NBD-GJ P Ray

gjbassist · #1 02-01-2011, 01:52 PM

Since I'm snowed in today I had time to put the finishing touches on my latest project. I have been wanting a MM style bass for a while so I decided to make one using parts I ordered for my birthday. I'm very happy with how it turned out. It sounds great. The three position switch adds some great tonal options to the single pickup! Since the body wood is paulownia, the bass overall is very light. I haven't weighed it yet but I'm guessing around 7.5 lbs.

Specs:
Guitar Fetish P bass body with vintage cream finish

GFS MM Pro Plus Humbucker

GFS high mass bridge

Maple neck with rosewood board purchased from TBer The Crusader. I sanded the headstock and back and applied several coats of Tru Oil. I also reshaped the headstock a bit to make it more rounded.

Tele style three position switch for series/split/parallel, master volume and tone.

I made the pickguard from a sheet of black plastic pickguard material also purchased from Guitar Fetish. This was probably the most time consuming part as it was all done by hand with a Dremmel tool and sand paper. It's not perfect but I am happy how it turned out for my first attempt at pickguard making.

madmatt · #2 02-01-2011, 01:55 PM

Good job.
Yeah, I'm snowed in too.
The whole city is snowed in...

bassolp · #3 02-01-2011, 01:59 PM

WE want sound clipp plzz

Z-Bass · #4 02-01-2011, 02:07 PM

Awesome! Looks great. I think the pickguard looks good. Is that a jazz width neck? Putting the MM humbucker in the precision position, what kind of tone results from that?

knucklehead G · #5 02-01-2011, 02:08 PM

Nice use of hell freezing over! Us Kansas Citians are getting destroyed right now with this storm.

Enjoying a big-kid snow day, work called at 6AM and said if I wanted to stay home and get paid for it that I could. Its like Christmas all over again.

gjbassist · #6 02-01-2011, 02:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by knucklehead G

Enjoying a big-kid snow day, work called at 6AM and said if I wanted to stay home and get paid for it that I could. Its like Christmas all over again.

Same here. I work for FedEx. I got a call late this morning not to come int because we are suspending operations for tonight. No pickups and no outgoing freight since they probably won't be able to get a plane out of the airport.

gjbassist · #7 02-01-2011, 02:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Z-Bass

Awesome! Looks great. I think the pickguard looks good. Is that a jazz width neck? Putting the MM humbucker in the precision position, what kind of tone results from that?

Thanks. It is a P width neck. The tone to me seems fuller that a regular P. Having the ability to switch between series, parallel and single coil really gives it some variety. I will try to post some sound clips asap.

madbassplaya · #8 02-01-2011, 03:19 PM

how do you like that bridge?

5string5fingers · #9 02-01-2011, 03:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by madbassplaya

how do you like that bridge?

Had the exact same bridge on my old p bass. They're pretty solid. You have to adjust intonation by losening the strings and sliding the saddles which to me isn't very accurate and an PITA to do.

EagleMoon · #10 02-01-2011, 04:16 PM

That's really cool. I like it!

blipndub · #11 02-01-2011, 04:20 PM

Really good idea. I love guitar fetish for this kind of stuff. Wish they still had those bodies! [edit: oohh strike that look at all the goodies!]

Looks great!

madbassplaya · #12 02-01-2011, 04:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 5string5fingers

Had the exact same bridge on my old p bass. They're pretty solid. You have to adjust intonation by losening the strings and sliding the saddles which to me isn't very accurate and an PITA to do.

yea. i guess that is a PITA. if you keep the same gauge string it should stay pretty consistent.

A-Step-Towards · #13 02-01-2011, 04:37 PM

Very sweet , i like the look.

gjbassist · #14 02-01-2011, 04:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by madbassplaya

how do you like that bridge?

Not sure yet. Wanted to try something other than the bridge I have used on my other basses. I like the look of it. Like 5string said, you have to loosen the strings to set intonation properly. Kind of a pain. I think I lucked out as mine seems right on the way I have it set now. Hopefully I won't have to mess with moving saddles too often.

blipndub · #15 02-01-2011, 09:13 PM

Has anyone tried one of those GF necks?

etechstan · #16 02-02-2011, 06:55 AM

I was planning one with a spare SX neck I got and didn't know how to configure the pickguard. Excellent job

gjbassist · #17 02-02-2011, 08:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by etechstan

I was planning one with a spare SX neck I got and didn't know how to configure the pickguard. Excellent job

Thanks!
I wasn't sure at first how I wanted the pickguard to look. I knew I didn't want a traditional P bass size and shape guard. The pickup route on the body is so large that a pickguard of some sort is necessary. I used an old SX P bass guard as a template, then started cutting on it until I got close to a shape I liked.

gjbassist · #18 02-07-2011, 08:15 AM

Played a rehearsal with this bass yesterday. The weight is nice! My other basses cause the base of my neck to hurt after a while. This one is light enough that I played three hours straight with no issues. Sounded great too!

Stev187 · #19 03-08-2013, 07:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gjbassist

Played a rehearsal with this bass yesterday. The weight is nice! My other basses cause the base of my neck to hurt after a while. This one is light enough that I played three hours straight with no issues. Sounded great too!

Do you still have/are you still enjoying this cool-looking bass? A while back I swapped a GF lightweight body on my main gigging Jazz bass. I can't believe how light it is (7lbs 7oz). Sounds great.

The other night I weighed my 3 favorite basses on a kitchen scale. Ric = 10lbs 3oz / Yamaha BB = 9lbs 14oz ' Parts Jazz = 7lbs 7oz. Heavy basses don't bother me, but 3lbs is a lot!

--Steve

gjbassist · #20 03-08-2013, 07:48 PM

Wow, surprised to see this thread come up again!
No, I ended up selling it. I liked the weight and way it played but didn't love the tone as much as I had hoped. I'm much more of a Jazz bass guy. It was a fun project though.