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Saga bass kits

#21
SquareWaves said:
If the wood has already been treated with a sealer, will the hardener and stainer still take?

I'll post pics of the bass when it gets here.
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I don't know. I have no idea what type of sealer was used, or how they applied it to the body. Plus, I've only used the wood hardener over bare wood. I don't have a can of the stuff nearby, but my first suggestion at this point would be to read the directions.

I know, completely counterintuitive for a guy. But good luck anyway.
 
#23
1) You've got to clamp the piece you are working on securely to a work table or some other sturdy bit of furniture (think oak dining room set, not folding card table). And when I say clamp it securely, I don't mean have your buddy hold it for you.

2) The foot of the saw (that metal or plastic plate on the bottom) needs to be in contact with the surface of your workpiece at all times. If you lift the saw from the workpiece, you'll get vibration. Sometimes it's a little vibration, but sometimes it's a lot, and that makes accurate cutting impossible.

3) Watch Link Removed.

4) Don't try to cut to your finished outline. Leave a little wood left outside the lines so you can sand to the final shape.

5) When you're done, have a beer.
 
#24
ghostdog93 said:
1) You've got to clamp the piece you are working on securely to a work table or some other sturdy bit of furniture (think oak dining room set, not folding card table). And when I say clamp it securely, I don't mean have your buddy hold it for you.

2) The foot of the saw (that metal or plastic plate on the bottom) needs to be in contact with the surface of your workpiece at all times. If you lift the saw from the workpiece, you'll get vibration. Sometimes it's a little vibration, but sometimes it's a lot, and that makes accurate cutting impossible.

3) Watch Link Removed.

4) Don't try to cut to your finished outline. Leave a little wood left outside the lines so you can sand to the final shape.

5) When you're done, have a beer.
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Have a beer is right, that was one of the most nerve wracking experiences of my life. It's a simple P-Bass headstock that's a little less then perfect. The jigsaw made a few tiny dings (3 to be exact) but i'm just going to fill them with wood putty and sand again.

Put the whole bass together just to make sure everything was in order and I was really shocked by the results. Without even having to adjust the neck or bridge the bass sounded GREAT, and by great I mean like a P bass, which is exactly what I wanted. I heard so many awful things about the electronics but for what it is I think they're more then adequate until I get my Lace Aluma Ps. Hopefully tomorrow I can start painting. The only thing that upsets me about that is that I can't play it for a week after I apply the laquer.

One odd issue is that one of the pickups is on a slight diagonal but I have a feeling it's because it's partially resting on top of a wire. The tuners also feel strange in that even in standard tuning the D and G string tuners felt extremely tight, string tension is normal though.

I feel like I should also state that my expectations going into this were VERY low. If all goes well with future modifications to this bass, I don't see myself ever purchasing another ready made instrument in the future unless it also knows how to grill a steak and loves Doctor Who.
 
#25
Bongolation said:
$400???

I don't get it. I buy real basses from real companies all the time brand new for less than that with better parts.

Why would any sane person spend $400 and all the wasted time and effort for some kludgy homemade bass with ZERO resale value?

It's just lunacy.
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Wow...jump to conclusions much?

I guess you've never seen a chopper with an S&S engine and transmission have you? Those goofs from orange county NY make a fortune off scooters that don't have a single genuine Harley part on them.

As for zero resale value, when have you ever seen a custom made bass with a nice bookmatched quilt top, a killer tinted finish, and excellent playability have zero resale value?

The big boy bass builders who have standard product lines (like lackland and sadowsky) don't waste time carving from hand glued billets, they buy their major components pre-cut and put a lot of skill into the finished product, and people are fighting for a place on their waiting list, so before you get all wound up about wasting money, maybe you should think a little less inside the tunnel vision little box you obviously exist in, and a take a minute to realize how things actually happen in the real world.

Oh crap...my bad...I keep forgetting I'm talking to a bunch of bass players here, so logic and common sense don't apply like it does in the real world. :D ;) :D
 
#26
Bongolation said:
$400???

I don't get it. I buy real basses from real companies all the time brand new for less than that with better parts.

Why would any sane person spend $400 and all the wasted time and effort for some kludgy homemade bass with ZERO resale value?

It's just lunacy.
Click to expand...

