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Kala UBass Megathread, Part 4

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#541
As a collector of instruments I have done several imports from the US to Denmark. My take is that the process is not worthwhile unless the object of the transaction is unique and something you really want.

Very few private persons want to accept VISA or MasterCard even if they own a non-related business which has card accepting facilities. They will be taxed for the amount even if it in this context is a private non-business transaction. Paying via bank transfer costs US$30. Cheque is more expensive and on top the buyer has to pay a fee to the receiving bank in the range of US$20.

Bank transfer and cheque leave you without any guarantee against fraud. There especially MasterCard and PayPal are much better, so now I only enter deals where I can pay by MC or PP.

And when the parcel arrives here there are duty and taxes to be paid. Which I consider fair. What enrages me is, that I am not allowed to do the tax paperwork myself, not even electronically. The Danish Post has been authorized to charge me a flat rate of around US$25 for the paperwork.

So in the worst case I am out of US$75 even before I start paying for the goods or for shipping.

This note just to tell that transcontinental transactions are more complicated and more costly than many may expect.

Klaus
 
#542
Since overseas shipping costs seem to be prohibitive for the F Deck HPF Pre, another option to consider is to build the unit yourself or pay someone in your local area to build it. I believe that everything you need is provided on this page of the Web site:

https://sites.google.com/site/hpftechllc/home/technical-diy-stuff

I'm not sure if that will save you any money. I suppose it's a reasonable option, though, if you're good with a soldering iron or have an electronics geek friend who loves to build things.
 
#543
The box that Fdeck uses for the HPF-Pre can be put into a padded envelope and mailed to Europe for less than $12. That is not very expensive. And because it is using a padded envelope, you can use the short form for international shipments. It takes all of one minute to fill out.
 
#545
Well,... finally de-fretted my Spruce!

As I expected, this was by far the easiest de-fret I've ever done! Didn't need any heat & the small tangs and barbs came out very cleanly! Very easy, I wish every guitar was like this.

I used a piece of ash veneer for the filler material. I think it turned out pretty great! There was a little bit of dark-grain in the ash in a few spots, but it adds some cool character.

Only tools I needed were the fret pullers (these were about $5.00 from a garage sale & ground flat) and two chisels:
20120906_132724.jpg


All gone! Took about 15 minutes.
20120906_134119.jpg


Cutting down the ash veneer, widening the slots, glue-in & then planing/sanding took a couple of hours:
20120906_165601.jpg


Well worth the effort! Sounds great. Same tone, but you can cop a little more of the upright-like vibe from it.
 
#549
TimWatson said:
Even Justin is now assimilated :evil grin:
Click to expand...

I still have a fretted! 1/2 assimilated?

Meh. I've played fretless for years. I dig it, but 95% of my work has been better done with frets. Still, the U-Bass is one of those instruments where going fretless makes more sense in many ways. I just don't think the tone is all that different in-context. Definitely more fun though! :-)
 
#554
Practicing is fun. But, don't practice boring, instead, speak with your bass.

This TED Talk video by Victor Wooten has struck a chord with me, big time.


I am taking it to heart and it in the last three weeks since I first watched the video, it has changed HOW I practice.
 
#556
Robdrone said:
Are these things loud enough to play in a fully unplugged acoustic sitting around the fire kind of jam session?
Click to expand...

I'd say not really. You'll hear yourself ok, but they're just too small to project over an acoustic guitar and/or singing.

Still, the tone and volume are surprisingly solid for so small an instrument! I'm very tempted to mic one up on a session some time!
 
#560
Yes, a heretic question!:

Possibly with one of the megathreads as source I learned that the predecessor of the UBass was an instrument of just about the same proportions and also stringed EADG. Only not in the contrabass range, but an octave higher.

Are these strings still available?

Will they fit a UBass set up to be played with the thick Pahoehoe contrabass strings? I have a suspicion that the lesser string thickness might call for the bridge being closer to the fretboard.

The reason is that melody playing comes much more natural to me on an instrument tuned to linear fourths than on my ukuleles and guitars which all have the reentrant tuning to achieve the very close chord voicing that I am out after.

Klaus
 
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