• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Warmoth bass build

hippietim

hippietim

Jan 26, 2008
26
134
#1
It's been too long to call this a NBD since I finished it back in October. Better late than never. This has been my main bass for a while now.

Specs:
  • Warmoth swamp ash body - Transtint red/black mix, tung oil finish
  • Warmoth unfinished wenge neck
  • Warmoth black/red/black pickguard
  • Fender '62 Custom Shop pickup
  • Gotoh 201 bridge
  • Schaller BML tuners w/Hipshot drop-D

WP_20141021_001_zpsc67af35b.jpg
 
  • Like
Reactions: pudge, Down_Low, BlueTalon and 11 others
#4
SteveCS said:
Looks nice :) Difficult to tell from the pics but is that a Jazz profile (narrow nut) neck? Interesting also that you did not install a D/G string tree - any reason or related issues with the shallow break angle?
Click to expand...

It's the regular Warmoth P-Bass neck. I did install a string tree. That picture was taken right after I first strung it up and plugged it in.
 
#7
SteveCS said:
Must be an optical illusion - either way it looks good. How does it play?
Click to expand...

I love the way it plays. The raw wenge neck feels great. The modern neck radius is more comfortable for me than the vintage. I like fairly low action and it was pretty easy to get there with this. The Gotoh bridge is really nice and simple to adjust. The only pain was popping the neck on and off to get the initial truss rod adjustment done.

Both the neck and body were from the Warmoth showcase.

Here's the neck specs from the order:
Style: P Bass®
Construction: Super Bass Construction
Scale: 34"
Orientation: Right Handed
Neck Wood: Wenge
Fingerboard Wood: Wenge
Nut Width: 1-11/16"
Back Shape: Standard
Stiffening Rods: Standard Steel Rods
Fret Size: 6105
Tuner Ream: BML (17.5mm)
Radius: Straight 10"
Fret #: 20
Mounting Holes: Standard 4 Bolt
Inlays: Mother Of Pearl Dots
Side Dots: White Side Dots
String Nut: Black Corian - Standard Nut
Additional Info: No Finish Required

And while I'm at it, here's the body specs:
Model: P Bass®
Orientation: Right handed
Scale: 34"
Wood: Swamp Ash
Rout: Top Rout
Pickup Rout: P Bass® (Standard Split Set), , None
Controls: None
Bridge: Gotoh 201
Jack Rout: 7/8" (22mm) Side Jack Hole
Neck Pocket: Standard Bass Pocket
Mounting Holes: Standard 4 Bolt
Contours: / Tummy Cut / Forearm Contour
F-Holes: None
Battery Box: No Battery Box Rout
Additional Info: Extra Light Swamp Ash
 
#9
EmptyCup said:
I thought all Warmoth bodies have a truss rod access rout, did your body come without one?

Nice build btw!
Click to expand...

The body has a truss rod access route. However, the pickguard doesn't. I didn't want to chop up the pickguard and just loosening the pickguard up would not really provide much access to the truss rod without loosening the strings and at that point you might as well just pop the 4 neck screws real quick.
 
#12
Here's mine in action

[soundcloud url="[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]" params="auto_play=true&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true" width="100%" height="450" iframe="true" /]
 
#18
TonyP- said:
I like it...
I will take a Warmoth build over a Fender any day...I mean any day, Even the Custom shop.
Click to expand...

Me too. For the price I would pay for a Custom Shop bass, I could get exactly all the parts I want including some rather exotic woods, have it assembled & set up & PLEK'd by Mike Lull, and still have money left over. The resulting instrument would be every bit as good as the best the Custom Shop can produce.
 
  • Like
Reactions: TonyP-
#19
BlueTalon said:
Me too. For the price I would pay for a Custom Shop bass, I could get exactly all the parts I want including some rather exotic woods, have it assembled & set up & PLEK'd by Mike Lull, and still have money left over. The resulting instrument would be every bit as good as the best the Custom Shop can produce.
Click to expand...

My bill at Warmoth was $625 for the neck w/corian nut, body, pickguard, tuners, and bridge. I think the pickup was around $100. Screws, jack, pots, string tree, strap locks, etc. was like another $30-40. A Hipshot drop-D tuner was like $75. I did the finish myself - I probably used about $10-15 in materials. I put it together and set it up myself. Everyone that has played it likes it a lot. It sounds like a P-Bass but feels better than anything off the rack. There's no way I could get a custom instrument this nice from any of the big boys for less than $900. Even adding the cost to get it PLEK'd wouldn't change that statement.
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back