jpg

What I see at the back of the first and last pics is the neck of one of those really really short scale basses??? :p

What I see at the back of the first and last pics is the neck of one of those really really short scale basses??? :p

LOL... not everyone can play bass... someone has to hog the spotlight and overplay. :bassist:

No, wait... bass players can do that, too... nevermind. :hiding:

What I see at the back of the first and last pics is the neck of one of those really really short scale basses??? :p

Ha, actually it's the first bass I ever built, since parted out. Just happened to be a 6er. But the neck blank next to it is what you're thinking of ;)

Once again, you are one if not THE best builder on these forums. I love your work, but you really should come up with another body design at some point.

lowsound

Once again, you are one if not THE best builder on these forums. I love your work, but you really should come up with another body design at some point.

lowsound

Thanks LS, you may be my #1 fan :)

So here's how the bodies are coming...

Out of the clamps and after some work on the belt/spindle sander:
http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/bodiesraw4.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/bodiesraw2.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/bodiesraw3.jpg

Then it's on to the router table:

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/bodiesroundover1.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/bodiesroundover2.jpg

(I always burn that one spot on the bottom of the tail because it's the scary part)
http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/bodiesroundover4.jpg

now those are looking SEXY!

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/ashbody3.jpg



Love this body!

Thanks for posting all the picts... Great to get a feel for how your basses are put together!


Nomad98

I like to double check the template with the actual body that's going on the neck. That way if there's any difference in body thickness I'll know now before I cut out the neck on the bandsaw. Marking out the neck angle and headstock tilt along with setting the position of the nut, fingerboard, and bridge. That all determines where to route for the trussrod.

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/necklayout1.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/necklayout2.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/necklayout4.jpg

So on to the mill to do the trussrod slot...

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/trussrod1.jpg

Thanks LS, you may be my #1 fan :)


Might be and when you come up with a different body design I might just end up buying one of your basses. I like the design that you use, but can't ever see myself owning one. Unless of course you just happen to give one to me.

lowsound

Really can't wait until I hear this thing played!

After cutting out on the bandsaw, I clean up the cut and dimension the headstock and body section with the saf-t-plane.
http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/neckplane1.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/neckplane2.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/neckplane3.jpg

Finally it's time for the fun part, carving the neck. I have a zillion pictures of this so if you want more just ask. For now I'll post a few that show the progress.

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/neckcarve19.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/neckcarve20.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/neckcarve18.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/neckcarve15.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/neckcarve16.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/neckcarve17.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/neckcarve10.jpg

It was someone here at TB that told about doing the volute this way on the sander, sweet!
http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/neckcarve5.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/neckcarve6.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/neckcarve4.jpg

This Maple is really looking nice!
http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/neckcarve1.jpg

Oh yeah, I took this for whoever it was that thought there was one of those short neck things in the background. Someday maybe I'll return my first build to service, but for now it just helps hold up some shelving ;)

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/oldbass.jpg

MARVELOUS!!!! love seeing more people getting lots of use from the safe-t-planer! it's a Godsend!

MARVELOUS!!!! love seeing more people getting lots of use from the safe-t-planer! it's a Godsend!

Sure is a time saver. Have you ever sharpened yours? There's this odd stone that came with mine but I don't really know how to use it.

Sure is a time saver. Have you ever sharpened yours? There's this odd stone that came with mine but I don't really know how to use it.

yes, several times actually. Just chuck the grinding stone to your drill press and unbolt the cutters from the assembly. Then hold them on a handscrew to keep it parallel to the table. Sharpening is a snap! don't do it hand held like the instructions say ...it's plain dangerous and kind of defeats the purpose of the 'safety' planer.

Great work - love seeing this build coming together. Thanks for sharing. Wish I had half of the gear you get to play with....;)

It's time to glue the body wings to the neck. The wings and neck have to mate perfectly. This edge sander does a good job of getting a good edge on the wings.

