Assembling a Warmoth bass?

[bassgod76]

Like I said, my first order was fine. It was my second that became a gigantic mess. I placed an order for a slew of parts, and then minutes later I realized i needed to add some knobs to the order. Admittedly, my bad, not theirs. I sent an email immediately, i called, and no one answered so i left a message. The next day i followed up by phone and email, no answer, no response. This went on for about a week, at which point i realized they have no customer service whatsoever. I wasn't sending threatening emails, and i only left that first voicemail.

Several days later my order arrived with all the parts as requested. The tusq nut, however arrived loose in the box with no markings or packaging whatsoever, and if you've seen a tusq nut, they look an awful lot like a corian nut, or a plastic one. Who knows what it was I actually got, but it was cut (or shaped, i should say) far too small to be usable on any bass. I wrote emails, i called daily to no avail. I accepted the loss as a lesson in where I do my future parts-buying business, since it wasn't expensive. From all that I can tell, the company seems to run on autopilot, with not even a hint of customer support should they or you make a mistake. I hit up my trusty TB several times during all this and spoke to a number of others who had had similar issues. After comparing notes with some fellow Tusq nut-purchasers, we theorized that they might be factory rejects since we all received unusable nuts. I'm not saying they're evil, or that you can't get what you want from them at a good price, but at the end of the day, it certainly wasn't a positive buying experience for me, and i'm still out the cost of that tusq nut. Obviously YMMV.

Again, sorry to derail, just hoping to save some trouble down the road.

Yeah, I kind of see what you're saying. I never called them, but they are not as accomodating like a Stew Mac or some of the dealers on Ebay. Anyways, they have a lot of stuff, and some stuff that you really can't find elsewhere. I have a dealer on Ebay that I just bought some stuff from. Got a great deal, and the owner was pretty nice. I will let you know how I made out when I get the parts.

 

[fish slapper]

I bought my Warmoth body second hand and ordered a new neck from them and it fit like a glove. So I assume Warmoth to Warmoth is all good. BTW: Mine is a J bass with a Tele P neck. Soooo goooood.

 

[evhest]

I'm no expert with tools, but building a Warmoth doesn't require such expertise. The biggest job was finishing the body in a satin finish. Very satisfying if it all works out. I recomend buying body and neck from them and purchase other parts elsewhere (eBay etc). Should save you some money.

 

[EricF]

I'm no expert with tools, but building a Warmoth doesn't require such expertise. The biggest job was finishing the body in a satin finish. Very satisfying if it all works out. I recomend buying body and neck from them and purchase other parts elsewhere (eBay etc). Should save you some money.

That's a beauty! Good job.

 

[bassgod76]

I'm no expert with tools, but building a Warmoth doesn't require such expertise. The biggest job was finishing the body in a satin finish. Very satisfying if it all works out. I recomend buying body and neck from them and purchase other parts elsewhere (eBay etc). Should save you some money.

Such a nice piece. Love natural with gold hardware.

 

[EddieG]

gonna go a wee bit off topic here, but someone above mentioned basspartsresource... and I have to say DO NOT order from them. First time I ordered was just some simple hardware, and i got it no problem. Next time there was several issues with the order. Didn't respond to email, never once answered the phone. There are threads on here positing that they resell factory reject pre-cut Tusq nuts, since many of us have gotten them with nut slots cut far too deep, or in my case, the nut itself was cut about 3/16" too short.

Sorry to digress.

My experience is exactly the opposite. I ordered a lot of parts from them for my Warmoth, various other bits and pieces over the last few years, and am using them now for parts for the instrument I'm constructing with USA Custom Guitars. I've always had my stuff arrive quickly and always packaged appropriately, without exception.

 

[wyliee]

My experience is exactly the opposite. I ordered a lot of parts from them for my Warmoth, various other bits and pieces over the last few years, and am using them now for parts for the instrument I'm constructing with USA Custom Guitars. I've always had my stuff arrive quickly and always packaged appropriately, without exception.

I believe he was referring to doing business with basspartsresource and NOT Warmoth. At least, I hope that's the case!

