My Krappy Bass custom build

[Ty McNeely]

LOL!

I loved this from his page:

That is GENIUS!

 

[PeteH]

You two dudes look like you're tearin' it up, Joe!

 

[The Owl]

pull the trigger BEFORE you leave.... your rod might be done or close to it, by the time you get back from vacation !


Hey, note the small & compact size of my fretless 2; you couldn't really tell from the earlier pic of just the bass itself. But it is 34" scale, w/ two-full-octave neck : big and meaty sound, too

Well, if the Gotoh tuners I just ordered from Stew-Mac arrive before week's end, I just might put in the order before I leave, al depends on UPS.

 

[The Owl]

And BTW folks, there is now the Official Krappy Bassists Klub thread, so please join in:

http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=469936

 

[The Owl]

...maybe the Krapmeister once found a busted-up cello in a dumpster, and has been hanging onto the pieces, just waiting for your request...??

Could it be---uh, the cello that a young Virgil Starkwell once played

 

[dan.ablett]

When the Economic Stimulus payment hit my bank account, I decided I'd spend a little and see what Kevin Siebold of Krappy Guitars, Hackettstown, NJ could do.

Disclaimer - I play bass recreationally, and don't have a ton of money invested in this hobby. My other basses include a short-scale SX Jazz, a Brice fretless-6, and a Wishbass. I am NOT a Gear Snob, and my GAS is usually pretty mild.

For those who haven't seen them yet, Kevin's "Punkbass" line is designed to give you something to play for a low price. His prices start at $85 for a single-string bass, or $100 for two strings. Although he builds high-quality touchstyle instruments in the $700+ range, the Punkrods and Punkbasses are about having fun on the cheap.

Having browsed through the Punkbasses, I decided I wanted a 3-string EUB known as the "Twiggy" model. This looked about right to me. Not too crazy a design, and 3 strings rather than 2, which would be plenty usable for me.

Note - the complete set of photos can be found in the following Flickr set: Invalid Link Removed

I contacted Kevin by email, telling him I wanted a Twiggy with 3 strings, fretless, and 34" scale. The rest was up to him. He replied with a price of $200 plus shipping. Upon receipt of my PayPal payment, the work began in mid-May.

Kevin chose Santos Mahogany for the outer 2 stringers, then Maple, with a Brazilian Cherry center stripe:

Note how the maple stringers taper from one end to the other.

Later in May, I got a photo taken after the neck had been glued-up and the truss rod had been installed:

In mid-June, I got this shot of the basic neck shaping. It was starting to look like a bass:

Things went pretty quietly for a few more weeks - Kevin had some car trouble to repair and I didn't hear too much, but I finally got an email with a UPS tracking number. Two months to the day after the original order, the finished bass showed up:

Also included was an extendable post which probably started life in the Paint department at the hardware store. That's OK - it has a nice rubber foot on the end, and extends and collapses very easily with a twist.

I don't know what the fingerboard is made of, but it's smoothly sanded and isn't humpy.

The bridge appears to be made from aluminum stock, with a single rod as the actual string support. The rod appears to e free-floating, but I haven't un-strung it yet to be sure. There are height adjustment screws on either end:

The end post clamps into a simple wood block:

The tuners are VERY compact. They remind me of the little guys on my Martin Backpacker guitar, but they're holding tune nicely. As you can see, there's a nice 'hump' behind the nut which makes a nice thumb reference:

The electronics are basic - a single passive humbucking-style pickup, one volume control with a nice knurled knob, and an output jack:

The action is nice and low, and it's pretty fun to play. I'm not used to an upright with only a 34" scale, but I'm getting there. She wants to 'twist' a little as there's nothing to stop it from rotating on the pin, other than my hands. I'm thinking about how to craft a 'foot' to go on the bottom of the pin to hold her steady. It sounds fine through a little practice amp, and I need to try it out through something bigger, but so far, so good!

So finally, here's a wide guy playing a skinny bass:

To sum up:

- Build time: 2 months
- Cost: $200 plus UPS Ground shipping
- Playable out of the box
- No splinters!

A good value, in my book.

i would also love to have a 4 string version of that.... but i im keen to make it locally. very interesting. thanks for posting!

 

[PeteH]

As the Twig has no 'factory' position markers, I decided to add some temporary dots, using small paper triangles cut from sticky material. I used a digital tuner (Intellitouch) to locate the proper positions at III, V, VII, IX, and XII, stuck the triangle on at that point, and then dabbed a touch of nail polish to hold them down.

Once I'm more confident with my vertical intonation on this 34" scale, I'll simply remove the markers with a cotton ball soaked with a little nail polish remover.

 

[The Owl]

KS - ---- but instead I got a cello end-pin-rest. The rubber tip on the post fits snugly into the little metal cup on the cello rest, and it doesn't twist. Works like a champ.

Where can one get these end-pin rests?

 

[PeteH]

I bought mine at a local school-music store - they have students who rent cellos, so it was in stock for like 9 bucks. Interestingly, the same doodad is sold to drummers to keep their kick drums from walking forward. Musicians' Friend has them online.

Don't get the one for upright bass - the hole will be too big and won't grip. Your end-pin is different from mine, so hopefully the rubber tip will be big enough to grip firmly in the cup of the pin rest.

 

[deepdown]

Yep. And if we used our Krappys at our church gigs, they'd truly be Holy Krap.

Lol

 

[PeteH]

Glaesel cello end-pin rest at Musicians' Friend:
http://band-orchestra.musiciansfriend.com/product/Glaesel-Cello-Endpin-Rest?sku=360296

My local purchase was the RockStop brand.

 

[The Owl]

Glaesel cello end-pin rest at Musicians' Friend:
http://band-orchestra.musiciansfriend.com/product/Glaesel-Cello-Endpin-Rest?sku=360296

My local purchase was the RockStop brand.

Thanks Pete! I just ordered it.

 

[standupright]

goddammit.....i just bought a new oddity, and now this one's giving me GAS.....

 

[The Owl]

goddammit.....i just bought a new oddity, and now this one's giving me GAS.....

Turrrrrnnnn to the Krappy Side Tuuuuurrrrnnnnn tooooo theee Krappy Side

 

[iamlowsound]

Man that looks good. I kind of want one.

lowsound

 

[JoePasko]

Hey - I am having my 2nd Krappy axe being built for me right now! This is a 17" scale 4-string electric solid-body something-or-other (tenor uke? alto guitar?).
It's gonna be a junior version of my 2-string Krappy bass (Les Paul-ish body shape, etc.)

here is a pic of work-in progress

Update: I attempted to post a pic of completed object, but have apparently exceeded my attachment quota. GO to Krappyguitars.com, select exoticustoms, and my new toy is at the bottom ("les Uke").

 

[aquamentus]

I want one. NOW.