How did you learn to modify your basses?

[ghiadub]

Start with a lower end bass. I would buy unplayable basses off CL for under $100 and try to make them playable, swapping necks, adjusting truss rods, level frets, slot nuts, wireing in pickups. Painting. replaceing tuners, bridge. It's all pretty easy once you get the hang of it.

Measure twice before you cut or change anything you cannot undo is the best advice I can give.

Also, always look up "how to" on here and at least one other place to make sure you are not taking advice from some whacko.

And lastly, it helps to have the correct tool for the job. STEWMAC.COM : Guitar, Bass, Banjo, Mandolin, Parts, Tools, Supplies, Free Information and ReRanch Guitar Refinishing are great sites for tools and finishing.

 

[ThudThudThud]

For me it was designing and building (well, assembling) my Jazz with my great friend (and now super-luthier) Mike Haney. We spent a lot of time during the design phase determining which pieces we would use and why. This gave me a huge insight into why particular components are made in certain ways. I don't want to get that can of worms opened again, but the selection of woods also came into it. Same with finishes. Same with electronics.

Mike also has an amazing attention to detail, so it taught me that 'bodging' is never good. Do it right, and do it once. The end result is a superb bass that is built for me and for me only. I don't care if it doesn't feel/look/sound the way you prefer, as it is exactly right for me. We finished the build in the mid-late 90s, and I have hardly had to adjust anything since!

I currently have a repair to make and my confidence is good because of my learning from Mike. You need to understand what you are doing, and why to make the right choices in modifications.

BTW, I had him build me a custom acoustic guitar recently. It's possibly the best guitar I've ever played.

 

[stflbn]

Iowa farmboy mentality.

This doesn't feel right... I can make it better.


The 'internet' wasn't really a viable source of information in the late 70's, early 80's.

 

[FutureTense]

I picked up a cheap bass and read a lot of articles/forums about how to go about doing the work I wanted to do. Then I just kinda went for it and figured that at worst I had wasted the money I spent on the bass. That was the hardest part, honestly.

 

[Bassman316]

I'm about to step into the modding world by changing out the pickups and pots in my SX P-bass. I might even consult the Citistrip thread and FINALLY get rid of that sticky orange tint on the neck. I figure that I have a basic understanding of how to pull this off because I've read countless threads here on TB. I've learned a lot just by reading what other people are doing with their gear, so I'm not sweating it too much. Not to mention a SX P-bass isn't necessarily the most expensive bass ever, so if somehow something goes wrong, I'm not out a couple thousand bucks.