Upper horns connected to necks

sixstringer506 · #1 10-08-2002, 10:02 PM

Like this !

I was wondering what advantages this type of neck joint have over standard ones . Plus I think they look cool !

FBB Custom · #2 10-09-2002, 09:19 AM

The upper horn can provide some added stiffness to the neck where it's attached. In my experience, this effect is marginal.

xush · #3 10-09-2002, 09:56 PM

Looks good too!
Any drawbacks to this design? (he asked him knowingly...)

Suburban · #4 10-10-2002, 12:05 AM

A full upper body will increase the stiffness of the neck, as far up as it is connected. No need for graphite, that far... FBB's experiance is valid, though, because the stiffness from that end up will not be affected. That would be at least half the neck.

Cons: only one real con, namely the weight distribution. More weight, and further up the neck, will not be very gentle to your body. But again, if well designed, the effect would be quite small.

sixstringer506 · #5 10-10-2002, 05:36 PM

Thanks for the replies. what effect does this type of neck joint have on overall sound of the instrument ? I would think the more contact the body has with the neck the better . But I may be wrong.
I have played basses like this befor but not really long enough to get a good vibe off of them .the weight increase is a small one I would guess being that the back of the horn is carved away .
I like em .Time for some experiments !

Suburban · #6 10-11-2002, 04:59 AM

Tonally, you should ahve a little more fundamental to the lowest strings. That's it.

effbee · #7 10-11-2002, 08:49 AM

Hello everyone!
I'm the builder & designer of Bee Basses. I saw that you used one of my basses as an example so I thought I would throw in my 2 cents. First of all, the biggest effect is obviously on the look of the bass... it looks cool! FBB has hit the nail on the head by saying that it adds stiffness to the neck above the 12th fret and that the effect is marginal. I dont actually hear a huge difference between my single and double cut basses, but I seem to get just a touch more resonance and sustain from the single cut. I believe it is due to the increased body mass and not so much to attaching the body further up the neck. It may be my imagination, but I seem to have an easier time setting up the single cut basses. The added weight is really minimal and they balance quite well. The first bass I saw with this design was a Fodera, and I thought it was the coolest thing! I think if you want to build a bass with maximum "oomph", this is one of the many little things you can do to help reach that goal.

Fred

sixstringer506 · #8 10-11-2002, 06:47 PM

Hello Fred ,
Its nice to hear from the King Bee ! Very nice basses ! They do look cool dont they ?

I had never even thought about set up problems with this type of neck joint . I assume they are not huge problems .But what can I expect ? Thanks in advance for any more info . Keep up the good work !

effbee · #9 10-12-2002, 12:00 PM

Wow... I hope I didn't sound arrogant in my last post. I didn't mean that I think MY basses look cool, I just meant that the single cut design in general looks cool. Fodera basses, obviously , look amazing. And I think that Benevente single cut basses are simply gorgeous! I feel very honored that people seem to like my design.
Anyway... to answer your question... I actually feel that setups go a little easier on the single cut basses. I do have a suggestion regarding trussrod installation, however. I use a 24" double action rod from LMI. In my double cut basses I usually install them with the adjusting nut at the body end of the neck (unless I'm building a fingerboard with more than 28 frets). With the single cut, I like to have the adjustment at the headstock. I can get a nice relief that way and the neck stays pretty flat above the 12th fret. I also make sure to adjust the neck to be as flat as possible before I glue the body wings on. If I do these things, my setups are usually a breeze.
Also it can be a little tricky carving the back of the bass in that extra long body/neck joint. Try to plan ahead and remove as much wood as possible from the back of the body before you glue the wings on. This takes careful planning but will save you a ton of carving later.
I hope this helps a little bit. Let me know if you have any other questions regarding this design. I will try to answer them the best I can.

Fred

sixstringer506 · #10 10-12-2002, 06:38 PM

Quote:

Wow... I hope I didn't sound arrogant in my last post.

