Fretted EUBs...apart from Barker and NS Bass Cello

[gollerj]

Jump into uprights. The water is fine!
My dream was to own a Barker, but I could not afford one, so I built my own upright.

First I bought a cheap E-Bay bass to test the technique.
Then I tried building my own body with "Home Depot Wood" to see if I could do it. Once I was convinced that I had the skill, I bought some finer woods and did it.

I will never go back. Playing upright is tons of fun. The string tension is no different than a regular electric, and the playing position is MUCH easier than regular bass. I also built a mount for a regular bass guitar using a cymbal tripod stand.

Don't listen to the Naysayers. Go for it. Once you go vertical, you will never go back. In my opinion, it is a much more natural way to play.

My advice: 1 ) buy a cheap, but good sounding eBay bass (check out Rondomusic.com pick ANY of the SX brand of basses - GREAT basses for $129.)

then, take a trip to the closest GuitarCenter and stop in the Drum department and tell them what you are doing. Check out the Pearl universal clamps. Drill that hole in the bass. have no fear.

Once you are convinced upright is for you, start saving for a Barker bass. His basses are definitely the way to go. If I had the money, I would have bought one. He is a real craftsman and a gentleman to boot.

But I still had a blast building my own upright. It may not be good to use power tools for folks with RSI though...


Still, I love when people ask me "Where did you buy that?" and I tell them I made it.

Jeff G.

[dougness]

Hey Gollerj, how about pics of your home-made vertical bass and your cymbal stand to hold an electric bass in vertical position? I agree with you about the vertical position feeling much more natural, and it's a heck of a lot easier on the shoulder.

Here's the Web site page showing my vertical fretted electric bass. The builder is James Russell. Yes, that's a fanned fretboard. I wanted a 35-inch low B and a 34-inch G. http://www.russellguitars.com/gnomonbass.htm

[mongo2]

I mounted a fretless BG I cobbled together from parts on an NS stand for vertical playing. All it took was drilling two concentric holes and inserting a threaded bushing for the NS stand to bolt onto. I've used it for everything from rock to jazz to country to bluegrass to swing.

I liked it so much I made another one fretted.

here's a picture of the fretless from the front mounted on the stand: