Upright bass- the most expensive hobby ever!

nukes_da_bass · #1 11-16-2010, 01:47 AM

Somewhere in early 1999 I got a harried phone call from my luthier/guitar repair buddy urging me into action:
"Dave theres this family in my shop has a basement Kay and all they want is a guitar and amp do you have a guitar and amp?"
Well it was something like that, I had two guitars that I never played anymore and to me it was a no brainer- I always wanted an upright acoustic and I jumped on it immediately!

What I ended up with is a 1949 era Kay M1 that had a deep groove on the fingerboard under the A string, had three gut strings and this copper roundwound E that was unplayable, and made me feel like I was just inventing the blues in Chicago in the 40s.
I hired a luthier to ger her playable- he planed the fingerboard down to get rid of the groove and the action was still sort of acceptable.
Now I am told the instrument needs a new fingerboard, and the Barcus Berry bridge is pretty much shot as well. I think if I got a bridge cut low enough with adjusters I might be able to get away with the existing fingerboard for a year or two but you know what? I simply love my hobby of playing upright acoustic and this past summer the instrument was far too swollen from humidity to even play because the action got so high.
Upright is my hobby. I'm bad at it, I dont go around trying to become gig worthy most of the time, its something I do in between keeping my actual gig worthy chops up on my electric basses. My fingering is horrible and I know it! But I love it. All I want is a playable bass that doesnt need thousands of $$$ of work every few years- this was a sad summer of not playing much.
I even bought a cheap bridge blank on Ebay thinking a few hours with a sanding block and I'd be all set. Hah! Wow do I have new respect for luthiers and repairmen- I think another 10 hours and a hundred bucks worth of files and clamps and I'd have my first badly shaped bridge...
Since I dont gig upright you think I should start the cheapest way and get the Barcus Berry shaved down to decent action? The luthier in my town is both a nice guy and seems pretty talented, and non greedy- he quoted me $400.00 for a decent new bridge and/or $200.00 for a cheap Chinese one- which from reading on TB seems very reasonable- I just can't justify big $$ these days for a fun hobby while raising twin babies!
Nukes

Eric Hochberg · #2 11-16-2010, 09:54 AM

For $900 (the price of a good ebony board, plus $400 for a new bridge you'd be most of the way to a new Shen SB80 set up (around $1500). That's probably what I'd do. See if you can play a few and compare to the Kay. Then you can sell the Kay.

shwashwa · #3 11-16-2010, 10:02 AM

id say put the new fingerboard and bridge on. you'll be happy you did that for years to come. those 2 things can make an ok bass (even a crappy one) feel like a great bass. your hands and wrists will thank you. ive done this exact thing to 2 of my basses. the improvements in feel and tone went well beyond the cost (provided your guy is skilled and can give you a great setup).

nukes_da_bass · #4 11-16-2010, 06:42 PM

I do love my Kay Shwashwa-eventually the new fingerboard and bridge are a given- just not in the current financial situation.
Eric I have read good things about Shen basses-I have considered if I start getting gigs on Upright getting a second bass that is less collectible for the clubs- I will take your advice and try some Shen basses out.
Its such a different world from electric where I can get a decent setup for say $60.00 plus the price of new strings.
What I really need is a dedicated practice space so my wife cant take inventory on my current (growing) stock of instruments!

emilio g · #5 11-16-2010, 07:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nukes_da_bass

Upright is my hobby.
Nukes

If you intend on keeping it that way, stay away from luthiers and definitely avoid bass teachers.

Maxvla · #6 11-16-2010, 07:55 PM

I'd say space tourism would probably be one of the most expensive hobbies out there.

At $900 it's hard for me to recommend the repair since, as Eric pointed out, the SB80 isn't that far away. Just make sure you double and triple check the fingerboard all the way up for buzzes when pizzing aggressively. The low end Shen's sometimes need a bit of work on the fingerboard scoop. The shop should have that fixed before hand, or should fix it before you buy it if you notice it while trying it out. It's a low cost bass, so don't expect the set up to be premium, but it shouldn't buzz regardless.

On another topic... I need to get out of 'low price Oklahoma' if a 'decent' bridge is $400. Tell that to a person here and you'd have to pick them up off the floor soon after.

Eric Hochberg · #7 11-16-2010, 09:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Maxvla

I
On another topic... I need to get out of 'low price Oklahoma' if a 'decent' bridge is $400. Tell that to a person here and you'd have to pick them up off the floor soon after.

Don't forget, everything else is much higher in $400 bridgeland.

Stan D · #8 11-17-2010, 10:58 PM

I'm not sure this is the best place for my first post in this forum, but the title sucked me right in, so, here goes.

I would start by asking, "you have never owned a boat, have you"? Can you imagine spending $15 to $20K on a boat that isn't worth $5K? Sorta puts things in perspective, don't it?

Andrew McGregor · #9 11-17-2010, 11:52 PM

Classic airplanes beat the bass for cost... heck, even high end MODEL airplanes are more expensive than bass playing, especially if you're in to competitions (ever fly $5000 into a rockface at 150 MPH? I saw that happen in one competition... pilot just said 'bugger' and went over to pick up the remains... then came back, launched his spare glider, and won.)

forester · #10 11-18-2010, 10:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stan D

I'm not sure this is the best place for my first post in this forum, but the title sucked me right in, so, here goes.

I would start by asking, "you have never owned a boat, have you"? Can you imagine spending $15 to $20K on a boat that isn't worth $5K? Sorta puts things in perspective, don't it?

welcome to the darkside..i understand the two happiest days in a boat owners life is the day he buys it... and the day he sells it.

owning a bass is not a hobby, it is a lifestyle. take for instance me. i had to work a year in a stringshop in order to find "baby". i remain there in order to keep "baby" at 100%. i will continue to ply the trade as long as i have "baby".

Jake deVilliers · #11 11-18-2010, 10:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by forester

welcome to the darkside..i understand the two happiest days in a boat owners life is the day he buys it... and the day he sells it.

owning a bass is not a hobby, it is a lifestyle. take for instance me. i had to work a year in a stringshop in order to find "baby". i remain there in order to keep "baby" at 100%. i will continue to ply the trade as long as i have "baby".

Perfect!

"A boat is a hole in the water into which you throw money."

M0ses · #12 11-18-2010, 10:42 PM

Have you ever had sailing as a hobby?

fdeck · #13 11-19-2010, 08:16 AM

Unfortunately, the options for dealing with the OP's situation are limited. Depending on locale, it might be possible to get a more accurate quote on the repair, to know exactly where you stand. Can the bass be rendered playable in the short term simply by adding adjusters to the existing bridge?

For better or worse, Kay basses have some appeal in sectors such as bluegrass and rockabilly, where someone who wants to play one of those styles might be willing to take on the repair work. Then it would be like Eric says... a new ply bass from a reputable maker like Shen is likely to offer years of service.

I was in a similar situation long ago, and got around the repair dilemma by repairing it myself.

As for hobbies, to put it in perspective, a bass has a lower cost-of-ownership than an iPhone or a Cable TV subscription, and is a whole lot more entertaining.