The Dano Is a KEEPER

That's great to hear. I have basses that cost 3X as much as my Dano did but when it comes to playing time it gets the most. I did the tuners and a good fret dressing & leveling and it is a joy to play.

You bastards! There is a Longhorn up at our local Sam Ash that I played 2 weeks ago and it's a beauty! Has a really unique sound that would so fit in with everything I do. You have no idea how badly I want to go there today with my pay from my gig and buy it. Of course I won't, but dammit...I really want it and you guys are no help at all!

hahaha! that was pretty good!

doc540 said:

I'm gonna put some compact Gotoh tuners on it...

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WHY are they shipped with guitar machines?

That's just insane.

Ok, maybe I'm post-gig delirious...

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Y'think maybe, huh?

Apparently, I'm getting one on Wednesday. I ordered one for around $165 during the recent GuitarCenter.Com fiasco, not expecting to get it, but apparently I am.

I have no idea what I'm going to do with it.

if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

Big love for the Dano, gonna be investing in a Dead On Copper Longhorn or an Aqua '63. Hmm, being swayed towards the '63 at the moment due to the bridge difference. Oh well, Danos are the ultimate bang fo buck!

JimmyM said:

if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

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But the do brake, & brake your strings too. At least every other month there is a thread on here asking where they can get a tuner for their Dano because one of there's broke. I replace mine after it broke a string off at the tuner for the second time. Roto's arnt cheap

hdracer said:

But the do brake, & brake your strings too. At least every other month there is a thread on here asking where they can get a tuner for their Dano because one of there's broke. I replace mine after it broke a string off at the tuner for the second time. Roto's arnt cheap

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Hey, that happened to me and I chalked it up to a bum string. Are these things sharp or what?

emblymouse said:

Hey, that happened to me and I chalked it up to a bum string. Are these things sharp or what?

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Mine were not sharp. After the first "A" string broke I used a diamond file and some 3M Micro-Mesh finishing paper and polished them all smooth just to be sure, I put a fresh set (the first set was only a few months old) of Roto 77's on and a few months later the "E" string broke in the same place. The tuner has so small of a diameter that the bigger strings have to have a very sharp bend right there and snap. Maybe it is just with the Roto's but that was enough for me. I put the good tuners in and have been happy ever sense. They do look funny on it though. Like four Mickey Mouse ears hanging off the little coke bottle headstock. Using these tuners allowed me to use any string I wanted to also. I put a set of Roto 88 tru bass strings on it and just LOVE the tone with them. I never could have fit the .115 E string through the stock tuners. Two sets of Roto 77's =$64.00 + shipping, Tuners from Stew Mac = $45.00 + shipping. I don't gig but if I had a show and planned on using my Dano, I would hate to have a tuner or string brake when I was tuning up before a show just because I wanted to save $50.00 and a little work. I have been thinking about doing a "How to" on putting them in. It is a little tricky. I do not notice any neck dive with them on my '63 but when I installed strap lock's I moved the front one to the top horn like a Fender. Most inexpensive basses end up having pick ups, bridges & tuners replaced. All I have done to my '63 is tuners & strap locks. I did make a neck plate out os brushed stainless to strengthen the neck up just to be sure it was solid with the larger strings. It looks nice too.

This is a dangerous road my friends. I bought a Dano about 13 years ago and, like Doc, was so impressed by what it could do, I started modifying it to make it better.

Then I learned about Jerry Jones longhorn basses. The custom basses already seemed to have all the mods I wanted. So I got one of those....

Then came the obsession with short scale basses generally....

Doc ... mark my words, if you keep this up, you will be buying your first Birdsong with two years. Not necessarily a bad thing. Just start saving your gig money now.

Seriously, the Dano is a great bass right out of the box. And they're great for gigs because they are durable and you don't worry about them getting knocked about. Forget about the mods and just play the heck out of it. Oh, and Congrats!

hdracer said:

But the do brake, & brake your strings too. At least every other month there is a thread on here asking where they can get a tuner for their Dano because one of there's broke. I replace mine after it broke a string off at the tuner for the second time. Roto's arnt cheap

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Are these the same tuners they use on the Dano 63?

The reason I ask is I've got one of those and the tuners, while guiter tuners, don't seem particularly fragile. I swapped out the stock rounds for a set of Chromes when I first got it and they've been great ever since.

I played one of these at a boutique music place in NYC.

I was very impressed by how good it sounded. I tried it out for a laugh, but was very very impressed by it. I like them, but not enough to buy one.

funkytoe said:

I bought a Dano about 13 years ago and, like Doc, was so impressed by what it could do...

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Y'know, to be honest, what this is really about is how well cheap instruments can work if you just get down off your attitude about them. Face it, the Danelectro is objectively one of the most truly marginal basses ever made...but it still gets the job done, more or less.

That's the point. Objectively, cheap basses of today are miles better instruments than the Danelectro, but everyone has an attitude about not using a Squier or an SX or whatever. The point is not that you can convincingly gig a Danelectro, but that you can do so with any other cheap bass as well.

Somehow, the cheap-o Chinese Danelectro gets a pass from the attitude police.

There's the miracle.

Bongolation said:

Y'know, to be honest, what this is really about is how well cheap instruments can work if you just get down off your attitude about them. Face it, the Danelectro is objectively one of the most truly marginal basses ever made...but it still gets the job done, more or less.

That's the point. Objectively, cheap basses of today are miles better instruments than the Danelectro, but everyone has an attitude about not using a Squier or an SX or whatever. The point is not that you can convincingly gig a Danelectro, but that you can do so with any other cheap bass as well.

Somehow, the cheap-o Chinese Danelectro gets a pass from the attitude police.

There's the miracle.

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It is interesting that the "made in" sticker matters to some more than how an instrument sounds. My guitar player (who plays only vintage gear, including $30,000+ Fenders) conceded this weekend, however, that my Rogue viola bass sounded good even if it was a "Chinese Hofner copy".

Mastermold said:

Are these the same tuners they use on the Dano 63?

The reason I ask is I've got one of those and the tuners, while guiter tuners, don't seem particularly fragile. I swapped out the stock rounds for a set of Chromes when I first got it and they've been great ever since.

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Yes, they are all the same. Like I said, maybe it is the Rotos, but that doesn't stop the knobs from breaking off.

Mastermold said:

Are these the same tuners they use on the Dano 63?

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hdracer said:

Yes, they are all the same.

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I don't think they are.

I was looking at online pictures of various Danelectro basses and at least one showed much more substantial machines than on the Longhorn.

I've been trying, but I can't find the picture again. I think it was probably one version of the '63 longscale, as you would pretty much have to have better machines with the increased tension of a normal 34" scale.

[Later] Yeah, the Longscale '63s have Gotoh-like machines. Still have the flimsy bridge mount, though.