How hard is it to make a good warmoth bass

[faceless_master]

Alright, thanks! It's just hard to tell since all their bridge drilling option are labelled for their compatibility with aftermarket bridges (Gotoh, Schaller, 2Tek, etc).

Alright, I did some google-fu and I'll go ahead and share my answer for future TB generations: It appears that the 2 saddle, string-through-only '51 P-bass bridge and the Badass 3 bridge share the same drilling pattern. So theoretically, having Warmoth drill for the Badass 3 would allow the Tele Bass bridge to be mounted.

(Sorry for rambling, I wanted to make sure this post was searchable in case someone else has this question later on down the line)

 

[MobileHolmes]

Oh, let's be serious here - I can't build a Sadowsky... so I'm not really going to try. But the quality of materials is *clearly* better than Fender, and that's really enough for me.

What I find kind of funny is that fender seems to have largely moved I. The direction of the strat I built 15 years ago in terms of specs (fret size, hotter bridge pickup, thinner finish). If I were buying now, fender might be in the running, but when I built mine, not so much.

That said, where warmoth excels and fender does not is in terms of flexibility. I've got parts for a p with a J neck sitting around right now.. I don't think fender offers that in a production model currently, and beyond that, I wanted charcoal frost with a matching headstock. Good luck with that.

 

[Honch]

Buy parts and leave it (send it) to someone doing a PLEK fretting on the frets. FWIW I think Warmoth shoot (spray) over the frets (laqcuer and finish) but USACG don't. I am not sure that it is so anymore but Warmoth did 10 years ago at least. Which means you have to pry it off with an Exactoblade later on. The only thing I've heard differ - really - between USACG and Warmoth is the after sales service, customer support before buying, which of USACG I've heard basically none bickering. Warmoth can be 50/50 on this, depending who's on the other end of the phone/mail services.

However Plek may cost you so much that, well, it eats a lot of the cost that you're supposed to save, on buying something alread done, signed, sealed and delivered.

 

[pudgychef]

Oh, let's be serious here - I can't build a Sadowsky... so I'm not really going to try. But the quality of materials is *clearly* better than Fender, and that's really enough for me.

Yes I should added the .....was tongue in cheek

 

[faceless_master]

What I find kind of funny is that fender seems to have largely moved I. The direction of the strat I built 15 years ago in terms of specs (fret size, hotter bridge pickup, thinner finish). If I were buying now, fender might be in the running, but when I built mine, not so much.

That said, where warmoth excels and fender does not is in terms of flexibility. I've got parts for a p with a J neck sitting around right now.. I don't think fender offers that in a production model currently, and beyond that, I wanted charcoal frost with a matching headstock. Good luck with that.

That's why I'm planning a build right now, they don't offer a production Tele Bass. They have the CV, which is nice but they can keep that high mass top loading bridge; or the CS Dusty Hill Sig. And neither of those comes in Burgundy Mist with a rosewood fretboard. So if I go Fender I can pay either $400 or $4,000 and not get all the options I want, or I can build a custom for ~$1,500 and do without the name on the headstock.

 

[MobileHolmes]

The most finished Warmoth products I've tried are on the chunky side. Finish on their maple neck turning purple/Pink-ish from time to time. Also when ordering something wider neck, this beats me, but the whole fretboard is wider than the neck and looks like a aircraft carrier model.

Their bass necks are kind of thick, and the profile options are limited compared to the guitars (two widths, 2 backs, no radius options as compared to 5+ back profiles on the guitars).as it happens, I really like their j necks, but I can see where not everyone would, and I am really not very picky.

The one area I do have concerns is weight. A lot of their bodies seem to be running heavy lately, which is why I generally buy off the showcase, since it is the cheapest way to specify a weight (assuming they have what you want). If you just want a normal shape with regular routs and a solid color, this is really easy

 

[MobileHolmes]

That's why I'm planning a build right now, they don't offer a production Tele Bass. They have the CV, which is nice but they can keep that high mass top loading bridge; or the CS Dusty Hill Sig. And neither of those comes in Burgundy Mist with a rosewood fretboard. So if I go Fender I can pay either $400 or $4,000 and not get all the options I want, or I can build a custom for ~$1,500 and do without the name on the headstock.

