Tailpiece/tailgut replacement question

[Andrew H]

I'm going to be replacing (upgrading) the tailpiece and tailgut on my Kay bass with the Wittner composite tailpiece and flexbile wire. I've searched the earlier threads on this subject and have seen that many people have done this themselves rather than take the instrument to a luthier, but I have not seen an answer to my question:

When replacing the tailpiece and tailgut, how does one prevent the soundpost from slipping or moving?

Thanks for the collective wisdom of this list,

-Andrew

[Chasarms]

Conventional practice is to lay the bass on it's back with the neck properly supported and use something soft but heavy to put weight on the top and thus keep pressure on the post. Suggestions include, but are not limited to:

1. A sack of lead shot
2. A bag of flour
3. A plate weight (from a weight set) wrapped in a towel
4. A small dog

[Paul Warburton]

Agreed!

[mpm]

I would wrap the small dog in a towel also...

[Steve Killingsworth]

I used a bungie cord with the hooks wrapped in a towel.

[kip]

Dogs have hooks?

[nicklloyd]

You can purchase a nice, compact heavy bag of lead shot from a gun-supply store or kmart/target/camping store that sells gun reloading accessories. This bag really does the trick for all kinds of adjustments, (when you want to keep the post in place.)

I'm thinking you would want a medium sized dog, and it would help if he were dead. Live dogs move around too much.

[Paul Warburton]

Originally Posted by nicklloyd

You can purchase a nice, compact heavy bag of lead shot from a gun-supply store or kmart/target/camping store that sells gun reloading accessories. This bag really does the trick for all kinds of adjustments, (when you want to keep the post in place.)
I'm thinking you would want a medium sized dog, and it would help if he were dead. Live dogs move around too much.

Jeeze Nnick, he don't have to be dead. One 5 MG Valium will keep him nice and quiet long enough to do the work.

[Chasarms]

If you use a dead dog, I agree with Mike, it should be wrapped in a towel.

[hdiddy]

Originally Posted by Chasarms

If you use a dead dog, I agree with Mike, it should be wrapped in a towel.

and having it frozen will keep it from smelling.

[nicklloyd]

but then his BO won't match the AO. WWTD?

[Wil Davis]

My dog's got no nose…



How does it smell?



















…bloody terrible!

[Andrew H]

Okay, so tonight I went out and force-fed lead shot to my neighbor's pet poodle. Now that it's dead, I've wrapped it in a towel, placed it on a 20lb. plate, and bound the whole thing with bungee cord. Now what was I supposed to do with this contraption again?

Seriously, though, I thought I had previously done exhasutive searches through the archives for this topic, but then I accidentally stumbled upon this thread about bridge removal today:

How to keep the soundpost from slipping when removing the bridge

Just thought I'd post it for anyone else who comes by this current thread. I think I liked best the suggestion to use a 1" wide nylon tiedown strap with ratchet, coupled with some styrofoam as a gauge of whether one has ratcheted the system too tightly.

Thanks again for all the great advice.