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Custom lucite bass bodies???

#41
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New pics from the maker. Very cool looking. 2 things I’m noticing:
Ferrules where the strings pass through the body look to not be installed yet.
Looks like he didn’t drill the hole between the pickup and control routes to pass the wires through, I guess I can always drill it myself, but would be nice to not have to.
 
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#43
darev said:
What a really cool project. Does the ground still route to the bridge?
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Well, there’s no hole drilled. I’m communicating with the maker, he’s a great communicator BTW. If he drills the hole in the usual spot it will be visible. I’m wondering if the ground wire could go from the pickup route to the bridge, it might be less visible being under and parallel to the strings.
 
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#47
Sharko said:
Well, I’ve hit a weird snag where the maker insists that a ground wire to the bridge is not necessary. Not sure I agree with that statement. Looks like I am going to be drilling it myself
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Yeah, that’s one of those things. The bridge ground isn’t required for the instrument to function, it’s an inexpensive, expedient way to reduce noise by grounding the player when they touch the strings. If you use well shielded pickups, EMG actives for example, the bridge ground isn’t necessary. No idea if EMG makes replacements for those small split pickups. You could try without the bridge ground and see how it is first.
 
#48
Gopherbassist said:
Could you ground to the control plate?
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I mean, the control plate is connected to ground, but I don’t think it will solve the issue.
Right now it has a Squier cv mustang pickup because I already had one, but I was thinking of using the Nordstrand nm4.
I could drill from the cavity to the bridge, or I could run a flat copper strip from the pickup cavity to the bridge like some old jazz basses have.
 
#49
Sharko said:
Looks like he didn’t drill the hole between the pickup and control routes to pass the wires through, I guess I can always drill it myself, but would be nice to not have to.
Click to expand...


Looks like he started drilling the hole, and quit whilst he was ahead (seems like it might have been in danger of shattering).


Sharko said:
Well, I’ve hit a weird snag where the maker insists that a ground wire to the bridge is not necessary. Not sure I agree with that statement. Looks like I am going to be drilling it myself
Click to expand...


Assuming the pickup cavity hole to the control cavity was as problematic as it appears to have been, I think there's significant risk involved (and it would look pretty ugly, even if it goes without a hitch).

Maybe the simplest, least ugly compromise, is to adopt a vintage Jazz style earth strap, on top of the body, between the bridge and the pickup cavity.
 
#50
Wood and Wire said:
Looks like he started drilling the hole, and quit whilst he was ahead (seems like it might have been in danger of shattering).





Assuming the pickup cavity hole to the control cavity was as problematic as it appears to have been, I think there's significant risk involved (and it would look pretty ugly, even if it goes without a hitch).

Maybe the simplest, least ugly compromise, is to adopt a vintage Jazz style earth strap, on top of the body, between the bridge and the pickup cavity.
Click to expand...
I’m thinking exactly what you’re thinking
 
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#51
There is another thread that was started earlier in the day regarding grounding bridges. @agedhorse chimes in here: https://www.talkbass.com/threads/ac...round-connection.1672264/page-2#post-29088964

I am sorry for clawing open a potential kerfuffle. I am (and was) genuinely curious how it works. The thread that I linked to implies that perhaps active pickups, specifically EMGs, might not have that issue? (I also just found that other bridge ground thread just now)

Again, my apologies. I wanted to learn and not cause chaos.
 
#52
darev said:
There is another thread that was started earlier in the day regarding grounding bridges. @agedhorse chimes in here: https://www.talkbass.com/threads/ac...round-connection.1672264/page-2#post-29088964

I am sorry for clawing open a potential kerfuffle. I am (and was) genuinely curious how it works. The thread that I linked to implies that perhaps active pickups, specifically EMGs, might not have that issue? (I also just found that other bridge ground thread just now)

Again, my apologies. I wanted to learn and not cause chaos.
Click to expand...
You didn’t cause the conflict at all, I had already messaged the maker about the missing bridge ground.
He just put it all together to test fit it, assembly was never part of our arrangement. I am going to have to wire it myself, but it looks like I am going to have to drill some hole myself to do it the way I want it.
 
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#53
Ok, I received it, and the results are so laughably bad that I don’t quite know what to do next. I’ll take some pictures in the light of day to show why this body is unusable. I’m not sure if sending it back is the right thing to do. If he’s willing to refund it, then I would do that, but if we wants to try again I’m not really interested as it’s clear he does not have the skills or the tools to complete the project. Part of me just wants to keep it so that I don’t have to embarrass this guy by showing him everything wrong with it. I’ll have to handle the conversation delicately.
 
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#56
darev said:
Uh, … that sucks in so many ways
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Yup. He seems a little offended by my feedback that this body is not useable because the pickup cavity is so shallow and the top of the bass is so wavy that the pickups are above the strings. That is, IF you could put a neck on the bass in the first place. The neck pocket is so rough and imprecise that a neck does not fit into it, even though it fits into the neck pocket of the body that was used to make the mold.
 
#58
#59
I googled Dan Armstrong bass and found used for $2,100, but more interesting was a near copy made by Pango Music Guitars for $375! It has a single hum bucker, not sure about the neck, but it's a pretty good copy. I'd post the link but not sure how to do that.
 
#60
BassicJazzy said:
I googled Dan Armstrong bass and found used for $2,100, but more interesting was a near copy made by Pango Music Guitars for $375! It has a single hum bucker, not sure about the neck, but it's a pretty good copy. I'd post the link but not sure how to do that.
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I’m aware of the Dan Armstrong copy options.
There was one made in the 90’s by Greco, they seem to sell for about $1500.
eBay is full of Chinese copies for $250 -$350. Some are unbranded, some say Dan Armstrong on the pickguard, and some are sold under the name Bad Cat, but the all appear to come from the same assembly line. there are several threads from TBers who bought them. Strangely, these are 32” scale instead of 30” like the original.

That said, I’m not looking for a Dan Armstrong, I was looking for options for custom clear bodies in order to have a mustang bass body made. TBers so far have found 2 luthiers that can do it, and I have found a guy on etsy who says he can do it but can’t.
 
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