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The SCP - Single Cut P-Bass
- Thread starter Videojunkie
- Start date
I plan on those being between 1/8 and 1/16 inch steps (it depends on how thick my final body is, and how the controls fit in the side...) that I plan to rough out with the router, and then use a disk sander to blend between the lines. The outer ring will be a raised bead on the outer edge mimicking the bead on a violin...
Ok, you guys ask for the impossible, I deliver.
Many, many trips through the thickness planer later, and I have a set of neck pieces that alternate woods at the 3rd, 5th, 7th, 9th and 12th frets.
This is going to be fun!
Many, many trips through the thickness planer later, and I have a set of neck pieces that alternate woods at the 3rd, 5th, 7th, 9th and 12th frets.
This is going to be fun!
Pretty sure that was your idea
That's going to look cool once you start carving curves into the back of the neck.
Obligatory forest of clamps picture... also known as "I really hope all of those layers are in the right order..."
So, as this is my first bolt on build, there are a few specifics that I'm not sure about.
I've done some Google-fu and determined that most bass necks are between 7/8" and 8/8". Does this include the fretboard thickness? Some pictures are a bit unclear.
My fretboard is about 3/16" at the tallest point. So if I make the heel of the neck right at 3/4" I'd be in the ballpark. My bruce bars are 1/4" so I'd still have 1/2" of wood under them which seems adequate.
The current blank is about 7/4" thick, so I have plenty of room to cut the neck and headstock. I will lose some of that when I plane it to thickness. I also have a nice piece of curupay that will make an excellent headstock overlay.
I've done some Google-fu and determined that most bass necks are between 7/8" and 8/8". Does this include the fretboard thickness? Some pictures are a bit unclear.
My fretboard is about 3/16" at the tallest point. So if I make the heel of the neck right at 3/4" I'd be in the ballpark. My bruce bars are 1/4" so I'd still have 1/2" of wood under them which seems adequate.
The current blank is about 7/4" thick, so I have plenty of room to cut the neck and headstock. I will lose some of that when I plane it to thickness. I also have a nice piece of curupay that will make an excellent headstock overlay.
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Standard Fender specs say that the neck, including the fingerboard but not including frets, is one inch high in the middle of the heel end.
Also that pocket depth is 5/8" so that the deck height (how far the fingerboard lies above the body top) is 3/8".
Just putting it out there. Do what works for you and your bass.
Also that pocket depth is 5/8" so that the deck height (how far the fingerboard lies above the body top) is 3/8".
Just putting it out there. Do what works for you and your bass.
Next thing is to wonder if I should angle the neck pocket, but that can wait until I've got a finished neck and am trying to figure out how to fit the irregular shape into the body...
With that in mind, I'm thinking I might go oversized (7/8" instead of 3/4") so there's room to taper the bottom of the neck heel if necessary.
With that in mind, I'm thinking I might go oversized (7/8" instead of 3/4") so there's room to taper the bottom of the neck heel if necessary.
One of the beauties of full size paper templates is that you can glue them directly to the piece in question, and have precise outlines right on the part.
This is especially helpful here, where I have 3 different parts on 3 different angles, and none of them are square to the wood piece....
Order of operations:
Route truss rod.
route bruce bars.
Cut 7/8" shelf for neck heel
Glue headstock ears.
Cut top angle for headstock.
Cut bass side of neck.
I'm not going to add carbon fiber rods to this neck, because as eagle eyed readers will notice, I snuck a piece of curupay next to the thickest piece of maple. It slightly bothers me that I didn't have an extra piece of maple to slide in there, but I'm pretty sure I can live with it...
This is especially helpful here, where I have 3 different parts on 3 different angles, and none of them are square to the wood piece....
Order of operations:
Route truss rod.
route bruce bars.
Cut 7/8" shelf for neck heel
Glue headstock ears.
Cut top angle for headstock.
Cut bass side of neck.
I'm not going to add carbon fiber rods to this neck, because as eagle eyed readers will notice, I snuck a piece of curupay next to the thickest piece of maple. It slightly bothers me that I didn't have an extra piece of maple to slide in there, but I'm pretty sure I can live with it...
Started bookmatching the walnut for the body. I don't have a power saw big enough for this cut, so I'm back to my trusty Sandvik.
Made it about halfway through before my hand and arms said no more. I should be able to finish this tomorrow.
I'm a bit concerned about the punky bit about halfway down the midline, but I'll deal with that once I get it cut and planed to thickness...
Made it about halfway through before my hand and arms said no more. I should be able to finish this tomorrow.
I'm a bit concerned about the punky bit about halfway down the midline, but I'll deal with that once I get it cut and planed to thickness...
Yeah, you definitely have a hole in your crotch there. 
About 2 hours total to bookmatch the walnut, including planing to thickness. Wound up just over an inch thick, which is perfect. Would have liked to be a bit thicker, but I had some run out issues with my saw technique. Still plenty thick enough for my purposes.
Due to the shape of the log, it won't be a true bookmatch, as the pieces aren't symmetrical. I'm loving that grain though.
Due to the shape of the log, it won't be a true bookmatch, as the pieces aren't symmetrical. I'm loving that grain though.
My inclination for that punky wood spot is to fill it with epoxy and just carry on. What I don't know is if I'd need to use a vacuum to pull the epoxy into the wood, or if gravity is enough. I'll need to clean some (all?) Of the semi rotted bark out first, but I'll probably wait until I get ready to glue this up. Probably either going to use clear, but I might try and do a black or deep brown epoxy as that would match better.
Debating on the back wood. I'd really like to just use wood I already own, so it might just be some birdseye maple that I have left over from the Rick-man. Not sure if I want to go through the motions of bookmatching that piece or not, because then I'd need yet another piece to make up the body thickness that I need for carving.
Debating on the back wood. I'd really like to just use wood I already own, so it might just be some birdseye maple that I have left over from the Rick-man. Not sure if I want to go through the motions of bookmatching that piece or not, because then I'd need yet another piece to make up the body thickness that I need for carving.
It's been a while since I've had some shop time, but I had an hour or so today.
Setup my truss rod jig and routed the truss rod. A bit of free hand routing for the bruce bars and I've got some of the precision bits of this done.
I used the table saw to cut the shelf for the body attachment, I'll fine tune that with my router.
I started cutting the neck to shape, but I think the next step is to attach the wings for the headstock.
The body is 1.75" thick and I am considering adding an additional layer between the maple and walnut layers. I have some mahogany, but my concern is that it is really soft and mechanically I'm worried about compressing it behind the neck joint. I have the cutoff from the neck, which I could run through the planer to get it to the thickness of the mahogany for a center stripe. I think I also have some maple scraps that would work.
Setup my truss rod jig and routed the truss rod. A bit of free hand routing for the bruce bars and I've got some of the precision bits of this done.
I used the table saw to cut the shelf for the body attachment, I'll fine tune that with my router.
I started cutting the neck to shape, but I think the next step is to attach the wings for the headstock.
The body is 1.75" thick and I am considering adding an additional layer between the maple and walnut layers. I have some mahogany, but my concern is that it is really soft and mechanically I'm worried about compressing it behind the neck joint. I have the cutoff from the neck, which I could run through the planer to get it to the thickness of the mahogany for a center stripe. I think I also have some maple scraps that would work.
He's tilting the neck stringers in a strange way. The truss rod is in the normal position.
