Hello from a new member.

Fuzzball59 · #1 10-26-2007, 02:28 PM

Been lurking here for a bit. Thought it might be time to come out and say hi. My sincere thanks to the admin & moderators for this epic resource. Been playing bass guitar since age 14. 30 some years later I'm trying to teach myself to play the string bass with a bow and learn to read music. It's been a challenging and rewarding experience, and so far so good. It's all about putting the practice hours in.

With the help of some threads and reviews here I chose to buy a new UB Hawkes Laminate. I'm currently enduring the wait. Early on I asked Upton if my bass might be truly "Made in USA" according to their stated plans. At the time they wouldn't say one way or another.

Today however, I received an e-newsletter confirming that mine would indeed be made entirely in Connecticut. The message has interesting text and images if anyone wants a forward, let me know.

So that's my intro and my tidbit of news.

Fuzz

Nohandles · #2 10-26-2007, 07:58 PM

Fuzz, welcome aboard and Congrads on the new bass. We will look forward to your posts and assement of the new Upton bass.- Doug

Fuzzball59 · #3 10-30-2007, 01:18 PM

Thanks Doug,
Really excited about my new bass. The information posted by forum members here has been very valuable to me in getting the most out of my generic chinese upright. Armed with the info I gleaned here and the confidence, I was able to resurrect it from an unusable BSO into a pretty darned decent instrument. Hope I can contribute in some way to this forum as time goes on.

Fuzz

Silversorcerer · #4 10-30-2007, 01:40 PM

Cool beans, Fuzz. Welcome. If you've been lurking a while, you know the well known mantra: Get a teacher!

Let us know how the USA made Upton compares. Personally, it is a shame to me that so many good USA instruments are no longer made and I'm not just talking about double basses. There are no USA Conn horns, Selmer flutes and clarinets and saxes, no Harmony guitars, Chickering pianos, etc. What a shame.

Kudos to Upton's for bringing it home. The USA used to be the world leader in manufacture for all musical instruments except the eastern ones and the violin family. It would make me proud to see a few more MIA instruments of any types. It was looking like we were going to lose even Fender and Gibson there for a while. I guess Martin, Rickenbacker, and Steinway have always been safe, primarily due to family ownership, but the field was getting kind of barren for sure.

Fuzzball59 · #5 10-30-2007, 01:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Silversorcerer

Cool beans, Fuzz. Welcome. If you've been lurking a while, you know the well known mantra: Get a teacher!

Yah, I've been contemplating that very thing lately. Don't want to over-develop my bad habits.

My little border town has a big sister city in Ontario where I might find a teacher.

Thanks for the welcome and I agree whole-heartedly with your observations on Upton, et al.

Fuzz