Building a parts bass, opinions on body & finishing

[Geroi Asfalta]

Hello TB,

Im currently building a P bass from parts, and now I'm kinda stuck at what to do about the body.

Here's what's been done so far....

I have my pickups, loaded neck and ideas already for electronics (Im thinking varitone with an on/off switch). I need a heavy body to balance out the neck.

I've been looking for what I think would be my prefect P bass for the last year. I like the look of maple necks, but I hate maple necks with seperate maple boards and no skunk stripe. A few weeks ago, I found my neck here on TB. It was a 57AVRI neck. Beautiful subtle flame alopng the board, just got even more beautiful and flamey around the back of the neck.

Now here's the problem. The neck, with tuners and everything is heavier than every P body I own. My heaviest P bass was body was around 5 1/2 pounds, until I stripped the finish. It's now just under 4. This thing neck dives like no other! standing, sitting, etc...

So, I want something heavy. I like the look of a natural ash body, but I hear alder is heavier. I like the weight of maple, but I dont know if the brighter tone is what I need. I play mostly metal and rock, but I want it to be versatile.

finishing is also a problem. If I like the grain of the wood, I'll have no choice but to go natural on the finish. If I do, I want a vintage tint nitro clearcoat to match the neck.

Are there any luthiers/ refinishers in the SoCal area that won't charge an arm, leg, and first born for a refin if I bring them the paint?

TL;DR-
I need a body made heavy enough to balance out the neck and then refinned in nitro to match the neck's tint.

I don't know abut the refin, but for the body, I'm debating between Warmoth, USACG, and MightyMite.

I dont like the MightyMite website, the only website that I think has too many pictures and not enough words.

Help me TB! I want to finish the bass before summer.

[JIO]

Originally Posted by Geroi Asfalta

Hello TB,

Im currently building a P bass from parts, and now I'm kinda stuck at what to do about the body.

Here's what's been done so far....

I have my pickups, loaded neck and ideas already for electronics (Im thinking varitone with an on/off switch). I need a heavy body to balance out the neck.

I've been looking for what I think would be my prefect P bass for the last year. I like the look of maple necks, but I hate maple necks with seperate maple boards and no skunk stripe. A few weeks ago, I found my neck here on TB. It was a 57AVRI neck. Beautiful subtle flame alopng the board, just got even more beautiful and flamey around the back of the neck.

Now here's the problem. The neck, with tuners and everything is heavier than every P body I own. My heaviest P bass was body was around 5 1/2 pounds, until I stripped the finish. It's now just under 4. This thing neck dives like no other! standing, sitting, etc... install Hipshot ultralight tuners or similar weighted ones made by Gotoh.

So, I want something heavy. I like the look of a natural ash body, but I hear alder is heavier. I like the weight of maple, but I dont know if the brighter tone is what I need. I play mostly metal and rock, but I want it to be versatile.
All wood varies in weight regardless of type - alder can be very light as well and ash can be heavy

finishing is also a problem. If I like the grain of the wood, I'll have no choice but to go natural on the finish. If I do, I want a vintage tint nitro clearcoat to match the neck.

Are there any luthiers/ refinishers in the SoCal area that won't charge an arm, leg, and first born for a refin if I bring them the paint?
Good luck all the way around w/that. In SoCal (or anywhere in the US) Pat Wilkins is the hands down best for what it will cost. Scrimp on the finish and you'll get what you pay for

TL;DR-
I need a body made heavy enough to balance out the neck and then refinned in nitro to match the neck's tint.
As long as the upper horn is at or near the 12th fret, this shouldn't be an issue
I don't know abut the refin, but for the body, I'm debating between Warmoth, USACG, and MightyMite.Make a request to have whoever you purchase from to send you their heaviest body. It's not a common request these days so they will be happy to send you one.

I dont like the MightyMite website, the only website that I think has too many pictures and not enough words.

Help me TB! I want to finish the bass before summer.

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