No not at all . I was just agreeing with you about the coolness of single cut basses( yours and all others ) . A Benevente is actually the bass I referred to playing in an earlier post . Also very nice work .
Your help is much appreciated . Thank you !

mark beem · #11 10-29-2002, 10:19 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by effbee
Hello everyone!
I'm the builder & designer of Bee Basses. I saw that you used one of my basses as an example so I thought I would throw in my 2 cents. First of all, the biggest effect is obviously on the look of the bass... it looks cool! FBB has hit the nail on the head by saying that it adds stiffness to the neck above the 12th fret and that the effect is marginal. I dont actually hear a huge difference between my single and double cut basses, but I seem to get just a touch more resonance and sustain from the single cut. I believe it is due to the increased body mass and not so much to attaching the body further up the neck. It may be my imagination, but I seem to have an easier time setting up the single cut basses. The added weight is really minimal and they balance quite well. The first bass I saw with this design was a Fodera, and I thought it was the coolest thing! I think if you want to build a bass with maximum "oomph", this is one of the many little things you can do to help reach that goal.

Fred

Hi Fred... First off, beautiful basses!! My question is in regards to the "scooping" of the back of the basses next to the neck/body joint. How exactly do you do that? Do you use a surform or something like a rounding bit?

effbee · #12 10-29-2002, 08:22 PM

I use a bandsaw to remove as much wood as possible from the "scooped" areas before I glue the pieces together. Then I use a surform 21-115 shaver... the one with the small convex head... and various rasps, chisels, and a lot of elbow grease to do most of the shaping. Then I clean it all up with 4'' random orbit sander. If there are any "funny" spots, I take care of them with some convex sanding blocks that I have made. Its not really difficult, but it is very time consuming to get it looking smooth and natural. During the process I'm constantly checking the feel of that area to make sure it will be comfortable. Thats it really... no real tricks to it, just lots of work.

Fred

P.S. Thank you for the nice compliment! I'm glad you like Bee Basses

Carey · #13 10-30-2002, 10:26 PM

Hi,
If you have compressed air, you can use an angle die grinder with 2" 3M roloc discs to carve the area where the neck meets the body. It makes the roughing go very quick, but you have to be careful. With a 36 grit disc you can remove a lot of material very quickly. I got my grinder at Home Depot, and the roloc discs are available from auto body supply stores.
Carey

Wrong Robot · #14 10-31-2002, 10:04 PM

I don't get the appeal of single cut basses...I find them to be...for the most part, well...ugly.
sure the woods and craftswork can be mesmorizingly beautiful, but the idea itself is not something I'm to fond of. I've never palyed a single cut bass...so I'm not the best person to comment on them. but i don't find them attractive at all.

FretNoMore · #15 11-01-2002, 04:28 AM

This is a single-cutaway bass I really like, a Ken Lawrence Chamberbrase fretless. As it is a semi-hollow body I would think the design should affect sound as the sound chambers are that much bigger. And, beatiful carving and woods of course. I'm not sure about the tailpiece, but the rest is nice.

godoze · #16 11-10-2002, 01:16 PM

hi Fred,
Very cool looking fretless. what electronics are in that ? I'm thinking of using a single pick up in my fretless 6 that i'm building. does it have a preamp ?

godoze · #17 11-10-2002, 01:18 PM

the Lawrence tailpiece bridge design reminds me a little of Carl Thompson..

effbee · #18 11-11-2002, 12:43 AM

Thanks!
I'm really in love with Basslines electronics by Semour Duncan. That particular bass has a 3 band eq with a "slap contour" pull eq swith on the volume knob. I added a switch that goes between humbucking in series, and single coil pickup operation. The pickup is a Bartolini. Anyone who has talked to me knows that I am a fanatic for single pickup basses, so in my opinion, I would highly recommend that you go for the single pickup in your fretless 6.

Fred

P.S. Carey, Thank you for the tip on using the grinder. I dont have compressed air yet, but will be getting it very soon. Sounds like a huge time saver!

Carey · #19 11-11-2002, 01:07 AM

Hi Fred,
I just did one today with the grinder. Make sure your compressor has good capacity. That thing is a pig! It definitely makes it quicker though. I hogged out the whole area in 15 minutes. Now I just gotta sand all the grinder marks!

mikezimmerman · #20 11-11-2002, 09:03 AM

Carey,

I just saw the updated photos of the single-cutaways on your website--very nice! I find it interesting that you're using set-neck construction on these basses, since most builders seem to build them as neck-throughs. Seems like that would let the resonant body woods color the tone a bit more, which is one of the things I like about bolt-ons.

Mike