 

[Bass Viking]

My experience is exactly the opposite. I ordered a lot of parts from them for my Warmoth, various other bits and pieces over the last few years, and am using them now for parts for the instrument I'm constructing with USA Custom Guitars. I've always had my stuff arrive quickly and always packaged appropriately, without exception.

I believe he was referring to doing business with basspartsresource and NOT Warmoth. At least, I hope that's the case!

I think EddieG meant that he did order parts from Basspartsresource, to be used with his Warmoth and USA Custom Guitars parts.

 

[ishouldbeking]

I believe he was referring to doing business with basspartsresource and NOT Warmoth. At least, I hope that's the case!

Yeah, I'm definitely referring to basspartsresource, not warmoth. Never ordered from warmoth, though i hope to at some point. There have been a few discussions about basspartsresource (also search for guitarpartsresource), and typically some people will defend them, but usually solely on the basis of having placed their order online and received what they had ordered without incident. They seem to generally be fine. But god forbid you need to contact them, because as I learned, you cannot. And i'm not the only one on TB who's received a defective Tusq nut and been burned.

EDIT: Again, sorry to keep this long thread derail going. This thread should be about all the sweet warmoth basses not my bad experience with a completely separate vendor. I was hoping to spare others my irritating fate by sharing my experience, but I won't keep harping on it any longer in this thread.

 

[bassgod76]

Yeah, I'm definitely referring to basspartsresource, not warmoth. Never ordered from warmoth, though i hope to at some point. There have been a few discussions about basspartsresource (also search for guitarpartsresource), and typically some people will defend them, but usually solely on the basis of having placed their order online and received what they had ordered without incident. They seem to generally be fine. But god forbid you need to contact them, because as I learned, you cannot. And i'm not the only one on TB who's received a defective Tusq nut and been burned.

EDIT: Again, sorry to keep this long thread derail going. This thread should be about all the sweet warmoth basses not my bad experience with a completely separate vendor. I was hoping to spare others my irritating fate by sharing my experience, but I won't keep harping on it any longer in this thread.

I enjoyed the derail. I never get to hear a lot of stories about these parts places (Bass Parts Res, Best Bass Gear, DGuitars, and Guitar Parts Depot). Since I visit these 4 places for price quotes almost daily, I like to know who is there for the buyer and who isn't.
Just an FYI; I found a place on Ebay callled HD Custom Guitar Supply. They have killer prices on tuners and hardware, plus the owner Josh gives prompt replies on questions. I get my stuff either today or tomorrow. I will let you know how everything looks when I get it. Check them out!

 

[wyliee]

I enjoyed the derail. I never get to hear a lot of stories about these parts places (Bass Parts Res, Best Bass Gear, DGuitars, and Guitar Parts Depot). Since I visit these 4 places for price quotes almost daily, I like to know who is there for the buyer and who isn't.
Just an FYI; I found a place on Ebay callled HD Custom Guitar Supply. They have killer prices on tuners and hardware, plus the owner Josh gives prompt replies on questions. I get my stuff either today or tomorrow. I will let you know how everything looks when I get it. Check them out!

Since we've derailed the thread, I'll throw in my support for Brian at Best Bass Gear. He's been stellar to work with for several personal projects. A perfect match for anything Warmoth doesn't carry!

 

[ishouldbeking]

haha, well if we're gonna indulge the derail, i can safely say i've had great luck with guitarfetish too. they don't stock everything, and some of what they do stock is a little weird (like their pots), but they're really easy to deal with and have pretty great prices.

 

[fender3x]

haha sorry man. I wish I spent half as much time practicing as I did thinking about my GAS

Ditto that!

I think there ought to be a bit of a reality check here. There are lots of good reasons to build a guitar, but cost ain't one of them. There are some nutso claims being made about cost here.

For example, will the whole thing cost around what a MIM Fender would cost? Answer: no friggin' way. The cheapest finished body and neck combo from either Allparts or Warmoth will be over $600 without shipping. Maybe you'll get a deal, but it won't drop the price too much and that's the CHEAPEST they offer directly. Maybe you'll get lucky on ebay. Maybe you'll get ripped off.

Figure at least $200-300 in parts. And that's for cheap stuff. It's tempting to just think about pickups, but you need tuning machines, pots, pickguard, bridge. Hell, a boutique p-bass pickup and bridge can get you to $200...and you need a lot more stuff than that.

