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Double Bass best option for protecting bass edges

Chris Paget

Chris Paget

Sep 1, 2008
116
2
#1
Hi all, I have a new upright and am already starting to notice some wear along the edges just from being set down lightly. Am opposed to upright stands largely and have seen some bassists put a tape along the edge. I've thought about carrying carpet along but not sure what's most feasible. What are suggestions here, and what tape would work, if that's an option?
 
#3
Since I often let the bass slide over the floor when putting it down, the blocks glued to the ribs won't work well with my habits.
I slit a clear uncolored PVC tube lengthwise that will grip around the top and back edges. (A tip from the German bass forum Geba-online.de.)

To find the right diameter you need to measure the length around the edges from top to rib and find a PCV tube with the INNER circumference equal or a bit smaller to that.

At the beginning it should hold by itself, but might get stripped off when taking the bass out of the bag.
I have them on for more than a year now and they needed to be glued on.
First attempt was using an elastic contact glue at the ends only, but one didn't hold well (the long one on the lower back), so glued the tube on at five spots with elastic contact glue. This was done just a few days ago, so no experience how well it holds. But no problems yet.

I think 1 mm wall thickness of the tube is enough. I used 1.5 mm and now think that 1 mm would have been enough and does not enlarge the outline of the bass too much.

The only thing is that the bass does not slip as well as before, so I might need to lift it up instead of sliding. (But that might break my bad habit of sliding the bass.)
 
#4
Chris Paget said:
What are suggestions here, and what tape would work, if that's an option?
Click to expand...

Tape won't help much (the damage happens anyway), and you'll likely come to regret it when the adhesive starts to creep and pick up gunk. Unless you're after a Bill Black vibe, don't bother.

The leather (sometimes wood) pads that we typically see are attached to the ribs, lifting the edges off the floor with only a small visual footprint. I use the leather stick-ons from Gollihur.
 
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#5
I've actually seen thumb tacks used in the exact contact areas with a high degree of success. With the right metal color to match the finish of the bass, thumb tacks can be almost invisible. And of course, a person has to decide if the look and the little hole is better than the damage without.

My DB is metal, powder coated, so I can't try thumb tacks. I don't mind putting the bass on its side on carpet or nice floor, or even soft sand or grass, but I don't particularly enjoy putting it on its side on gravel, or on a cement or tarmac slab. I do usually bring and use the folding K&M 14100 stand for gigs with excellent success, but I'll watch it like a hawk and often find another more protected location for it if there are lots of people around, or if it's windy.
 
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#7
I have an indoor doormat that I take to some gigs. It fits in the back pocket of my bag, and also helps with the endpin sliding on nasty floors. A lot of the older players around here rest their bass in a chair or piano bench against the treble side rib. I've never been able to allow myself to do that. It is more stable than it looks, but yeesh... All it takes is one drunk to knock it over, and a lot of the places I play are full of drunks.
 
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#10
Be careful about thinking carpet is your friend.

As long as the grain of the edges is closed, you're okay. But eventually it will become uneven either from mishap or the quicker wearing of the soft summer growth between darker winter growth lines.

Then you have crevices for carpet fibers to sneak into and literally pry the edge off when you lift the bass from the floor. Especially if you tend to slide like doublemidi speaks of.

I've had it happen.

So in addition to bumpers (and my leather ones have lasted twenty some years), it's not a bad idea to seal any existing crevices in your edges if you lay down on carpet. Varnish, hide or even CA glues can work fine.
 
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#15
Chris Fitzgerald said:
Gollihur bumpers on both basses. Love those things to death.
Click to expand...

Just ordered a set. The moment I got my new bass, it was obvious a solution like this would be necessary. No matter how gentle you try to be while setting the bass down, the physical size of this instrument makes it impossible to see where/when it touches the floor and gauge that connection with precision. Easy to see how the edges of the bass can suffer from that impediment.
 
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