I don't know about that. If you wanted to learn all about building a handmade custom bass then this might be the way to go. I think it would be a great vehicle for learning finishing techniques, electronics, even crowning and leveling of frets, not to mention basic woodworking techniques. It probably would have minimal resale value, but why sell something you built with your own two hands? Also, assuming it plays well to begin with, upgrading the electronics might give you a really sweet little player! ;)
 
#27
Bongolation said:
$400???

I don't get it. I buy real basses from real companies all the time brand new for less than that with better parts.

Why would any sane person spend $400 and all the wasted time and effort for some kludgy homemade bass with ZERO resale value?

It's just lunacy.
Click to expand...
'Cuz it could be fun to build your own. I wouldn't do it, but I could see why others might want to. It's not a matter of savng money, it's the satsifaction one gets from saying "I made this."
 
#31
14dcyfc.jpg


Assembled. Soon to have a badass II this week hopefully. New tuners are definitely needed as these aren't the greatest, I'm trying to not spend much more money then I'll need for the Aluma P pickups, are the Mighty Mite tuners decent enough?

Planning on a flat black finish with all black hardware, I really like the way the neck feels so I'm going to leave that as is, maybe put a goofy logo in the headstock.
 
#33
ghostdog93 said:
Nice!

Did you end up using the wood hardener on the body?
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I didn't since the wood was already treated with a sealer and having to sand down the body seems like it would be a real pain in the ass so not sure it's REALLY necessary.

A friend of mine with a body shop recommended I use a plastic adhesive promoter prior to painting but he's never painted a bass before. Is this recommended? I'm trying to achieve a flat black finish, maybe a slight sheen, but nothing Piano-like.

After playing a bass with some Quarter Pounders I decided to go with them as opposed to the Aluma-P pickups. It isn't the worst thing in the world considering they sound great and are half the price.

I also have to say how addicted I am to playing this thing, I don't even want to go to work right now so I can keep playing this thing. I'm so anxious to be finished with the upgrades. Thanks again everyone for all your help and advice!! This is really one of the smartest purchases I've ever made, and I've bought American Fenders.
 
#34
SquareWaves said:
I didn't since the wood was already treated with a sealer and having to sand down the body seems like it would be a real pain in the ass so not sure it's REALLY necessary.

A friend of mine with a body shop recommended I use a plastic adhesive promoter prior to painting but he's never painted a bass before. Is this recommended? I'm trying to achieve a flat black finish, maybe a slight sheen, but nothing Piano-like.
Click to expand...

I wouldn't worry about the adhesion promoter, especially over wood. It's not like the body is going to flex much. I would sand the body a bit with some 320 grit to knock down the grain, shoot on two coats of a good primer, sand again with 400 to 600 grit (used wet, if you're careful) and shoot your color coats.

What are you planning to use for the flat black?

SquareWaves said:
After playing a bass with some Quarter Pounders I decided to go with them as opposed to the Aluma-P pickups. It isn't the worst thing in the world considering they sound great and are half the price.
Click to expand...

+1 on the SDQPs. I have them in my Squier Franken P bass and I just dig the sound.
 
#35
Ok I decided to change my mind and go a little more bananas with the finish by doing a black burst. I have no idea how I'm going to do it but I think it could turn out really nice. I was afraid of trying a burst finish, but screw it. I'm already building a dream bass, I might as well do something I've thought about for years.
 
#37
Make the whole thing black. Walnut stain first and then paint?. Then sand the paint /starting in the middle and work out to the edges to achieve the effect you want?

Finally clearcoat it and love it.

I've never tried this myself. Just a suggestion.
 
#39
ghostdog93 said:
Black burst...that's ambitious.

I know ReRanch has Link Removed available, and I guess you could use that in conjunction with some straight black sprayed on the edges to create a custom black burst.

Whatever you end up doing, good luck.
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Would the black wood dye work even though the wood has been treated with a sealer? This sounds like a very good idea.
 
#40
SquareWaves said:
Would the black wood dye work even though the wood has been treated with a sealer? This sounds like a very good idea.
Click to expand...

The sealer...yeah, don't know. It depends on what they used.

I guess you could try the dye mixture on a hidden spot (under the pickguard, for example) and see how it looks before you go crazy on the body. The ReRanch dyes are cheap enough that it would cost you around $10 to experiment. Personally, I would go with the alcohol based dye.

If it doesn't work you can always go back to paint.
 

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