Double Bass Upkeep on DB?

[Andy Mopley]

So, including rosin, re-hair, strings, bridge adjustments etc. what is on average your spend per year on your instrument? A bit like servicing a car, I guess...

Thanks for reading!

 

[Dave Irwin]

Maybe $300 if I'm happy with the strings but I'm not constantly bowing so I don't need rehairs very often

 

[fdeck]

I've got a new bass, < 5 years old, with no early problems such as cracks or open seams, and thinking ahead I'd probably budget at least 100 and maybe 200 per year for strings and bow hair. Perhaps more for both if I was a pro, or doing classical work.

At the same time I think it would probably be prudent to "insure" yourself by setting aside upwards of $1k (or the amount of your insurance deductible) in the bank for catastrophic repairs.

 

[Phil Rowan]

Depending on who I go for for a re-hair, anywhere from $110 - $165 (that's 2 re-hairs worth.. per 2 main bows I own).

I'm happy with the strings on my hybrid (the Spiro Stark E has been on there a good 3 years now) so no bread spent there. On my Kay I have some brand new guts (Pistoy heavy D, Lyon heavy G, heavy+ copper-wound E.. figure about *$265 for all).

Sound-post and glued seams on my Kay was about $80 (got a great deal from a great luthier here in NYC was recently hipped to). Sound-post adjustment on my Lang hybrid was $65. Note that these figures could easily be about $100 - $200 +/- each.

Rosin.. $14 every month and a half/two months.

* price reflects Gamut's generous sale.. and these strings will be on my bass for a good 3 or 4 years, no doubt.

Yeah, something like that.

 

[groooooove]

since i got my first DB 7 years ago, i bought one new set of strings, and they were used from the classifieds here..

so in general, $0/year. i probably could use a rehair on my bow, i do a lot of arco work, but the hair on my bow still grabs just fine....

i own two basses, one old one new, and see no reason for there to be regular expenses. i understand cracks and open seams, but even that doesn't happen once a year..

 

[HateyMcAmp]

I have kinda high upkeep. I play a lot of slap so I get my ebony fingerboard planed at much more often than most cats, which I get done at discount but would be very, very pricey at say David Gage, lets break it out to 200 a year. I use Velvet Animas and kinda beat the hell out of them, so thats another 400ish a year. Lastly, if my neck or fingerboard pops off, which happens, it'll be about 150. But this is the one bass that I use professionally and gets a ton of hours of play time day in and day out, so I part time player probably won't touch my costs. And once things like bridges are done, they stay done unless you do a radical setup shift.