• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

First Build - "Lucifer"

#61
The only wood I have that problem with is ebony... staining maple.
Never had a problem with Purpleheart
.... other than the odor... :vomit::sour:
TerribleTim68 said:
purpleheart a problem when it comes to finishing with the purple color bleeding into adjacent light colored woods? I
Click to expand...
 
  • Like
Reactions: Teacher and TerribleTim68
#63
Here's my wenge/ birch/ purple heart neck from the first bass I made.
IMG_13102019_091128_(1200_x_1600_pixel).jpg

IMG_13102019_091005_(1600_x_1080_pixel).jpg

There's also some zebrano in there, so kudos to your wood choices so far:smug:

I did not experience bleeding in the 'normal' dry sanding process, but when I did the Truoil finish, the 'wet slurry sanding' tended to made the birch a bit darker on some areas. That was mainly caused by the wenge slurry, not the purpleheart. I could also wipe the dark slurry off the birch pretty easily during the whole process, minimizing the darkening.

So íf you plan on filling the grain on the wenge in a similar fashion, my tip would be to use a dense light stringer wood that requires little to no filling, so you can wipe it of easily like I could.

Also, remember that purpleheart tends to darken a bit over time. Below s with different lighting of course, but this the color as it is today, 5 years after the other pics.
IMG_13102019_092446_(1200_x_1600_pixel).jpg
 

Attachments

  • IMG_13102019_091128_(1200_x_1600_pixel).jpg
    IMG_13102019_091128_(1200_x_1600_pixel).jpg
    141.8 KB · Views: 51
  • Like
Reactions: John_Nicholas, wraub, BritFunk and 6 others
#65
TerribleTim68 said:
That being said, this beautiful piece of zebrawood had to leave the shop with me this time -

I'm gonna need to find a way to book-match it, because ideally I'd like it to be much thinner as a top and bottom lam. But I'll cross that bridge when I get there.
Click to expand...

That's a nice piece you got there. If you are going to bookmatch you pretty much need to use a bandsaw, ideally with a thin kerf blade. The symmetry in most woods is quickly lost when you start to cut too much out. If you are lucky enough to have a bandsaw that will cut 10" you are set. Otherwise find someone that does and pay them to do it or let you use their tools -- like maker shop.

TerribleTim68 said:
Oh, and here is that piece of rosewood that I wanted to take home. Damn budget.
View attachment 3563925
I think that would have looked beautiful with the zebrawood body wings.
Click to expand...

Agreed, but if your store is like my local store they are always getting new wood in. As long as you have time on your side I would just keep going back until you find what you like when you want it.

TerribleTim68 said:
I see pics of guitar necks with purpleheart next to like a maple and I'm worried about color bleed. How big of a deal is this?
Click to expand...

Hah, I don't have much exotic hardwood experience but this is one I can tell you about. I have a maple neck with purple heart board and no bleed issues there. Keep in mind I used an oil finish and maybe something water based would have behaved differently.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: TerribleTim68
#67
So I've run into a little issue with my original plan for pickups. Maybe you guys can offer some advice. My original plan was to use 3 pickups mounted "tilted" like Sheldon does in his Z3 models. But I've run into a small issue sourcing said pickups. Nordstrand makes a Dingwall sounding pickup, which would be great, but they are for parallel fret builds, not fan-fret (spacing of poles is wrong once you tilt them so strings are no longer covered).

So here's the question: Given that I'd like to mount 3 pickups like Sheldon does on the Z3, what would you guys recommend (without building a custom pup) that will sound good and still emulate that Dingwall sound the best I can? I'm leaning towards just using Nordstrand Zen Blades and hoping for the best here. Every other bass I own either has stock pups or EMG active sets in them (some have P/J, some soapbars). So I have no real clue how the Nordstrands are going to sound compared to EMG, not sure I've ever heard them.
 
#68
TerribleTim68 said:
Nordstrands are going to sound compared to EMG,
Click to expand...
I've used EMG...almost to excess. Kinda sick of them.
The only opinion I can offer on Nordy's...
When I visited Randall Fulmer's shop...(Wyn)... I was pretty blown away by the responsiveness, punch & tone of his basses.
Nordstrand are all he uses.
But... he has them custom wound to his preference.
And he's not angling them....
But they sounded good, to a guy who likes EMG...
I guess that's my point.
 
  • Like
Reactions: TerribleTim68
#69
The specs on the Dingstrand Nordwall pickups state that they’re designed for parallel fret instruments using 18 to 19 mm spacing. That means they’ll work fine when angled on a fanned fret using 17.5 to 18.5 mm spacing. The magnetic field is pretty forgiving.

I haven’t figured out if they use polepieces or blades though...
 
#70
Appreciate the input @Rôckhewer! Been chatting with Stew over at Nordstrand too. would have really been easy if I could just mount those Dingwall pups they make in there and be done with it. Stew tells me that the Dingwall pups use a neodymium magnet, which is part of why they sound so different than the typical Nordstrand pups. None of their other lines use neodymium.

@ctmullins Thanks for doing some math for me. Maybe that is the answer then, just mount 'em up and call it a day.
 
#71
@ctmullins This image kind of leads me to believe it's pole pieces -
Nordstrand_Pickups_dingwall_back_Bass_2048x2048.jpg

But that also doesn't mean much because the Zen Blades use a bar magnet with the windings running horizontally around it instead of vertically (they refer to it as "side-wound"), then it has small "bars" that stick up through the cover -
Nordstrand_Pickups_Zen_BHCB5_soapbar_sidewind_2048x2048.jpg

So who knows what they are doing on this one too.
 
#72
Those Neo disc magnets are usually just a couple of mm thick, not tall like an AlNiCo rod magnet would be. That would suggest there’s something else ferrous to extend the magnetic field up, close enough to pick up the strings. I just don’t know if they’re using slug poles or rails...
 
#75
I contacted Nordstrand for my fanned fret build and they told me they can do custom pole piece alignment (EDIT: at least on their non-Dingwall pickups). IIRC the upcharge was not that much, but...

I did the math on mine and concluded that my 18 mm bridge spacing combined with 19 mm pole pieces and the angle and distance I was planning on putting the pickup meant that I didn't actually need custom spacing.

Definitely figure out if something off-the-shelf will meet your needs before you go the custom route.

Also, I agree with what others have said above. In particular the blade type pickups are pretty forgiving with field.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: John_Nicholas
#76
Jeff Siddall said:
I contacted Nordstrand for my fanned fret build and they told me they can do custom pole piece alignment. IIRC the upcharge was not that much, but...

I did the math on mine and concluded that my 18 mm bridge spacing combined with 19 mm pole pieces and the angle and distance I was planning on putting the pickup meant that I didn't actually need custom spacing.

Definitely figure out if something off-the-shelf will meet your needs before you go the custom route.

Also, I agree with what others have said above. In particular the blade type pickups are pretty forgiving with field.
Click to expand...
Yeah, I really don't want to go custom just due to price. Plus, the licensing agreement Nordstrand has with Dingwall means they can not alter the Dingstrand pickups at all, which makes sense. But it also means that they won't be able to make me a custom pickup that will have that sound either, so there's that.
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back