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Six string spalted maple, fretless, and first build ... kit

eightyearsapril

eightyearsapril

Oct 22, 2011
693
440
Philadelphia area
#1
I ordered a kit from Invalid Link Removed in Australia for my first ever build. I have little experience with this, but a lot of desire, so I hope it will be worth the time and effort. I wanted to build something special for myself, and I had to look overseas to find something other than a P- or J-bass kit.

The planned specs:
  • Six strings
  • 34" scale
  • Five-piece neck (maple and some mystery wood)
  • Rosewood fretboard (to be defretted, have its inlays removed, and stained ebony)
  • Basswood body (stained walnut)
  • Spalted maple top (stained blue)
  • Hipshot A string-through-body 16.5mm spacing black brass bridge
  • Bartolini XXM56C quad coil pickups (EMG45 shape)
  • Mike Pope Flexcore four-band preamp.
I'm currently deciding on the Flexcore configuration and coil splitting, but the Bart pickups and Hipshot bridge were ordered over the weekend via BBG's Black Friday sale.

image.jpg


First thing I did after I got the kit delivered was to make sure the neck fit properly. Fortunately, it does, and my cat Sophie approves.
 
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#4
BazzTard said:
nice, I was looking at the 5 string IB05, and then I realise they are Australian weeee, for once it goes MY way hehe
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Ha, nice! They're a great bunch of guys and offer free shipping in Australia. (Cost me AU$60 to send it all the way to the east coast of the US.)

I'm due to get the Hipshot bridge and Bartolini pickups tomorrow, and have been in discussions with Best Bass Gear on configuring the Mike Pope Flexcore. I'll probably order that next week, and then I can get started.

My first dilemma is the fretboard: I know how to defret it, but I don't know what to do about removing the inlays. I have a Dremel, but I'm not sure how good I would be at drilling out the dot inlays. Does anyone have any good advice?
 
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#6
Sub ' ed to this for sure; can't wait to see how it turns out. This is exactly what I want to do when money allows, just a different model and different specs and parts.
Quick question; when it comes to the finish of the bass, did you get the materials from them or will you buy that stuff local? That is the part that will be hardest on me; I never have had any wood working experience or painting or sanding or anything remotely close to experience of that nature. I don't know what all I need or even where to begin. I know there are plenty of threads I am sure. I was just wondering what you did since you bought from them and I ended up buying from them too. Thanks!!!
 
#7
HaMMerHeD said:
How are you planning on removing the dots?
Click to expand...

I'm not sure yet. I might drill into the dots with my Dremel and pry the dots out with pliers or tweezers. I've tested most things for this project (even bought a cheap neck to practice staining rosewood) but not this part, as the test neck I got had a plain rosewood fretboard.

As for filling the holes, I might get black dots that hopefully will not stand out too much from the ebony-stained fretboard. Maybe a putty of rosewood dust and epoxy. I haven't decided yet.

bass10bfb said:
Quick question; when it comes to the finish of the bass, did you get the materials from them or will you buy that stuff local?
Click to expand...

I looked into their stains and finishes, but I'm using Minwax wood stains (ocean water for the spalted maple top and headstock, walnut for the back and side of the body, and ebony for the fretboard). I have tested each to get what I needed.

image.jpg


That's my ocean water stain test (on a maple sample from woodworkerssource.com) on top of the bass's body. I also tested many different combinations of blue and black ink, but I found that the Minwax blue was easier to get and work with, and gave me what I wanted.

image.jpg


There's the walnut stain test piece, on the same basswood that the bass's body is.

This week I'm testing using Tru Oil on the stained maple sample. No pictures yet, but eight coats so far are on and it looks and feels good. I might test rung oil on the flip sides of both samples, but I like the Tru Oil more for the body. The back of neck will be tung oiled.

I also removed the frets today. I love doing that.

image.jpg

image.jpg


It wasn't the cleanest job, but I'll be sanding and staining the fretboard, so I wasn't too careful.
 
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#11
Sub'd

Looking at getting the Violin-bass or Hollowbody SC Fretless to mangle, myself.

PitBull doesn't ship the finishes outside of The Land Down Under, and Stupid-Mac won't ship finishes (well, the one I want at least) outside the US. Will have to see where my Local Luthier friend gets his French Polish ingredients from.
 
#13
eightyearsapril said:
I looked into their stains and finishes, but I'm using Minwax wood stains (ocean water for the spalted maple top and headstock, walnut for the back and side of the body, and ebony for the fretboard). I have tested each to get what I needed.

