Source for Veneer for Lam Pinstripe effect?

[lbridenstine]

Rick,

1/8" seems like it'd be pretty thick for a pinstripe. I use standard veneers, I think 1/40" and I usually have to glue 2 pieces side by side to get the width, but once in a while you can find some that are the right dimensions. If all you will see is the edge, I would just look for something that's a similar color. On the bass I just finished, I used makore veneers in the neck that matched the mahogany of the body and headstock, for example. If you want it to be thicker and to be able to tell that it is cocobolo and bocote, I feel like the binding idea would be nice.

Maybe he could bind the body and put the top on over it to make it look like there's a layer of wood there.

 

[grinx]

that bridge is sickness. any idea how much that bass cost?

 

[EdwardofHuncote]

Try Luthiers Mercantile and Woodcrafters.

 

[BassHappy]

Rick,

1/8" seems like it'd be pretty thick for a pinstripe. I use standard veneers, I think 1/40" and I usually have to glue 2 pieces side by side to get the width, but once in a while you can find some that are the right dimensions. If all you will see is the edge, I would just look for something that's a similar color. On the bass I just finished, I used makore veneers in the neck that matched the mahogany of the body and headstock, for example. If you want it to be thicker and to be able to tell that it is cocobolo and bocote, I feel like the binding idea would be nice.

Maybe he could bind the body and put the top on over it to make it look like there's a layer of wood there.

Try Luthiers Mercantile and Woodcrafters.

Hey Lisa and Edward

Thanks so much for the suggestions, I have some very hopeful feelers out from today - should know more tomorrow, but excellent suggestions all the way around. My Fender Hollows are almost done and they have "flat tops" so I really wanted to contour these as standard P and J bodies. Once I get a concept in my head and I see it clearly in my mind's eye, it's hard to shake it.

I am sure it has been done somewhere - but I have never seen anyone crazy enough to actually match the pinstripes EXACTLY to the fingerboards on a build like this. Usually it's something similar or something contrasting and really - close but no cigar as far as I am concerned. To me the small details really matter.

I don't look at this as being any different from my hot rod. I meticulously chose the interior red trim material first and then matched the paint EXACTLY to that. I have seen it time and time again where it is done the opposite way around and well, close but no cigar - it never matches exactly. No one ever seems to care but it really bugs me.

Just the way I am wired, I suppose....

Oh, and to realize the depth of my perfection depravity, I don't want any visible seams. Nope, not piecing this together with scraps. Das Verboten. That means book matched or one piece. Book matched will be fine, the top seam will be obliterated by the neck pocket and the bottom seam will be covered by the strap button. If it isn't quite covered by the strap button, I will use a decorative washer so that it is.

 

[EdwardofHuncote]

...Just the way I am wired, I suppose....

I get it... I'm the same way. Good luck !

 

[EdwardofHuncote]

Here's a thread (on another forum) where I'm doing a five-string conversion and using some pinstripe veneers as well as thicker laminates.

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

 

[BassHappy]

Here's a thread (on another forum) where I'm doing a five-string conversion and using some pinstripe veneers as well as thicker laminates.

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

Hey Thanks Edward

I enjoyed looking at the thread!

I am not into wasting material, but I can always get something closer to 1/4" which I may do. Then you can glue one side up and then it's easy to plane it down as thin as you might like. So there are options, I just thought if I could find 1/8" or so, I would waste less material. And the good thing is - I can use B or C grade stuff with knots of other inconsistencies, as long as I can get a good 360 degree perimeter out of it.

 

[BassHappy]

I can pull the trigger on these if i want, but they are way too beautiful to cover up and just use the edges, plus there might be some great material wasted as these are close to 1/4". Maybe they could be sliced in half to make two 1/8" tops.

That would be ideal as I could use both of these as drop tops on later projects or pass the wood along to someone who can use a thin top. The same company has an abundance of this material and they are trying to rescue some stuff from the scrap heap that has a good 360 perimeter for me. I hope they can - It's always hard to tell on the computer - but both of these appear to be a pretty decent color match:

 

[josiah goldfish]

As it's only edge and end grain showing, why not use a veneer in a similar colour to those above?

Also, I admire your desire to not waste wood! I do that too, keeping hold of off-cuts and stuff for little pieces

 

[BassHappy]

As it's only edge and end grain showing, why not use a veneer in a similar colour to those above?

Also, I admire your desire to not waste wood! I do that too, keeping hold of off-cuts and stuff for little pieces

Hey Josiah

Please see Post #24 above.

Thanks.

 

[tjclem]

Work like that is done on a milling machine, cutting the slots and surfaces just as if it were a block of aluminum. You do all the milling work first, holding the rectangular block of wood in the mill vise. Once all the precision dimensional stuff is established, bandsaw the rough external shape, attach it to a holder, and then shape and smooth all the outside contours. That's how I do it. You can use a CNC router if you want to, but it isn't necessary. A good drawing and a milling machine is the old fashioned way.

Well not having either a milling machine or a CNC I will continue to enjoy the work of others. Thanks for the info though.

 

[tofit m.]

Looking for 1/8" or 1/16" pinstripe veneer, one in cocobolo and the other in bocote to laminate between bodies and tops to create the pinstripe effect - approximately 14" X 24" slices.

