Old-Noob's First Build Thread

[Old_Noob]

I've got me a block of wood and a plan. Thoughts on the design?

And my Ergo option

 

[charlie monroe]

Sharp corners can be fragile, may consider some rounding off.

Nice lumber

 

[rudy4444]

I tend to hurt myself with anything pointed. A block of wood and a plan is a good way to start, though.

You're gonna have to wind your own pickup to get that pole spacing.

 

[Old_Noob]

You're gonna have to wind your own pickup to get that pole spacing.

The limits of Microsoft paint

 

[Old_Noob]

My other design is more "ergo"

 

[Beej]

To test out body shapes, I've made one out of plywood scraps or hard insulation - the insulation is messy but you can quickly fuss with different shapes to see how it feels against your body.

 

[Gilmourisgod]

To test out body shapes, I've made one out of plywood scraps or hard insulation - the insulation is messy but you can quickly fuss with different shapes to see how it feels against your body.

That's what I did on my first full body build, two pieces of scrap 3/4" plywood laminated together to test body shape, balance, routing technique, etc. Of course, that was back before plywood was $70/sheet! It's not a perfect analog for solid wood, but it gets you close without trashing some expensive "tonewood". The hardest part for me is predicting actual finished balance, but if you have the neck and all the hardware, I guess you could get a pretty good idea how it will hang. That would be a nasty surprise, maybe hundreds of hours into it, only to find it a Terminal Diver.

 

[Old_Noob]

First very rough drawing....more concerned with the body proportions here. Little concerned with my ability to do clean arcs like these.

The goal with the cut out on the bottom is to let me rest it between my legs when sitting.

 

[RichterScale]

Is that cardboard?
Did you cut it out and test how it sits yet? Do you have a template or measurements for a neck, so you can cut the whole thing out and see what the reach is like near the nut?
I will probably use cardboard to test a range of body shapes on my next bass.
I'm also going for ergonomics

 

[Old_Noob]

Is that cardboard?
Did you cut it out and test how it sits yet? Do you have a template or measurements for a neck, so you can cut the whole thing out and see what the reach is like near the nut?
I will probably use cardboard to test a range of body shapes on my next bass.
I'm also going for ergonomics

I haven't cut it out yet. I never thought of testing for the reach--good idea. I traced the neck joint from my pbass to get a rough alignment on the pocket.

I am trying to think of something to use as a backing material for the cardboard so I can get sense of how it will "sit" in 3D

 

[RichterScale]

you could tape a yard stick to it. Or a broom handle, dowel,.....

 

[Old_Noob]

Yep. Will use one of those. I measured out the top horn to reach to the 10th fret, so I think reach should be fine

 

[Old_Noob]

Some design modifications. Getting ready to cut a template/practice piece from some pine boards

 

[Bruce Johnson]

Remember:

When you get to the "real" boards, don't be in a hurry to saw out the perimeter shape. Glue it up as rectangular blocks, and keep it as oversized blocks while you do the layout, routing the neck pocket, pickup cavities, control cavity, etc. It's easier to do all that important internal stuff while you have that excess wood to hang on to.

When all that is done right, then lay on your cardboard templates and cut out the perimeter.

 

[Old_Noob]

Hopefully going to be doing a practice cut on some pine boards this week to make a template. Still trying to decide on what to do with a neck…I am NOT going to be laying out my own neck as that is waaaaay beyond my capabilities. I have enough real estate on the body to do 32 scale or 34. I already have a 30 and 34 scale, so part of me wants to try a 32–but that has limited options to mainly jaguar take-off necks or a few companies that do neck blanks. Because I have no prior experience with fret levelling/crowing/dressing, I either want to do a takeoff or have fiddled with the idea of doing a full scale fretless.

 

[DrRock321]

Remember:

When you get to the "real" boards, don't be in a hurry to saw out the perimeter shape. Glue it up as rectangular blocks, and keep it as oversized blocks while you do the layout, routing the neck pocket, pickup cavities, control cavity, etc. It's easier to do all that important internal stuff while you have that excess wood to hang on to.

When all that is done right, then lay on your cardboard templates and cut out the perimeter.

Gonna try this on my next build, and as always, thanks Bruce

 

[Old_Noob]

Managed to do ok on the neck route except i got excited pulling out and ny bit gouged the body. Hope the 3 marks will buff out otherwise i will just relocate the pickup to cover the marks

 

[Slidlow]

On all designs I have worked on I typically try to keep the lower part of the body wider then the upper part.

 

[Old_Noob]

Actually they are identical width...just the camera angle makes the top look way bigger than it is

 

[A9X]

I have no useful advice to offer, but I'll soon be starting my first build, so I wish you good luck and fair winds and all that.