I still can't get over the WHITE WAL in your avatar. It's my ultimate, uh... white whale?!
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I still can't get over the WHITE WAL in your avatar. It's my ultimate, uh... white whale?!
Again, that list is very incomplete, probably only 10% of Wal basses listed. Some guy did it at a college on the university server, that's the reason it's still stuck at 2004. He couldn't take it with him.
You need to remember the genesis of that database. It was compiled by a guy at a German university as a comp sci project. People just emailed him their info and he posted it up on the site. There was never any affiliation with Wal. It grew up around the Yahoo Group but of course it’s hugely incomplete. Fascinating read though. Some great little nuggets of info. Hasn’t been updated in about 15 years.
I downloaded a copy onto my blog but just as an archive in case one day the university decides to clean up its old web space.
If this is a possible angle to look at it...why wouldnt he?
@kulit17 would probably know if he upcharges for this, and knowing my way around a woodshop, this would be less time consuming and easier/faster to make. 2 pluses for Paul's side of things.
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Although instead of getting away with thin boards for bookmatching, he would have to find thick boards that have acceptable figuring the whole thickness.
Yes he still upcharges for it.
You may be noticing it more now only because people are realizing he'll do it, where hardly anyone requested it before.
Yes he still upcharges for it.
You may be noticing it more now only because people are realizing he'll do it, where hardly anyone requested it before.
In two days I'll be on my UK/IRE vacation, where I'll also be visiting the workshop to collect my new MK2 next week.
Oh yeah I expected the upcharges for it, but seeing as it wasn't so common before, I didn't think he would be willing to do it that often. I remember reading that he didn't want to ship out a particular one because it wasn't up to his standard of sound, due to the wood choices. This is fine, I'm just looking at more options for future endeavors.
Be sure to take photos of the shop for us
Be sure to take photos of the shop for us
Mine, JG1153, is in there in all it's trans white glory. Original finish was clear
ya back in 2015 i was quoted £190 for my flamed sycamore solid body (i'd imagine the upcharge would be more now). however, with my upcoming build for a solid ash body there was no upcharge, perhaps because figuring and book matching was not part of the equation since it'll be painted over and covered. i do remember though there was some resistance as far as getting the flamed sycamore solid body, but having several mahagony cores (solid body for my poly blacks) - then selling back the 6 string i had with a sycamore facing back to the original owner, Paul was willing to do it for me back then.......but again, i think Caca is right, since more people know that Paul is willing to do this now, is why you perhaps seeing it more.... another type of timbre i believe he's willing to use for a solid body is Walnut.
The good: the neck is straight, the trussrod works properly, electronics operate as they should, and all of the hardware is clean with the exception of the control knobs, which I will replace. The original brown case is in decent shape, latches work, hinge and leather handle are solid (though one of the little rubber feet is missing).
The bad: the front and rear facings are delaminating at both the top and bottom of the rear bout (I was told the prior owner had left the bass in storage for five months and it was like this when he retrieved the instrument - obviously it was not a climate-controlled facility).
There are also a variety of other minor issues, but I believe they can all be fixed without much trouble: some missing screws, non-original screws (see bridge and pick-up height adjustment, for example), and nearly all of the remaining Pozidriv screws have been cammed out by someone using the wrong screwdriver (my pet peeve); I believe the preamp has the old capacitors that are prone to leakage/failure; the 1/4” jack is a little loose, and that fingerboard is mighty gunky.
So, I’m thinking that after cleaning the fingerboard I’ll start with the facings, and if they can be reattached with steam, glue, and clamps (a job for a luthier, not me!), I’ll have the body sanded and refinished (satin, as original), and then move on to the other stuff, replacing screws, upgrading electronics (via Electric Wood), etc.
Has anyone else dealt with this type of delamination on a Wal? Were you able to get it repaired to your satisfaction? I’m concerned that the slight gap in the seam between the two front facings (in the center of the instrument) is not going to disappear, even if the facings are able to be fully reattached. If so, would it be sacrilege to, perhaps, cut out a 1/2” strip along that seam and pop in an accent strip (maybe rosewood) - kinda’ like the red Geddy?
I’m also curious if anyone can make out the name of the builder from the back of the cavity control cover.
One last question (and I know this is a long-shot), has anyone ever catalogued the gauges of the various screws on a Wal?
... and here are the pics:
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Gauges? You mean thread pitch and size? Wal should have this info
Oh, and your pics aren't showing up. Just says error
Yes, thread pitch and size for the screws. As for asking Wal, Im guessing I’d be waiting for quite a while for a response from Paul or Philip (and I’m not knocking them, I understand they’re busy building basses).
I edited the post - the pics should show up now.
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For the price, I had to take the risk.
Hopefully, I’ll have some updates on the status of the body in a month or so.
WaveyDavey said:
Yes, the signature is "Wal", thats Ian Waller's sig.
But there wasnt one builder, the signature is merely the person who did some final assembly, inspected it, and signed it off. That's not who built the entire instrument. They had quite a few employees in those days.
