Altering 3/4 necks

[Silly_Bassist]

I'm a bassist with small hands, making it hard to play a 3/4 without problems.

And I was wondering, to shorten the SL, is it possible to shorten the neck?

I work in a repair shop, and I've thought about the possible problems that could arise if such thing a were done.

I'd have to alter the neck in general if I shortened it and then I would have to alter the fingerboard.

My teacher says it would be reinventing the wheel, but I have to admit that the idea is becoming more appealing to me.

At the end, if it were possible, it would basically be something close to a 1/2 neck and fingerboard.

Are there other problems that could arise?

[Eric Hochberg]

You don't necessarily have to shorten the neck itself. You can have an extended nut installed and you could move the bridge north up to 1/2" or maybe more. You need to consult with a good DB bass luthier on the particular instrument your considering having work done on. This is not reinventing the wheel, but you may be better off finding an instrument that was designed with a SL that works for you.

[Jake deVilliers]

Just try moving the bridge north SILLY - you can go an inch without moving the soundpost, though it might help the tone to bring it along. That way you can try a different string length without expensive alterations.

What is your current string length?

[Martin Sheridan]

That's an interesting problem you're experiencing.

Do you know how much you need to shorten it by?

Are you hands going to grow any more?

What about the neck width and thickness?

Does it bother you to play a bass that isn't a D neck?

Many things to think about.

I'm interested as a luthier because there are many players now who are of smaller stature playing bass and many of them are professionals. I know of two excellent symphony musicians, both Asian and short who have trouble with standard string length and large size basses. That's why I designed my last bass to have a shorter string length, but you open up new problems when you do that, like more tension on the strings, making it more difficult to finger and an overall tighter, stiffer feel.

I've played on some 5/8 basses with 39 inch string length that were monster basses in sound. That might be a solution for you.

Last year I had a client who was a fine violinist but she was so small that she couldn't play a 4/4 violin comfortably. She bought a 3/4, but I think she should have had me or someone else make her a standard size violin with a shorter string length. Different instrument but same problem. Some cellists have this problem too and they go to a 7/8 size cello.