Double Bass Sugru ‘D-stop’ on Eb neck

[JBarz]

I'm particularly fond of this German ply bass setup with gut - it has all the same specs as my La Scala, so the transition back and forth is seamless — except the Eb neck has been driving me a little crazy.

If you're not familiar with Sugru, it's awesome - moldable silicon clay that dries hard and can hold significant weight. Its applications are endless, and it seemed the perfect material to fashion a D stop so I don't have to keep shifting gears everytime I want to play my gut bass. So far so good!

 

[damonsmith]

I have two basses, one with a D and one with an Eb - I would strongly advise against this or any other hang up about the two. It is FAR better to disengage the thumb in general and just have a sense of where D and Eb are - stop thinking about the heal altogether.
Have the thumb lightly floating to keep things stable, but not to squeeze or find notes.

 

[JBarz]

Youre probably right, but this stuff comes off clean if I end up getting hung up on it. At present my technique could use any help it can get to catch up to my conception on the upper end of the axe.

 

[damonsmith]

Youre probably right, but this stuff comes off clean if I end up getting hung up on it. At present my technique could use any help it can get to catch up to my conception on the upper end of the axe.

Just think of the string and fingerboard and try to forget about the rest of the instrument - it is no rush, do it right and it will last longer.

 

[Greg Clinkingbeard]

The whole D vs Eb thing again? Just learn where the notes are and get over it. They aren't on the back of the neck.
;-/

 

[Eli Brockway]

The whole D vs Eb thing again? Just learn where the notes are and get over it. They aren't on the back of the neck.
;-/

My E-half-flat neck would drive some of the people on this website crazy, wouldn't it?

 

[Greg Clinkingbeard]

Isn't yours an E?

 

[Eli Brockway]

Not quite.

 

[JBarz]

The Sugru D-Stop Bandit strikes again!

I've resigned to not sell my Knutson Messenger (the only bass I can practice while the whole house is asleep), so I had to turn the Eb neck into a D. I used a whole pack of the stuff to try to match the aesthetic and lines of the axe.

 

[james condino]

Here is my 2009 Condino removable neck bass with neck #3: an intentionally designed F (!!!!!) heel. It has a built in D stop "Adam's apple" that you can see at the top of the photo.

Open G > D (5th) > F (up a minor 3rd) > octave with your pinky with no shifting or thumb position presents some very interesting musical applications that I'm still working through, but very glad I built. When I shift to thumb position, I'm at the octave. As someone who grew up on a stratocaster, it makes a whole lot more sense. The first one I built with an F heel had no stop; it seemed like a half mile of space before I hit the heel- too much of a fretless P bass type of thing. Even on my custom neck fretless P bass, I have a little micro D heel. It is VERY helpful at midnight in a dimly lit crowded bar full of rowdy hipsters.

Crusty crusty old haters complain about it endlessly, but I don't build it for them; they can stick with their half scale three string church bass....

Jake- what about when I spin the bass and then flip it up vertical above & behind my neck. The notes on the back help!

 

[JBarz]

Holy moly! Super inspiring work, James! I love the cutaway and the sound port, too! F stop makes a ton of sense with that notch - would love to try that joker out when I visit!

 

[Greg Clinkingbeard]

I made this for a customer but honestly don't see what the big deal is.

 

[JBarz]

That's classy as can be! I was considering fashioning it out of a block of maple, but I don't think I'd be able to pull it off so nicely... Maybe next time. For me, the Eb neck is not a deal-breaker or a big deal to overcome or get used to, but the whole point of this EUB (for me) is to be as similar to my main bass as possible (just quieter and more portable). I'll take any and all the geographical pitch reference I can get until I have the experience/chops to transcend them...