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/bodyedgeprep.jpg

First one side then the other. Way too hard to keep things lined up properly if I try to glue both on at once.
http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/bodyneckgluing3.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/bodyneckgluing2.jpg

The next task is another one of the fun ones, blending the roundover with the tail.

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/tailcarve2.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/tailcarve3.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/tailcarve4.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/tailcarve6.jpg

That volute carving jig on the sander is pure genius !!!

I do mine on a spindle sander, but you could make the volute and true up the back of your headstock at the same time with a belt sander... :)

I do mine on a spindle sander, but you could make the volute and true up the back of your headstock at the same time with a belt sander... :)

Shawn, you're probably the one that posted a pic of your setup for that a while back. My thanks to you for a great idea. It's actually a belt/spindle sander I'm using. It just happens that the drive end of the belt attachment is the part that's the right radius for me.

There's a gap between the drive drum and the platen though, so I wouldn't try to true up the back this way.

You build so fast. I would like to see you pop out a bass in a week, I am sure you could do it as well.

lowsound

You build so fast. I would like to see you pop out a bass in a week, I am sure you could do it as well.

lowsound

Hmm, well don't read too much into the post dates of the pics. I'd been building up a backlog of pics as I built and just started posting them as I processed them to the web. It'll start slowing down now as I've caught up to the current state of the build. Especially once I start into final sanding which I'm pretty slow at.

Hmm, well don't read too much into the post dates of the pics. I'd been building up a backlog of pics as I built and just started posting them as I processed them to the web. It'll start slowing down now as I've caught up to the current state of the build. Especially once I start into final sanding which I'm pretty slow at.

Ok, that actually makes way more sense than you doing it as fast as it appears. Nice work none the less. How long does a build usually take you?

lowsound

^ Last time he told me was 1 1/2 to 2 months.

^ Last time he told me was 1 1/2 to 2 months.

I quote 14 weeks for most builds. If there are no changes mid-stream I've always been on-time with that. Builds that are hugely custom (like what AE is talking to me about) can take longer.

Edit: Oops had the wrong alias with the comment about the quote. Was meant for AE. Sorry about that :p AE, check your email...

Yeah I figured you did. :p I tried getting you on AIM but I had to leave two minutes later.

It's been a slow week but I did get a few things done. First we have laminating the headstock. For the curved piece (the back) first I warp the lam by softening it with water and clamping it overnight. Really this is just a precaution to make it easier to clamp when gluing. My caul for gluing it on is a piece of closed cell foam. Being closed cell it doesn't squish under the clamp pressure but conforms to the shape of the back of the headstock.

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/headstocklam1.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/headstocklam2.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/headstocklam3.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/headstocklam4.jpg

Later I take off the clamps and find that it has magically carved itself while gluing!

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/headstock1.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/headstock2.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/headstock3.jpg

Beautiful work, it's great to finally see an in progress build after all these year!

Beautiful work, it's great to finally see an in progress build after all these year!

Yeah well, I'm pretty much giving up all my secrets here so stay tuned ;)

/jk

Yeah well, I'm pretty much giving up all my secrets here so stay tuned ;)

/jk

You have no idea how much I have learned just looking through this thread. Ever though of making a single cut? I would like to see you take on one.

lowsound

I haven't designed a single-cut body. Open to suggestions, but since I'm not particularly fond of single-cuts it would have to be something pretty special.

Anyways, on to the build...

It's starting to look like a bass now. Next up is routing for the pickups. Nothing too complicated here. I don't use a template. Just mark the dimensions in the desired location and measure for depth then on to the mill.

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/pickuplayout1.jpg

First I route the outside edge with a 1/8, then hog it out with a 1/2.

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/pickuprouting1.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/pickuprouting2.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/pickuprouting5.jpg

First I route the outside edge with a 1/8, then hog it out with a 1/2.


