Doner Designs
Steve Doner
- Jun 2, 2012
- 5,784
- 6,819
- Disclosures
- Doner Designs is an alias for Steve Doner
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Excellent work, beautifully done. It's always a treat to see your work.
Wow...What beauty....and fun looking basses....Uber impressed
Here is a completely random (but related) question.
The new San Dimas Charvel basses have what look a standard 20 fret Fender neck. I'm guessing it's a typical Fender Jazz neck profile seeing as FMIC own the Jackson/Charvel brands.
Would this then mean a Warmoth neck should fit these bass bodies?
The new San Dimas Charvel basses have what look a standard 20 fret Fender neck. I'm guessing it's a typical Fender Jazz neck profile seeing as FMIC own the Jackson/Charvel brands.
Would this then mean a Warmoth neck should fit these bass bodies?
After a little debate and asking the opinions of some fellow musician friends, here's where my build is going -
It probably won’t happen for a while, but I’m going back and forth with pickups for my next (and most likely last) bass I’ll buy…and of course a Warmoth build.
I’m thinking of a P/MM configuration in the Deluxe Jazz 5 platform.
It would be passive.
I have already acquired some hardware (tuners, string trees), an Obsidian Wire control board and knobs. I had a KickAss bridge, but wound up using it on another bass, so I have to buy another one.
For pickups, I was thinking of either Nordstrand NP5 and the MM5.4 or the Power Blade P with BigBladeMan.
I would be splitting the MM like I usually do with my other builds/mods, so the MM5.4 would be ideal for hum-cancelling. But the Blades seem all the rage these days and might be pretty interesting.
Body would be Clear-coated Ash, neck would be Clear gloss-coated bird’s eye maple shaft and fretboard, black dot inlays (simple), 6150 frets.
I used the Maruszczyk Configurator to do a mock-up, but they don’t show the blades as choices in the configurator…)
I’m thinking of a P/MM configuration in the Deluxe Jazz 5 platform.
It would be passive.
I have already acquired some hardware (tuners, string trees), an Obsidian Wire control board and knobs. I had a KickAss bridge, but wound up using it on another bass, so I have to buy another one.
For pickups, I was thinking of either Nordstrand NP5 and the MM5.4 or the Power Blade P with BigBladeMan.
I would be splitting the MM like I usually do with my other builds/mods, so the MM5.4 would be ideal for hum-cancelling. But the Blades seem all the rage these days and might be pretty interesting.
Body would be Clear-coated Ash, neck would be Clear gloss-coated bird’s eye maple shaft and fretboard, black dot inlays (simple), 6150 frets.
I used the Maruszczyk Configurator to do a mock-up, but they don’t show the blades as choices in the configurator…)
Lovely!! I like that a lot!
My opinion though (not that you asked haha)... go graphite for the reinforcement rods. The steel ones make a bigger than expected difference in weight! Definitely worth the cost, IMO and IME.
I thought about it (and I definitely value your input, thank you!), but at this point the order is processing and I'm not sure I could change it without an extra charge. I think I'm just going to roll with it. If you see this neck on here for sale around Christmas time you'll know I couldn't live with it
I just want a really nice, stiff, and resonate sounding neck while looking good too. The last wenge neck that I encountered (which was a multi-piece) and had an ebony board with graphite rods was dead as a doornail. I wish it hadn't been because it was a beautiful bass, but something was drastically off about it. After emailing back and forth with Warmoth they don't seem to think there will be an issue with neck dive on a P bass body. The overall weight I've kind of given up on since it would have changed just about everything about this bass if I wanted to go lighter. I'll be installing Hipshot Ultralite tuners and it will also have some mass at the tail in with a hi-mass bridge and other heavier components. So we shall see! Everything I currently own ranges from 8-10lbs and they all get played with wide, padded leather straps regardless if they are light or heavy. The only bass that I have that neck dives the tiniest, tiniest bit, even with Gotoh Res-O-Lites installed, is my Modulus FB5 with its carbon fiber neck. It's also well into the 9 lb range, so even with "lightweight" materials used it is anything but.
I've been given a lead time of approximately 12 weeks, so for anyone about to place an order this is may be about where you're at.
You'll love it, I'm betting!I thought about it (and I definitely value your input, thank you!), but at this point the order is processing and I'm not sure I could change it without an extra charge. I think I'm just going to roll with it. If you see this neck on here for sale around Christmas time you'll know I couldn't live with it
After emailing back and forth with Warmoth they don't seem to think there will be an issue with neck dive on a P bass body. The overall weight I've kind of given up on since it would have changed just about everything about this bass if I wanted to go lighter. I'll be installing Hipshot Ultralite tuners and it will also have some mass at the tail in with a hi-mass bridge and other heavier components. So we shall see! Everything I currently own ranges from 8-10lbs and they all get played with wide, padded leather straps regardless if they are light or heavy. The only bass that I have that neck dives the tiniest, tiniest bit, even with Gotoh Res-O-Lites installed, is my Modulus FB5 with its carbon fiber neck. It's also well into the 9 lb range, so even with "lightweight" materials used it is anything but.
I've been given a lead time of approximately 12 weeks, so for anyone about to place an order this is may be about where you're at.
