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Drake Custom 5 string build

#42
As of this last weekend I have about 6 coats of Tru oil on her. I spent about 9 days applying these coats. The first few coats were blotted on like I described last time. The finish looked great from just those coats but there always is some lint and crap that sticks to the thicker coats. So I use a 3M fine grit abrasive pad to smooth the surface down and to remove any dust nibs. The thicker coats were allowed to dry about 3 days before I first got aggressive with the abrasive pads. Then I applied the last few coats by using a standard wiping technique like French polishing. In between these light coats I use the abrasive pads. There is just enough of scratch pattern on the surface to allow the oil to have a bit of a mechanical bond with the previous coat.

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Now for coat 7. After I hit the entire instrument with the scratch pad, I then use some naphtha and the micro mesh to begin the wet sanding phase. This helps to remove some scratches that do mark up the surface from the abrasive pad and leave a nice smooth surface.
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While wet sanding, I constantly wipe away the residue that collects from the micro mesh and naphtha. If I left it on the surface it would stick to the finish and leave white splotches where it dried.
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More wet sanding. At this point the finish is a nice satin finish due to the micro mesh hazing up the surface. I will wipe the finish down with naphtha and let it dry. Then I apply another very light coat of oil (coat 8). I may even thin the Tru-oil a very little bit to keep it thin. Then I do some mild wet sanding and more finish. I do about 1 coat a day. The info I have read on Tru oil says that you can apply several coats in one day but I never believe that stuff. I never had an oil based finish that was cured enough to work with in a few hours. Take your time with it.

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Forward now to the present day with 9 coats of oil on her. 2 thick and 7 thin. The last few coats are very thin so the finish will dry before dust nibs can land on her. One more coat and I will let her set for a few days before I wax/buff the surface. I try to have as little dust in the air during the last coats and with the final coat I get extra careful as I want more of a gloss finish. Any dust and we are back to a satin finish after the rub out. That last coat is always the trick.

Thanks again for the great comments and for checking out my build.
 
#44
Ha! I wish it was lacquer because that would mean I have a spray gun and booth to spray it in. I have worked with lacquer back when I built acoustic guitars. It was very forgiving, easy to work with, and looked great but the fumes were a bit much. My shop is joined to my house and I can't breath the fumes all the time. I do not have big enough of a shop to have a well vented spray area but hopefully someday soon.
 
#46
Thanks for the offer but it is a bit of a drive.


Here are some assembly pics I took. I will post some better ones later on.
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I have applied some Stew Mac fret board finishing oil to the FB.
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I will be making the truss rod cover out of Ebony.
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Check back soon for the glam pics with some decent lighting.
 
#53
Thanks everyone. You make me feel good about this bass.

She weighs in at 9.5 pounds but my scale can vary a little. Does not feel too heavy on a strap or sitting down. Would not want to hold it over my head for an hour though. The extra wood in the center block added some weight but I had chambered the body before the top went on to fight that.

Here is some glam shots of her. I have since switched out the output jack and put some different strings on her that work better. The GHS strings were nice but I needed a little bit bigger B string.


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#54
I noticed on your homepage that you have used the Graph Tech piezo pickups in the Hipshot Triple Lock Down individual string bridges. Do you think the TLD individual bridges make a sonic difference when compared with the piezo loaded A style bridge on this bass?
 
#55
I am of the opinion that there is not really a noticeable difference between the two types of bridges sound wise. There may be a small difference in tone as the A style is a heavy brass bridge and the TLD were of another metal, but I could not hear it. Although I have not heard them side by side, I do not believe that having individual bridges has any real advantage over the A style tone-wise and certainly no advantage in the installation of the bridge onto the bass. The difference in tone would be minimal in my opinion.

I think the only real factor I would use to determine which is best for a bass would be which one the player thought looked best on their bass. I would not buy one style over another thinking that one will be that much better than the other for sound. The TLD are a cool design but I do not buy the snake oil that says they are better in any way.

Thanks for checking out my build and homepage.
 
#57
Drake Custom said:
I am of the opinion that there is not really a noticeable difference between the two types of bridges sound wise. There may be a small difference in tone as the A style is a heavy brass bridge and the TLD were of another metal, but I could not hear it. Although I have not heard them side by side, I do not believe that having individual bridges has any real advantage over the A style tone-wise and certainly no advantage in the installation of the bridge onto the bass. The difference in tone would be minimal in my opinion.

I think the only real factor I would use to determine which is best for a bass would be which one the player thought looked best on their bass. I would not buy one style over another thinking that one will be that much better than the other for sound. The TLD are a cool design but I do not buy the snake oil that says they are better in any way.

Thanks for checking out my build and homepage.
Click to expand...

Thanks for your insight. I really appreciate hearing from someone that has used both bridge types with piezos.

Visiting your web page is my pleasure...you have some really nice work there.
 
#59
Fine, fine work. I cannot stress enough how much your thoughtful and detailed posts are appreciated. In this world of armchair quarterbacks, instant gratification, and "gimme" attitude, it is rare indeed to find one such as you who is actually in the trenches, and is willing to share so selflessly your techniques and perspective. You have my highest respect, sir.

Now, one more question - WAHTZ TEH BE$T TPWD STR!NG FUR MMEETTAALL D00D ?!?!?!
 
#60
Thanks everyone for the kind words and the questions.


CT. I would not use a tapewound set for metal but I like D'Addario's tape wound strings. I have tried GHS as in the pictures, but the B string was a little flabby. I like thin B strings (no more than .125) but with tapewound I found it to be no great. GHS strings are awesome but with the 33 inch scale, I had to use a .135.


When I first signed on to Talkbass I understood that the point of LC was to discuss building techniques and ideas on materials. So in the spirit of that, I share things I find out by my trial and error and from building a lot of instruments. This stuff is not a really a big secret and can be read about online or in books so why play games about not sharing it? If someone thinks they can make a living at this they are welcome to try. Not easy to do. I still have to do some contract security work on the side to get through slow times. So I don't worry about holding some details back. I only hold back on sharing the name of my carbon fiber supplier as I get the same stuff Stew Mac has for less than half of what I pay Stew Mac. If everyone knew my supplier they would flood them with requests and drive up the price. :ninja: Secret Squirrel stuff eh?
 

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