Using an end mill in a drill chuck? For shame ;)

Asad

Using an end mill in a drill chuck? For shame ;)

Asad

Well, I guess ignorance on my part :( I thought it would be safe for cutting wood. But you're probably right that there's a risk.

I dunno, I haven't done it, but what would be wrong with using an end mill in a drill press at similar speeds? You might run out of horsepower, but... ?

A drill press is not designed for lateral loads on the chuck. This could cause it to wear out quickly and wobble, creating a great deal of inaccuracy and requiring replacement of the tool.

Agreed, the machine is not made to do the same work. But I'm not seeing anything unsafe here, I think.

Ehhh... whats the flowers box on the drillpress in the back?

Kleenex? I always have a couple boxes in my workshop. But then again, I'm out there working in my free time, sick or not. :D

Yes those are tissues, but pretty much useless because dust lands in the box...

Agreed, the machine is not made to do the same work. But I'm not seeing anything unsafe here, I think.

Last night I was thinking about the issue with an endmill in a drill chuck. When I chucked the endmill I was thinking it should be fine as long as I make sure it's secure enough. I had forgotten about the more important issue. Since an endmill can pull down it can pull the chuck off of the R8 adapter (or off the spindle of a drillpress). That wouldn't be pretty.

Well, I guess ignorance on my part :( I thought it would be safe for cutting wood. But you're probably right that there's a risk.

It probably is OK, as the forces from cutting wood are going to be much lower than any sort of comparable metal work. The drill chuck just isn't as secure a connection as a collet directly holding the end mill. Typically using a drill chuck you'll lose some accuracy as well, but it's completely negligible for doing woodwork on a bass where tolerances less than 0.001" just aren't important.

It looks like you've got one of those "mill/drill" machines, so I wouldn't be worried about putting side loads on the spindle bearings -- it should be designed to handle that.

Asad

Any updates with this SoM?

I've always thought that using a mill for pickup routes would be the way to go... I need to get me one of those. :)

I've always thought that using a mill for pickup routes would be the way to go... I need to get me one of those. :)

Milling machines = the win. There's just so much you can do with one.

Asad

Any updates with this SoM?

Yeah, I've got a bunch of pics but I have to size them and upload etc.

Here's one of the fingerboard though.
http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/fingerboard1.jpg

Milling machines = the win. There's just so much you can do with one.

Asad

Expensive though.

lowsound

Yes, I've been a little lazy ;) But I have just about completed my new fingerboard radiuser so I don't feel too bad.

Anyways, just boring stuff here. Drilling the holes for the machine heads, and drilling for the side mount output jack.

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/drillingtunerholes2.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/drillingtunerholes1.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/drillingjackhole1.jpg

And yeah, mills are expensive. But you can get really good ones used for huge discount of their original cost. You kind of have to know what you're doing though because you could easily get something that needs tons of money put into it to make it usable.

When I bought mine I had constraints that ruled out most of the good used ones. My shop is currently single phase. And I wanted a gearhead with large swing. So I ended up with this Smithy which has served adequately.

And yeah, mills are expensive. But you can get really good ones used for huge discount of their original cost. You kind of have to know what you're doing though because you could easily get something that needs tons of money put into it to make it usable.

When I bought mine I had constraints that ruled out most of the good used ones. My shop is currently single phase. And I wanted a gearhead with large swing. So I ended up with this Smithy which has served adequately.

I would love to have a mill and a metal lathe. Not that I have the room for either.

lowsound

Here's how I do the side dots. This is a fretless and the dots go right where the fret would be, not in between like on a fretted. Basically after marking the positions I set up a stop on the mill bed and slide the fingerboard along drilling the holes.

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/sidedotdrilling3.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/sidedotdrilling2.jpg

Next I tap in some aluminum rod and snip it off.