Then there's the assembly, and any tools you don't have that you will need to get...

Add some $100-200 if you want a pro to set it up and cut the neck for you.

I think you'll find you are in new G&L tribute, and could be in Lakland Skyline territory.

Build for the satisfaction. Build to learn. Build to have a totally unique instrument. Don't do it to save money.

 

[MagicMan_841]

Just an FYI; I found a place on Ebay callled HD Custom Guitar Supply. They have killer prices on tuners and hardware, plus the owner Josh gives prompt replies on questions. I get my stuff either today or tomorrow. I will let you know how everything looks when I get it. Check them out!

+1 on HD Custom. Check out also Pin-Up guitar parts, another decent eBayer.

 

[joeyl]

I bought all my Hipshot hardware from wymoreguitars.com. John Wymore is a straight up guy. Electronics I have bought from bestbassgear.com, THE Brian Ristola is a nice guy, super helpful with everything, they personally called my house when my parts were back ordered.

 

[bassgod76]

Ditto that!

I think there ought to be a bit of a reality check here. There are lots of good reasons to build a guitar, but cost ain't one of them. There are some nutso claims being made about cost here.

For example, will the whole thing cost around what a MIM Fender would cost? Answer: no friggin' way. The cheapest finished body and neck combo from either Allparts or Warmoth will be over $600 without shipping. Maybe you'll get a deal, but it won't drop the price too much and that's the CHEAPEST they offer directly. Maybe you'll get lucky on ebay. Maybe you'll get ripped off.

Figure at least $200-300 in parts. And that's for cheap stuff. It's tempting to just think about pickups, but you need tuning machines, pots, pickguard, bridge. Hell, a boutique p-bass pickup and bridge can get you to $200...and you need a lot more stuff than that.

Then there's the assembly, and any tools you don't have that you will need to get...

Add some $100-200 if you want a pro to set it up and cut the neck for you.

I think you'll find you are in new G&L tribute, and could be in Lakland Skyline territory.

Build for the satisfaction. Build to learn. Build to have a totally unique instrument. Don't do it to save money.

I agree. Saving money should not be the goal. You might as well use your money towards the purchase of a nice standard model at your local music store. However, if you do decide to do a parts build; shop around. You can almost knock off a couple hundred bucks on a project by doing some research. I put everything on a spreadsheet so I can price compare. Also, it may be highly unlikely that one vendor will have all the parts you need at the cheapest price. Plan your purchases, so you save on shipping costs. This project I'm currently working on had me ordering parts from 3 different vendors. Because I did my homework, I saved over $150.00. This may be chump change to some TBers, but it's significant to me.
Just my $.02.

 

[bassgod76]

I bought all my Hipshot hardware from wymoreguitars.com. John Wymore is a straight up guy. Electronics I have bought from bestbassgear.com, THE Brian Ristola is a nice guy, super helpful with everything, they personally called my house when my parts were back ordered.

I checked out Wymore, and his prices are good. However, HD Custom beat him out. For example:
HB2 Hipshot tuners (set of four)
Wymore: $71.80
HB Custom: $56.00

 

[ishouldbeking]

I checked out Wymore, and his prices are good. However, HD Custom beat him out. For example:
HB2 Hipshot tuners (set of four)
Wymore: $71.80
HB Custom: $56.00

Just a suggestion/recommendation, as far as tuners go... obviously Hipshots are great. But for the price Wilkinson makes very good tuners, which guitarfetish carries for $8.95 each (or $36 total). Much better than generic tuners, much cheaper than hipshots or schaller.

 

[bassgod76]

Just a suggestion/recommendation, as far as tuners go... obviously Hipshots are great. But for the price Wilkinson makes very good tuners, which guitarfetish carries for $8.95 each (or $36 total). Much better than generic tuners, much cheaper than hipshots or schaller.

What's the ratio on Wilkinson?

 

[ishouldbeking]

What's the ratio on Wilkinson?

not positive. i think the sealed are 17:1 (according to our friends at basspartsresource, ha), but the cloverleaf don't have a number listed.