NBD - Malinoski Rodeo #121

[Mr. Pickles]

Gonna' drop some pics here of my second bass by Malinoski Guitar:







Bass #121

32" scale Oiled Cherry and Ambrosia Maple neck w/ Birdseye Maple fretboard
26 large frets @ 14" radius
Oiled / stained reclaimed Douglas Fir body w/ oiled spalted Maple pickup plate
Delrin nut @ 1-5/8"
Neck thickness @ 1"
Malinoski Type 2 humbucking pick-ups w/ bridge transducer
Push-pull truss rod & carbon fiber rods
wired vol/vol (no tone pot) w/ pull activiation of passive piezo
Gotoh tuners

Hipshot Aluminum bridge
Weight - 7lbs 4oz



Pete's site:
http://www.petermalinoskiart.com/index.html

[LowEndGroover]

Really nice looking bass. Congrats!

[Baird6869]

Cool. VERY different!

Still amazes me that after 5+ years of daily TB browsing and buying and selling basses, I see stuff from luthiers I have never heard of.

[kellyrojo]

Wow. Kickarse

[P. Aaron]

Originally Posted by LowEndGroover

Really nice looking bass. Congrats!

Ditto that!

[Templar]

That's just too damn cool.

'Grats.

[west*coast*bass]

That is really interesting! I dig it!

[darkstorm]

Except for the pickgaurd I like it's looks. Body wood looks nice but cant remember hearing of douglas fir ever being used for a bass/guitar body. Why did you decide on fir body?

[Luke S Mouse]

Wow, it's like part Musicman, part mustang, part awesome! It's definitely on of the most unique things I've seen bass wise in a while. Thanks for the post.

[Emibass]

Now that´s what I´d call a rustic bass!

Congrats!

[oerk]

Not a fan of the large pickguard screws, otherwise great! Never seen anything like it.

[theNoseBleedKid]

Clips!

[pasta4lnch]

Wow - unique for sure. Kinda like it - looks like a MM and a Fodera had a kid . . .

[Hotblack]

Originally Posted by darkstorm

Why did you decide on fir body?

+1
...and what are your thoughts on the DF body?

[SolarMan]

You, Mr. Pickles, are the reason I will be receiving my first Malinoski Bass (#94) this week!

I was kicking around the fEARful threads and saw your cab and 2 beautiful basses. After a little research I found Peter Malinoski. When I ordered my bass, Pete asked how I heard of him. I said I saw this fEARful cab and two of your bass. Pete said, Oh yes - Mr. Pickles. So, thank you!

Mine will also have the reclaimed douglas fir. It is structural wood from a home built in the 1920's or 1930's. Pete says that it is very stable.

This guy is really an amazing artist. He has done all kinds of wild stuff.

He has a Bachelor of arts degree. A Master of arts degree. And he has a Master of Fine arts degree from University of Arizona where he did his thesis on: you guessed it! Guitar.

Mine should ship out today. Can't wait!

This is #94 "Moon" bass:





THANKS MR. PICKLES - You are one lucky dude with those 2 gorgeous specimens!

[jbossolo]

You guys are killing me! Here I am, staying away from the classifieds, minding my own biz, trying to keep the GAS under control, and BAM!!!
Unique design and gorgeous woods! Must. Resist. Damn!

[Mr. Pickles]

Pete's excellent pics aren't showing up as I view from my work network so I'm hoping you all can see them...

Part of the process of ordering a bass from Malinoski is letting go and giving Pete creative control. I set some rough parameters, scale length, electronics layout, wood suggestions, etc. I wanted something gnarly and rustic. He's built several guitars out of reclaimed Doug Fir all with positive reviews, so I figured I'd take the leap and see what he could do on a bass. I also gave him my pricepoint.

And a big part of the fun for me is watching his creative process. The end result is idiosyncratic (in a good way) - everytime he does a bass, it's something totally new. The results are not wholly predictable. What I did get, in both cases is a unique piece of playable art (which is what I wanted) that can outperform the standard instruments in my stable (Fenders, Warwicks and MMs).

From what I can hear, based on several hours of rehearsal and one 90 minute gig with the rig pictured above is that the wood (doug fir is a type of pine I think...) doesn't adversely affect the low end (nor does the 32" scale length). Couldn't quite tell what it's inherent characteristics are just yet (cymbals and guitars are pretty loud in my band) so I'll need more time to listen critically.

Pete maintains that the electronics and neck on his basses impart most of the tonal imprint (Pete's necks are FAT - the board is half the thickness of the whole neck. And I would agree in that I hear the characteristic bright-snap of maple, as opposed to the fretless which is Paduak.

There is a new design, a Saga Bass, which is a twin of mine, and the new design looks like it offers full access to the 26 frets, which would be cool for folks who venture that far into the treble.

Overall, the new bass sounds aggressive and grindy from my brief time playing it. It's perfect for modern rock styles and the fEARful cab projects that tone with authority.

+EDIT+ Solarman - Pete let me borrow that Moon bass while he was building mine. Very cool - notable difference is the position of the neck pup - that thing goes deep and dubby! I think I wore out the strings on it, though ha ha. Congrats!

[SolarMan]

You had an affair with my bass? Cool! Deep and dubby is exactly what I'm looking for!

What strings are you using on your Malinoski's?

Also, is your Paduak fretboard darkening with age? I hear that it turns a nice deep purple color.

[Mr. Pickles]

Originally Posted by SolarMan

You had an affair with my bass? Cool! Deep and dubby is exactly what I'm looking for!

What strings are you using on your Malinoski's?

Also, is your Paduak fretboard darkening with age? I hear that it turns a nice deep purple color.

I did...ahem...have a relationship with your future bass

I had a Chapman Stick made of Paduak that did purple over the years, though the fretless board has more reds and oranges in person. Really great tonewood regardless.

[RobJ]

Very nice and unique looking basses. I dig 'em.