Weight

[Sam Evans]

I have a G&L SB-1 and a G&L LB-100, both just over 7 lbs, and neither have neck dive. They do have lightweight tuners, though, which that far away from the centre of the balance make all the difference

Indeed: no neck dive and very light weight is, of course, the ideal.

 

[covermego]

I went back to obsessing about neck dive. I'll take a little extra weight in exchange for good balance.

Yes. I believe that will be the current obsession for me, too. I have rotator, back and arthritic issues, so this particular rabbit trail is worth heading down, right?

 

[JRA]

lightweight axes have benefits that outweigh* the apparent need to see them as crutches for the infirm.

i love my lightweights. at 74 i can be more dextrous and mobile. the wood they're made from (typically) is abundant, cheap, and sustainable --- typically, these axes (the bodies) are made from paulownia, or empress:

• Wood properties
  Paulownia wood is lightweight, durable, and has a high strength-to-weight ratio. It's also pest-resistant, has a high calorific value, and is dimensionally stable, meaning it doesn't expand or contract much with changes in temperature and humidity. These properties make it useful in a variety of applications, such as aircraft and boat building, furniture, flooring, musical instruments, and surfboards.
• Environmental benefits
  Paulownia trees are fast-growing and can be harvested every 7–10 years, making them sustainable. They also have the ability to regenerate from their roots after being cut down, which is called coppicing. Paulownia trees are also beneficial to the environment because they absorb more than 10 times the amount of carbon dioxide than other trees and release large amounts of oxygen. They can also improve the quality of polluted soil, making it reusable.

*

 

[Smallmouth_Bass]

I'm not worried about the neck dive, since the luthier told me there was no issue with that (I trust him), + it's a short scale so that helps with the neck dive, and I think he's putting lightweight tuners.

Gotoh Res-O-Lites are the lightest that I know of.

 

[chris_b]

To those who don't understand, weight doesn't matter. . . . until it does, and then you have a serious issue that won't go away. How does it get resolved? By asking how much a bass weighs so you know that you can hang it around your neck for hours on end and suffer no ill effects. It's a question that makes a lot of sense to me. How can I see that and others can't? Ho hum!

 

[mmbongo]

Nut width?

That's a bit personal, don't you think??

 

[mmbongo]

Here is why my Dingwall is my #1, perhaps forever.

 

[[skyraider]]

I have an Ibanez 1505S 5-string that's only 6.5lbs. It's the most comfortable bass I've ever had and sounds great. Anything over 9lbs is going to be painful by the end of the first set, so there's really no choice in the matter. I used to have heavy basses and didn't notice it, but I'm an old guy, now.

 

[Kubicki Fan]

That's a bit personal, don't you think??

Or an opportunity to brag.

 

[Nebadon2000]

I care about how a bass plays and sounds, not how much it weighs.

Yeah that was my mindset UNTIL I was in my 50's and still gigging 2-4 nights a week

Also found that I didn't have to compromise much [if at all] to ease my load with great light weight products available then to now

 

[cdef]

We never thought it would come to this, did we? As evident throughout this excellent forum, bass guitar is now mainly an oldster's game. The young ones don't much care where their low end is coming from. I'll be 75 next, and physical realities are gradually asserting themselves. Weight was hardly a concern before, but these days I do prefer a lighter instrument. For instance, I had a T-40, a very good bass, and used to smile at seniors who deemed it too heavy. Well, I get it now.

 

[Geri O]

For almost 40 years it never even dawned on me to weigh my bass.
Then I joined Talkbass, and found out I'm supposed to.

I listened to my shoulder before I listen to anyone around here.

Come to think of it, I didn’t think seeking a lighter instrument would be a Big Deal until I joined Talkbass.

 

[gtirard]

As evident throughout this excellent forum, bass guitar is now mainly an oldster's game. The young ones don't care where their low end is coming from.

I've noticed that the average talkbass member is older than the general population, but I wonder if it's because "the young ones don't care" or if only half retired musicians have the time to waste on such forum? Joke aside, I've been playing bass for 40 years and only started to read TB and care about a bass players community at 50. Beween 20 and 50, I was a passionate amateur bass player, but I didn't use any forum. It's probably a mix of different causes anyway.

Anybody knows the average age of TB members? Maybe it has been discussed already?

 

[Nebadon2000]

Thanks. I trust the luthier, I'm sure he would not propose the chambering option if he had doubts about altering sound (he's a member, I hope he won't read me, lol).

I guess I just needed some reassurance, thanks

Here is another Luthier whos knows something about Basses;

 

[Heiwa]

At any age weight is a big problem, the weight of your bass and yours

 

[ics1974]

10 lbs physically might “feel” heavy to one person and completely fine to another. It depends on your frame, strength, age, sex, past injuries etc. I am 6’1” and work out so a 10 lbs bass to me may feel exactly like a 8 lbs bass to someone else. So there’s that.

 

[Pocket Dave]

We never thought it would come to this, did we? As evident throughout this excellent forum, bass guitar is now mainly an oldster's game. The young ones don't much care where their low end is coming from. I'll be 75 next, and physical realities are gradually asserting themselves. Weight was hardly a concern before, but these days I do prefer a lighter instrument. For instance, I had a T-40, a very good bass, and used to smile at seniors who deemed it too heavy. Well, I get it now.

Playing/performing music itself is an oldster's game because all the kids who grew up seeing the Beatles on Ed Sullivan are now old.

It's also a gen-X game.

Apparently, it's also, to some degree, a youngster's game. There was a local music fest in McKinney, Tx Friday night on our monthly appearance in a downtown pub. There were plenty of young-person bands and a few mixed-age bands. In fact we were one of the few oldster bands at the time.

And I'm sure feeling my age after Friday's long-narrow-stairs load-in (and Saturday's 4-hour gig up on the Oklahoma state line). Outdoor private party this afternoon and clearing more storm debris tomorrow morning; Will let you know on all that.

 

[el murdoque]

Here's an observation:


Weight affects resale value.
This is something one has to take into account. Even if you don't mind weight one bit, when you buy that heavy bass and then want to sell it further down the road, you will run into people that do care about weight. People that will ask you how heavy it is, then you will tell them and they will lose interest. This might happen a couple of times and then you hop on TB and start ranting about people only caring about weight.

 

[johnh89]

only half retired musicians have the time to waste on such forum?

Exactly that .

Here's an observation:


Weight affects resale value.
This is something one has to take into account. Even if you don't mind weight one bit, when you buy that heavy bass and then want to sell it further down the road, you will run into people that do care about weight. People that will ask you how heavy it is, then you will tell them and they will lose interest. This might happen a couple of times and then you hop on TB and start ranting about people only caring about weight.

No it doesn't . Only if you try and sell on here .

 

[gln1955]

No it doesn't . Only if you try and sell on here .

Keep telling yourself that.