$100 4 string challenge

[HaMMerHeD]

OK I'm in.

 

[Paulsar]

I was thinking about throwing together a bass just to have something around my new workshop to thump on now and then (get your mind outta the gutter). I found some old wood outside my shop under a loading dock a few days ago, looks like birch from a double length shipping pallet. I also have a bunch of stuff in my 'bin-o-junk' like pickups I'll never use in anything else so this would be a great opportunity to use some of that stuff up, and there's a hardware store nearby that has a good selection of screws, bolts, metal of various kinds...

So as long as the rules stay flexible enough and we don't have to buy what we already got, I guess I'm in too!

Edit: I'll think about it for a day before I decide what exactly to build. Need to go to the shop and sort through some stuff. All I know now is that this bass will be..... *unconventional*

 

[mapleglo]

Yes, we'll still need to hammer out the final rules. I have a piece of maple left over from a previous build that I could use as a finger board. I'm hoping it's ok to use that. I suppose for these types of scraps we use, we could come up with a fair value. I'd say the maple fingerboard sized scrap could be valued at $5.00 - $10.00 dollars. I don't remember what I paid for the whole piece, and this is less than half of it.

 

[HaMMerHeD]

Yes, we'll still need to hammer out the final rules. I have a piece of maple left over from a previous build that I could use as a finger board. I'm hoping it's ok to use that. I suppose for these types of scraps we use, we could come up with a fair value. I'd say the maple fingerboard sized scrap could be valued at $5.00 - $10.00 dollars. I don't remember what I paid for the whole piece, and this is less than half of it.

I bought a large Katalox board a year or so ago to make into fingerboard stock. The whole board cost me ~$29, and I got 6 fingerboards out of it. Thus, a single fingerboard is about $4.83. Same with fret wire. I have a bundle of medium wire I got from Grizzly a while back. It costs $9.50 for 10 pieces, about 18" long each. I will use 3 pieces for a 4-string fretboard, so the cost of the fret wire for this build will be $2.85. So on and so forth for wood, screws, etc. I may pay $50 for a big maple board, but if I only use 1/10th of it for the neck on a build, that neck wood only cost me $5.

The only real compromises that have to be made here are for the bridge, tuners, and pickup(s), unless you can salvage parts.

 

[BassFishingInAmerica]

I built this travel bass for $50, but I had the neck. I'm sure I could have made some kind of neck for an additional $50.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Build-A-Half-Size-Travel-Bass-Guitar

 

[potomac]

I'll participate, ...and I'm waiting for a list of rules. Please, set the deadline for the 100$ Projects at the end of summer 2015. I cannot use my garage as a workshop during wintertime.

 

[blablas]

I did some calculating and discovered that I already made a bass in the $100 region , well actually 100 euros, but lets call this nitpicking (some parts are more expensive here in Europe ).

-Top and back came from a piece of lumber I bought dirt cheap -15 euro.
-Other wood - 20 euro (this is a bit of a guess, gathered most of the wood a long time ago, some was bought and some was given to me).
-Artec sidewinder - ebay, 15 euro.
-Neck pickup - Second hand, 30 euro.
-Tuners and bridge parts - Internet, 25 euro.
-Pots, switch, orange drop, wiring, fret wire, strap holders, jack and jack-plate - Old private stock (laying around for years).

Grand total - 105 euro.

Because I don't like the sound coming from the sidewinder I am going to replace this in the near future with a Chinese toaster that will fit underneath the sidewinder cover, this toaster cost me 20 euro, once I received this pickup I'll update the build diary.
So the price might go up to 110 euro, that's within a margin of 10%, I'm willing to live with this margin.

-edit-

Forgot the truss rod, that will be another 10 euro.
Fail!!

I am not going to participate, I can't build a bass that's up to my standards for this price.

 

[mapleglo]

Well, since the op hasn't chimed in for a few days, I suppose we can nail down the rules in his absence?

I'm thinking wood in stock will be ok as long as we set a reasonable value for it. Along with spare parts. I have a roll of copper shielding I got a while back that I've already used in a few builds. Since my build will be using cheap jazz pickups, I'll want to shield the pickup routes and control panel. I'll likely use a dollar or two worth of the shielding. The finish might be an issue though. I'll need to paint mine red. I have no issues using a cheap can of spray paint, even enamel, but I imagine there are others who will want to use real paint.

 

[potomac]

I think this is a challenge to open our minds. We have to find new ways in DiY for ourselves, that means more work and less expensive materials. I can build a bridge just from a piece of wood and a piece of bone, both for far less then a buck, and it will do its job far better then a chinese mass product, maybe. Think about Volume/Tone knobs, do we really have to buy them? What about strap pins? Is there a cheap way to create our own? ....and so on.....

Finishing is a hard challenge, if you don't like oil, but think about it, find a way to make a nice finish for less, maybe you'll find your new favorite finish, who knows?

