That bridge looks pretty good, but I think the headpiece would conflict with an existing trussrod. Most trussrods are right below the fingerboard, that looks like it cuts in a bit.
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Frankenstien Ibby Mikro into a Headless?
- Thread starter ThinCrappyTone
- Start date
good point about the headpiece. Also the top nut on the Ibanez does not sit flush with the neck but is usually routed into the fretboard, leaving a very small amount of fretboard material between the nut and the neck. So there will still need to be a top nut in place. The string through route seems the best option on the Ibanez for the headstock
"Official" Mikro Bass Club Part 3
I think one is capable of doing this on their own with minimal experience but with basic knowledge of how things work. I did mine with a Dremel. Careful measuring is important.
I think one is capable of doing this on their own with minimal experience but with basic knowledge of how things work. I did mine with a Dremel. Careful measuring is important.
Just saw this thread on a Kiesel headless short scale, so the concept is sound. Might be more cost effective to buy a Kiesel, but where's the fun in that?
NBD! Kiesel Vader Short Scale Headless
NBD! Kiesel Vader Short Scale Headless
OP here... Thought it might be interesting to chime back in after a year 
So I never ended up trying this project myself. Reason was due to my basically zero luthier experience and fear of destroying stuff.
I started asking around, looking for someone to do the frankensteining for me. Didn't get any takers, but I did find a guy who was willing to make one from scratch (though 30" scale was the shortest he would go).
Ended up costing a bit, about 10x the cost of a micro, but it's my first big spend on a bass in about 15 years, so I went for it.
Ended up with this, and couldn't be happier!
Is there an ultra-lightweight short scale headless bass that is also beautiful? (NBD Muckelroy)
So I never ended up trying this project myself. Reason was due to my basically zero luthier experience and fear of destroying stuff.
I started asking around, looking for someone to do the frankensteining for me. Didn't get any takers, but I did find a guy who was willing to make one from scratch (though 30" scale was the shortest he would go).
Ended up costing a bit, about 10x the cost of a micro, but it's my first big spend on a bass in about 15 years, so I went for it.
Ended up with this, and couldn't be happier!
Is there an ultra-lightweight short scale headless bass that is also beautiful? (NBD Muckelroy)
Ok, that bass is killer, well worth the Zombie thread resurrection.
Thanks! Yeah i saw replies to this ibby post pop up recently and realized this thread was the start of a journey that ended with the Muckelroy build. Totally forgot about that part of the story!
Rôckhewer
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- Feb 28, 2015
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- Owner/Builder- RockHewer Custom Guitars LLC
Someone pointed me to this thread as I asked the Headless club about the EXACT.SAME.THING.
Looking to make a travel bass and I can make the body and do some of the cuts, but never done a headless conversion before... I wish you could just order a neck from Ibby...
Looking to make a travel bass and I can make the body and do some of the cuts, but never done a headless conversion before... I wish you could just order a neck from Ibby...
So I found the part # on the Ibby website but have no idea how to order/price it....
1NK1PC0191-BK
1NK1PC0193-BK (left handed, which might not actually matter after you hack the head off...
1NK1PC0191-BK
1NK1PC0193-BK (left handed, which might not actually matter after you hack the head off...
Info here scattered thru 3 or pages of my mouse style headless including the neck cutting.
Moonshine Custom Guitars; Building under the influence... "Revenge of the Fifth" (Latest Builds)
Moonshine Custom Guitars; Building under the influence... "Revenge of the Fifth" (Latest Builds)
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Blargh, so I've discovered what many of you might have already known...
Ibanez will not sell a neck outright. It has to be be as a replacement and you have to send the instrument in (with old neck) to have it happen... It takes 4-6 months and costs more than a new Mikro...
Ibanez will not sell a neck outright. It has to be be as a replacement and you have to send the instrument in (with old neck) to have it happen... It takes 4-6 months and costs more than a new Mikro...
Also finally found generics of these babies:
Black Good Quality 6pcs String Locking Nut Set for Headless Electric Guitar Bass | eBay
ABM is always out of black or they are too expensive for experimentation. With this affordable (and yes, cheaper) versions you can be a lot more flexible with your headstock layout and orientation around that pesky truss rod hole.
Do note that I had to drill out the string hole in one to accommodate the low E (and forget about a low B). but it was just a matter of slowly graduating to a larger drill bit.
I currently suffer from analysis paralysis and need to get off my butt and finish the necks (first time neck building) so I can see if it all comes together.
My problem was I originally planned for a zero fret and no nut but with the original Steinber style headpiece but with these I would have to orient them to go around the trussrod w/o the benefit of a nut to align them...
Black Good Quality 6pcs String Locking Nut Set for Headless Electric Guitar Bass | eBay
ABM is always out of black or they are too expensive for experimentation. With this affordable (and yes, cheaper) versions you can be a lot more flexible with your headstock layout and orientation around that pesky truss rod hole.
Do note that I had to drill out the string hole in one to accommodate the low E (and forget about a low B). but it was just a matter of slowly graduating to a larger drill bit.
I currently suffer from analysis paralysis and need to get off my butt and finish the necks (first time neck building) so I can see if it all comes together.
My problem was I originally planned for a zero fret and no nut but with the original Steinber style headpiece but with these I would have to orient them to go around the trussrod w/o the benefit of a nut to align them...
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Hello. I am not sure if this is the right forum to ask this, but here goes. I would like to find a pro luthier who could do a great job converting ibanez mikro bass to headless, but I have no idea where to start. Not much info on the nets about something like this. Any advice, ideas? Thank you.
Done..
