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Rhiannon and Galadriel

michaelwayneharwood

michaelwayneharwood

Builder of the Wastelands
In Memoriam
Commercial User
May 1, 2014
2,494
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Colorado
michaelwayneharwood.blogspot.com
Disclosures
Owner Melodious Resonance Constructs
#1
"Rhiannon rings like a bell through the night..."
- Fleetwood Mac

The honorable @rondodunbar, a TalkBass regular and all around nice guy, has commissioned me to build a 5 string headless fretless bass in the single cut telecaster style. I am both honored and humbled to have been chosen to free Rhiannon from her wooden bondage and allow her to give voice to all of the desires of her heart.

The specs are as follows:

- 5 String headless fretless at a 35" scale length
- A chambered walnut back with a highly figured maple top
- A Walnut neck
- A highly figured maple fingerboard randiused to 7 1/4"
- A single Lace Alumitone Bass Bar pickup
- ABM single string headless bridges, with a Hipshot head piece
- A single volume "kill" switch, but otherwise wired straight to the jack

Here's the basic concept - woods will be added to this drawing as they come in:

tele-bass.png
 
#4
Jon Clegg said:
Congrats! This will be a fun one to watch. Classic body with a headless setup; definitely unique.
Click to expand...
Well the thought process is to...

Excuse me, but might I be allowed to add my own voice in this?​

Rhiannon, please do.

The chosen raiment aligns quite nicely with the epoch into which I will be released into, but my heart stays the same.
​
Thank you, Rhiannon.

Mae croeso i chi.​
 
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#5
I have been following Michael's builds for many months. I sent him a message outlining my vision for a retro-modern build. Tele body, domestic woods, single Lace Alumatone, headless, fretless. "Rhiannon" from the Welsh language means good queen, I am hopeful that she will inspire me to become the bass player I aspire to become.
Rondo
 
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#6
One thing should be stated about the expected timelines... This build was slated to be started in July after the $100 challenge builds were done, but I am starting it a bit early to be able to lump together similar tasks. If I am setting up to taper necks I might as well taper all of them at once, and band sawing out 5 bodies only takes a bit more time than one. I am hoping that by starting this work earlier we will be able to get Rhiannon freed sooner than the original timeline allowed for, and I have been chomping at the bit to get this build started for a while now.

As have I. The pale void where I find myself at the present is empty and without form. I yearn to be in the arms of my lover.
​
Well...err...umm...yes. There's that as well.
 
#10
Interesting project. I like a fretless bass with a tight fingerboard radius. A bit like a cello.

If you're sticking with a 35" scale, keep in mind that you are ruling out using double ball strings. The Hipshot headpiece will clamp regular strings just fine, but if you are hoping to use nylon wrapped strings you might run into the problem of them unwrapping when you cut them to length.

Where will the kill switch go? Maybe on the side, by the output jack?
 
#11
PDX Mathias said:
Interesting project. I like a fretless bass with a tight fingerboard radius. A bit like a cello.

If you're sticking with a 35" scale, keep in mind that you are ruling out using double ball strings. The Hipshot headpiece will clamp regular strings just fine, but if you are hoping to use nylon wrapped strings you might run into the problem of them unwrapping when you cut them to length.

Where will the kill switch go? Maybe on the side, by the output jack?
Click to expand...

We haven't decided the exact location of the switch as of yet. I have heard you can use some CA to keep the nylon attached when clipping for headless designs- we are going to have to test that. Thanks for the warning!
 
#14
Cool stuff!
How are you doing the walnut neck? Any laminating involved? ...or just the one piece of walnut as she sits. And if so, is the grain orientation doing you any favors...like being quarter -sawn?
It's obviously a nice straight grain piece with no run out ...(from what I can see in the pic)...so that's good :)
I'm sub'd & watching!
Congrats on the commission! & Rondo, this guy is as meticulous as they come...good choice! ;)
 
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#15
Rôckhewer said:
Cool stuff!
How are you doing the walnut neck? Any laminating involved? ...or just the one piece of walnut as she sits. And if so, is the grain orientation doing you any favors...like being quarter -sawn?
It's obviously a nice straight grain piece with no run out ...(from what I can see in the pic)...so that's good :)
I'm sub'd & watching!
Congrats on the commission! & Rondo, this guy is as meticulous as they come...good choice! ;)
Click to expand...

Thank you for the kind words! The neck wood in the rendering is a stock image of Walnut I had on hand - I have not actually picked up the neck wood yet. Once the walnut core comes in I am going to take it with me to my favorite local hardwood supplier and hunt for a board with a good color match and nice straight grain. I will be hunting for a nice quartersawn board, but barring that laminating the neck is on the table as well. We are trying to find the best compromise between beauty and structural stability.

Pickup location has not yet been determined at this time. Ron will be utilizing the Sonum Experior to hunt for Rhiannon's voice.
 
#16
I received a PM that had a question, and I thought it would be good to share both the question and my response as others may be thinking the same thing.

Your drawing of the Tele inspired body has a flat spot where the bass side upper bout (or un cut horn) curves around to meet the neck. An actual Telecaster body is more curved there and even has a little indentation right by the neck like a mini cutout that almost makes it technically a horn.
​
Good eyes man! The shape was taken from the tele basses I could find online, and I am still refining it. Before blade hits wood @rondodunbar and I will be discussing an finalizing all of the those points. Another difference (as you noticed) is on the back near the neck transition on the bass side. The "official" Fender body has a slight upward rise which I assume is to provide more area for the neck pocket. This is going to be a set neck so that area is unneeded, and I want to make that area flow into the neck similar to the neck transition of a neck through design.
 
#18
rondodunbar said:
I am thinking that heat shrink might work, planning on using Rotosound 88's...otherwise I'll go with TI Jazz flats if the nylon wrap becomes a problem.
Rondo
Click to expand...

Aha, maybe heat shrink tubing is the answer? It should hold the wraps in place, but may be a bit bulky to clamp in the headpiece.
I did some experiments with scrap Fender tape wound string and super glue. I was about 80% successful, which sounds pretty good, but means that for every 5 sting set, I would ruin one string. In the end I just settled on a regular 34" scale (but it was a 4 string) and double ball La Bellas.
 
#20
friendlybass said:
Let me know how you both like the alumitone, I'm thinking about the same pup for my first build! Looks like this thing is gonna be sweet!
Click to expand...
Totally! It comes in today and I am going to play around with it until I get the Sonum Experior finished, and then @rondodunbar will be using it for a while to see what he sees. I will record some sound clips and update the Sonum thread with general opinions, and this one will be updated with the position chosen for your consideration.

Here's an updated concept drawing. Note the following:

1. This build is heavily influenced by the telecaster design, but certain changes are being made for a variety of reasons
2. The fingerboard in the concept is a stock photo just to show the grain effect we are going for, but the color and grain may be different once the right wood is chosen and procured
3. The neck transition in the back has been changed to provide better flow. Keep in mind that this is an extended set neck design, so the neck pocket will be from the top of the body all the way down to the top of the pickup.
4. Rather than keeping with a fairly "square and blocky" body shape in regards to round-over, and fairly heavy round-over will be applied to smooth things out.

rhiannon.png
 

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