Yeah that ain't right. Usually in my experience having such a big slug of mixed resin like that should cure faster than whatever you put out on the work piece due to the exothermic heat it puts off in the cup.
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Winter Build Off 2026 - 5 String Fenderbacker
- Thread starter mapleglo
- Start date
I had some ancient West resin go a bright cherry red on me, everything I used it on ended up pink, but it still cured. I finally tossed it all and got some new. Must have been 15 years old anyway. I don't entirely trust the pumps, and end up wasting a lot on small jobs. I should probably be weighing it on a digital scale, or just find something comparable that's a simple 1:1 mix.
Heh. I once mixed up WAY too much two-part epoxy boat paint in a plastic container and friggin SMOKE came out of it and melted the container. Very exciting 10 minutes.
I stopped by the Woodworker's Source and picked up some new wood.
I was going to get some maple, but I saw that piece of poplar and the price was right. I know Bruce makes his basses from poplar, and it's lighter than maple, so I went for it. I didn't need that much walnut, but it was on sale. so I got twice what I needed. I got right to work cutting it up.
Oh yeah, and Fed-Ex delivered the neck this morning as well.
So I'll glue up that center piece when Amazon delivers the epoxy later this week.
I was going to get some maple, but I saw that piece of poplar and the price was right. I know Bruce makes his basses from poplar, and it's lighter than maple, so I went for it. I didn't need that much walnut, but it was on sale. so I got twice what I needed. I got right to work cutting it up.
Oh yeah, and Fed-Ex delivered the neck this morning as well.
So I'll glue up that center piece when Amazon delivers the epoxy later this week.
Curious to see how are you going to handle the neck pocket template, I know you've done Fenderbacker style before. I have an old MIM P Bass want to make build a Jazz neck for, tons of laser or CNC cut templates out there, are the heel dimensions the same for P and J necks?
I believe the P and J neck heels are the same - I believe the necks are interchangeable. I usually make a temple using plywood for the sides, and manually cut the bottom and glue it in.
So the bridge block came in.
With the bridge pieces, it'll look something like this:
I'll have to buy some machine screws and a matching tap and drill set.
The tuners and pickups arrived. I have band rehearsal this afternoon so I won't be able to work on the build until tomorrow, but I'll have my work cut out for me.
207 hardener ("special clear") really is cheaper if you use epoxy slowly. It does not go bad, at least in the "more than 10 years" timescale.
And using means other than pumps to measure is likewise cheaper and suits making "not a boat" quantities of epoxy better.
And using means other than pumps to measure is likewise cheaper and suits making "not a boat" quantities of epoxy better.
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Hey Nexy;
I highly recommend that you don't buy one of those cheap Tap & Die sets. Decide what size machine screws you want to use (probably 8-32) and buy a single good quality Spiral Point Tap, and a matching Screw Machine Drill Bit (or two). And a tap handle. Together, they will cost less than one of those cheap sets, and they will be far more enjoyable to use.
For 8-32 in aluminum, you want a #36 drill bit. For 10-32, a #21.
I went over all about tapping holes here in my metalworking thread:
A quick introduction to tapping; making threaded holes in your custom bass hardware.
There are many different types of taps, made for different purposes. Here are a couple:
These are all 10-32 size.
This is what's commonly called a Utility Tap or a Standard Tap. They are usually 4 straight flutes with a straight tip. This is the style of tap found in the big Tap & Die sets. They are designed to be turned by hand, in a forward/back motion. 1/2 turn in, 1/4 turn back, etc. etc. Very slow and tedious. It cuts the chips as a bunch of small C-shaped bits. These...
There are many different types of taps, made for different purposes. Here are a couple:
These are all 10-32 size.
This is what's commonly called a Utility Tap or a Standard Tap. They are usually 4 straight flutes with a straight tip. This is the style of tap found in the big Tap & Die sets. They are designed to be turned by hand, in a forward/back motion. 1/2 turn in, 1/4 turn back, etc. etc. Very slow and tedious. It cuts the chips as a bunch of small C-shaped bits. These...
