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Mango Bass Completed!

F

FzzyNoNoseChimp

Mar 13, 2004
25
5
#1
Hey guys,

Well I've finally completed the Mango bass that I posted about a few months before. She's got EMG Actives and boy does this thing sing. It's a solid Hawaiian Mango bass body and it just glistens in the sunlight. I did this for my senior project at my high school, and I've been using it for our jazz band. I hope you guys di it, and if you would like I can put up some progress pictures as well!

Oh yeah and I forgot to mention, the whole thing in total cost me a measely $200 dollars considering I got most of the hardware in a package deal. Pretty sweet for a one of a kind bass if ya ask me!
Rock on.

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#8
Congratulations on a job well done !
Beautiful Bass w. a stunning top. You made something that you'll proudly own for life. It's a keeper. When I was in HS I think I made a a crummy, lopsided coaster. Way to go & Take a bow. I love the look. -Bill
 
#9
And it sounds just as good as it looks. Nice warm mid and high range, and the fattest low end that rivals my T-40. So how do you guys think the design came out? I find that because of the way I shaped it, it is 10 times more comfortable to play then my T-40 and just grips your body, and it might even be more comfortable for the players of the "fairer" gender. Haha!
 
#13
Matt Liebenau said:
Don’t hold your breath. According to his profile the OP was last seen here in 2008. Sorry. :(
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Darn it, that sucks. Thanks for letting me know, man - appreciate it.
I'm looking at getting a bass custom-built and the builder suggested curly mango for the body. After seeing the OP's bass I was drooling, but what good is a bass if it doesn't sound and feel like you want it to, right? Yes, I'm in the tonewood camp.. :)
 
#14
@denverbarnes

I understand. I did a quick search but didn’t see any even related species. Some of the numbers seem similar to maple but I’m not sure how much that counts for. If you’re overly concerned about impact in the tone maybe just do a top or even a thin more veneer type top. I’d like to find a nice chunk of mango for a top, it can be beautiful wood.
 
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#16
Matt Liebenau said:
@denverbarnes

I understand. I did a quick search but didn’t see any even related species. Some of the numbers seem similar to maple but I’m not sure how much that counts for. If you’re overly concerned about impact in the tone maybe just do a top or even a thin more veneer type top. I’d like to find a nice chunk of mango for a top, it can be beautiful wood.
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Same, I've searched too without much luck. From the little I've found, mango isn't as dense as maple. Great idea to use it as a thin top.. I just might end up doing that.
I hope you find that piece that you're after!
 
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#18
My late buddy Mike Lipe made a lot of electric guitars with mango tops and headstock caps. I did machining on many of them, so I'm familiar with the wood. Mango is a pretty wood, with that crazy swirling grain. In mechanical properties it's soft and light, low density, and kind of nasty to machine. It chunks and rips easily. I consider it a decorative wood, not a structural wood. Very pretty for a body top cap and a matching headstock cap. I personally wouldn't make a whole body out of it. Not the boards that we were working with.
 
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#19
Bruce Johnson said:
My late buddy Mike Lipe made a lot of electric guitars with mango tops and headstock caps. I did machining on many of them, so I'm familiar with the wood. Mango is a pretty wood, with that crazy swirling grain. In mechanical properties it's soft and light, low density, and kind of nasty to machine. It chunks and rips easily. I consider it a decorative wood, not a structural wood. Very pretty for a body top cap and a matching headstock cap. I personally wouldn't make a whole body out of it. Not the boards that we were working with.
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Thank you, that is most helpful. The general consensus as I've seen it agrees with your account of mango, but I have come across a rare couple of instances in which people claim they've worked with some solid pieces (check out the link below - scroll down to mango):
Wood Details: M
I'd rather play it safe though, and follow your opinion of it. I may use it as a thin top.
 
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#20
denverbarnes said:
Thank you, that is most helpful. The general consensus as I've seen it agrees with your account of mango, but I have come across a rare couple of instances in which people claim they've worked with some solid pieces (check out the link below - scroll down to mango):
Wood Details: M
I'd rather play it safe though, and follow your opinion of it. I may use it as a thin top.
Click to expand...

Oh, you can make a solid mango bass body if you like. It's just down fairly low on my list of structural body woods. Think of it as being close to Phillipine mahogany; light weight, soft, fragile, needs a heavy finish to protect the surface. Mike bought it in fairly thick boards. He often had me resaw them into thinner top sets. We built at least 50 mango top guitars, and they sold well. Beautiful instruments. Some were mahogany bodies, and some were alder, with the 1/4" thick mango tops. They were mostly "drop" tops that bent down over the elbow contour. The mango was really difficult to bend without cracking or splitting.
 
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