But, I wasn't mentioning the neck weight due to a neck dive concern, just overall bass weight. I haven't had any neck dive issues with my heavier Warmoth necks.
Oh totally! If it cracks in under 10 lbs I'll be more than happy at this point.
Thank you! I looked at a lot of photos and went through a lot of ideas and renderings before I got it narrowed down to this. At least with some photoshop skills I can piece things together to get a basic idea of what it would look like. It’s not super fancy, but I have other basses I own that fill that void. I was trying to find a light and dark contrast that looked cool and was enough out of the ordinary to make it somewhat unique and not an off the shelf offering that you could buy anywhere. I love their 72 pickguard and I think it accents this body shape well.
I initially thought I would do a 54 build with standard P pickups, but for what I’d really want with that one it would have been pushing my budget a bit. However, in my back and forth with Warmoth about that idea you all now have a body binding option available that is no longer limited to tort.
Apparently, I am that person who finds sad and or abandoned Warmoth parts and breathes new life into them. I suspect there are others of you here.
Anyone can build a nice bass from unsullied parts, but reclamation projects require a special kind of stubborn. That seems to be my cup of tea, in part because it forces me to gradually apply new luthier skills.
The gateway drug, so to speak, was doing a DIY rattle can nitro finish on a Warmoth Jazzmaster body:
That project started by stripping an unsuccessful DIY paint job. There’s a link in my signature to that build thread, if you want to admire my failed attempt at burst. Solid black FTW.
The color scheme for my next reclamation is still TBD, but it will involve a G5 body that is currently slathered in paint stripper:
If I get lucky, there’s a one-piece ash body under that paint job. Rather than start with grain filler, I’d kinda like to do a finish that accentuates the open grain on ash. If so, I’ll definitely be trying a different type of finish than what I have done in the past.
This will be a fretless build—because that’s the neck I could find (and it’s a nice neck). This build will also provide a home for a pair of Aero H pickups that I found used and squirreled away for later. I have a feeling those passive pickups will sound rad on a fretless bass.
In any case, just saying hello. I found the club while searching the site for “Warmoth G5.” While I haven’t read all 200 pages (yet), it’s safe to say that I like what you all are up to. Keep up the good work.
Anyone can build a nice bass from unsullied parts, but reclamation projects require a special kind of stubborn. That seems to be my cup of tea, in part because it forces me to gradually apply new luthier skills.
The gateway drug, so to speak, was doing a DIY rattle can nitro finish on a Warmoth Jazzmaster body:
That project started by stripping an unsuccessful DIY paint job. There’s a link in my signature to that build thread, if you want to admire my failed attempt at burst. Solid black FTW.
The color scheme for my next reclamation is still TBD, but it will involve a G5 body that is currently slathered in paint stripper:
If I get lucky, there’s a one-piece ash body under that paint job. Rather than start with grain filler, I’d kinda like to do a finish that accentuates the open grain on ash. If so, I’ll definitely be trying a different type of finish than what I have done in the past.
This will be a fretless build—because that’s the neck I could find (and it’s a nice neck). This build will also provide a home for a pair of Aero H pickups that I found used and squirreled away for later. I have a feeling those passive pickups will sound rad on a fretless bass.
In any case, just saying hello. I found the club while searching the site for “Warmoth G5.” While I haven’t read all 200 pages (yet), it’s safe to say that I like what you all are up to. Keep up the good work.
Spalted pecan. We needed a very specific long, narrow table for an accessory dwelling unit we built on our alley. The solution was a live-edge slab table made out of sequential flitches.
You’ll know when I finally build my own body from scratch. That spalted pecan is the most interesting local hardwood we have in Central Texas. The right piece would make a great body or top veneer for a build.
I am also fond of the reclaimed longleaf pine (aka heart pine) slat table we built for the back house:
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So, I have a few beloved Warmoths, but here's the newest :
- Warmoth mohagony P/J 4 body
- Moses Graphite neck
- East Uni-Pre
- EMG Geezers
- Hipshot Ultralights with a drop D
- Babicz full contact bridge
- Dunlop strap locks
- Dean Markley Blue Steels 45-105
- Warmoth mohagony P/J 4 body
- Moses Graphite neck
- East Uni-Pre
- EMG Geezers
- Hipshot Ultralights with a drop D
- Babicz full contact bridge
- Dunlop strap locks
- Dean Markley Blue Steels 45-105
Building a Warmoth G4 with Fender Geddy Lee neck and a MM pickup on "sweet spot". Can't find anywhere which pickguard is a direct fit. Standard stingray or sterling pickguards are direct fit? I know truss rod is different from musicman basses, but if any pickguard fits perfect meeting the neck hell, I can work something out. Can someone help me on this info?
Have you asked Warmoth? They'd be the ones I'd ask. They know the measurements of the bass body, the pickup route, and the neck pocket. The only thing guaranteed to fit with a stingray or sterling pickguard on a Warmoth G4 is the pickup hole.
Yeah, i guess I figured that out. Got a pickguard from Stingray and It fits perfectly, but it doest leave a space from the neck heel. Stingray have one more fret then my Geddy Lee neck. It would be perfect with 21 frets.
Thanks for the reply! I might make one using Stingray pickguard as a template
Thanks for the reply! I might make one using Stingray pickguard as a template