And:
Okay, back to the method of tapping holes; cutting threads in small metal parts.
I'll talk about:
These are the basic tools for hand tapping threads in small parts, like bridge parts for a bass.
In the center is the tap itself. As we discussed in a previous post, there are different types of taps available. For small aluminum and brass parts, I recommend that you get a good quality 2-flute Spiral Point Tap, sometimes called a Gun Tap. Buy the specific sizes you need. They are made to tap...
I'll talk about:
- Hand tapping
- Hand tapping with a Hand Tapping Machine
- Power tapping
These are the basic tools for hand tapping threads in small parts, like bridge parts for a bass.
In the center is the tap itself. As we discussed in a previous post, there are different types of taps available. For small aluminum and brass parts, I recommend that you get a good quality 2-flute Spiral Point Tap, sometimes called a Gun Tap. Buy the specific sizes you need. They are made to tap...
I totally agree. I've seen those cheap tap & die sets and have stayed away from them. I've always just went with the higher quality individual tap and drill bit sets like this:Hey Nexy;
I highly recommend that you don't buy one of those cheap Tap & Die sets. Decide what size machine screws you want to use (probably 8-32) and buy a single good quality Spiral Point Tap, and a matching Screw Machine Drill Bit (or two). And a tap handle. Together, they will cost less than one of those cheap sets, and they will be far more enjoyable to use.
For 8-32 in aluminum, you want a #36 drill bit. For 10-32, a #21.
I went over all about tapping holes here in my metalworking thread:
A quick introduction to tapping; making threaded holes in your custom bass hardware.
There are many different types of taps, made for different purposes. Here are a couple:
These are all 10-32 size.
This is what's commonly called a Utility Tap or a Standard Tap. They are usually 4 straight flutes with a straight tip. This is the style of tap found in the big Tap & Die sets. They are designed to be turned by hand, in a forward/back motion. 1/2 turn in, 1/4 turn back, etc. etc. Very slow and tedious. It cuts the chips as a bunch of small C-shaped bits. These...
And:
Okay, back to the method of tapping holes; cutting threads in small metal parts.
I'll talk about:
- Hand tapping
- Hand tapping with a Hand Tapping Machine
- Power tapping
These are the basic tools for hand tapping threads in small parts, like bridge parts for a bass.
In the center is the tap itself. As we discussed in a previous post, there are different types of taps available. For small aluminum and brass parts, I recommend that you get a good quality 2-flute Spiral Point Tap, sometimes called a Gun Tap. Buy the specific sizes you need. They are made to tap...
which have always worked well for me for aluminum or angle iron. I have a matching tap handle here somewhere, unless I lost it in the move...
I think for the individual bridge pieces, a 6-32 will be the right size. 8-32 might be too big to fit through the existing holes.
Installed the tuners this morning and put together a neck routing template.
Since I had the table saw out, I was going to put together a template for the pickups and bridge block, but I ran out of steam. I'll do that another day.
Since I had the table saw out, I was going to put together a template for the pickups and bridge block, but I ran out of steam. I'll do that another day.
I have always loved your builds. I’m happy to see you back at it! 
So I have a few things going on in this picture, then I had to rest for a while as I again ran out of steam. So first I taped the paper template of the bridge pieces to the bridge plate and drilled out the mounting holes with a #36 drill bit in preparation for tapping for the #6 machine screws. I also drilled the 4 corners with an 1/8" bit and then rounded off the 4 corners with the oscillating sander.
Then I started making the routing template for sinking the bridge plate into the body. And since I had the table saw out, I figured I get the template for the pickup routs made as well. So I cut those up. So after cutting everything up and putting everything away and cleaning up all the filings and sawdust, I was too tired to glue up the templates or tap the screw holes, so I'll just watch some Star Trek with my Teddy Bears.
T.O.S. I hope, if it ain't Kirk it ain't Star Trek
Awe, come on... let us gen x-ers have TNG, it was a good show.
I also like the new ones (Picard, Discovery, Strange New Worlds). There are just too few basses out there 
