What's On Your Workbench?

[dmarino]

I guess word gets out if you have a bass workshop, even one as modest as my own. A few repair/mod jobs have shown up to do. I'm not a pro, but I want to help folks out and build my skills, so I have taken on some of the work.

This fellow I know is super into '90's Hamer basses (I guess we all have our thing), and had a vision for making his Jazz clone into a reverse-double-P. He asked me if I'd be willing to convert his bass to a reverse-double-P for him. Here's how I went about it.

Step one - route out the J pickup cavities

Step 2 - plug the cavities, epoxy in some wood. I used JB Marine-Weld.

Step 3 - sand back to flat

Step 4 - routing reverse P cavities

Step 5 - clean up corners with chisel, general cleanup and fitting of P covers, drill wire routes to control cavity

The client has a paint and finishing shop and much more finishing skill than I do. He'll be stripping and refinishing the bass himself.

All-in-all, a good experience, and a decent result. Now, I have another bass of his to convert to reverse-double-P, so I guess he's happy enough with the work.

 

[ctmullins]

Nice! Love me some reverse-double-P.

 

[Matt Liebenau]

I guess word gets out if you have a bass workshop, even one as modest as my own. A few repair/mod jobs have shown up to do. I'm not a pro, but I want to help folks out and build my skills, so I have taken on some of the work.

This fellow I know is super into '90's Hamer basses (I guess we all have our thing), and had a vision for making his Jazz clone into a reverse-double-P. He asked me if I'd be willing to convert his bass to a reverse-double-P for him. Here's how I went about it.

Step one - route out the J pickup cavities
View attachment 4214540

Step 2 - plug the cavities, epoxy in some wood. I used JB Marine-Weld.
View attachment 4214541

Step 3 - sand back to flat
View attachment 4214542
View attachment 4214543

Step 4 - routing reverse P cavities
View attachment 4214544

Step 5 - clean up corners with chisel, general cleanup and fitting of P covers, drill wire routes to control cavity
View attachment 4214545

The client has a paint and finishing shop and much more finishing skill than I do. He'll be stripping and refinishing the bass himself.

All-in-all, a good experience, and a decent result. Now, I have another bass of his to convert to reverse-double-P, so I guess he's happy enough with the work.

Good work. So.... ummmm.... there’s a hole in the body where the bridge should be. 2TEK?

 

[dmarino]

Good eye. This bass does have a 2-tek nickel-plated brass bridge. An absolute unit of a bridge! I'm guessing neck-dive won't be a problem for the owner, lol

 

[Jon Clegg]

An old friend called up and said he had a friend with a bass that needed help... strings buzzing out on the 1st through 5th frets... half a turn to the left on the TR and she's right as rain.
Beautiful Warmoth neck about 20 years old:

 

[Fat Freddy]

An old friend called up and said he had a friend with a bass that needed help... strings buzzing out on the 1st through 5th frets... half a turn to the left on the TR and she's right as rain.
Beautiful Warmoth neck about 20 years old:
View attachment 4220868
View attachment 4220865

Pretty....

 

[dwizum]

Nice chandelier too.

 

[RichterScale]

That rusty screw is going to keep me awake all night

 

[dwizum]

That rusty screw is going to keep me awake all night

That's what she said

 

[/\/\3phist0]

Walnut + SolarEZ mm good.
@StereoPlayer 's super contoured JSO (jazz shaped object ) walnut control cover.
Solid 2 piece Walnut. 5# 4oz

SolarEZ gloss

Tasty walnut Jazz
Started finish on Thursday. Skipped Friday.
Saturday sanded back first grain fill, applied second sanded back.
Sunday applied first gloss. Will pickup on Monday.
No way you could do that with a standard lacquer or poly.

 

[TerribleTim68]

An old friend called up and said he had a friend with a bass that needed help... strings buzzing out on the 1st through 5th frets... half a turn to the left on the TR and she's right as rain.
Beautiful Warmoth neck about 20 years old:
View attachment 4220868
View attachment 4220865

That thing has more fingerprints than an episode of CSI.
Please tell me you'll wipe it down before it goes back.

 

[Jon Clegg]

That thing has more fingerprints than an episode of CSI.
Please tell me you'll wipe it down before it goes back.

Yeah, I'll use a power-washer on it

 

[electricGstring]

It’s not a bass, obviously but this is my latest mando project getting a French polish. The binding looks terrible here but still needs to get a final scraping to be finished. The FP is just getting started.

 

[dwizum]

Now that's cool!

 

[Slidlow]

Well I just got this one in. I built this around 1981 just when I was working on a bass design. I had leftover wood pieces and a few guitar parts so I put this together to check out some body styling and set neck construction. Body was kind of styled between Aria and Lado. Not a lot of refinement here as it was an exercise. I sold it and on went life. Recently the person I sold it to got in touch with me and 40 years later I have it back. This was about the third or forth instrument I made (my first was a pseudo Les Paul bodied bass). I'll clean it up with new strings and do a set-up but mostly will leave it as is for posterity.

 

[ctmullins]

A time capsule!

 

[Slidlow]

A time capsule!

Yes, yes it is! I wish I had taken more photos back then.

 

[ctmullins]

When you stand quietly, in contemplative solitude, gazing down upon it on the bench, can you sense the presence of your younger self, reaching out through the intervening decades, trying to connect to the older you, in an effort to close the circle of youthful optimism and exuberance combined with the wisdom that only comes from extensive experience?

Or have I been too deep into the Easter candy again?

 

[electricGstring]

When you stand quietly, in contemplative solitude, gazing down upon it on the bench, can you sense the presence of your younger self, reaching out through the intervening decades, trying to connect to the older you, in an effort to close the circle of youthful optimism and exuberance combined with the wisdom that only comes from extensive experience?

Or have I been too deep into the Easter candy again?

Lol!! Lay off the beer & coconut!!

 

[Gilmourisgod]

Nah, I think that way all the time, just as I’m getting a handle on some craft, the arthritis settles into my hands, the Great Cosmic Joke of diminishing physical ability just as the mind peaks. It’s worth the sore hands anyway, I hope the basses I build long outlive me.