 

[blablas]

That's a nice aspiration but if it takes me, let's say for the sake argument, four hours to make a bridge, I would rather buy one for $30. This might be considered a waste of money but the DIY option is a waste of my time which is way more valuable to me.

 

[potomac]

I think, for me the greatest goal of such a project is, to learn more techniques beside the usual way and, OF COURSE, to learn from each other. Inspiration is what we seek, isn't it?

 

[Paulsar]

Well, I'm out, for reasons I won't get into here.

 

[Ronbeast]

I might be in, depending on the closing date. I'll probably do my entire build with spruce from Rona hahah

 

[Doctor Hugocat]

I did some calculating and discovered that I already made a bass in the $100 region , well actually 100 euros, but lets call this is nitpicking (some parts are more expensive here in Europe ).

-Top and back came from a piece of lumber I bought dirt cheap -15 euro.
-Other wood - 20 euro (this is a bit of a guess, gathered most of the wood a long time ago, some was bought and some was given to me).
-Artec sidewinder - ebay, 15 euro.
-Neck pickup - Second hand, 30 euro.
-Tuners and bridge parts - Internet, 25 euro.
-Pots, switch, orange drop, wiring, fret wire, strap holders, jack and jack-plate - Old private stock (laying around for years).

Grand total - 105 euro.

Because I don't like the sound coming from the sidewinder I am going to replace this in the near future with a Chinese toaster that will fit underneath the sidewinder cover, this toaster cost me 20 euro, once I received this pickup I'll update the build diary.
So the price might go up to 110 euro, that's within a margin of 10%, I'm willing to live with this margin.

-edit-

Forgot the truss rod, that will be another 10 euro.
Fail!!

I am not going to participate, I can't build a bass that's up to my specifications for this price.

That looks amazing, great job! I'm going to look at the build diary and learn some new things.......

 

[mapleglo]

Well, at first I was against it. But since I had been thinking about doing that Marceline bass build for the Comicon, and since it's as much a prop as it is a bass, and since I don't want to spend a lot of money on it anyway because it won't really be an ergonomic bass, it all kinda fit together. If it ends up costing more than $100.00, it won't matter anyway as I have a use for it, and I might even be able to sell it for quite a bit more at the Comicon. A functional Marceline Bass may be worth a few hundred dollars to someone who is into the Adventure Time series and likes to collect that sort of thing. In the mean time, I've been working on a design. I'll start a build thread shortly.

 

[wisconsindead]

So happy to see this challenge taking hold. I don't think I'd be able to join in on the fun. But will be watching closely to everyone's builds!

 

[manupulated]

Im in if I got more than 2 months to finish it so I can finish my other projects

 

[Hopkins]

So what are the rules?

 

[mapleglo]

So what are the rules?

I'm going with these:

1) All building materials that a builder would normally use, such as glue, sand paper, wax paper, gloves, etc do not count toward the build price.
2) All tools that would normally be used in subsequent builds, such as jazz pickup templates, router bits, drill bits, files, blades, etc do not count toward the build price.
3) Items that do count toward the build price would include (but are not limited to) tuners, bridge, pickups, wood, truss rod, nut, output jack and jack plate.
4) Finish is included, but like all other items, only the cost of what is used, is counted toward the build price, e.g. $5 can of spray paint, used half the can, $2.50 is the cost.
5) Using parts in a builder's stock is ok, as long as an estimated value is used toward the build price.
6) I'm suggesting June 30, 2015 as the finish date.
7) Most importantly, I think we should just keep the build in the spirit of the challenge. If someone is at $99.99, and they use a $1.00 part from their personal stock, that's going to be ok. This challenge is for fun, and to perhaps find new ways to do a process of find a part at a cost effective savings. I certainly won't be requiring receipts. Perhaps at the end, we'll post a poll to determine a winner.

Others may feel free to make additional suggestions, and/or override any of mine.

 

[michaelwayneharwood]

I'm going with these:

1) All building materials that a builder would normally use, such as glue, sand paper, wax paper, gloves, etc do not count toward the build price.
2) All tools that would normally be used in subsequent builds, such as jazz pickup templates, router bits, drill bits, files, blades, etc do not count toward the build price.
3) Items that do count toward the build price would include (but are not limited to) tuners, bridge, pickups, wood, truss rod, nut, output jack and jack plate.
4) Finish is included, but like all other items, only the cost of what is used, is counted toward the build price, e.g. $5 can of spray paint, used half the can, $2.50 is the cost.
5) Using parts in a builder's stock is ok, as long as an estimated value is used toward the build price.
6) I'm suggesting June 30, 2015 as the finish date.
7) Most importantly, I think we should just keep the build in the spirit of the challenge. If someone is at $99.99, and they use a $1.00 part from their personal stock, that's going to be ok. This challenge is for fun, and to perhaps find new ways to do a process of find a part at a cost effective savings. I certainly won't be requiring receipts. Perhaps at the end, we'll post a poll to determine a winner.

Others may feel free to make additional suggestions, and/or override any of mine.

Is string cost included in the tally?