Same here. I have items sitting in a cart for a total of $783 after tax. LOL I have the electronics. I'm going to hold off until I talk to my neighbor down the street who is an artist. I want to see what he would charge for a custom paint/graphic.
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Build a Warmoth or wait for a medium scale MIJ Precision to surface?
- Thread starter DJWhitJr
- Start date
Warmoth paint jobs are pretty reasonable. Why wouldn't you want them to paint it?
Two of mine are warmoth finishes, two aren’t (wanted nitro for some reason). They do a nice job and are cheaper than anybody else. Also, if you get a roasted maple neck, they don’t need a finish (and feel great) and a raw roasted maple is a little cheaper than painted regular maple
There is a significant delay in paint jobs for bodies from the Showcase. It may apply to other jobs as well.
All valid points. My issue is with the current delay, which is apparently significant.
Wait for a used Warmoth or Fender to pop up. Snag something in the meantime like this
For Sale/Trade - MIJ Fernandes Medium Scale P/J (7lbs 4ozs)
For Sale/Trade - MIJ Fernandes Medium Scale P/J (7lbs 4ozs)
A message regarding the paint delay appears on the detail page for a short-scale body. They do offer to prepare the body for a DIY paint job, though, which I assume includes sanding, sealing, and primer.
I love the way that looks but I already have a PJ. For no valid reason I want a P.
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If you build a Warmoth, get exactly what you want as their resale isn't the best.
I agree. A Warmoth project is so personal and specific that it doesn’t have as much appeal on the secondary market.
If the quality is the equivalent of of the older Japanese Fenders than keeping an eye out for a used Warmoth is another option I'm going to consider.
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The tricky thing with Warmoth for me is if you let them choose your woods, you could get what they call "high grade" flamed maple as in this showcase body. I call this 2A(ish). Prices can quickly go out of hand if you start choosing your own "unique choice" tops. I paid extra for super high grade flamed neck and got a very weakly flamed neck. I still buy from them though..
I bought a birdseye tele neck from them that has basically no birdseye. Fortunately, this was back when that was maybe a 10 buck upgrade
Yea, buying sight unseen can be a big risk. I've done it once in 1988 and now only buy from the showcase where I can see the item and know the weight.
That turns out to be true for every custom build - you order something off the beaten path because....it was supposedly your dream bass, and.....if it isn't, now you have to find someone who's dream bass it actually is, or...yeah, you usually take a bath on it. With a Warmoth buid, you may spend $1500, and it it doesn't thrill you, you'll probably lose half. If you ordered something from say the Fender Custom shop, it'd be $4000, and if it didn't work out you might get $2500 back. So.....you got more back in percentage, but wait, you forked out more cash, it took longer, and in the end you lost more actual money.
The solution is not to assume your "dream bass guess" is a good one - you should have played something pretty darn close to your dream bass before you go ordering a custom build or parts for one.
That's probably due to the mysteries of neck carving - they probably picked out a nice blank, with decent figuring visible, but once the neck is cut, the figuring is in the sawdust, not in the neck that's left. When you're making everything to order, that's gotta come up a lot. I've gotten a few necks that weren't spec'd as figured, but...they had some (though not a lot).
If you ask, they will tell you what their lead time is. I ordered about 8 bodies and/or necks during the last 3 years, and every one has been within what they quoted time wise - a few were a week or two early.
My vote goes to Warmoth for sure. I have assembled three parts basses with Warmoth bodies and necks now, and I have zero complaints. I am sure that more Warmoth builds will be in my future. IME the quality is great, fit and finish great, etc. Put it together and play, basically. Also, I can echo what micguy says about lead times--what they have quoted to me has always been accurate. Paint takes longer right now, that's just the way it is, but my most recent order was not delayed beyond the lead time they gave me when I issued the order.
If you're looking at Warmoth's Short Scale Bass (SSB) bodies and necks, then options are a bit more limited compared to the 34" scale stuff, like fewer body shapes and 1.5" as the only nut width available, but there is still a lot of customizing you can do. And certain limitations might actually play into your favor (e.g., you don't have to choose between steel rods and paying to upgrade to graphite rods because SSB necks don't require stiffening rods).
I will also add that re: weight and good balance: I've become a pretty big believer in roasted maple necks from Warmoth. My 34" roasted maple neck (w/ graphite rods) is noticeably lighter than the 34" maple neck (w/ steel rods) that I ordered previously. The different stiffening rods certainly are a factor, but I think the roasted maple is also a tad lighter than a regular maple neck as well. If I was building a short/medium scale with a Warmoth SSB body and neck, I'd definitely be going for roasted maple as the neck wood. Just my 2 cents
If you're looking at Warmoth's Short Scale Bass (SSB) bodies and necks, then options are a bit more limited compared to the 34" scale stuff, like fewer body shapes and 1.5" as the only nut width available, but there is still a lot of customizing you can do. And certain limitations might actually play into your favor (e.g., you don't have to choose between steel rods and paying to upgrade to graphite rods because SSB necks don't require stiffening rods).
I will also add that re: weight and good balance: I've become a pretty big believer in roasted maple necks from Warmoth. My 34" roasted maple neck (w/ graphite rods) is noticeably lighter than the 34" maple neck (w/ steel rods) that I ordered previously. The different stiffening rods certainly are a factor, but I think the roasted maple is also a tad lighter than a regular maple neck as well. If I was building a short/medium scale with a Warmoth SSB body and neck, I'd definitely be going for roasted maple as the neck wood. Just my 2 cents