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/sidedots1.jpg

Coming together so well! I hope he mentions this on UM already. :p

After trimming the side dots and sanding flush it's time to glue on the fingerboard. First a little silicon so there's no rattling, then press in the trussrod. Next a piece of tape over the trussrod, spread the glue and on goes my fingerboard caul. Then clamp it all up.

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/fingerboardglue7.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/fingerboardglue5.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/fingerboardglue4.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/fingerboardglue3.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/fingerboardglue2.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/fingerboardglue1.jpg

Very cool fingerboard gluing caul. I'll have to design something like that!

The control cover was cut out by drop cutting with an end-mill. So it needs to be bound to get it back to the right size. Here's what it looks like.

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/boundcontrolcover1.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/boundcontrolcover3.jpg

The fingerboard is glued on but still needs final dressing to be perfectly flat. Because my necks are so rigid it's good to build in a little relief, so I tighten the trussrod just a bit then use my StewMac fret leveling bar to flatten it completely.

That maple in the neck is amazing, no?

We are now ready for staining!

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/dressingfingerboard1.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/dressingfingerboard2.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/dressingfingerboard4.jpg

Excellent work. I love this forum and watching all you super talented builders. It is a thing of beauty.

WOW... This needs to be in the how to sticky...

WOW... This needs to be in the how to sticky...

+1

Awesome bass Karl. Thanks for posting the detailed pictures.

I like the control cavity cover. What do you mean by "drop cutting," and why is there no gap produced at the sides?

Do you leave the tape over the truss rod slot or pull it off after the glue is spread?

I see you're using zip ties to hole the fingerboard in place while you start the clamp-up. It looks like you have your neck shaft and fingerboard both to final size and taper before glue up, is that right?

I like the control cavity cover. What do you mean by "drop cutting," and why is there no gap produced at the sides?

Do you leave the tape over the truss rod slot or pull it off after the glue is spread?

I see you're using zip ties to hole the fingerboard in place while you start the clamp-up. It looks like you have your neck shaft and fingerboard both to final size and taper before glue up, is that right?

Good questions. I use an end-mill to cut the controls cover out of the back panel. There's actually a 1/8 gap all the way around which is filled by the binding.

I used to use masking tape over the trussrod, and pulled it off before clamping on the fingerboard. But now I've started using regular clear tape and it's thin enough that you can just leave it on.

The fingerboard and neck are very close to final shaping before gluing. The fingerboard just has about 1/16 extra width. You have to be careful that it stays lined up properly, but it worth the extra trouble because there's only a little work left to blend them together.

Here's a quick update with progress pics of the progression from in-the-white to brown dye to pore filler. :)

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/inthewhite1.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/browndye1.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/porefiller1.jpg

I like it more without the dye :(

Whats all that tube action going on in the back ground there? ;)

I like it more without the dye :(

Yeah, I like the white too. But this project was never destined to end up that way. And the brown really goes well with the fingerboard.

Whats all that tube action going on in the back ground there? ;)

You must mean the EL-509's?

I liked the middle color the most but still very cool.


I want SDG to say something already in his forum. I signed up there but it's like dead. :p

The brown with no finish on it is nice and feels great in your hands. It would get dirty though. He's not saying anything yet and I respect his reasons.

Yeah, yeah, I know.



Do you have an estimate for the finish date on this thing?

There's really nothing too interesting to post at this stage. Just layering on finish and sanding. But here's a couple pics to show how it's coming.

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/porefiller2.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/porefiller4.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/headstockthorbass.jpg

ooooooo, please tell me you're gonna do a reddish burst on the edges of that beautiful monster!!!!

Excellent work. I love this forum and watching all you super talented builders. It is a thing of beauty.

WOW... This needs to be in the how to sticky...

+1

Awesome bass Karl. Thanks for posting the detailed pictures.

Btw, I'd be honored to have this put somewhere where people could learn from it on a more permanent basis. I mostly just figured stuff out by myself and by reading up on TB and MIMF. If there's anything I can do to give back to the community I'm happy to do it :)

Great design, great bass, great thread. Its been fun watching this and yes it has been very educational. Thanks and kudos.