The good news is that this is *NOT* the only way for this to be done any more! You *could* do this still, but there are now other "headless headpiece" options like from NOVA (on ebay):
The nice thing about this is the headpice screws on to the top of the headstock (or what's left of it):
So hypothetically you could take the old harware off and mount this without and further modification to the headstock until you are ready to cut away the excess.
Another option are the individual headpieces I mentioned above. Same idea but a bit more flexible.
The nice thing about both these options is you could choose to keep enough of the headstock that you could still hang it since you don't need to hack the whole thing off.
FYI, Ibanez will soon put out a headless short scale bass. Might take the fun out of it for you guys though 
Ibanez Short scale, multiscale, headless 5. Schwing!
Ibanez Short scale, multiscale, headless 5. Schwing!
I'm a bit late to the party, but added this post for reference to others who may be thinking of doing similar.
I do have experience of doing this with guitars, but this is my first bass. I am always browsing new Chinese hardware that comes out for guitar conversions when I came across this on Temu:
A couple of problems with doing this conversion in trying to avoid routing the body. The string height of the bridge saddles has to be close to the original bridge, and the tuning pegs need to be clear of the body. The design of this Temu bridge fulfilled both these criteria. Using something like the Steinberger style bridge, which had a saddle height of nearly 20mm, would have required routing or a severe neck offset.
At the nut end, the hardware was a perfect fit. Also 2 grubscrews per string and no grooves weakening the threads. The hardware was advertised as 'high quality'.....hmm, always a risk for goods made in China, but at £43, I figured I would take a gamble.
Took a week to arrive & I set straight to work. First thing is to line up bridge so its straight and the bridge saddle position lines up with old bridge. There is a bit of leeway, and I bore this in mind. I needed the bridge to be far back enough for tuning pegs to clear body. As it happened, everything lined up perfectly:
At this point I could measure the string saddle height. Compared to the original saddle, the string would sit 3mm higher (16mm total). This could be a deal breaker for me, so I roughly anchored the bridge with an existing screw hole and installed a string. The action was too high, so I shimmed the neck with a piece of Amazon cardboard envelope and this brought the action right down. I knew this was rough and the final shim size would need to be adjusted with all the strings installed & under proper tension.....but at least I knew it was do-able.
So I proceeded with mounting the bridge and screwed into place.
The nut end couldn't be easier. Removed the truss rod cover, positioned the nut hardware, drill 4 holes & screw in........done!
Before chopping the headstock off, I strung everything up to check string height. With the cardboard shims, the action was slightly high. I replaced it with a plastic credit card shim and that did the trick. Perfect.
I proceeded to chop the headstock off, a bit of sanding and wax polish and the conversion was done.
The whole procedure took a couple of hours:
A few more pics:
The only negatives were the screw sizes provided were either too long or too short, and the bass now sits on the tuning pegs if leaned against the wall. Its fine in its stand, but if I was using the floor I would use a longer screw and space the strap button maybe half-inch so it took the weight. I also would have preferred black hardware, but this was sold out. Other sellers had black in stock, but it was 2x the price. Now that I know it works, I might have paid it, but at the time, I didn't want to gamble that much.....
All in all, an easy conversion!
UPDATE:
My OCD was getting to me. I spaced out the strap button:
I do have experience of doing this with guitars, but this is my first bass. I am always browsing new Chinese hardware that comes out for guitar conversions when I came across this on Temu:
A couple of problems with doing this conversion in trying to avoid routing the body. The string height of the bridge saddles has to be close to the original bridge, and the tuning pegs need to be clear of the body. The design of this Temu bridge fulfilled both these criteria. Using something like the Steinberger style bridge, which had a saddle height of nearly 20mm, would have required routing or a severe neck offset.
At the nut end, the hardware was a perfect fit. Also 2 grubscrews per string and no grooves weakening the threads. The hardware was advertised as 'high quality'.....hmm, always a risk for goods made in China, but at £43, I figured I would take a gamble.
Took a week to arrive & I set straight to work. First thing is to line up bridge so its straight and the bridge saddle position lines up with old bridge. There is a bit of leeway, and I bore this in mind. I needed the bridge to be far back enough for tuning pegs to clear body. As it happened, everything lined up perfectly:
At this point I could measure the string saddle height. Compared to the original saddle, the string would sit 3mm higher (16mm total). This could be a deal breaker for me, so I roughly anchored the bridge with an existing screw hole and installed a string. The action was too high, so I shimmed the neck with a piece of Amazon cardboard envelope and this brought the action right down. I knew this was rough and the final shim size would need to be adjusted with all the strings installed & under proper tension.....but at least I knew it was do-able.
So I proceeded with mounting the bridge and screwed into place.
The nut end couldn't be easier. Removed the truss rod cover, positioned the nut hardware, drill 4 holes & screw in........done!
Before chopping the headstock off, I strung everything up to check string height. With the cardboard shims, the action was slightly high. I replaced it with a plastic credit card shim and that did the trick. Perfect.
I proceeded to chop the headstock off, a bit of sanding and wax polish and the conversion was done.
The whole procedure took a couple of hours:
A few more pics:
The only negatives were the screw sizes provided were either too long or too short, and the bass now sits on the tuning pegs if leaned against the wall. Its fine in its stand, but if I was using the floor I would use a longer screw and space the strap button maybe half-inch so it took the weight. I also would have preferred black hardware, but this was sold out. Other sellers had black in stock, but it was 2x the price. Now that I know it works, I might have paid it, but at the time, I didn't want to gamble that much.....
All in all, an easy conversion!
UPDATE:
My OCD was getting to me. I spaced out the strap button:
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