Going crazy searching. Any thoughts or sources?

Go to Treefrog.com and look at their reconstituted veneers to see if they have anything you might like. There are also other sources for similar products. The links should come up when you go to that address. Good luck! ...beej

 

[BassHappy]

FOLLOW UP ON 1/8" VENEER MATERIAL....

Well, after finding the right search keywords on ebay, I found some really nice 1/8" pinstripe veneer material, and it was fantastically cheap. There wasn't a lot of exotics, but I pulled the trigger on maple, ash and mahogany and I have one of the vendors double checking the size of the purpleHeart, bloodwood and walnut before i order. There was also cedar and aspen which I passed on. I wanted to have more pinstripe material so when the time comes I would have some on hand.

So, if anyone is looking for the easy way to do pinstripes with no seams, this could be your answer. Glue one side and then the other of the book match to the body - and let it dry a day or two and then just plane it down to the thickness you like. Glue the other piece on and voila! Couldn't be simpler or faster, plus no seam except at the bottom strap button, which will be covered up by the button itself.

Will keep you posted on the coco and boco material as things unfold this week.

 

[TapyTap]

I love that bridge!! How the heck did he make tht pockets for the piezo saddles to sit in so smooth and precise. I would love to have those wood working skills.

Have you ever seen Chris Larkin's adjustable Ebony bridges?

 

[BassHappy]

Have you ever seen Chris Larkin's adjustable Ebony bridges?

Hey TapyTap

I noticed on his website that Chris is using the Richard McLish RMC System piezos. I am very familiar with those - I have them in my Roscoe twins and they are very nice.

It doesn't appear on his site that he sells these bridges, looks like an option on the acoustic bass guitar version he builds though.

Do you happen to know if he might make these bridges and sell them to customers on a special order basis?

 

[TapyTap]

Hey TapyTap
Do you happen to know if he might make these bridges and sell them to customers on a special order basis?

BassHappy,

Sorry, I couldn't answer that for you, but Chris is great to talk with about all things instrument related. It certainly wouldn't hurt to ask him your question...

 

[BassHappy]

SO, TO CLOSE THIS THREAD OUT - I GOT A DEAL!

I actually found the boco and coco needed for the pinstripes today. I was shocked as I actually found these thin boards right here in New York - almost in my own back yard. Great price, great deal all around. Nice people. Here they are:

Both are .14" thick which is just thicker than 1/8". The boco wasn't as good of a match as the coco to the fingerboard - but the dark in there sold me. It will really pull that ebony in when it is right next to it. Plus - the places where the the body edges are going to cut, fall right on the lighter sections. So, it should be fine.

While I was at it, I couldn't resist pulling the trigger on the nicest ash drop top I have ever seen. They call it "Tiger Ash" but I knew when I saw it I had to have it:

I was sitting there drooling at the Honduras Mahogany they have from "The Tree" on their website - starting at $2400 and up - for an acoustic guitar back and sides.

Beautiful wood, but it's all relative.....

 

[BassHappy]

FOLLOW UP...

Just wanted everyone to know my pinstripe board search turned out to be much more fruitful than I ever could have imagined. I found 1/8 boards really cheap from these guys - from top to bottom I bought ash, walnut, purple heart, maple and mahogany.

They also had - which I passed over so far - cedar, aspen, basswood, black cherry, cherry, pine, poplar, red and white oak, and teak. They come 1/16" or 1/8" thick but from what I can see they are the same price. They have a number of standard sizes - I went with 7" or 8" X 24" and they range in price from $5. to $12. each depending on species. Not dramatically figured so you have no guilt burying them for use as pinstripes.

Some might consider the top range expensive for a pin stripe. My thought is that there is value in the time savings of simply scuffing it up and slapping on the glue! Plus you have a stripe with the only seam at the bottom, which will more than likely be covered by the strap button.

 

[Means2nEnd]

FOLLOW UP...

Just wanted everyone to know my pinstripe board search turned out to be much more fruitful than I ever could have imagined. I found 1/8 boards really cheap from these guys - from top to bottom I bought ash, walnut, purple heart, maple and mahogany.

Do you have a link for these guys?

 

[BassHappy]

Do you have a link for these guys?

Hey Means

So sorry - what a bozo I am.

On ebay he goes by wood.seller and he puts things he has more of and can discount on ebay. However only a small section of his inventory is on there, not everything is offered. I bought the maple and ash off ebay and saved a couple of bucks. If you buy more than one off ebay - don't pay until he gives you an amended invoice. The shipping can be a rip if you are not patient. It took three days to get the invoice which was a drag.

Apparently it is the same guy as when he finally sent an email - he linked me to an website in Illinois here:

Welcome to ThinBoards.com | Partners with WoodChuck's Wood!

But then you have to click in the top right where it says: "VISIT OUR ESTY STORE".

Then you are in.

Pretty amazing the choices and sizes - and the shipping is the same no matter how much you buy. Here is the shipping policy:

I am sure within reason as the * indicates. Many of the boards go up to 1/2" wide so there is fingerboard potential there too. You could even do a drop top, although the wood seems a to be on the plain Jane side for that - and he does custom orders too.

Best of luck!