View attachment 518628

That's my ocean water stain test (on a maple sample from woodworkerssource.com) on top of the bass's body. I also tested many different combinations of blue and black ink, but I found that the Minwax blue was easier to get and work with, and gave me what I wanted.

View attachment 518632

There's the walnut stain test piece, on the same basswood that the bass's body is.

This week I'm testing using Tru Oil on the stained maple sample. No pictures yet, but eight coats so far are on and it looks and feels good. I might test rung oil on the flip sides of both samples, but I like the Tru Oil more for the body. The back of neck will be tung oiled.

I also removed the frets today. I love doing that.

View attachment 518637
View attachment 518638

It wasn't the cleanest job, but I'll be sanding and staining the fretboard, so I wasn't too careful.
Click to expand...

In my experience, staining spalted maple often results in splotches or it absorbing far too much stain, since the spalt has softened the wood in an uneven fashion. Plus the stain won't pop the grain the way it would on flamed or Birdseye maple anyway. Your best bet might be to seal the maple and apply a toner coat OVER that to get the color you want. You can mix Minwax stain with lacquer and shoot it until the color is as deep as you want before final clear coat or oil. Woodworking shops like woodcraft sell pre-mixed toner in different colors but likely not blue like you are aiming for.
 
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#14
Anthonyfranklin9000 said:
In my experience, staining spalted maple often results in splotches or it absorbing far too much stain, since the spalt has softened the wood in an uneven fashion. Plus the stain won't pop the grain the way it would on flamed or Birdseye maple anyway. Your best bet might be to seal the maple and apply a toner coat OVER that to get the color you want. You can mix Minwax stain with lacquer and shoot it until the color is as deep as you want before final clear coat or oil. Woodworking shops like woodcraft sell pre-mixed toner in different colors but likely not blue like you are aiming for.
Click to expand...
I'm definitely concerned about this, and will test on the headstock first. I wanted to get a sample piece of spalted maple, but couldn't find one for my tests. Feeling over the spalt with my fingers, I don't feel any softness or uneven textures. I need to do the first sanding pass, although it feels pretty much ready for stain now.

Bridge and pickups are due to arrive today, and I got a tip to level the fret slots with a coping saw to make it flat for easier veneer application. I'm going to try to pick up one of those at lunchtime today. I'll order the veneers from LMII this weekend, unless anyone has a better suggestion. I'm going to get the rosewood veneers to match, hopefully, the fretboard. Speaking of which, after looking at it in its defretted state, I'm starting to lean against staining it ebony, as the rosewood grain is rather attractive.
 
#15
And... I just hit my first (minor) roadblock. The Bartolini pickups and Hipshot bridge just arrived, and the pickup routing on the body isn't quite EMG45 shaped. I think I need to make it a hair (maybe 1mm) wider to fit the Barts.

The Hipshot brass bridge is hefty, too. 11.5oz (326g) on my kitchen scale. That's by design, right, to get me to buy their Ultralight tuners? ;)
 
#16
That's one thing I noticed, the weight – hopefully the PitBull weights posted on the site are shipping weights...

I think it's a good call to leave the rosewood grain. I came to the same conclusion on another project bass of mine, was to be blacked out, but will remain dark rosewood. Unless I change my mind again... :D
 
#17
Minwax makes a stain conditioner that will greatly improve the consistency of stain on woods like Maple that tend to be blotchy when stained. Especially spalted as it alters the structure and various areas will take stain differently. In my own experience blotchiness isn't usually that big of a deal, as if one is staining rather than dying or spraying a stain over a seal coat, one tends to expect the variety that stains imbue.

Just a word of warning that I have some old furniture I did with minwax ebony that has taken on a marked bluish tinge after exposure to sunlight in a room indoors. This would be a product sold about 15 years ago, so their colourfastness might be better these days...
 
#18
Feral Feline said:
That's one thing I noticed, the weight – hopefully the PitBull weights posted on the site are shipping weights...

I think it's a good call to leave the rosewood grain. I came to the same conclusion on another project bass of mine, was to be blacked out, but will remain dark rosewood. Unless I change my mind again... :D
Click to expand...
I weighed the neck with and without the included tuners (which I may or may not use). The neck without tuners is 2 pounds, 12.2 ounces, with tuners is 3 pounds, 8.2 ounces. The body is 3 pounds, 3.7 ounces.

I have some leftover red mahogany Minwax stain from an earlier project. I might use that on the fretboard instead of the ebony stain.
 

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