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A Silk Purse from a Sow's Ear
- Thread starter Big B.
- Start date
To shape the neck profile I start with the belt sander and use the wheel on the end to remove the square edges and roughly shape the curve on the back of the neck. Next a sharp block plane smooths out and flattens the profile, refining the shape till its just right. Since the plane cant reach into corners or end I use a rough rasp to remove those areas and again the orbital smooths everything out.
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It's getting very close now, a little more work and the profile will be complete.
It's getting very close now, a little more work and the profile will be complete.
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So initially the neck sits a bit proud of the pocket.
Also, with no neck angle the strings wont line up properly with the bridge so a slight angle is sanded on the back of the neck with the belt sander.
That should play much better.
Also, with no neck angle the strings wont line up properly with the bridge so a slight angle is sanded on the back of the neck with the belt sander.
That should play much better.
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As I am still not technically in business as a luthier I generally just build and sell instruments to folks I know locally. That being said, feel free to PM me, but it's not a conversation I can have in the thread. 
Spent some time working on getting the neck attached. The holes for the neck bolts are drilled and transfered over to the neck heel.
The hole is the size of the insert minus the hooks that catch in the wood. The insert has a solid cap that needs a recess around the hole for the inset itself. They get hammered in with epoxy and then sanded flush with the belt sander.
Despite the wenge neck and body it's quite light and even with hardware and electronics it will be a featherweight.
The hole is the size of the insert minus the hooks that catch in the wood. The insert has a solid cap that needs a recess around the hole for the inset itself. They get hammered in with epoxy and then sanded flush with the belt sander.
Despite the wenge neck and body it's quite light and even with hardware and electronics it will be a featherweight.
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So once again the TB classifieds come through. Picked up a great deal on some pickups and one of these has this bass written all over it.
The soapbars are a 5 string set that will be going into a certain jazz shaped 5 string and the oval shaped Xtender is going into this bass. I've heard good things about these pickups and since the neck joint only allows for one pickup this fit the bill. Fortunately it came with a template. The template is some sort of acrylic type plastic that is relatively thin so I prefer to use it to make a 3/4" template that is safer to use. First I trace the shape and drill out the center. After clamping the template the router does the rest of the work.
Next the template is located on the body and the hole is rough drilled with a forstner bit. Once the template is clamped on the router finishes the job.
If you havent ever routed one of these pickups it is an absolute joy. No corners that grab and come out too tight, just one smooth curve that routes like a dream.
The soapbars are a 5 string set that will be going into a certain jazz shaped 5 string and the oval shaped Xtender is going into this bass. I've heard good things about these pickups and since the neck joint only allows for one pickup this fit the bill. Fortunately it came with a template. The template is some sort of acrylic type plastic that is relatively thin so I prefer to use it to make a 3/4" template that is safer to use. First I trace the shape and drill out the center. After clamping the template the router does the rest of the work.
Next the template is located on the body and the hole is rough drilled with a forstner bit. Once the template is clamped on the router finishes the job.
If you havent ever routed one of these pickups it is an absolute joy. No corners that grab and come out too tight, just one smooth curve that routes like a dream.
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My neck is slightly narrower than the .750 bridge I have on hand. This one leaves the bass playable till the proper bridge shows up.
Once strings are on the strings are spaced as close as the adjustment allows and just barely fit over the fingerboard on the higher frets.
Other than a few frets that need to be leveled it plays well and has a nice tight tone. Looking forward to seeing how the short scale affects the amplified sound. From here on its fretwork and sanding. Joy! :scowl:
Once strings are on the strings are spaced as close as the adjustment allows and just barely fit over the fingerboard on the higher frets.
Other than a few frets that need to be leveled it plays well and has a nice tight tone. Looking forward to seeing how the short scale affects the amplified sound. From here on its fretwork and sanding. Joy! :scowl:
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So now that everything is ready to go I spent a bit of time sanding this afternoon and got the body and neck finish sanded and ready. This bass is made out of a collection of hard woods so protection is not an issue. The Madrone is a stout burl with very little in the way of defects so I'm going to do a tru-oil finish. My favorite part of any build is that first coat of finish where your hard work goes from this;
To this;
Once I got it home I put it into my finishing rack so I can get to all sides evenly. After 4-5 light coats;
Cant wait to hear how this creation sounds.
To this;
Once I got it home I put it into my finishing rack so I can get to all sides evenly. After 4-5 light coats;
Cant wait to hear how this creation sounds.
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So same basic deal for the neck. Sand it absurdly and commence to rubbin'.
Once everything dries I'll buff it out to get rid of the extra sheen on the wenge in particular.
Once everything dries I'll buff it out to get rid of the extra sheen on the wenge in particular.
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The headplate veneer is a little different in respect to color and figure but they are far apart and it doesnt look too bad as a whole.
I used the veneer because I didnt want to hack up my other madrone top just to get a head plate. I rearranged my storage shed and guess what I found.
Doh!!! Oh well, it's perfect size but almost too cool to cut anyway. Maybe I'll make a bookend out of it.
In the process of moving everything I've unearthed some strange items as you can see. The duct tape face sculpture is not by me but the skull encrusted throne you see pictures of is one of my creations for an independent movie. Oh yeah, and there's a bass drying in the foreground.
Perhaps my favorite spot on this bass is this little defect on the upper horn. I kinda wish it had a few more.
I used the veneer because I didnt want to hack up my other madrone top just to get a head plate. I rearranged my storage shed and guess what I found.
Doh!!! Oh well, it's perfect size but almost too cool to cut anyway. Maybe I'll make a bookend out of it.
In the process of moving everything I've unearthed some strange items as you can see. The duct tape face sculpture is not by me but the skull encrusted throne you see pictures of is one of my creations for an independent movie. Oh yeah, and there's a bass drying in the foreground.Perhaps my favorite spot on this bass is this little defect on the upper horn. I kinda wish it had a few more.
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I did my first wiring job yesterday and I can hardly credit it to truth bit I actually got everything right on the first try. 
The pickup is a Delano Xtender quad coil. With the 3 way switch its wired series/single coil/parallel. The bass still uas to be taken apart and cleaned before final fit and setup but I wanted to use it for a show last night. For now it's wired passive with a volume and tone knob. All 3 settings are very usable and clean but if I were planning on playing it longer term I would add an active preamp. The passive low end is a little too fuzzy for my personal taste but it has a cool vibe and nice low end, many folks would prefer it passive. The midrange is very tasty all around and I suspect I'll consider these in the future.
Show went well and the short scale makes for a less physical evening. Very relaxed but there is a slight lack of oomph that I felt was associated with the scale. It still sounds good tuned down to D and even C and would most likely shine as a tenor bass with a high C.
The pickup is a Delano Xtender quad coil. With the 3 way switch its wired series/single coil/parallel. The bass still uas to be taken apart and cleaned before final fit and setup but I wanted to use it for a show last night. For now it's wired passive with a volume and tone knob. All 3 settings are very usable and clean but if I were planning on playing it longer term I would add an active preamp. The passive low end is a little too fuzzy for my personal taste but it has a cool vibe and nice low end, many folks would prefer it passive. The midrange is very tasty all around and I suspect I'll consider these in the future.
Show went well and the short scale makes for a less physical evening. Very relaxed but there is a slight lack of oomph that I felt was associated with the scale. It still sounds good tuned down to D and even C and would most likely shine as a tenor bass with a high C.
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