A New "Wish" Competitor?

[Thunderitter]

Mate, you're bringing yourself down if you continue with your current attitude. I totally respect and believe that you have no intention to build bad basses. However, it does look like you QC has slipped with the bass that went out to FL. In his defense I also think he's given away the bass for the cost of shipping, having declared 'the issues' rather than having sold it and passed the problems to someone as you posted earlier.

I am sure you will learn from the experience, but one disgruntled customer has more affect that 10 delighted ones maybe even 50 if you're using eBay as your selling tool!

I think there are a lot of folks here wishing you well and hoping that you are successful. I know I do. I am very interested in what you do, but I also respect what FL Knifemaker has to say.

As BobWestbrook says this is a great opportunity for you. All publicity is good publicity! The bass you're building for stepswork4me is the chance to prove yourself. I know you probably feel like you don't need to, but that's the wonder of the internet!

If that one turns out well, I'm sure there will be quite a few orders coming your way!

 

[bassbully]

So basically what you're telling us is, ignore the information that FL Knifemaker has shared with us, and trust that you will send us a high quality bass for low low prices? You can't deny that the bass you sent to FL was of pathetic build, although you've tried. But can't you give us some sort of explanation, other than simply slandering him and accusing him of slander? He bought your bass and showed us pictures. I don't see any wrong there. What I see as wrong is the fact that you haven't said anything rational yet. You wrote up that big post of 20 points that only succeeded in convincing me that you don't know what you're talking about when it comes to basses, or customer service, or forming a logical argument. All I see you doing is insulting FL and assuring us that you're right, without any evidence of your own. At least FL has pictures.

+1 Well said!

 

[standupright]

Mate, you're bringing yourself down if you continue with your current attitude. I totally respect and believe that you have no intention to build bad basses. However, it does look like you QC has slipped with the bass that went out to FL. In his defense I also think he's given away the bass for the cost of shipping, having declared 'the issues' rather than having sold it and passed the problems to someone as you posted earlier.

I am sure you will learn from the experience, but one disgruntled customer has more affect that 10 delighted ones maybe even 50 if you're using eBay as your selling tool!

I think there are a lot of folks here wishing you well and hoping that you are successful. I know I do. I am very interested in what you do, but I also respect what FL Knifemaker has to say.

As BobWestbrook says this is a great opportunity for you. All publicity is good publicity! The bass you're building for stepswork4me is the chance to prove yourself. I know you probably feel like you don't need to, but that's the wonder of the internet!

If that one turns out well, I'm sure there will be quite a few orders coming your way!

nicely put.

 

[kesslari]

Mate, you're bringing yourself down if you continue with your current attitude. I totally respect and believe that you have no intention to build bad basses. However, it does look like you QC has slipped with the bass that went out to FL. In his defense I also think he's given away the bass for the cost of shipping, having declared 'the issues' rather than having sold it and passed the problems to someone as you posted earlier.

I am sure you will learn from the experience, but one disgruntled customer has more affect that 10 delighted ones maybe even 50 if you're using eBay as your selling tool!

I think there are a lot of folks here wishing you well and hoping that you are successful. I know I do. I am very interested in what you do, but I also respect what FL Knifemaker has to say.

As BobWestbrook says this is a great opportunity for you. All publicity is good publicity! The bass you're building for stepswork4me is the chance to prove yourself. I know you probably feel like you don't need to, but that's the wonder of the internet!

If that one turns out well, I'm sure there will be quite a few orders coming your way!

One other thing to add - the gentleman who bought and reviewed the bass you built has a very positive reputation here for truth and accuracy. At present, you have none. You have the opportunity to build that reputation, but saying "it's all a pack of lies and slander" in the face of what is very compelling physical evidence, presented by someone who would have been just as quick to shout your praises from the rooftop if your product had been of even decent quality - not a good method.

Just sayin'...

 

[ehque]

Well, i'm still of the opinion that FL should have reviewed the bass again after chucking it into a PLEK machine.

We know about the nut, and the frets. But the intonation, and the truss rod, might completely be workable once the string height was brought down to normal levels. And perhaps the whole venture would still not be too expensive.

But he's right though. The nut and the fretwork as is is disaster.

EDIT: And oh yeah timbass96 we don't need to rely on his review the pictures are enough to indite your basses...

