Evil bay Fingerboard?

uprightben · #1 09-25-2008, 06:47 AM

Anybody seen this?

http://cgi.ebay.in/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?...m=270277322643

I'm building a fudgesicle upright and I need a fb, and I'm having a hard time finding something in my budjet. This deal seems too good to be true, so it probably is.

Any thoughts, opinions, experiences, rants?

Thanks,
Ben

Jake deVilliers · #2 09-25-2008, 10:12 AM

Below are two suppliers with good reputations who sell fingerboards near that price. Given the amount of work that goes into a board and its omnipresent importance, I wouldn't dick around with unknown sources myself.

Read Jeff Bollbach's story too: http://www.jeffbollbach.com/JB%20II/luthier_rant1.htm

http://www.metmusic.com/store/index....CategoryNum=99

http://www.internationalluthiers.com/violinparts.php

phatbass · #3 09-25-2008, 10:29 AM

Try Bob Gollihur's site.

toman · #4 09-25-2008, 11:19 AM

I wouldn't buy fingerboards from unknown sources. Just getting good ones from known sources when you can't hand pick them seems hard and expensive enough, let alone playing the eBay lotto. Save money somewhere else, where you don't have to put your fingers every day and that isn't so tough to work with.

uprightben · #5 09-26-2008, 11:23 AM

Jake- have you actually used international music supply? There's an awful lot of people claiming they are thieves if you google them. I even searched met music complaints and the only thing that came up was a site listing them as a reputable supply, but watch out for IMS.

I think I will use met music, though, it'll be $20 more after shipping than the India guy, but if I need to return it it'll be $50 less.

Anyone have good sources for DB fingerboard sized wenge or other suitably hard wood? Being that it's a fudgesicle I'm building, I'd like to explore alternatives to ebony before I pull the trigger.

Thanks for the thoughtfull repies!
Ben

ctregan · #6 09-26-2008, 11:28 AM

I have never heard of a fudgesicle bass, could someone explain the terminology?

Marcus Johnson · #7 09-26-2008, 12:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ctregan

I have never heard of a fudgesicle bass, could someone explain the terminology?

Electric upright. Popsicle, fudgesicle, pogo stick, cricket bat.... EUB.

MR PC · #8 09-26-2008, 01:06 PM

Just purchase one from Bob Gollihur. Easy. Affordable. Reputable dealer.

Jake deVilliers · #9 09-26-2008, 09:51 PM

Hey Ben, I haven't dealt with International Luthier's, just seen them recommended in this Forum. Hmmm

I have dealt with Metropolitan and with (All Hail!) Bob Gollihur and they both have been easy to deal with and delivered what they promised.

1st Bass · #10 09-26-2008, 10:58 PM

International Violin Co. (Baltimore) sells fingerboards for basses, and is a very good company to deal with; fast, reliable, etc.

International Luthiers Supply, out of Tulsa, OK, was once a pretty good little "Mom & Pop" shop, and I dealt with them a lot-- but Mom and Pop died, and left the shop to junior, and the story has sadly changed. I don't think they ever had bass FBs anyway...but these are the ones earning the bad reputation. Too bad.

Jake deVilliers · #11 09-27-2008, 12:21 AM

Thanks Chet, that's the place I was looking for....

uprightben · #12 09-29-2008, 08:31 AM

Thanks for the info, 1stbass, int violin co has some good stuff.

The first place I looked, before posting this thread, was (all hail) Bob Gollihur's site. He has englehart boards in brazilian cherry and ebony at good prices, but englehart boards seem to have a rep. for having squirley grain (no offence to englehart fans, just going on what my trusty luthier told me).

Actually, it's the fact that all of the non-ebony boards I've found on the web are the same price as Bob G's engle boards that makes me suspect that all of the non-ebony boards are engle as well. I'm also a bit suspicious of ebony boards that are cheaper than what Bob G has, he usually has the best stuff at the cheapest price...

$220+ is too much for me to spend on a fb for this project, and i really don't want to mess around with anything with wild grain, so I think I'm just going to have to make a list of suitable fb woods and hit the road and do a tour of local exotic wood importers.

Thanks again for all of the thoughtfull replies

Ben

1st Bass · #13 09-29-2008, 02:53 PM

I'm pretty sure I purchased the "good" fingerboard from IVC, and it was very good, for under $200...but if you are thinking of going with a different wood, you might consider Ipé--it is pretty hard, about the color of brown sugar (though the sawdust is bright yellow), and an appropriate weight. Some bowmakers are using it for a substitute for Pernambuco. I have used it for fingerboards, saddles, and tailpieces. It is quite reasonable in price, as they use it for decking. But you do have to watch the grain.

