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One Squier To Rule Them All...

#42
The basic inspiration....

IMG_0025.JPG



The finished bass ....

IMG_0019.JPG
 
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#43
Eilif said:
Really impressive. Normally I'm a bit dismissive of basses where the parts added are worth more than the initial instrument, but this one really looks great.

Also, how'd you get the routes so clean?
Click to expand...

I made a routing template for the pick ups and routed those out. Then, to make the pick guard routes, I screwed the pick guard in place and used a router bit with the bottom bearing. What this does is it traces the route itself, and the blade cuts the pick guard. Super simple to do.
 
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#46
Dark Horse said:
I made a routing template for the pick ups and routed those out. Then, to make the pick guard routes, I screwed the pick guard in place and used a router bit with the bottom bearing. What this does is it traces the route itself, and the blade cuts the pick guard. Super simple to do.
Click to expand...
Thanks. Two follow up questions.

What material do you use for the template and what is a a "bottom bearing".
 
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#47
dave64o said:
Ha! Then make sure you never read any of my posts about the SX fretless that I Frankensteined! :facepalm:

:D
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Maybe dismissive is a bit too strong. I like upgrade/frankenstein threads as much as anyone so feel free to link to your work. However after reading cheapie upgrade threads them I do often find my self thinking that a better bass wouldn't have needed as much work and would have given a better final result.

I've owned alot of cheapies in the past and I still fix/clean up alot of junker's but it's always with an eye to not investing more than they're worth and selling them away quickly.
 
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#48
Eilif said:
Thanks. Two follow up questions.

What material do you use for the template and what is a a "bottom bearing".
Click to expand...


For the template, I usually use MDF or void free plywood.

A bottom bearing router bit looks like this. What it allows you to do is the bearing rides along the surface that is already cut, and the blades only go as far as the bearing allows. That way you're left with an exact duplicate of whatever the bearing follows. I hope this makes sense to you.

IMG_0027.JPG
 
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#49
Dark Horse said:
For the template, I usually use MDF or void free plywood.

A bottom bearing router bit looks like this. What it allows you to do is the bearing rides along the surface that is already cut, and the blades only go as far as the bearing allows. That way you're left with an exact duplicate of whatever the bearing follows. I hope this makes sense to you.

View attachment 1407720
Click to expand...
perfect, thanks!
 
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#50
Very impressive...I've modded my share of Squiers but I don't have your talent...and for those that object to throwing more dollars in parts than the actual worth of the bass, I will tell you that Squier build quality may be a little rough, but once you get them to be where you want them they are solid and great sounding basses. I've had Fender, Dingwall, and Warwick basses but my regular go to bass for the last 10 years has been a Squier V with a 2" nut modded to a 6-string, and am about to mod another in that way...
 
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#55
Eilif said:
Maybe dismissive is a bit too strong. I like upgrade/frankenstein threads as much as anyone so feel free to link to your work. However after reading cheapie upgrade threads them I do often find my self thinking that a better bass wouldn't have needed as much work and would have given a better final result.

I've owned alot of cheapies in the past and I still fix/clean up alot of junker's but it's always with an eye to not investing more than they're worth and selling them away quickly.
Click to expand...
Not to derail Dark Horse's thread, but here's one of the posts about my Franken-Jazz : Post your "Beater" bass - a thread for the Mutt's

Don't worry about your choice of the word "dismissive". Believe me, I get the point about modding a bass WAY beyond its original value and, as you'll see in my post that I linked to, I said a few times how UN cost-effective a project it was! But I did learn some things from it, it makes for a good beater bass because anyone who looks at it and sees "SX" and probably won't get its actual value, it was kinda fun to pick out all the parts, and in the end I got a really nice sounding bass. That being said, I doubt I'll ever do anything like that again!

Anyway, back to Dark Horse's regularly scheduled thread. But feel free to PM me if you want to hear more about it - even if it's just "Why?!?!". :D

EDIT: My bad, I initially posted a link to THIS thread. I changed it to point to the thread about my beater/mutt that I was referring to.
 
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