Bingo. The other thing that drove me was that when I built my strat and jazz, their electronics weren't to my liking ( I really did not care for the J basses with the S1 switch,though I don't think it was the switch, but the pickups of the era). I've also never met a fender preamp that I liked. For both instruments, I basically was going to have to swap out the pickups anyway, and realized it would be cheaper to just build from the ground up than buy an instrument and redo the electronics. Plus this way I could pick the color, and for an ugly guy, I deserve to be vain about something

 

[Spidey2112]

I've been looking into building a Warmoth bass and I was wondering if anyone knows how hard it is to build a decent quality one?

Knowledge gained by doing it yourself is priceless... easy, or hard, doesn't matter... there's enough resources in here, out there... I see some over there, too... to complete the job, taking pride in the fact that you did it...

... with a little bit of help from in here, out there, and over there...

 

[vai777]

I have built many warmoth basses and guitars... the parts are the best out there, bar none. If you are afraid to solder, both dimarzio and emg offer solderless pickups. I hear a lot of people talking about fret dressing... on a their guitar necks it is almost always the case that you will need to level and crown... bass necks not so much, at least in my experience.

 

[RED J]

I was kinda hopin' to see more of everyone's Warmoth builds...

Axe and you will receive. I'm pretty trad and conservative. Just by coincidence, it rotated to my practice seat last night.

 

[pjbassist]

These 3 basses are the only ones in my stable. All are 100% Warmoth, active EMG pickups, Schaller tuners, Hipshot Drop D tuners and basic bridges. The upside down wood grain one I have had since 1988! The other 2 are from the parts classified section here on TB except the Craiglist neck on the driveway pictured bass. All assembly done by a luthier. I like them so much, I've sold everything else! I am a Warmoth fanboy for sure. I did buy one NEW neck from Warmoth Standard Profile, and have since traded it here for a Slim Profile lined fretless on the Olympic White/Tort bass.

 

[SanDiegoHarry]

What I find kind of funny is that fender seems to have largely moved I. The direction of the strat I built 15 years ago in terms of specs (fret size, hotter bridge pickup, thinner finish). If I were buying now, fender might be in the running, but when I built mine, not so much.

That said, where warmoth excels and fender does not is in terms of flexibility. I've got parts for a p with a J neck sitting around right now.. I don't think fender offers that in a production model currently, and beyond that, I wanted charcoal frost with a matching headstock. Good luck with that.

Look, new Fender MIA basses are the best they have ever been - but not even counting the whole flexibility thing, the fit/finish/materials that Warmoth provide are just *better*. I'm pretty confident that if I built the equivalent of an American Standard J bass out of Warmoth wood, hipshot hardware and - say - Duncan pickups - it would be a nicer bass for less money.

 

[SanDiegoHarry]

Bingo. The other thing that drove me was that when I built my strat and jazz, their electronics weren't to my liking ( I really did not care for the J basses with the S1 switch,though I don't think it was the switch, but the pickups of the era). I've also never met a fender preamp that I liked. For both instruments, I basically was going to have to swap out the pickups anyway, and realized it would be cheaper to just build from the ground up than buy an instrument and redo the electronics. Plus this way I could pick the color, and for an ugly guy, I deserve to be vain about something

Isn't this so true - in the '70s, it was conventional wisdom to yank the pickups and replace them ASAP - and now those pickups that folks like me discarded are, for no good reason, worth money. What a strange world!

 

[RED J]

What a strange world!

Hehe not to mention MIJ clunkers like Teiscos going for hundreds.

 

[Timmy-Watts]

I have built a few. Always very happy with the results. They make great stuff, and you can get exactly what you want for same or less than American Fender.

