Double Bass Advice needed on Kolstein Guarneri model neck angle repair

[Eric Hochberg]

Thanks, that’s the exact description. t’s very odd that someone would confuse my bass with such different models when I’ve stated the facts, perhaps someone cross posted by mistake

Try and find another Kolstein Guarneri model and have a reputable luthier take measurements. then yours could be brought back to original.

 

[eh_train]

Hi LRM,

My bad, I was looking at a bunch of posts and confused your pics with another. Definitely you have a much nicer bass than a Shen ply!

 

[KUNGfuSHERIFF]

That neck angle is *(&(&*) INSANE. Please consider naming the shop. How tall is the bridge, foot to crown?

From what I can see it should be possible for A SHOP THAT KNOWS WHAT ITS’S DOING to save that neck. The fingerboard will have to be removed from the neck and the neck from the block, and the front of the heel planed down until it sets at an appropriate angle.

Once that has been achieved the board can be replaced and the neck set fine-tuned. The extreme angle of the set could account for the added mensure. Man, that is just embarrassing work.

 

[DaveAceofBass]

Hello, last year my bass suffered an accident upon arriving from a flight from San Juan to Orlando, a crack developed on the lower scroll area. Was recommended a shop in Tampa where I was told I needed a neck graft (later some people have told me it would have been better and cheaper just to do a new scroll but who knew), they ended up taking almost 7 months and when I got the instrument the guy had changed the neck angle and position of the neck, increasing string length by 2 inches
Don’t get me started on the fingerboard…

This bass I bought it precisely because I had never found a bass where I found the intonation to be so easy (I noticed this on other copies of this model and some of the other Kolstein basses I tried back in 2019) the instrument and setup fit me like a glove and I had tried many instruments at the time.

I thought I’d get used to the changes but though I can technically play the instrument it feels like a totally different instrument and is not as ergonomically helpful, needless to say it’s incredibly annoying to know it used to be so much better

I thought to go to the Kolstein luthiers since they’d know how to correct the neck placement but given the situation at the moment I’ve been advised to hold off on that

Also I don’t have the previous measurements myself so hard to describe to a luthier what I’d want.

I really loved this instrument particularly for solo playing and still has a very good sound but I’d give anything to restore it even if it might not be a "good investment" given it’s not such an expensive instrument.
Any advice would be appreciated.

LM

I have a Guarneri, circa 2006 or 2007...bought it from Barrie Kolstein. I'm also under 2 hours away from Bass Violin Shop in Greensboro, and they have worked on my bass. If you came to North Carolina, they might be able to fix it and take measurements from mine. DM me.

 

[luisraulmunoz]

I have a Guarneri, circa 2006 or 2007...bought it from Barrie Kolstein. I'm also under 2 hours away from Bass Violin Shop in Greensboro, and they have worked on my bass. If you came to North Carolina, they might be able to fix it and take measurements from mine. DM me.

Thank you for your kind offer, if I’m able to go I will write you

 

[groooooove]

Thank you for your kind offer, if I’m able to go I will write you

if you do go to BVS, I think you'll be happy. I've seen their work and have friends who are busy professionals who all speak highly of them.

so sorry this happened... a shame. I'll echo what the others have said, naming the shop would be helpful, sine this is a pretty big disaster we'd like to know who caused it.

Hopefully you go to BVS or similar and we get a happy ending and it's a reasonable cost to you.

 

[luisraulmunoz]

the shop where this happened is Violin Shop Tampa

I think to some degree I was wrong and blame myself as I should have been more insistent in that nothing be changed but after already four months of not doing the job the luthier called me insisting something “was wrong with the block where neck goes” etc etc

The shop had been recommended by someone with best intentions and since I never heard back from Kolsteins i decided to go with them as I had no other instrument

I am not a luthier and never had something like this happen before so I said a slight difference in string length if say half and inch was ok maybe because I was desperate idk

But from the beginning my instructions were to copy the original setup and angle so I had no idea the angle would change

It gets worse

about a month after receiving the instrument (it took 7 months almost) I noticed that the fingerboard was not perfectly flush with the neck in the lower positions, well about a month ago it started to separate and on Christmas Eve the fingerboard came unglued, luckily I was cleaning the instrument and immediately detuned and removed the strings

The areas on the neck where varnish was applied to match the scroll and the body started peeling of after about a month of playing even though the person who does the finishing (a self described perfectionist) had about two weeks to do the work because the neck had been glued already
Still he complained he couldn’t rush it or whatever (a friend of mine here in Puerto Rico fixed this in a few days…)

While at the ISB convention this year I consulted with several good luthiers showing them the photos and they all said a neck graft wouldn’t have been necessary that there were simpler solutions etc…

So these are the facts regarding this misadventure. The bass is playable but has never been as easy to play as it was (fingerboard was also redone poorly) the sound is good but different, perhaps a bit more bottom but the highs were better before

Thanks to everyone who commented and offered ideas and help