Attaching bridge to brass plate ala Alembic

Greg Curbow (may he RIP) used to have a brass block glued into the body under the top lamination, and the bridge bolted into this. IIRC, he tapped threads into it and used machine screws to attach the bridge. Had a 30 minute phone conversation with him about this several years ago...

 

Yes, I tried this in the mid 70s with a P bass. I had a luthier, Attila from Vancouver, build me a brass bridge and sink a brass bar into the body. Attila was a good machinist as well as luthier so he did a good job.

It did change the sound somewhat. A bit more sustain, not that I needed any more, and the frequency response seemed a bit more even-in other words, the harmonics were more in balance on most of the notes.

The downside was, it lost a lot of the P bass character when playing live. Also, there was less of a connection between me and the instrument. I couldn't really feel the body resonating. I kind of missed that. Recording, there wasn't much of a difference when the bass was mixed into its proper level. It also added about 1 1/2 lbs to an already heavy instrument.

Myself, I wouldn't bother with it. And you have to consider what bridge you're going to start from to estimate what difference it might make. In the case of my Fender with the stock cheesy bridge and going to a brass bridge and a 1" thick chunk of brass underneath, there was a lot of difference between them. Going from something like a heavier Badass or similar bridge, you might not notice much of a difference.

I eventually traded off that bass. It was a decent playing bass but back in those days we were all trying these different tricks to customize our instruments. So, I was disappointed in the results, and by then Fenders had stopped sounding as good as the early 60s Fenders. Of course now it would be considered a valuable vintage instrument that some fool had carved up and destroyed.

 

It is funny that you mention Atilla(I assume since he was from vancouver, it was Atilla Balogh). I have an odyssey bass that he hand built. It also has a brass plate sunk into the body, with a brass bridge and brass saddles and a brass nut. The bass has some sustain to it lol.


Simon

 

IIRC, Geoff St. Germaine's Dingwall had a brass plate below the bridge.

As far as "what kind of brass," anything would do unless it were very thin, in which case you would want a stronger alloy, just so that the threads wouldn't strip out. The alloys should be close enough in stiffness and density that the effect on tone, whatever effect that may be, should be about the same.

 

Yes, he's the one. It's too bad he passed on. He was a good guy. I used to live around the corner from his first shop at 18th and Cambie. He was just doing repairs then and building a few custom guitars. I picked his brain a lot. He started out as an antique refinisher.

Then he decided to get into production and opened up a factory in North Vancouver. I visited the place once. He was really proud of his whole operation and the quality of workmanship. He was turning out about 100 instruments a month then. I think the downturn in the economy did him in later. It's too bad. The Odyssey basses were very nice.

 

I enjoy mine, but it has a crack in the body(superficial) but it brings the value down. Also, it weighs just shy of one metric ton, so playing it live is out of the question.

Simon

 

That's what happened with my bass. I don't claim it will hold true with all of them.

At any rate, it's a lot of work for very little gain, if any.

 

I have done this. And the bass has unbelievable sustain, but I can't tell you if it's due to the "sustain block". It could be the Katalox/Mahogany body, Ebony in the neck, or whatever...

Oh, and it's not a plate, it's a block 3/4 inch thick.

 

Where do you get your brass stock?

 

I bet you would guess in 3 guesses


onlinemetals.com

 

Doesn't Wawick also do something similar to this, IIRC I had a Corvette that had a similar setup.