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Double Bass So I'm thinking about building my own EUB...

dleblanc

dleblanc

Feb 20, 2006
35
2
Orange County, NY
#1
But I'm not sure. I own a cheap chinese copy. I was warned against it, but I play left-handed and wanted an upright. It was either that or have one custom made. I'm only 22 and at the time, I was only 20. Well, here's my story...

When I had it for a couple of months, the top ended up cracking right at the f-hole on the bass bar side (I think. I'm not really educated in DB parts). When looking at it from the front, it was on the right (E string) side. I was told by a luthier that this was an expensive fix due to the location of the crack as it entailed removing the top or back (Whichever one makes more sense. My memory escapes me.)

So this bass has pretty much stayed untouched for a year and a half. But recently I've gotten an urge to play again. I'm not good or even decent, but I'd like to be able to pick it up again. This brings me to my idea...

I was thinking about taking parts off of the DB to make an EUB. I figured the neck, fingerboard, and the bridge could be reused (along with tuners, strings, etc.). But looking around the internet, I couldn't come across anyone who's had a similar idea. The only thing I'd have to construct (I think) would be some sort of body.

So I've been thinking about this for a while, and I thought about certain things that I'd need to take into consideration. Here's my list...

- I'm only 22 and have an awful paying job, so I don't have much money to spend.
- The body would have to have some kind of contour in order for the bridge to sit correctly on the body. Or... the bridge would have to be shaved in order to sit correctly on the body.
- Amplification. The body-type I would most likely end up using would be a solid type as I don't have the tools or abilities to create a hollow-type. I don't know whether a mic, piezo pickup, or a regular (?) pickup would be best considering all things.
- How I would go about removing the neck from the DB and attaching it to a custom-made body.
- How to do all this and create an instrument that will stay in tune and sound decent.

I probably had more, but it was a mental list and it's 3:45 in the morning. A couple of things to take into consideration along with this. I'm not planning on playing arco, at least, not that much. If it sounded like crap arco, I wouldn't mind all that much. I also am not too worried about having something to act as neck/body joint to mark where one should switch over to thumb position. I'm probably only going to play in the first few positions as I'm only looking to play folk rock and worship songs.

Well, I'll be on here often to check on comments and to answer any questions to clarify what I'm attempting to do. Hopefully this thread can become a guide into creating your own homemade EUB. Thanks for your help in advance!

- Darrell
 
#2
Here's what worked for me:
I originally planned to buy a URB neck from Bob Gollihur and add it to a slab body, but in the process of design, I came across Bill Paulin who ended up building me this bass:
Link Removed
I also did lots of experimenting with piezo and magnetic pickups on a couple of rough prototype basses that culminated in this pickup:
Link Removed
My experience is that a piezo under the bridge foot works really well on solid-body instruments. I was going to add a mag pickup because I assumed the piezo would lack low end, but once I had it assembled I found the piezo has amazing fundamental lows that really drive the band.
Since you already have a neck and all the hardware, it should be relatively easy to build a simple body and get a good-sounding instrument.
 
#4
Thanks for the links. I've seen the one for the piezo pickup. Anyone build one before? How'd it work and about how much did it cost?

Also, I was looking for wood for a body online, but I didn't understand the pricing. How much would I need for a solid body? I'm not quite sure on what kind of design I want. But I just want a rough idea. I'm going to probably paint it, if that helps. What I mean is, I don't need a fancy grain. Would Ash be a good choice? Any recommendations?

Thanks again.

- Darrell
 
#6
So if I want it thicker than one inch, what do I do? Do you glue them together?

Also, what would I do about a tailpiece? The one on the upright now seems like it would be too big and bulky for the slim and compact electric upright. Could I possibly do a string thru design like those found on some electric solid body guitars?
 
#7
Wood does come in other thicknesses than one inch. For example if you had a piece of wood that was six inches square and two inches thick, it would also be one board foot. Another example would be if you had a board that was 6 feet long, 6 inches wide and 2 inches thick it would be 6 board feet (if I did the calculation right)

Most EUBs do not have a standard tailpiece, take a look at NS designs and other major label makes to get some ideas for a tailpiece.
 
#8
dleblanc said:
So if I want it thicker than one inch, what do I do? Do you glue them together?
Click to expand...
Mine uses a piece of Tasmanian Blackwood with a Red Cedar cap glued on top. A cap gives you the opportunity to rout some cavities in the body before it's glued together to make the whole thing lighter and more resonant, and provide channels for pickup/preamp wiring. Another alternative is to make a box frame - glue up some sides and then glue front & back panels on for an even lighter result.
 
#10
"I don't have the tools nor the skills to make one...." - well, we all started out right there. Seems like now is a good time to start acquiring some!

Since you already have an upright you're prepared to dismantle, here's an easy option...
The bass player in "The Sensitive New-Age Cow-Persons" has an upright with an intact front plate, but no back or sides to the body - you can see daylight through the f-holes. I assume he's reinforced the front with a piece of timber running down the centre to support the bridge and for tailpiece to attach to.
This one had a P-Bass pickup mounted to the end of the fingerboard, but may have also had an under-bridge piezo. Actually looks & sounds pretty good.
 
#11
I'd rather have something more compact and solid. I think I'm going to get my hand on some tools. What would be the minimum tools I would need? Mind you, I'm not going to run any wires through the body. I'm going to have a piezo pickup sit under the bridge and have the 1/4" inch jack sit on the body like it would on a DB. Pretty much I just need a cleaned up and shaped piece of wood. Would 2" be thick enough? (I've been doing some pricing with boart feet.) Thanks for all your help. I really appreciate it.
 
#13
I would say, some form of scrolling saw (jigsaw, bandsaw, or scrollsaw), some clamps, some glue, and some sandpaper would be the bare minimum. Power sanders (belt sander, spindle sander, or drum sander) will speed up the process a bit and make it more precise, but I don't think they are absolutely necessary. Good luck!
 
#18
ToneRanger said:
Here's what worked for me:
I originally planned to buy a URB neck from Bob Gollihur and add it to a slab body, but in the process of design, I came across Bill Paulin who ended up building me this bass:
Link Removed
I also did lots of experimenting with piezo and magnetic pickups on a couple of rough prototype basses that culminated in this pickup:
Link Removed
My experience is that a piezo under the bridge foot works really well on solid-body instruments. I was going to add a mag pickup because I assumed the piezo would lack low end, but once I had it assembled I found the piezo has amazing fundamental lows that really drive the band.
Since you already have a neck and all the hardware, it should be relatively easy to build a simple body and get a good-sounding instrument.
Click to expand...

Well that Piezo project sound really interesting is the cork goes on the bridge side or the body..!!!
how about using one piezo for each leg of the bridge is that make any difference at all how this connection will be??
 

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