You really have one of the best shapes I've seen on these forums.

And that headstock is sweeeeet too!

As much as I like the instrument, I must say that the brown stain is a ballsy move. It seems to have more of a furniture-finish-thing to it, than let's say a blue see-through-high-gloss finish. Conversely, you rarely see a golden sunburst finish on a maple chair :smug:
But like I said, the bass looks great nontheless.

Did I miss the part where you describe how the electronic cover is grain matched ?

As much as I like the instrument, I must say that the brown stain is a ballsy move. It seems to have more of a furniture-finish-thing to it, than let's say a blue see-through-high-gloss finish. Conversely, you rarely see a golden sunburst finish on a maple chair :smug:
But like I said, the bass looks great nontheless.

Did I miss the part where you describe how the electronic cover is grain matched ?

I guess I don't have a picture of cutting it out. This explains what I do though.
http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showpost.php?p=5358629&postcount=72

This just makes me want to put in the deposit for the one we talked about over the summer. :bawl: So little money, so little time.

I guess I don't have a picture of cutting it out. This explains what I do though.
http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showpost.php?p=5358629&postcount=72

Are you not worried about glueing those strips perpendicular to the end-grain of the cover ?

Are you not worried about glueing those strips perpendicular to the end-grain of the cover ?

Not really, it's not like it's a high stress part. But I do smear the glue on both parts and wait a minute for it to sink in, then squeege it off with my finger just to be sure.

It's a very beautiful bass!!

All the best

Here's a shot of tapping the holes for the pickup screws. I use 4-40 stainless machine screws for mounting pickups and just tap the wood for the screws. Since this is Alder and not as hard as if it were Maple, I'll be putting a drop of CA glue in the hole to strengthen it.

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/tappingpickupholes.jpg

The controls compartment is painted with conductive paint.

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/shieldingcontrolcompartment.jpg

And finally, starting to put the pieces together!

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/pickupsinstalled.jpg

O_O !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Nicely Wicked Bass.

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/headstocklam3.jpg


I must give credit where credit is due. GENIUS. Excellent method for gluing against the volute.


ARGH I LOVE THREADS LIKE THESE!!!!! I'M SO MOTIVATED TO MAKE SAWDUST NOW!!!!

So, I got the bass all wired up and played it last night but had a problem. The amount of buzz on the signal was unacceptable. I double checked the wiring and I had followed Nordstrand's instruction correctly. After some bench testing it seems that their instructions are also correct.

I resolved the problem by grounding the strings. I don't understand this. I have never had to ground strings before (never used Nordstrands before). Grounding the strings reduced the buzz substantially even when not I'm touching the strings. Is it possible that there's no shield above the coils on these pups? I would think as humbuckers they should be pretty quiet regardless, but they're not.

So, anyone have much experience with these pups? They're the DC5 series.

Edit: And yeah, I am in a small room with a computer, an lcd monitor, a plasma TV, a Tivo box, a DVR, and a wireless router.

And some update pics :D

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/finalfront2.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/finalfront3.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/finalback2.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/finalneck2.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/finalhead3.jpg

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/finalhead2.jpg

You need to get soundclips of this thing!


What about finding a professional who's particularly good with fretless? Maybe plays some heavier stuff.... ;)

Great job... Thanks for the tutorial...I still vote sticky... What kind of finish is that?

SDG on the headstock at the nut if I'm not mistaken?

You need to get soundclips of this thing!


What about finding a professional who's particularly good with fretless? Maybe plays some heavier stuff.... ;)

You'd think I could do that after playing fretless for 30 years. But I've been spending so much time in the shop my chops are a bit degraded :(

Great job... Thanks for the tutorial...I still vote sticky... What kind of finish is that?

