I just had the fingerboard replaced on my bass. The bridge had an "orchestral" shape to it, matching the old (but very thin) fingerboard. I liked that shape! The new fingerboard is much flatter, which means that the new bridge will have to be flatter too. (New bridge is waiting for me to decide what string height I want, so I'm currently playing the old bridge with the new fingerboard, and no, it doesn't work well).
When the new fingerboard was put on, could it have been cut differently so that it had an orchestral shape? Do they come to the luthier pre-shaped, or do they come as just a block of ebony that has to be cut down and shaped? At this point, I'm not sure if further cutting the fingerboard to get a better shape is what I want to do. After all, I just paid $1,000 because the old fingerboard had gotten too thin over the years. I don't want the new one starting out life thinner than it needs to be.
Is this a case of the luthier having JBS (Jazz Bridge/Board Syndrome), the opposite of OBS (Orchestral Bridge/Board Syndrome)? Did I fail to specify that I liked the old shape before work began? Or is there more shaping that can/should be done without unduly thinning the new board?
When the new fingerboard was put on, could it have been cut differently so that it had an orchestral shape? Do they come to the luthier pre-shaped, or do they come as just a block of ebony that has to be cut down and shaped? At this point, I'm not sure if further cutting the fingerboard to get a better shape is what I want to do. After all, I just paid $1,000 because the old fingerboard had gotten too thin over the years. I don't want the new one starting out life thinner than it needs to be.
Is this a case of the luthier having JBS (Jazz Bridge/Board Syndrome), the opposite of OBS (Orchestral Bridge/Board Syndrome)? Did I fail to specify that I liked the old shape before work began? Or is there more shaping that can/should be done without unduly thinning the new board?