 

[Jazzcat]

I have never sent out a bass or guitar with these claims. Do not judge me with only one guy that thinks that all is good on what ever he buys. Remember buying what he bought may be from his pic. but all in all I WILL NEVER DO ANYONEONE WRONG. wE ARE ALL BASS PLAYERS. i LOST MY THUNB IN 99" aND THIS RUINED my bass playing. So I aways did a complete bass feel on what it took to build a bass. I was a carpenter and a artist so why not put the two together. i know It is tough to compete with the big boys, but why why alway compare to them. we all know the secretes and we want to expand and make a name for our selfs. so Lets get on with what we think is right and stop feeding off the ones that want to bring us down. Thank you for reading.

Okay, so you say that you lost a thumb (rather, a more convincing “LOST MY THUNB&#8221 with a bandsaw or a bull terrior or whatever; and you say that you at one point in your life played a bass. You call yourself a carpenter, but in America, anybody who buys a few tools at Lowes or replaces a roof is qualified to that claim. So I am still in the dark about your qualifications and experience in instrument building.

Please explain your exact study-training-apprenticeship-guild qualifications in luthiery, that qualifies you to market yourself as a builder of fine stringed musical instruments.

: popcorn :

 

[Thunderitter]

^Come on Randy be fair. You should edit you post IMHO, it's pretty disrespectful to any one with a disability. I have a friend who has lost a thumb and it turned his whole life upside down trying to readapt to what you and I take for granted.

Also, I've met plenty of luthier's who have no formal training and make superb basses. The two don't necessarily go hand in hand.

 

[bassman1185]

^Come on Randy be fair. You should edit you post IMHO, it's pretty disrespectful to any one with a disability. I have a friend who has lost a thumb and it turned his whole life upside down trying to readapt to what you and I take for granted.

Also, I've met plenty of luthier's who have no formal training and make superb basses. The two don't necessarily go hand in hand.

I think his point was that Timbass96 seems to by trying to pass off his obviously shoddy work as acceptable because of his thumb. I agree, it would most certainly be a life-altering issue, but it should be taken into consideration when planning projects or careers, but after 11 years without it, I would think that timbass96 would have adapted.

I am an audio-visual technician. If I lost my hearing or my sight, I would be unable to do my job. It would be pretty unethical of me to go to a gig, do an obviously terrible job of mixing a band, and then, when people complain, whine about my deafness, claiming that I didn't do anyone wrong. If a person is unable to render a quality service because of a physical ailment or disability, they should not be in that line of work.

 

[tk421]

i could see this being useful if someone wanted to start a Morphine tribute band, and needed a slide bass ...

the picture of the frets made me cringe. i have seen 20 year old, played everyday basses, that have never been leveled, crowned, or polished since the day they left the fender/peavey/G&L/carvin factory ... with frets that still look better than that.

the picture of the 12th fret marker ... looks like a splinter came off of the dowel used to make the dots ... and instead of fixing it, was just glossed over? seriously?

being an engineer mindset (IT, desktop engineer, SCCM administrator) i find the lack of pride in the work appalling. if you aren't going to do something right, why bother starting it?

i guess it boils down to how people are raised. i was raised, mainly by my maternal grandfather. he was an electrical engineer in the AAC, communications officer. then he went into secondary education after WWII. then into elementary/secondary administration. the most important thing i ever learned, i learned from him.

take time to do it right the first time. it always beats having to go back and do it over.

 

[Thunderitter]

I think his point was that Timbass96 seems to by trying to pass off his obviously shoddy work as acceptable because of his thumb. I agree, it would most certainly be a life-altering issue, but it should be taken into consideration when planning projects or careers, but after 11 years without it, I would think that timbass96 would have adapted.

I think TLM was saying that having lost his thumb he gave up playing bass and then started building guitars. He wasn't using it as any sort of excuse. There are plenty of folks out there doing amazing things with disabilities, I just read the bit about 'band saw or bull terror' to be pretty insensitive.

 

[Jazzcat]

^Come on Randy be fair. You should edit you post IMHO, it's pretty disrespectful to any one with a disability. I have a friend who has lost a thumb and it turned his whole life upside down trying to readapt to what you and I take for granted.

Also, I've met plenty of luthier's who have no formal training and make superb basses. The two don't necessarily go hand in hand.

Who doesn't have some problem...physical, mental, financial or otherwise? Life is all about overcoming problems. If you want a list of my problems, we can discuss in OT. Tlmbass96 brought up his thumb. Why do you think he did that, in CAPS LOCKS, no less? It has nothing to do with the quality of his product, which is supposed to be the subject of this thread.

