Stringing a Hofner Beatle Bass?

[soulfool]

Tomorrow a new set of extra light La Bella Beatle Bass strings should be arriving. I plan to restring my Hofner Ignition tomorrow night but would like some advice on how to properly string a violin bass before I get started. This will be my third time putting on new strings. My concern is that I'm not sure, on the previous restrings, that I did the bending and winding of the string on the tuning posts side properly. I basically just strung it like I would an acoustic guitar:

example: "After bringing the string through the tuning post hole, the string is wound one-half way around the tuning machine post. The string is then passed through the string hole near the top of the tuning machine post. After passing under the longer part of the string, the short portion is bent back over it to prevent slippage."

The bending back over to prevent slippage is where I'm not sure the degree at which to bend, or if this is even necessary on a violin bass.?

If someone familiar with stringing a hofner beatle bass has a simpler or more efficient way of stringing I'd greatly appreciate the feedback.

 

[Pilgrim]

This link is at the top of the forum...plenty of good info you can use.

http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=125382

 

[soulfool]

That link isn't specific to a short scale violin bass which I would think would be much different than stringing a P or Jazz bass.

 

[Bassamatic]

Glad that you are using light gauge strings - this is REALLY important with the Hoftners. Many a Hofner neck has been ruined by using standard gauge strings. My Club bass neck was badly warped when I got it by having heavier strings on it. Luckily for me a luthier was able to partially repair it and then it straightened itself out over several years hanging unstrung.

 

[soulfool]

Glad that you are using light gauge strings - this is REALLY important with the Hoftners. Many a Hofner neck has been ruined by using standard gauge strings. My Club bass neck was badly warped when I got it from this. Luckily it was partially repaired and then straightened itself out over several years hanging unstrung.

I had standard gauge Chromes and then La Bella's. I loved the feel of the La Bellas but didn't care for the tension. Another D string broke and that's when I decided to try the lighter gauge, hoping for the same feel but less tension.
I really wanted to try the TI flats made for Hofner but after researching it's seemed like they weren't made to fit the length of the Ignition, Icon or CT and I couldn't afford the $60 risk.

One thing I forget to ask in my original post is for some simple advice on how to intonate the bridge properly when restringing to a lighter gauge.

 

[Pilgrim]

That link isn't specific to a short scale violin bass which I would think would be much different than stringing a P or Jazz bass.

Nope. They're strung the same. The bridge may be different, but that doesn't matter.

I have Labella Hofner Flats on mine and they're great.

 

[Pimpernel Smith]

soulfool:

You can use Thomastik-Infeld Jazz flats on a Hofner. There are many of us who do, and have done so for years. You want the 32 inch set. Although the Hofner scale measures 30 inches, you need 32 inches because of the tail piece being behind it.

You can use either the T-I JF324 set, or the one made more specifically for Hofner basses, the T-I JF324H

Thomastik-Infeld Jazz Flatwound low tension strings for Hofner basses are designated as:

JF324H and have the following string gauges: 0.43-0.56-0.70-0.96 inches

http://www.stringsandbeyond.com/thjfflwoshsc.html

http://www.stringthis.com/thjfflwoshsc.html

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http://www.pickofthericks.com/pro...Nickel-Flatwound-Bass-JF324H.html

 

[keith christian]

Pimpernel Smith is right. You want the silk wrap between the nut and the tuning peg(about 32'').Just bend it back at the post-you dont need to tie it on. It won't slip.If the strings are too thick they won't fit through the tail piece or the tunners and if the tention is too high it could pull the neck off (bummer) Also the E string breaks at the tuning post (oops) These are wonderful beautiful but fragile basses and I love them.

 

[Tom Cat]

I found the Hofner intonated very well with LaBella flats. If you're concerned about a starting point, mark the old position with masking tape on the body before re-stringing then adjust the bridge for best intonation using a good tuner. It's quite stable once completed.

 

[Pilgrim]

I found the Hofner intonated very well with LaBella flats. If you're concerned about a starting point, mark the old position with masking tape on the body before re-stringing then adjust the bridge for best intonation using a good tuner. It's quite stable once completed.

Good idea. With the Hofner-style bridges it's sometimes necessary to angle the bridge just a bit for intonation, but having a starting point is handy.