 

[MobileHolmes]

Look, new Fender MIA basses are the best they have ever been - but not even counting the whole flexibility thing, the fit/finish/materials that Warmoth provide are just *better*. I'm pretty confident that if I built the equivalent of an American Standard J bass out of Warmoth wood, hipshot hardware and - say - Duncan pickups - it would be a nicer bass for less money.

I don't doubt it, especially on the pickup side. When I get some spare time, I really need to finish my P. I priced it out a while back, and I think it came in a whisker cheaper than a new MIA pbass (allowing for a pro set up at the end), and that is with an MJT finish and booteek pickups. For me, it is pretty unlikely I'd ever buy anything fender at this point. Pondering in the shower this morning, I think, buying another bass, the question for me at this point would be whether to go warmoth or spend another 500 bucks or so for a used Sadowsky Metro

 

[darwin-bass]

I was kinda hopin' to see more of everyone's Warmoth builds...

Like this?
Warmoth low-cost light-weight 32" scale P bass build - Done!

 

[SanDiegoHarry]

Hehe not to mention MIJ clunkers like Teiscos going for hundreds.

I call it "The Cult of the Old and Crappy" - It's like everyone wants to drive a Pinto or a Gremlin.

 

[Bare Bass]

I call it "The Cult of the Old and Crappy" - It's like everyone wants to drive a Pinto or a Gremlin.

I'm getting ready to sell my '62 Jazz bass, so I had to take out the wonderful EMG pickups I put in early 80s, and put the crappy originals back in.

Back to Warmoth: I have three Warmoth basses. Only one with a Warmoth neck however. The Warmoth neck is definitely a little chunky, so the other two have Moses Graphite necks--super thin, stiff, and fast.

I'd say if you know what you're doing, Warmoth is very easy to assemble. If you don't know what you're doing, a decent local luthier should be able to deliver a boutique-quality bass for at least half as much as a real boutique or custom bass. I found the website and customer service to be very good. I wish Warmoth had more options for semi-hollowbody and extended range basses, but those are probably very marginal markets.

 

[Eilif]

I've been looking into building a Warmoth bass and I was wondering if anyone knows how hard it is to build a decent quality one?

It's fairly easy to build one.
I built a jazz a while back with Warmoth neck and Allparts body.
I will pretty much echo what others have said.
-Get the slimmer neck. I wish this had been an option when I bought mine.
-Get the graphite reinforcement rods. The steel rods do the trick but they are heavy!
-Unless you're very good at finish or just want a simple hand-rubbed poly have someone else do the body finish.

I had my brother-in-law do a trans red finish at his auto body shop and I didn't fill the grain properly. Looks great from a distance but up close you can see pin-holes in the finish (where the grain sucked in the finish) and it's clear that if I'd used some stain in a grain filler the grain would look much prettier.

Above all, examine WHY you are wanting a warmoth. There are other paths we might take...
-If it's to save money, it's technically possible, but you likely won't get exactly the options you want.
-If it's to get a similar, but better quailty instrument than stock I'm unconvinced that it's the way to go. I've seen great Warmoths, but unless they're assembled and tweaked by someone who really knows what they're doing they rarely seem much (if any) better than other similarly priced options. If I wanted to drop 1000+ on a classic Fender style instrument, I'd get a Skyline.
-If it's just to try your hand at instrument assembly, buy a Kiesel/Carvin Kit. Great quality components (better in some ways than Warmoth) and the result will be a consistently lighter and more ergonomic instrument for a much cheaper price. Further, it includes pups, hardware, etc and things like Ebony board, graphite rods, etc are stock!
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-However, if it's to get an instrument that has a combination features that are hard to get elsewhere then Warmoth or other parts suppliers may be a good way to go.

Despite it's minor hortcomings, I love having a Jazz bass with P neck (nearly impossible to find elsewhere) that is in a less common finish (matching trans-cherry red headstock face and body), and that I built myself. I'd do a few things different if doing it again but to be honest, I wanted the Fender headstock and a step up in quality from cheaper aftermarket necks and Warmoth delivers all that.