Double Bass Tailgut Length

[Waltjie]

They certainly do say a lot of things...

 

[David Burson]

Hi all,

I just had to share with you my absolute HAPPINESS!

After much consideration, I decided to go for it and put a longer tailgut on my bass, since I've always thought it to be a little short ie the tailpiece bottom end is basically covering the saddle, actually sticking a little over it.

The tailgut that came on my bass was a really thick wire. Like aircraft cable, sure, but covered in a very thick plastic. Also, my bass just didnt feel as responsive as I wanted it to be. Strings felt stiff, even with proper action. They felt tough, hard to bow sometimes. In all, my bass sounded so, how shall I describe it... choked... glassy somehow, if that makes sense

I have a fully laminate bass from Stentor.

So, about 2 hours ago, I did the operation. Took of the bridge, took the strings out from the tailpiece, and removed it. Cut of the tailgut, and replaced it with a slightly thinner cable, with a less thick plastic covering. Most importantly, I made it longer, probably about 5cm. So now the tailpiece sits nicely above and away from the saddle.

I now have a new bass!!!

I sounds so ALIVE! It bows so much easier, and the sounds is MUCH louder as well. I have just fallen in love with my bass, and I never felt like this about it actually since I got it almost a year ago.

Anyone with the same symptoms I described above, I highly recommend you look at your tailgut as a possible solution. So easy to do yourself, took me under an hour.

Thank you for this post! (Yes, I know it was eight years ago.)
It was exactly what I needed to hear.
I had just assumed that the factory installed tailgut/wire would already be the ideal length.
Mine was making my afterlength nearly an inch longer than the recommended 1/6 ratio to the playing length of the strings.
This small adjustment that cost me under three dollars at the hardware store had a huge impact on the sound.