Double Bass I accidently cut the top of my hybrid bass with a knife

[SeBass LoBoss]

Ok.. Im paniking right now, so I dont want to tell the whole story, the thing is I cutted my top with a sharp knife just under de g string side on the top, .. so what is to be done? I have a show tomorrow, so Ill keep everything on until I play, then I guess I will take it a luthier, its 3 or 4 milimetres long and mayber 1 o 2 in , its not that big, but I have a heartake thats killing me, I was cutting of some tape used just to stop a buzzing on my bridge (another story).. hope to get easing news. most probably not

 

[Michael Eisenman]

Did you ever get that first scratch on a new car? This looks pretty insignificant to me. There are two types of basses: those that don't yet have marks and those that will. Rub some walnut meat on it and stop panicking.

 

[Inertialsky]

If that little scratch is 2 inches long that must be a one really big guitar.

 

[Febs]

If that little scratch is 2 inches long that must be a one really big guitar.

I think that he was saying that the cut is 3-4 mm long and 1-2 mm deep. And it's not a guitar at all.

 

[SeBass LoBoss]

Well... I feel like a overeactive little Wuss now, sorry for being such a bitch...
I guess i will be more relaxed now I thought it could get opened up by vibrations and all, f*#k it. All I know is that I should chill more about the bass and enjoy more playing it, its just that damn bridge buzz. A luthier told me it was the bridge adjusters, and recommended to chalk em up, the adjusters and the "bridges feet", so I did and it worked for a couple of days till it started again en then I said: A ha now if I put candlewax inside the bridge, That will hold the vibration, so I did but I putted too much and the bridge leg "exploted", But it still holds up , so now I will just take the buzz until I have the money to buy a new bridge and pay someone to set it up , with no adjusters. I will post the bridge thing In a new thread.
Thanks for the responses

 

[Michael Eisenman]

Are you sure the bridge is buzzing? Look in other places. A common cause is the endpin rod. Does it buzz when you remove the endpin? Could be other causes, too; search the forums.

 

[Inertialsky]

I think that he was saying that the cut is 3-4 mm long and 1-2 mm deep. And it's not a guitar at all.

I had to go back and re-read it.. thanks. I honestly spent a good 2-3 minutes studying that photo earlier for a longer cut somewhere...

 

[MikeCanada]

There is a good chance that most of us here remember the first mark on our basses. Mine was in a bass lesson. My teacher was eating dinner while teaching, hand talking, and managed to fork the top of my instrument. It was a tiny little mark probably smaller than yours. My teacher had to sit me down and remind me to breath. Afterwards the teacher's bass came out of it's bag, and the first mark ever on it was pointed out to me as well. I had to look a few times in order to see it. Your response is completely normal. It is great that you take good care of your instrument and while you will always hate marking it up, the next one won't hurt quite so bad.

As for the buzz, Michael's suggestion about the endpin is a good one. There are a bunch of other possibilities as well, which are easiest spotted when you can play and listen for where it is coming from and narrow it down. If it is in fact the bridge, then having a luthier who knows basses check it out is your best option. There are likely thousands of basses on this continent with adjusters that don't have problems, (they aren't as common in Europe, largely because the climate doesn't change as dramatically in places like France and England) so I wouldn't absolutely rule them out. They can be quite useful and necessary depending on your instrument and location. They can also be problematic if poorly installed. Make sure you go to a luthier who focuses on basses though, as a well cut bridge is one of the most important aspects in the playability and tone of your instrument. If you don't want adjusters that is an option, but hopefully one bad experience doesn't turn you off of them for good.

 

[SeBass LoBoss]

Thanks Mike ! I think that the bumps and all give the bass a certain personality, but what we care about mostly its the sound. This is the third one Ive had, thats why I choose a hybrid, I eventually became careless about the laminated ones because a DB is so big its bound to be wacked up sometimes. and this one took more money out of my pocket also. With Dbs its almost always like a really demanding girlfriend, or grandma, I guess its better to interact like this with an object than with a human.
2 luthiers told me it was the bridge, and I checked eeeverything else (as michael said), I just wanna forget about it and focus on playing, of course I will change the bridge ASAP and maybe put the adjusters, but I dont need em much ( I live in nantes france near the atlantic) any way thanks for calming me down. good gigs to all ya all

 

[Eric Hochberg]

good gigs to all ya all

that's "all y'all", or in Chicago, "all yous". In Kentucky, "youins".