Winter Build Off 2020 - Kuun Space

[Jisch]

The thinned down part is 24mm thick, the thicker part is 32mm thick. It's plenty strong, I see no indication that anything is bending or moving. I use this bass a lot, the action hasn't changed at all and it usually needs only small tuning adjustments when I pick it up (same as any other bass I have).

 

[Mr Cheese]

This is my submission for the Winter-2020 Build off

For details, please read my build thread
link to build thread

Hollow Body Electric based loosely on Marty Kuun design

Specifications
Body: Cherry Back with Walnut and Birdseye Maple Front
Neck : Birdseye Maple
Finger Board: Birdseye Maple with CA coating
Fingerboard radius: None (Flat)
Scale Length: 34"
Tuners: Joy
Bridge: Ebony Floating
Pickups: Bartolini magnetic and JJR piezo transducer under the top
Electronics: Custom Audere Preamp (to match impedance on the transducers
Finish: Tru Oil with Varathane over top sanded to a flat lustre
Strings: D'Addario Round Wound
Other: Ebony topped pickup cover and custom knobs
Weight: 7lbs 5oz

Video for the submission, featuring a song I wrote on this bass (note pictures in the video are compressed, better quality pictures are below):


A couple short sound clips from my band, Anger Buddy. "Acoustic Night"
The Day That Never Comes - played finger style:
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

Anger Buddy - played slap style:
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

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This is incredible!!

 

[Jisch]

This is incredible!!

Thanks! I was just playing this yesterday, still fun!

 

[Joshua Pickenpaugh]

Cool design! Good luck in the competition!

 

[eddododo]

I forgot that I was going to make the neck heel bi-level. So I took care of that
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I drilled for the recess, then drilled through for the screw clearance, then used that same drill to mark where the inserts should be on the neck. Drilled the neck, screwed in the inserts (coating of beeswax to make things go easier) and viola, neck attached.
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There's lots of clean up needed on that, but now that I know where the inserts will be I can work around that. I'll work on that tonight.

For us noobies, how did you go about the bi-level rout?
The initial cutout is obvious enough (I assume?), just do a quick jig and rout it, but how did you round it out? Just ol’ fashioned elbow grease? Pretend I’m 5 and I know nothing (because I’m 31 and know almost nothing)

 

[Jisch]

For us noobies, how did you go about the bi-level rout?
The initial cutout is obvious enough (I assume?), just do a quick jig and rout it, but how did you round it out? Just ol’ fashioned elbow grease? Pretend I’m 5 and I know nothing (because I’m 31 and know almost nothing)

Sorry, I missed this question. I used a 3/4" core box router bit, I actually did it freehand. I did it in multiple steps and followed a line I drew on the bass using a french curve, it wasn't hard to follow the line. The bit doesn't have a bearing on it, so it would have been difficult to do with a template anyway. I have tried to do this manually, it's really hard to get that transition smooth, this was cake in comparison.

Hope that helps, let me know if you need more info.

 

[eddododo]

Sorry, I missed this question. I used a 3/4" core box router bit, I actually did it freehand. I did it in multiple steps and followed a line I drew on the bass using a french curve, it wasn't hard to follow the line. The bit doesn't have a bearing on it, so it would have been difficult to do with a template anyway. I have tried to do this manually, it's really hard to get that transition smooth, this was cake in comparison.

Hope that helps, let me know if you need more info.

That’s super helpful and also terrifying lol! Thanks for the info, I’m flirting with the idea if my tests go well

 

[Jisch]

That’s super helpful and also terrifying lol! Thanks for the info, I’m flirting with the idea if my tests go well

For better or worse (better so far so I keep doing it) I am pretty comfortable doing freehand router passes. Obviously it has to be in a situation I'm confident in - I wouldn't do a neck, body edge or anything that needed a very specific shape without a template. Doing it in a couple passes allowed me to get comfortable with the feel of the router with this specific bit taking off a specific amount of material. I forgot to mention that I also clamped a piece of MDF to the back of the bass, that way I was taking that cut with less possibility of the router dipping.

I am not advocating freehand router cuts at all, it's dangerous both from a safety and from a "I might wreck this thing" perspective. I try to take every variable out of the situation I can and if I have any doubt in my brain about it, I don't do it.

 

[YunDu]

Just in looking through all this (which is fun), do I get any credit for the sheer quantity of pages in my build thread?

I did the CA coating on the fingerboard after work tonight. I've done something like 20 fingerboards like this over the years. I've had some that took 15 minutes and some that took hours, I can remember one that took me a few days. I've had to strip boards back to wood a few times. I feel like I finally have the process down (until the next one goes bad). I think that the wood species matters to some degree, maple seems easier than others I've done. I put on the overhead filter, wore a mask and had a small fan at the end of the board. My eyes didn't water once, no smell. I know this mask isn't one that will protect me really, but it does make it better.

If you can't tell this one went really well.

I've done a step by step before, but the key points are using thin viscosity CA, doing thin coats and flatten out each coat out with a rubber glove finger until it gets sticky, don't use accelerant. I did two heavyish coats, sanded back with 80 grit, then did 4 more and sanded with 120 grit. This is after the 120 grit sanding (I think, I can't remember exactly). Basically you have to sand until it's all the same luster. If you can do that and not get down to wood, then you can go to the polishing phase.
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Then I did 6 or 8 additional coats, sanded from 120 to 600, then polishing compound and finally anti-swirl.

It looks and feels great, that grain is amazing, I can't wait to get oil on the body and back of the neck! Hmm that's not a very good pic. I'll take a better one later.
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Is CA glue to reach a certain thickness on the fingerboard? What are its advantages over epoxy resin? Thanks!