It darkens to a very pleasant medium dark brown, with age.

Chet

Jake deVilliers · #14 09-29-2008, 03:20 PM

Ben, the $155.00 fingerboard from Metropolitan is a very nice piece. Just saying...

toman · #15 09-29-2008, 11:53 PM

Here's a thought; if it is to go on an EUB, all you're really looking for in terms of quality is just the ability to get an acceptable playing surface and keep it that way, right? Why not see if you can find an old fingerboard, say one that was taken off because it was too thin to survive another dressing. Maybe you could get that for cheap, and even if it wasn't thick enough for your bass either, you could just put a shim under it. That way you could get it planed to your liking (no weird grain), and have a nice quality piece that you don't have to worry about warping or anything for minimal $$$.

Seems like a cost effective way to go for an EUB and a pretty good way to recycle an otherwise worn-out fingerboard into something other than extraneous scraps...

uprightben · #16 09-30-2008, 09:05 AM

Chet, thanks, that is exactly the kind of first person experience i was looking for. I'm going to Asheville on thursday and plan on hitting some lumber yards, i will definately check out some ipe- i was aware of it for decking but had no idea it could be used for a fingerboard.

Jake- have you used the $155 board from met music? It looks like a deal, but I was just worried that at that price point I might end up with the dreaded wild grain. Anyways, thanks for the tip.

Toman- Thanks for the offer, i think old db boards could definately be recyled into eub and even eb boards, i bet if you put a post in the luthier's corner on the eb side you could get rid of all your old boards pretty quick. Unfortunately, i went about this build ass-backwards: I shaped the body and neck before i had any hardware or accessories, so now I have a neck that is too thin to support the string tension without about 3/4" of very hard wood glued to it. This will also be my first time dressing a fingerboard, so I really need to start thick in case i have to do it twice, or thrice...

1st Bass · #17 09-30-2008, 10:14 AM

If your neck is a tad floppy, this would be a good time to decide on a carbon-fiber reinforcement.

You can get them online from a site called dragonplate (google it). It is pretty cheap, incredibly light and stiff, and can easily be inletted into the neck with a saw, and glued in with epoxy. I have only done it once, but I set in two CF bars, at about a 75 degree angle from one another...that may have been overkill.

Do try to get the CF below the neck surface, though, (AND the neck dead straight) as it will trash your plane blade pretty quickly, if you have to correct.

The neck will be quite rigid, and it will allow you a good deal of latitude in terms of choice of FB material.

Chet

Jake deVilliers · #18 09-30-2008, 10:45 AM

Ben, I've used the Metropolitan boards and they are fine. They have more colour variation than the more expensive ones but that doesn't worry me. I've also bought their bass bar stock and it sounds good too.

Remember that Metropolitan is run by the Juzek Brothers, sons of the man who imported a lot of good basses from Europe. Story here: http://www.metmusic.com/history/index.html

forester · #19 09-30-2008, 10:39 PM

what about Lenoir,or Hickory N.C... two wood capitols closer than Asheville. A 5 hr round trip might make that AAA grade import appear more co$t effective

uprightben · #20 10-02-2008, 11:02 AM

Chet- i'm way ahead of you on the carbon rod, recieved one from stew-mac last monday.

thanks for the tip about tooling that stuff, i've been wondering about that

Jake- thanks for the feedback about the met boards, i don't care that much about color variation either, my db has a mac ebony board on it now and i kinda like the brown streaks. i didn't know that met music is the juzeks, that's a cool bit of history there

forrester- you must have used mapquest or something to tell you how to get from boone to asheville...us locals can make the trip in 1&1/2 hours each way flat...classic moonshiner routes

i'm going down to ashevegas for a batchlor party, the wood shopping is just a bonus, and i might have found some ipe at a place on the way, if the grain is straight i'm snagging it

if i don't find anything today i will for sure look into lenoir and hickory, i play dinner jazz down that way all the time. the problem wih living in one of the most abundant hardwood forests in the world is that you don't find too many wood suppliers that import exotics when they can get some of the best domestic wood right here, no rain forest deforestation or costly shipping involved.

Thanks again for all the helpfull advice
Ben