Fretless Partzz Bass

[ADHD librarian]

If a stratocaster made from parts is a partscaster, then a Jazz Bass made from parts is a Partzz Bass, right?

Thought I'd document a parts build I'm doing so that I can:

• get my thoughts in order
• keep myself on track
• get feedback and advice from those who've been there and done that.

This is the biggest bass project I have tried to date, and certainly the one using the most expensive parts.

I started with 2 things
a Jazz Bass of unknown origins (the red one)

a NOS Japanese JB75 lefty neck, with no frets


I have started to paint the headstock (Dupli-Color Candy Red Pearl) and have sanded back and patched the body so it can be resprayed.
I am filling the pickguard screw holes, because I think I will use it without one.


I have found some Mahogany veneer to fill the fret slots. It has glue on it, but I have found that a quick dunk in acetone lets me peel that off easily. It takes a little longer to peel off the paper reinforcement between the glue and the veneer and I am wondering if I need to worry about that?

my plan is to fit the veneer, sand the neck flat and seal it with CA glue. I can't find any accelerator in town, do I need it or can I just wait longer between coats?
Based on some google-fu, I have been trialing using Naptha (with a touch of water in it) in a spray bottle as an accelerator, but it gives a slight white cloud to the finish. I will try the same thing with acetone & see if that works any better.
Does anyone else have any clues of what works (other than buying it online and waiting weeks for it to arrive in Central Australia).

I have a couple of black ultralight tuners and have ordered 2 more that I think (hope) are the same model.


I also have black straplocks, black string tree and have ordered a black control plate and a black gotoh bridge.

Oh, and I have a set of fender Gen 4 Noiseless Pickups that I was going to put in my Jazz Deluxe, before I decided on Area J pickups for it.

So great TB brains trust,
what have I missed?
and what should I do differently?

 

[ADHD librarian]

A little more on the body I am using (in case anyone can help me ID it).

It has the same pickup spacing as my 2007 MIM Deluxe.
It had a 10 screw pickguard.
It is fractionally thinner than my MIM
and these are the markings in the neck pocket and on the back of the neck (although I have no idea if the neck that was on it was the original neck, it seemed to be a bit of a parts bass when I got it)

and these were the pots that were in it (and the control plate had an extra hole between the volume knobs, but offset. About the size of a mini switch?)

 

[Lo-E]

You seem to be on the right track. My first couple of good fretless basses were parts basses and they served me very well. I still have the necks (now on different bodies).

No guesses as to where that body came from. Does it matter?

Accelerator isn’t necessary. It just speeds up the process. If you’re not in a hurry you’ll be fine without it.

I would remove everything from the veneer except the veneer itself. By the time you factor the labor in, you might be better off just ordering a small piece of veneer without glue.

 

[ADHD librarian]

No guesses as to where that body came from. Does it matter?

only in as much that I've not played fretless before, and if it turns out I'm rubbish at it I might decide to sell the bass (and a potential purchaser may ask me).
That said, I've never actually sold a bass before. Even the ones I don't play I just lend to friends, or the children of friends, or hide in a cupboard...

 

[Matt Liebenau]

Looks like an interesting project. I recently fixed up an old Kay hollowbody guitar and painted it candy apple red. It looks pretty good.

Make sure the veneer fits the fret slots once the glue and backing is off. It doesn’t have to be a hammer it in fit but you obviously don’t want it loose in the slots either. Typically fret slots are 0.020”-0.022” and most veneer that I’ve used is around 0.020”. When I fill slots with plastic I also get 0.020” polystyrene. For a homemade accelerator I’ve mixed baking soda and water in a spray bottle but it tends to make the CA get cloudy even if you let the glue set for a while before spraying it on. You're fine without it. The last 2 fretless necks I coated were without accelerator. By the time I would have sprayed the accelerator I was ready to get some fresh air anyway.

 

[SharpCat]

Neck seems to have no nut. TUSQ XL quite nice.

 

[ADHD librarian]

Next step,

I've just built myself a spray stand out of some old drum kit parts I had. I'm quite happy with this (here's hoping it works). I suspect it may be a little tall, but I won't cut it down to size until I try it; because it is easier to cut than to join it back together if I was wrong.

 

[ADHD librarian]

and here is a bit of fret slot filling!
no sanding done yet.

 

[ADHD librarian]

fret lines in & sanded flat.
Then first coat of CA glue on the fingerboard.

 

[ADHD librarian]

Slept through my alarm this morning & woke up 15 minutes after I should have been at work.

I guess for the 2nd coat of CA I need a more ventilated area!

 

[C Stone]

Looks like a good job so far, you are well on your way! Keep posting your progress

 

[ADHD librarian]

A (minor) issue with the CA glue finish. I was putting it on with the back of some wet & dry, just like Dan Erlewine told me to. However, the glue managed to take off some of the printing on the back of the sandpaper and transfer it to the finish.

I figured I'd just sand it off, but the glue had drawn it into the grain. It doesn't look awful and with luck it will fade over time.

The stains on the timber, which I thought I had sanded away have also reappeared with the introduction of the CA glue. Another disappointment, but I hope these too will fade in time. But if not, I am still pleased with the what it is coming along & the way it feels (and that is without any polishing).

I have found that a piece of old cotton sheet, folded a few times, works better to apply the glue than the wet & dry. Plus, as the sheet doesn't have writing on it, there is no black ink to transfer across.

 

[JRA]

it's coming along nicely --- thanks for sharing the progress pics!

 

[C Stone]

I think once you get ‘er strung up you won’t give it a second thought and if it plays for you I think you’ll be good. The lines look really good and the neck feel
is what it’s about, I think it looks great!

 

[Lo-E]

You’re doing a nice job. It looks good.

 

[Stylee Mousse]

Whenever I finish anything I keep this olde saw in mind:

perfect is the enemy of good

BTW - looks great!

 

[ADHD librarian]

Three coats of wipe on poly on the back of the neck and back of the headstock. Once again it has emphasised the discolouration on the neck, but along with that it has also given a bit of an aged colour which makes the marks work OK(ish).

 

[ADHD librarian]

My desert has become rather tropical of late as ex-tropical cyclone Megan causes dry rivers to run and water to drip through my carport roof; meaning I have been unable to do any painting on my project bass for a while (and don't look likely to be doing any for a week or two yet).

In the meantime, I have had some more black hardware arrive (although I am still waiting on more).
I am curious though, what do Californians do with their Bass Bridges that means they need a cancer warning?
Are you folks smoking them? Crushing them up and snorting them?

 

[ADHD librarian]

Well...
the rain has stopped & so I was able to put a couple of coats of paint on the body and headstock.
I ended up with an eyelash on the back of the body and a spray 'splutter' putting a small pimple on the headstock.

So, now I need to leave it for a week before I take a little sandpaper to those imperfections. But I am quite happy with the way it looks (and it is possible that the headstock logo might cover the headstock pimple. In which case I may not need to do another colour coat).

This is a closeup of the colour, using flash (which I think is a more accurate view of how it looks)

 

[ADHD librarian]

OK,
all my parts have arrived now (I think).
I'll make a bone nut & I'm fairly sure I have some pots around somewhere...

now all I need is to be patient enough & wait long enough for the paint to be fully cured before I put on my clear coat.
and then be patient again to let that dry properly before I put it together.

oh, and I have to do some soldering. I guess I can do some of that before I assemble the bass (where did I put those pots? And, do they have knobs with them? OK, I may not have all the parts...)