PROJECT BUILD: Musicman Cutlass Tribute

[dedpool1052]

not quite the same look as the real thing, but here's a cheaper alternative
http://www.amazon.com/Carbon-Fiber-Vinyl-Wrap-BLACK-Sheet/dp/B0059XEM9I

 

[rojo412]

I've seen that stuff. And while I think it looks nice in the pics, I always wonder about in real life.
But for $8 and it's huge, I may just take a shot!

 

[Jeff Scott]

I just spoke with a guy this afternoon that had both a Cutlass and the Sabre CF neck bass! He worked at DiFiore's in the '60s/'70s.

 

[rogerbmiller]

Email coming to you...

Graphite tends to DRASTICALLY change the sound. For example, the Status I currently have was quite similar to one I had just before it, but that one was wood necked. The graphite one has a lot more clarity and "ping", for lack of a better word.
EQ can make all kinds of difference in either, but I'll have a better shot to compare more details when I get the bass done. I have another SUB that is rosewood/maple necked and 2 band as well. I'll definitely be able to elaborate in about 30+ hours, though!

And in non-tone related news, I know I'm not going to be happy with this:

Some people like the diamond plate, but I'm not one of them. To keep costs down, as well as for experimentation, I'm going to spray it an almost flat black (satin). I figure it would keep the budget in line, look better, and if it doesn't work, I can just buy another PG.
I will be countersinking the screw holes and replacing them with black screws, to keep it looking dark.
If I could find a sheet of carbon fiber plate at a decent price, though, I'd love to make a PG to match the neck.

 

[rojo412]

Okay, so I got the body today. It's nice. But man, those SUB pickguards... seriously?!?! It's cardboard and aluminum foil. But I digress...

I took the guard off and quite like the look:

I actually may have a clear PG coming. It was cheap and it allows me to pretty much customize it however. Carbon weave, plain black, just clear, any other color... just do it, it's clear!

So here's a teaser:

Ah, wouldn't it just be so nice if it were just that easy

I plotted the holes to be drilled and that wasn't as easy as I'd hoped it to be. Turns out, 2 filled holes were close enough, 2 fresh holes would have to be drilled...

... and 2 would need to be filled in due to being JUST far enough away.

Well, no use standing around, I thought. Why not get started?
I countersunk the holes, per the instructions:

As you can see, I hit core

At first, it freaked me out. I thought I may have drilled too much. BUT NO! Carbon fiber is not an easy material to thread a screw into. Not even with a hole pre drilled.
I actually kept bumping up drill bit sizes to finally get the screws to go in far enough and the fit is still nice and tight.

As you can see, I filled and glued the "front" holes. I'm going to let that dry overnight and drill into it tomorrow.

If I had this to do over (and I'm actually not opposed to doing it eventually anyway), I'd have gotten machine screws, tapped the holes and threaded directly into the carbon with machine screws. Something like a M6 bolt would be easy to do, relatively coarse, plenty of thread depth, and no need for threaded metal inserts.
Honestly, this stuff is HARD. If the grip being afforded the current wood screws is any indication of how tough this stuff is, the increased surface area and ease of tapping for a machine screw would most certainly work.

And the absolute beauty of it all... worst WORSE CASE scenario: I'd have to do threaded inserts. If I stripped this out, it'd be no sweat to do an insert.

 

[silky smoove]

I did both of mine with stainless steel inserts and 10-24 machine screws. Worked well, but you're not kidding about needing to gradually bump up the drill size. The underlying material gives pretty easily, but the actual carbon fiber is REALLY tough. I snapped a bit installing the string retainer.

 

[rojo412]

I could barely fall asleep last night, I was so damn ready to get this bass together... but glue takes time.
So, once sleepy time was over, I went back down to the shop and started working again. And since I had time to dream about the process, I decided to make the last 2 screws easy on myself.
Instead of marking and countersinking, then remounting, etc... I just used the larger size bit (size of body screw holes) to "countersink/center". Drilled it slightly through the surface. Then I switched to the screw hole size bit and drilled into the neck. After blowing out the shavings, I mounted the screws...

I then strung it up, tuned to pitch, loosened the neck screws, allowed the neck to get pulled into the pocket, aligned it, tightened them down again, retuned to pitch and VOILA!

After some minor string height tweaks, I plugged it in and it works! The strings need to be replaced, as I hate nickel strings, but it got me a general idea of the tone. It's definitely what I expected: Stingray with glassy overtones.
Once the strings I ordered show up (Ken Smith) and I win the clear pickguard, I'll basically be done. But for the moment, it's a playable, awesome-looking StatRay.

 

[RS]

How does she sound?

 

[rojo412]

Clear, deep, midrangey and carbony. I am stoked to hear it in a band situation, with proper strings, but so far, so good!

 

[OutToPlayJazz]

You'll find in a band situation that it'll cut through and project a lot more than you expect. That's what I love about the Status sound. I played a Stingray with a graphite neck a few times and they really sound stellar. Lovely project to watch. Hope you love playing it!

 

[Sundown1206]

Looks amazing so far! I can't wait till I can afford a Status neck for my SUB project. This time, I'll keep it away from any angry girlfriend I may have...

 

[rojo412]

It's a strong-ass neck. Depending on her strength, I'd give it a fighting chance

Here's a couple outdoor shots:

And I'm going to solve the truss wheel absence thusly:

1) Take a sealed cartridge bearing the same size

2) Use a small spacer, PG screw, and super glue to mount it into the body

TA DA!!!

 

[SilGarzaJr]

I took out my NAMM Anniversary Stingray the other night after following your thread. I had forgotten how articulate and even the notes are across the board.

Great Job - you will love it!

 

[rojo412]

I got to take it to jam last night. Yeah, it's a killer bass. The new strings are a little bright still, but man, the tonality of this is just insane.
And yeah, you said it... it's got the flat out ballsiness of a Ray with a 2 band, but with super-clarity from the Status magic. I've compared the rest of the stable to this and it's really standing tall.
My other basses should be worried, that's for sure...

 

[chargerbandit]

Well what can I say...this Stingray looks ridiculously good! Waiting for some sound samples.

 

[rojo412]

I've gotta snag the interface from the practice spot, but I will do that ASAP.
In the mean time, the guard showed up today...

It's clear plexi, so it doesn't look quite so gray under normal lighting. The price was right, so I couldn't resist.

 

[steveinohio]

Looks awesome man. I'm all kinds of jealous!

 

[dedpool1052]

that turned out great. the only thing i would change is buffing the body to a nice gloss to match the neck.

 

[rojo412]

It would need a repaint to do that, for sure. The texture is too deep.
It would look damn good, though. I have a gloss black SR4, maybe some day I'll switcheroo the two... Stay tuned!

 

[Ragoo]

How does it sound with those Precision Flats on it?