- Apr 18, 2008
- 16,011
- 1
- 31,719
- Disclosures
- I'm highly opinionated and extremely self-assured
Definitely route the wire channels first! Been there, done that.
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Laguna burger build
- Thread starter RichterScale
- Start date
This was about as good as I could get it.
Pretty sure that if/when I build another bass,......it will have a pickup and a volume knob.
Pretty sure that if/when I build another bass,......it will have a pickup and a volume knob.
- Apr 18, 2008
- 16,011
- 1
- 31,719
- Disclosures
- I'm highly opinionated and extremely self-assured
Okay, that’s actually not too bad.
But test it before you install it!
But test it before you install it!
Not too bad? None of my basses are that tidy... no matter who wired them 
Ya get what ya pay for.
You can have it fast, cheap, or done well. Pick two. (I know cheap was one)
If I connect the pups, can I hold one over the strings of another guitar or bass?
Would that work?
I'm seriously asking. Is there a good way to test it all outside of the bass?
My brain is done for the day. All I could think of was temporarily wiring up the pups, jack and battery and holding a pup next to the strings of another guitar.
You couldn't hurt it by trying.
I've seen photos of pickups rigged over strings to help decide on positioning, so I assume it works.
I've seen photos of pickups rigged over strings to help decide on positioning, so I assume it works.
- Apr 18, 2008
- 16,011
- 1
- 31,719
- Disclosures
- I'm highly opinionated and extremely self-assured
Lightly tap the top of the pickup with a screwdriver. Do this while you twist the knobs, and you can hear the bass/mids/treble cut/boost too.
Yup, that's all I usually do at this stage. You could hold them next to strings and that would work, but not really necessary. You should be able to tell if everything is working or not by tapping them.
I'll give that a try. Here's to hoping everything's working. I do not want to pull that sucker apart again.
I planed my wing blanks about 2mm too thick. A little too much to sand.
So I'm working on the electrical for now and the body is on hold till Monday when I can get back to the router sled. I hope I don't screw it up.
They milled out so nice that after just a few passes with medium paper the halves were actually sticking to each other. (Just for a split sec). That told me they were pretty flat.
I guess I could just mill the back only.
Probably won't be too noticeable if the back is 2mm thinner than the front, especially after carving. I hope.
I planed my wing blanks about 2mm too thick. A little too much to sand.
So I'm working on the electrical for now and the body is on hold till Monday when I can get back to the router sled. I hope I don't screw it up.
They milled out so nice that after just a few passes with medium paper the halves were actually sticking to each other. (Just for a split sec). That told me they were pretty flat.
I guess I could just mill the back only.
Probably won't be too noticeable if the back is 2mm thinner than the front, especially after carving. I hope.
Didn't get a whole lot done today. I think I spent more time making templates to make templates.
Still debating whether to make a jig like Bruce's to joint the body wings, or rig a way to flush trim with a straight edge.
I managed to get the cavity started and make a cover plate. I put it on the sled and got it down to the recommended 3.5 mm. Seems like a good thickness. Battery compartment came out a little rough, but I should be able to clean it up. I saved some sawdust for repairs (I pay attention,.... Sometimes).
I'm thinking I'll just go with 3 screws on the cover too. In a triangle.
Still debating whether to make a jig like Bruce's to joint the body wings, or rig a way to flush trim with a straight edge.
I managed to get the cavity started and make a cover plate. I put it on the sled and got it down to the recommended 3.5 mm. Seems like a good thickness. Battery compartment came out a little rough, but I should be able to clean it up. I saved some sawdust for repairs (I pay attention,.... Sometimes).
I'm thinking I'll just go with 3 screws on the cover too. In a triangle.
Looking good!
My favourite is when I spend all day to make a template so that I can make a jig, so that I can make a fixture so that I can make a template. And the best is when that final template operation takes under 5 minutes.
My favourite is when I spend all day to make a template so that I can make a jig, so that I can make a fixture so that I can make a template. And the best is when that final template operation takes under 5 minutes.
Now I understand why it takes people a year to build a bass and they only update once a month.
They're building jigs to make templates to make other jigs and templates! And they have to modify tools so they can build other tools to build a template for a jig to make a template!
Not sure how @ctmullins built a complete, playable bass in 3 weeks.
There was clearly cheating involved.
Or soul selling.
They're building jigs to make templates to make other jigs and templates! And they have to modify tools so they can build other tools to build a template for a jig to make a template!
Not sure how @ctmullins built a complete, playable bass in 3 weeks.
There was clearly cheating involved.
Or soul selling.
- Apr 18, 2008
- 16,011
- 1
- 31,719
- Disclosures
- I'm highly opinionated and extremely self-assured
Ha! Given that some of my other builds have taken as long as six years, I think I’m still averaging about one year per instrument.... 
Oh,...and I keep forgetting that I still have a wenge fingerboard and fret job ahead of me. The finish line is nowhere in sight.
What happened to just making new wings, refretting the existing board and leaving all the electronics alone?
This was s'posed to be cheap and quick.
What happened to just making new wings, refretting the existing board and leaving all the electronics alone?
This was s'posed to be cheap and quick.
Oh, it is. Especially compared to what you'll be doing nine builds from now.
The battery box still has a lot of imperfections, but I stopped myself before a ran out of material. I had to have a talk with myself and say, listen, it's going on 8 pm, it's never going to be seen by anyone, it's gonna be ok. Put the the sand paper down and go home.
The recess for the cover is only about 3mm, so the cover is proud. But I didn't want to press my luck by going back in with the router, so I'm going to leave it and sand down the cover. I have a roll of thin aluminum flashing that I'm going to epoxy to the underside of the cover, so it should be pretty stable.
(Correct me at any point, with any of my theories, as a lot of the details here are firsts).
Tommorow I'm hoping to get the wing halves glued together, get them jointed and finish the cavity into the walnut.
The recess for the cover is only about 3mm, so the cover is proud. But I didn't want to press my luck by going back in with the router, so I'm going to leave it and sand down the cover. I have a roll of thin aluminum flashing that I'm going to epoxy to the underside of the cover, so it should be pretty stable.
(Correct me at any point, with any of my theories, as a lot of the details here are firsts).
Tommorow I'm hoping to get the wing halves glued together, get them jointed and finish the cavity into the walnut.
When I made a thin wooden cavity cover, I laminated a piece of wood on the inside that was recessed into the cavity to strengthen it.
Also, I'm sure a lot people already know about this, but in case anyone hasn't thought of it yet, I've been doing this forever. I use 18" belt sanding belts and put them on sanding blocks. I usually just grab a relatively flat piece of 1x and round the corners. Just something to knock the edges off rough lumber. Since I had the MDF handy, I made a nicer block that's good n flat. It's a lot better than holding a piece of sand paper wrapped around a block. And you get 2 sides.
Is epoxy my best bet for sticking thin ga aluminum to the mohagany?
Or any wood?
Or any wood?