I totally understand self-taught skill. I teach myself in most things. Tlmbass96 thinks very highly of his product, so he might have some impressive quals. I was just asking. View it as another opportunity for him to shine.

 

[FunkMetalBass]

i know It is tough to compete with the big boys, but why why alway compare to them.

Because they have set the standard for decent, playable instruments. It's nothing to do with putting a company down, or trying to discourage entrepreneurship or craftsmanship, it's about fairly reviewing a product.

Head over to the Luthier's Corner here on TB, watch some of the builds, practice a bit more, and come back with a fresh attitude and new designs.

And remember, as always, a bad reputation goes a lot further than a good one.

 

[bassmanrocke]

If tlmbass96 really wants to establish both his product and his character he should build a bass of the quality he claims to produce and ship that to FLKnifemaker. The fretboard and nut from that picture make it clear that it was an inferior product. We TBers have all known enough about FL's character to know he would give the second bass a fair shake.

 

[Colledge123]

from what ive seen/ read, i dont get it. the bass that FL received looks to have pretty nice wood and not half bad hardware. imo the finishing of a bass is small in comparison to the rest of the build, how has the bridge placement fretting and nut height been done so wrong but yet the rest of the bass looks still quite good.

 

[jojobean39]

IMO, FL didn't bash the guy. He gave what seemed to be an accurate account of the events that occured after purchasing the bass up until he sent it away to someone else. In my opinion, the fact that he basically sold it for shipping cost says that the bass quality was not good. I don't think FL had any real reason or obligation to contact the seller again, as his return policy was very rigid, so indicated by his eBay post.

Some of the builder's comments are just inconsistent and inaccurate. Claiming that fretbuzz is impossible with high action is a weak statement, IMO. A poorly done fret job could easily cause that.

As for the builder... there is some good criticism here. I respect that you are trying to offer a (very nice looking) bass at such a reasonable price. However, there were obviously flaws in it. I believe that you should listen to the criticism. Most of the things that are being commented on here by FL are legit concerns. They are also things that wouldn't be expensive fixes, just a little time.

Builder also gets a frowny face for quoting this guy:

15. Bolt On Vs. Bolt In Both ways work very well as long as you get a tight neck fit. The bolt in like the Quicksilver is superior because there is no protruding flange to bolt the neck onto. The neck actually bolts in through the back of the guitar. Consequently you get better stability, even more tone & sustain and as an added bonus you can reach higher up the neck. More notes, more better sounding notes !!!!
The Quicksilver goes one better, The Quicksilver actually incorporates the rhythm or neck pickup right into the neck joint. To my knowledge no other company affixes one pickup directly to the tongue of the neck and the other one directly to the body. We have been doing this modification to PRS guitars for more than 15 years. It really works well on a PRS the difference is noticeable even for a novice player. The modification is completely invisible and you cannot tell it has been done except by listening to it. We do it to set neck models and to Bolt In models. Personally I think it works best on a Bolt In Model but even a novice can easily hear the difference on a set neck version of a PRS.
According to website: http://www.edroman.com/guitars/abstract/quicksilverneckthru.htm (there you will see a bolt on neck with screws the same way mine are)

 

[FunkMetalBass]

http://www.edroman.com/guitars/abstract/quicksilverneckthru.htm

Not only did I not see the bolt-on that he was referencing there, I saw mostly neck-thru guitars and the only bolt-ons all had recessed bolts, which is what FL was complaining about it. It takes less than a minute to re-drill the holes 1/4" deeper with a slightly wider bit to recess the screws.

 

[bassbully]

Look guys its simple. This is TB the home for allot of us to finding budget gear that delivers. Gear such as SX, Squier etc that are close to making a good gigable playing bass on the low dollar. Allot of us on here live for thses deals and info on them from others who come across new basses and gear such as this Tbers (OP) did. FL came in and really tried to see if this was a deal and allot of us were hoping it was...it was not.

The builder who is trolling this thread knows this and has 2 choices. Quit making basses or retool and improve with the advice he has been given here. The nut cut alone show he has no idea what he is doing, How in God's name could you fret that bass in the first position area of the neck? The builder could make right and send an improved bass to FL for review here on TB to see if he can clear his name. FL has no reason to put down his product since he himself is a bassist and craftsman.

