WBO 26 - Bass Mandola

[Flamingo21]

Some years ago, I bought an old guitar with the purpose of turning it into a bass. It was an old, run down guitar: its neck had been reset rather clumsily, and it was missing some frets. It also had a lot of cosmetic damage.

I did make a functional bass of it, with four bass tuners instead of the six old ones, and new wooden hardware. It has a piezo pickup in the bridge. I think the strings are Gold Tone. There's a thread about the conversion in Luthier's Corner. (I'll give you the pics later, they're on another device.)

I like what this bass does, but I've grown dissatisfied with its imperfections. So the time has come to make a better version of it. The strings, tuners, and pickup will go onto a new body, and I will probably make new hardware too. I've had a new neck built. Looks-wise, the new instrument will resemble the Mandola I built during a Buildoff a few years ago, so this will be the Bass Mandola.

 

[Flamingo21]

Here's the bass that was previously a guitar:

And this is the Mandola that the new bass will be a companion to:

 

[Flamingo21]

One piece maple neck, built by Musikraft.

Hard Maple, Bigleaf Maple, Swamp Ash.

Two sheets of Birch plywood. The same stuff the Mandola's body is made of.

 

[Flamingo21]

Finally making sawdust.

 

[Flamingo21]

I want the Bass Mandola to have the same sound holes that the Mandola has. Maybe "slits" is a good name for them?


On the Mandola the slits are in the left top and right bottom corners, as seen here:

But on the Bass Mandola I want to mirror this, because in the bottom right there will be an output jack with some electronics, and I don't want that to be visible through the slit.


I measured the size and location of the slits, and wrote my measurements on the paper template. I should of course have done this back in '22 when I built the Mandola.

Now if I ever build a third octagonal instrument I will thank myself for writing it down this time.

 

[Bonkersville]

The clock hand holes?

 

[Flamingo21]

The clock hand holes?

And all of a sudden I'm seeing my Mandola in a new light! It's been proudly standing in my living room for the past three years and I never saw the clock hands.

 

[Flamingo21]

Today I was both smart and not so smart.

A few days ago I measured the slits on the Mandola, so I could give the Bass Mandola the same size of slits. I also noted down my measurements.
So today I thought: why not cut a slit in the paper template, so I can use the paper template as... a paper template! I certainly felt I was being smart.
But while cutting the slit, my knife strayed from the line. And, not once but twice. And, both times on the wrong side.

So here's the paper template, with a slit, and some adhesive tape.
I'm not feeling too smart now...

 

[Bonkersville]

Today I was both smart and not so smart.

That's a pretty accurate description of most my days.

But yeah, I've done that too. Too many times. The grain has a way of messing with you. Even if I'm cutting something like cardboard on a wooden base of some sorts. I've also made surprisingly deep cuts to harder templates and even an aluminum straight edge/ruler.

The thing is I don't do it often enough. So I can forget and do it over and over again.

 

[Flamingo21]

Looking at the Mandola I built in the Summer of 2022, I can't remember how I made the slits. And the Mandola's build thread doesn't give any clue about it.
So I had to invent a method of making slits. Looking at these photos, it seems likely that I did something similar back then.

Still, it's strange to have no memory of it. And now that I'm writing this, I realise this happened a month after my wife of 25 years left me. A thing like that can do weird things to the mind.

 

[Flamingo21]

I've been struggling with those slits. Whatever I tried, it never felt like I could get it right. It never felt like I was on my way to a good result.

__________


I haven't posted in weeks here, and part of that is just having stuff on my mind. Most of that stuff is music stuff, and it's mostly good stuff, so that's all great.

But it means I've been struggling to find the time and the headspace to work on this project, and whenever I did, I found myself struggling with the slits. So much so, that I felt the slits would end up killing the project.


In the end I decided to do away with the slits completely, and begin on a clean slate.

Originally I planned for this part to be the back. It now becomes the top, and I will make a new back.
I made a few other changes to my plan, for instance I wanted to make the sides 7 cm high, but I've now decided on 5 cm which is the same as the Mandola, and seems just a bit easier.


I am now able to better see the finished instrument in my mind's eye, so I'm hopeful that, even though I'll still be busy, I can finish this project.

 

[Flying B]

 

[13ghosts]

I like those slits! There must be a solution! How thick is the top?

PS: Thanks for sharing the video—I didn't know the band. Had a look and here's an interesting documentary about them on YT.

 

[Flamingo21]

I like those slits! There must be a solution!

Thanks! But at this point I'll do whatever feels the most doable to me. My priority is not having yet another unfinished project in my life.

 

[13ghosts]

Good point! I know what you mean. Sometimes I approach things in a slightly overly complex way, and then it takes much longer or gets abandoned. But it's a hobby, so that's usually okay. Still, it's good to finish things.

 

[Flamingo21]

A few materials I haven't shown here yet, so they need an official pic. Plywood, and 8 mm square profile.

This plywood is a different colour than the other plywood, as you can see here:

 

[Flamingo21]

And we're on our way.

 

[Flamingo21]

Moving in small steps here. The gap in the top right of the photo is where the preamp will be. That way I can easily reach it and toy with the three band EQ.

 

[Flamingo21]

And the next bit goes on. An old electric grinder does clamping duty.

If you're here solely for the clamp shots: don't panic! Your patience will be rewarded eventually.

 

[Matt Liebenau]

View attachment 7438956

View attachment 7438957


And the next bit goes on. An old electric grinder does clamping duty.

If you're here solely for the clamp shots: don't panic! Your patience will be rewarded eventually.