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A rather unusual build.

T

T2W

Feb 24, 2007
1,175
24
Montreal, Canada.
#1
I've been waiting 2 years to start this one, yes, really. And it won't be another 2 months at least until I start it. This bass might be a 6 string, maybe a 5, I just dont know yet. Maybe even a single cut... It will feature a 4 piece Ash neck with perfectly quartersawn Ash 24fret board, Butternut wings (neckthrough) with a spalted/tight flamed Maple top and back. The unusual part of this build is all this wood comes from the forest right beside my house, Ive been waiting for a while, its now at 6% MC, it all dried really nice. But now that all the pieces are cut to (almost final) size, I stickered them and clamped them between 8/4 purpleheart boards and will leave them like that for a good 8 weeks in 40% humidity before I think about glueing them up. Here are a few pics... more to come in 2 months !!


Top
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Back
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Butternut core
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#3
Looks like this build has started early after all... Here is a quick shot of the woods used.

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Far left is the crotch spalted flamed Maple used for the top and back as well as the fretboard, bottom left is Spalted Maple used as a Transition block sandwiched in Ash, the Asdh was also used for the 4 piece neck, far right is Butternut used for the core of the wings.

Some progress pics:

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#6
Forgot to mention, in that pic with the guides to route out the neck pocket, I threw in a roll of that double sided tape I use for all my templates, I had one template slip once because the clamps let go, I still have trouble understanding how I managed to breath after all that cursing and swearing and beating stuff around the shop... So now I use this. Its tape used to seal window panes into their sash(es) It sticks so much I gotta put masking tape otherwise it could tear out some wood im sure. Thought id let you know, you can get it at any glass shop (vitrerie in French) for about 5$, a better deal than the 3m double at the Homedepot.
 
#8
although it sounds better if you drop the g... Bitchin' ! Thanks !! I think so too. The whole point of it is to 'proove' that if I managed to get all this in the forest beside my house, well we can certainly find awesome local woods that are even nicer through the bay or lumberyards. I dont feel its necessary to clear cut a third of Madagascar's forests, or the Amazon, or Congo... to achieve a nice satisfying result. I don't see Quebec or Ontario running out of Maple trees anytime soon.
 
#13
That... is.... gorgeous!

I live in the woods, but all i ever seem to get when my father and i clear lots for building is red oak. Too heavy to really make anything nice out of, and all of the maples are way to small unless i peice them together.
 
#14
Im workin on a building that was built back in 1812, the joists were actually trees laid side to side and the voids were filled in with dirt. Pretty basic concept. Anyways I got one of the joists in my shop (part of it, 9feet) I think its Cedar, whatever it is I hope to use it in many basses, it is (app.) 270years old after all !! Talk about recycling !!
 
#16
Very, very nice - I'm keenly interested in how this one turns out.

Interested in your bridge, too - will you be using cylindrical brass inserts, one per string? Or some other design?
 
#20
Glad you remember Wilser, I havent been in there in a while.. But yes, those are the ones. I had the chance to work on this one again today, I finished the neck, stained it, next up is to oil it. Im now final sanding the body, this one will have Polyurethane on it. Then I will have to order the chrome hipshot tuners. Ill be bringin this one to BassDay in Germany for sure.

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