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Acoustic Electric Bass

#201
So I sanded down all of the patches, happy that it was finally done, when I grabbed the shell and heard a small area crack. Apparently, I had sanded through a couple of small areas near the bottom where the shell met the inner surround. So once again I mixed up a batch of bondo and filled it in. I'll let that cure while I work on the top and braces.

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#204
GKon said:
Gosh, Mapleglo, you have the patience of a saint. I could NEVER sit through so many tries of glass, sand, glass, sand, glass, sand etc.
I would lose my mind.

Looking forward to your upcoming work :)
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Of all the things in life I've lost, I miss my mind the most :P

Thanks. I think I may have mentioned earlier that I seem to have patience for some things, but not for others. Like when it comes to finishing, I can't seem to find the patience for sanding and buffing. For some reason, I seem to be able to handle this.

In any event, I started gluing up the inner frame work.

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#205
I would skip the little cross bar sections of your frame work, and cut the long sections a little thinner to allow for more top resonance. Maybe add a thin cross brace horizontally across the two vertical ones.
 
#206
Hopkins said:
I would skip the little cross bar sections of your frame work, and cut the long sections a little thinner to allow for more top resonance. Maybe add a thin cross brace horizontally across the two vertical ones.
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The lower cross section is the block to which the bridge will screw into, and the middle one will be mostly routed out for the pickup. The one being glued in is just the lower section for the neck pocket rout. The upper portion of the neck area above the line on the aluminum will be cut off. I just needed that area for reference.
 
#207
So I sanded down the last patch, and quickly sprayed a coat of the textured paint on it. so as not to be tempted to smooth out the shell any further.

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You can see the bridge and pickup blocks clamped to the braces in the back ground.

I suppose I'll have to wait until this coat is dry, and spray another for a final assessment of the coverage.

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So far, I'm not impressed.
 
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#208
Second coat, now dry to the touch.

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I'll let that cure and decide if I can live with it. In the mean time, I'll start working on the top. Perhaps a coat of the duratex will do a better job of hiding the imperfect surface of the shell. Sanding that smooth would take quite a bit of effort, along with several coats of resin. I'm not sure that I want to do that.
 
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#210
mapleglo said:
Second coat, now dry to the touch.

2cfprf4.jpg


I'll let that cure and decide if I can live with it. In the mean time, I'll start working on the top. Perhaps a coat of the duratex will do a better job of hiding the imperfect surface of the shell. Sanding that smooth would take quite a bit of effort, along with several coats of resin. I'm not sure that I want to do that.
Click to expand...

Pretty darn awesome MG - it has a real organic look to it, I wouldn't do any more fussing at this point, but as always you are the judge of that. ("Your honor, Mr Mason is badgering the witness") :D
 
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#211
Thanks guys :)

I'll likely leave it for now, and see about assembling the rest of the bass and get it playing. I hope to have it together by the end of the week. I really should have make some sound clips of the previous shell to compare to the current one. Though I can't imagine it will sound very different. Another few days should tell.
 
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#213
mapleglo said:
I thought about using bondo, and I still may, but it's heavy, and I may have to use a bit to smooth out some areas. My inclination at this point is to buy a can of that textured paint and spray on a coat on to see how it looks. I've been trying to keep this low budget as well. I have a little resin left, but I was hoping to use that to bond the top to the shell.
Click to expand...

My luthier swears by this stuff. Feather-Rite.
http://www.amazon.com/U-S-Chemical-...18013176&sr=1-2-catcorr&keywords=Feather+rite
 
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#214
mapleglo said:
Thanks guys :)

I'll likely leave it for now, and see about assembling the rest of the bass and get it playing. I hope to have it together by the end of the week. I really should have make some sound clips of the previous shell to compare to the current one. Though I can't imagine it will sound very different. Another few days should tell.
Click to expand...

I think that you did an awesome job, and although I can relate to the perfectionist tendencies I think that the little imperfections add rather than detract to the allure of this particular instrument. This is an instrument I would be proud to have in my collection, so if you are ever desiring to sell it please put me at the top of your list... ;)
 
#215
michaelwayneharwood said:
I think that you did an awesome job, and although I can relate to the perfectionist tendencies I think that the little imperfections add rather than detract to the allure of this particular instrument. This is an instrument I would be proud to have in my collection, so if you are ever desiring to sell it please put me at the top of your list... ;)
Click to expand...

Thanks for making this excellent point. Perfection can be often misconstrued as having something to do with shiny or smooth. :thumbsup:
 
#216
The importance of ensuring your fences are true, prior to starting.

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I tried to fix it, but I think it's too far gone, and now the seat of the neck pocket is way tilted. I'd better just glue up a new one, and make sure it's clamped down tight so I don't have to try and "fix" it again.

Oh, and thanks everyone for your comments and suggestions :) I'm still undecided about the shell finish. I'm thinking I'll move forward with this and see how it looks once I'm closer.
 
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