 

[tlmbass96]

I am not normally a negative perosn it just gets my goat to have people call my basses junk and refuse to tell me themselves and go ahead and resell it. They are of what I believe to be good quality. And according to my feedback I am not the only one. The thing that gets me is in the same auction I sold one called yellow stripes and this was my feedback from him
"Great Bass!!! Cant go wrong here Buyer:
kappa1903 ( 139) Apr-03-10 20:14
"Yellowstripes" 35" scale fretted 5 string bass. (#180482569035)



and a repeat buyer that bought blush went and bought bazaar and his comment was "

I bought Blush. Beautiful bass.

You get ebay feedback saying; "I'd buy another Martinson"...

I'm setting up a blog with feedback that is 99.999% positive and a neat story about Blush.
My nephew plays bass in a symphony orchestra & he fell in love with Blush when we had family over for Easter.

so I am confident in my basses even when I have repeat buyers months later buy another so I do get deffensive when people speak negative of my work like this.

As for the nut as I posted earlier I am not the only one that does this ibenez does too website: http://www.ibanezrules.com/tech/setup/nut.htm
They stated" Nut height is probably one of the most crucial aspects of how your guitar feels within the first 5 frets, but it also effects the feel of the whole fretboard to some degree. Quite simply the nut should be as low as it can go without causing string buzz on the first fret. For a quick judge fret each string at the first fret and look at the clearance it has over the second. Compare to the gap between the top of the first fret and each string with the string open. Near 100% of all new Ibanez guitars have nuts that are way too high. Most of the new Jems I receive have nut height at the first fret low E around 1mm, about .7mm too high!! I've been complaining about it to the company for years and the only thing that's happened is they've gotten higher"

I will continue to make basses and anyone who would like a bass from me is more than welcome but I am done with this drama from one person who refuses to speak to me personally about thsi matter. Everyone will believe what they would like and I am sorry for this problem I would have never known about until someone sent me this website.

 

[jojobean39]

I am not normally a negative perosn it just gets my goat to have people call my basses junk and refuse to tell me themselves and go ahead and resell it.

For the record, FL pretty much GAVE the bass away. I believe it was shipping cost plus gas money or something ($10 or so). So, to act like he just resold it as a high quality bass is an unfair assessment of what happened. He posted here exactly how he felt about the bass (after being asked to do so by so many of us) and then (practically) gave it away. If you want people to give you feedback, don't make it as if you won't take a return on your instrument. FL bought the guitar on a gamble. He said that.

As for the nut as I posted earlier I am not the only one that does this ibenez does too website: http://www.ibanezrules.com/tech/setup/nut.htm

Not to be picky, but this is not Ibanez's website.

 

[FL Knifemaker]

As for the nut as I posted earlier I am not the only one that does this ibenez does too website: http://www.ibanezrules.com/tech/setup/nut.htm
They stated" Nut height is probably one of the most crucial aspects of how your guitar feels within the first 5 frets, but it also effects the feel of the whole fretboard to some degree. Quite simply the nut should be as low as it can go without causing string buzz on the first fret. For a quick judge fret each string at the first fret and look at the clearance it has over the second. Compare to the gap between the top of the first fret and each string with the string open. Near 100% of all new Ibanez guitars have nuts that are way too high. Most of the new Jems I receive have nut height at the first fret low E around 1mm, about .7mm too high!! I've been complaining about it to the company for years and the only thing that's happened is they've gotten higher"

That is a bunch of BS. I've owned MANY Ibanez basses and I've never seen one with ANYTHING like the nut on the bass I received from you. Not even CLOSE. Also, I've never seen an Ibanez bass with the nut stuck on the end of the fretboard with what looks like wood filler
You can spin and dance around the issues all you want. The photos don't lie. What I got from you was an absolutely useless, unplayable POS.

I guess we need more information here...........
What about the bridge?? The intonation?? Do you ever play the basses you build after you finish them??? I cannot believe you do, based on the one I received. Look at the photo below, specifically the bridge saddles Do you have some internet article that can explain this as well??

Lastly, please don't ask me if I played the bass. When my son plugged it in, the hum was overwhelming. I didn't check but I would bet there is no ground wire going to the bridges. I'll let the new owner report back on that issue. Something is majorly wrong with the wiring.

Again, my description and photos here are dead on and accurate. I stand by them with no reservation. If you have great feedback from all your other customers, maybe my bass was just an anomaly. In that case you have nothing to worry about and again, I wish you the best of luck. I just cannot imagine that is the case though.