KTM-9 is the finish. My first time using it, and I'm not set up for spray so it was a learning experience. They say you can use a foam brush and I found that problematic because if you press a tiny bit too hard you get thousands of tiny bubbles out of the brush. A regular high quality brush was pretty good but it was hard to get a good smooth coat. So after sanding out to 12000 I applied a thin top coat with a piece of cloth like I would use for Tru-Oil then buffed it out. That worked quite nicely.

You'd think I could do that after playing fretless for 30 years. But I've been spending so much time in the shop my chops are a bit degraded :(
Well maybe this will get in the hands of a good fretless player then. :)

If i had the cash, you would have order from me, without a doubt.

And so, it's time for a final wrap-up of this project. After playing it a bit and thinking back on the original design rationale, I have to say I'm pretty amazed how it came out.

From post #1: "My customer's tone requirements go kind of like this: smooth bottom not dominating, strong punchy mids, very crisp well defined highs."

My thoughts playing it were like this: "Tight rich sounding mids, highs that really crackle when digging in, bottom end is subdued, but warm and pleasant."

That's a pretty good match I think. Also I find that the lows, when boosted with the tone controls have the same rich sound as the mids.

So it looks like today's my last day with this bad boy, I'll be boxing it up tonight. I'll leave you all with this pic, and my thanks for watching the build!

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/finalkkt.jpg

Great build and a lovely looking instrument. thx for sharing ;)

Great bass and thread. Congrats

Definitely nice thread and nice woods in the back.

Beautiful bass. Thanks for sharing.

All the best

Great work Karl - you have me wetting my pants in anticipation for when you start mine! (well not literally wetting, but close).

Talkbass - watch out for something really wild!!!!!!!!!

Now that I see you holding it in playing position, it truly looks like a weapon from the norseland! Excellent work, good sir. Excellent work.

Tell its owner, he's playing a famous bass now!

Here it is in action this past weekend at the Independent in San Francisco :hyper:

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/SDG1.jpg

Looks really, i mean really really awesome!
Nice hair btw! :D

Here it is in action this past weekend at the Independent in San Francisco :hyper:

http://www.thorbass.com/images/SteveD/SDG1.jpg

***!Is that DiGiorgio?!!Steve DiGiorgio!

Oh yes, Its Steve DiGiorgio :)

I did suspect this bass were build for SDG when I saw the title of this thread.

I did read his official forum some days ago, it was a thread about "post your custom bass" or something, someone posted a Thor bass, and SDG replied something like "I love the looks of that Thor bass!" I was very sure this bass were for him, 5 string, fretless and EAGDC tuning. The last pic there confirmed it all. :)

Anyways, thats a really nice a looking bass! Execellent craftsmanship. :)

Yes, Steve is SDG... and I should say that it was great working with Steve on this project. He's a very realistic, down to earth guy. He had a pretty good idea of what he wanted which helps a lot. But at the same time he gave me enough freedom to be creative.

And another side note. I'm guessing there aren't a lot of death/thrash metal enthusiasts on this board, but Steve's playing is really phenomenal and worth a listen for anyone interested in bass in general. Tune in, turn on, crank the bass, and ignore the screaming ;)

http://myspacetv.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=31793036

Steve is one of my main influenses, his stuff is top notch. :)

you're kidding!?!?!?!? stevie digiorgio from sadus and autopsy!?!?!?! I gotta meet him!!!!! you gotta put me in touch with him ....I need to talk to him on the phone!!!!!!! you don't understand!!!!

you're kidding!?!?!?!? stevie digiorgio from sadus and autopsy!?!?!?! I gotta meet him!!!!! you gotta put me in touch with him ....I need to talk to him on the phone!!!!!!! you don't understand!!!!

Why? isn't he also a human being? :D

Why? isn't he also a human being? :D

sure, but I thought he was dead.

He hangs out at his own forum on ultimatemetal.com. That's probably the best way to ask him any questions.

sure, but I thought he was dead.

If he is, nobody told him ;)