The Chadwick Folding Bass

Bobby King · #1 04-08-2009, 09:32 PM

Check this out:

http://foldingbass.com/

Jake deVilliers · #2 04-08-2009, 09:53 PM

Wow, that's damn smart! Have you played one Bobby?

arseniotall · #3 04-08-2009, 09:59 PM

i have been dreaming of somethign like this but still it seems to heavy. You will still be charged an overweight/size fee.

Bobby King · #4 04-08-2009, 10:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jake deVilliers

Wow, that's damn smart! Have you played one Bobby?

No Jake, I haven't. I know Charlie though. He's a great player and a nice guy too. Maybe I can call him up and give it a try out.

Arseniotall -- what are the typical weight and size limitations for airlines before it becomes oversize/overweight?

400$Bass · #5 04-08-2009, 10:33 PM

Hey I've done mechanical and electrical work all of my life until I retired almost 5 years ago. And the thought of having to fiddle around and get all mechanical with my bass (putting neck where it goes) doesn't appeal to me.

At my playing skill nobody is going to want me to take my DB and go abroad for a gig anyway....so here is stay...bass all in one piece, and glad that it is.

To me it seems a fold down bass is way to unorthodox. If that's the right word.

Dr Piggery · #6 04-08-2009, 10:42 PM

According to the website, it weighs 50lbs in its case. That should get you on to most airlines without excess payments.

McGryff · #7 04-08-2009, 10:44 PM

And he has them built to his design by Shen... also very cool.

Jake deVilliers · #8 04-08-2009, 11:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bobby King

No Jake, I haven't. I know Charlie though. He's a great player and a nice guy too. Maybe I can call him up and give it a try out.

I figured you'd know him!

I only know him from Jorgenson's records...

Gearhead43 · #9 04-09-2009, 12:41 AM

I think it's ****ing brilliant.

**David Morris** · #10 12-27-2010, 04:30 PM

I'm resurrecting this old thread to relate my close encounter with the Chadwick Folding Bass.

Charlie (and his bass) were in my hometown over the holidays. Charlie is married to a Lincoln girl, Laurie McClain - a talented singer-songwriter. http://www.lauriemcclain.com/ They met in Nashville several years ago when Laurie moved there to seek fame and fortune after taking her career about as far as one can in eastern Nebraska. She makes regular visits to Lincoln to visit friends and family and usually performs several concerts while in the area. Here is the concert announcement I received recently via email:

Howdy Nebraskans!

I'll be home for Christmas, and Charlie Chadwick, my talented husband, will be playing upright bass & cello with me! For the very first time, Charlie is bringing his wonderful invention the Chadwick Folding Bass to Lincoln! We will be performing at 7:30pm at CGS Music. It's a benefit for Friendship Home. Cost is $8.

And...
On that same day from 3-5pm Charlie will do a live demonstration of his folding bass, where you can see it and play it if you would like to. This is a free event. If you or anyone you know is a bass player, or if you are just curious, you should come check out his amazing patented invention.

I was unable to attend the concert, but I did spend an hour + at the demo listening to Charlie play and talk about the CFB, watching him demonstrate the disassembly/assembly, and being amazed at the detail and thought that went into the design.

The bass sounds great, and if you didn't know you would not suspect that it was anything but a nice-sounding Shen SB100 - which is what it basically is. The story behind Charlie's development of his ideas and how Sam Shen got involved with the production of his bass is very interesting.

Although I am not in the market for a travel bass, I enjoyed the demo and hearing Charlie talk about the bass and the cultural and language challenges involved in getting it to production with the Chinese company.

Charlie is a very down to earth guy with a great sense of humor and attitude - as well as a fine bass player. His bass would be worth a look if you are in the market for a removable neck bass.

wineaux · #11 12-27-2010, 07:55 PM

I had a long chat with Charlie and tried his basses at IBMA earlier this year. The sound is solid and the set up is so simple that even I could handle it! You probably want to use steel strings, though. Some synthetics don't stand up to the folding and unfolding.

**David Morris** · #12 12-27-2010, 08:02 PM

I'm willing to bet that this is the first time in TalkBass history that two guys named "Dave Morris" have made consecutive posts.

The other Dave Morris

iiipopes · #13 01-06-2011, 10:26 PM

Do you know what the scale length is?

Jake deVilliers · #14 01-07-2011, 01:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by iiipopes

Do you know what the scale length is?

Its a Shen SB100 with the oil varnish so it has a 41 1/4" mensure like all Shen 3/4 DBs.

http://www.cscproducts.com/

wineaux · #15 01-10-2011, 05:50 PM

Wow, there's two of us. Now I can blame all the stupid things I say on the "other" Dave Morris!

I hear, btw, that Charlie is upgrading the "suitcase" for the bass.

Also, Barry Bales told me he'll play his in NYC when Alison Krauss and Union Station starts an album-release party in April. I'm thinking if it's good enough for him ...

T Bassman · #16 01-10-2011, 06:12 PM

My buddy Curt from 'Corb Lund and The Hurtin' Albertan's' has one of these I believe. His sounds killer and works wonders for a portability to good tone/playability ratio for touring. Looks great too!

Tanglehead · #17 01-10-2011, 07:27 PM

Just got mine yesterday. With no training, except having seen the online demo I had it from case to playing in about 10 minutes. I was extra careful and took more time than I should have, just because I couldn't remember the order things should be done.

I must say it's an engineering marvel. The bass sounds and feels solid, even without setup and with old strings (I got mine used from a guy who had it tuned in 5ths, delivered by a guy who put OLD helicore hybrids on it.) I'm sure having it set up for 4ths and the spiros I intend to use, it's going to be a sweet travel bass. right now it feels great, but of course doesn't have the depth of either of my 100 year old german carved basses.

I'm sold on the design and durability of the instrument, though. I'll report more after I've had it throught an airline or otherwise on the road. I expect to be auditioning a couple places in late January-Febraury, so I hope to report more soon.

If anyone in the NW part of the country wants to check this out first hand, PM me and I'd be glad to show it off, time permitting. I was hoping for that before I found this one, and I'd like to extend that offer to other who might be interested, but not near TN enough to get a first-hand look themselves.

Brian Casey
(Tanglehead)
Portland, OR

Jason Sypher · #18 01-10-2011, 08:04 PM

Saw one a few days ago at APAP here in NY. Didn't pick it up but I plucked a few notes while it was on the floor. Looked great and sounded pretty good...

Tanglehead · #19 02-11-2011, 07:29 PM

Just got back from auditioning at UNT and UCBoulder, flying to both places with my Chadwick. All parties at both schools were intrigued, and I was pretty happy with the sound and extremely happy with the functionality. I included my bow in a foam padded bag, which put the total weight at 52 pounds, so I did have to pay overages on United and Frontier.

I'm sold on this as a travel bass. Many people didn't even know it was a folding bass until I started breaking it apart, which obviously blew them away. The sound tends to be a little dark on mine, so fresh spiros really helped give the bass more bite. Couldn't quite cut through a trio with drums going sans amp, but it was pretty close.

These basses are worth a look for travel basses (well) under $4K.

bc

Mike Carr · #20 02-11-2011, 11:03 PM

I just sent Charlie the money for one today. Delivery set for Wed. I'm excited!