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Wishbass Club pt. 2

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#62
Well, #943 arrived, unmolested by Fed Ex, and it makes me wonder if Wish's heart is still in this. Like 49sfine Stude, this one seems to have hit a new low in the finish department. Not only the usual Wish stuff, but for instance, the nut. The E and G strings have been cut, but the A and D strings still have the pencil marks where he was going to file the nut, but it is uncut for those two strings. The neck has a very unusual shape, and from the third fret postition to the 12th fret position, it is so rough that if I move too fast I will get a friction burn, I'm NOT kidding. It is AS IF his mental acuity has become compromised. Forgetting to finish the nut? As I said in an earlier post, I hope he is well......

Still, when I'm done filing, sanding, shaping, leveling, and rubbing, it will be awesome. But frankly, I think retirement is probably a good idea. I'm just happy that I've got my Wishbass collection all in order, I would hate to be discovering Wishbass just now..........

Peace, James jbybj
 
#63
Uh,
Wish's never had the greatest finishes. I don't think they should be called FINISH, but a beginning. Perhaps a first coat!

my first custom I had him do a finish on, and I was never happy with it. So the one that will be arriving Monday - has no finish, and I'm going to spend some time with it - doing it myself.


Oh, and here's a few old WISHBASS threads, just in case some of you newbie's haven't seen them before.

http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=279666&highlight=wishbass
11 string Wishbass

http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=345792&highlight=wishbass
the Battlestar Galactica Wishbass

and although I can't find them, there were two threads entitled "Let's Buy A Wish" 1 and 2 (or something like that) where a group of TBers once all chipped in to check out a Wishbass and then sent it around to each other to review it. Some of the posts are quite comical, especially when the bass "got lost" or seemed like someone took off with it. If you can find the thread's, they are worth reading.
 
#66
jbybj said:
Well, #943 arrived, unmolested by Fed Ex, and it makes me wonder if Wish's heart is still in this. Like 49sfine Stude, this one seems to have hit a new low in the finish department. Not only the usual Wish stuff, but for instance, the nut. The E and G strings have been cut, but the A and D strings still have the pencil marks where he was going to file the nut, but it is uncut for those two strings. The neck has a very unusual shape, and from the third fret postition to the 12th fret position, it is so rough that if I move too fast I will get a friction burn, I'm NOT kidding. It is AS IF his mental acuity has become compromised. Forgetting to finish the nut? As I said in an earlier post, I hope he is well......

Still, when I'm done filing, sanding, shaping, leveling, and rubbing, it will be awesome. But frankly, I think retirement is probably a good idea. I'm just happy that I've got my Wishbass collection all in order, I would hate to be discovering Wishbass just now..........

Peace, James jbybj
Click to expand...
James; I'm with you, I think mentally Wish has moved on from Wishbass, but it does not have to mean he is not feeling well. I think he is looking forward to working on his vehicles and Wishnevsky Instruments (JMO). I have looked at my Stude closer and there are some not-so-minor construction errors on it that no amount of caressing is going to fix - mainly the lower right end of the body where it clearly was severed from the rest and then glued back together but with a pretty obvious misalignment of the thin verneer he uses between the back and front woods (does anyone know exactly what that is?). I would have to cut the end off of that whole contour, and while I am considering it, I am not sure what lurks further in and what sort of aesthetic issues I would be up against then. Also, the upper horn has had a big chunk taken out of it (did he drop this thing?) and then reset but the glue line/crack is awfully wide in the most obvious place - it will have to be filled, and of course will show. The neck is also a lot more narrow than the neck in spots; but that can be repaired with some elbow grease. Still, I am looking forward to what I can do to get this one cleaned up and since it cost less than 2 bills, it still is a bargain - not sure I would want to pay much more, though! I hope and assume that he is putting more effort into his special orders (like mine). I predict the coming thing will be finding and working on older Wishbasses, like #88 recently commented on. So, it's all good! "They're still the one, and I'm still having fun" .......................
 
#68
Gubna said:
yeah, that is so inspiring. I just hope I can do mine justice.
Click to expand...

I'm sure you can - I'd rate my woodworking skills as basic, certainly no higher than a high school shop class level! I did spend a lot of time sanding - all by hand, with a block for some areas - fret board was one such.

If you go to post #64 of my refin thread I've tried to give a step by step of what I did!

Good luck and post some pics when you are finished!
 
#69
Thunderitter said:
I'm sure you can - I'd rate my woodworking skills as basic, certainly no higher than a high school shop class level! I did spend a lot of time sanding - all by hand, with a block for some areas - fret board was one such.

If you go to post #64 of my refin thread I've tried to give a step by step of what I did!

Good luck and post some pics when you are finished!
Click to expand...

Did you use any chemicals to strip the original finish or was it all sanded off?

Thanks very much for listing your finishing steps, your fantasy is very inspiring!

=wr=
 
#70
wave rider said:
Did you use any chemicals to strip the original finish or was it all sanded off?

Thanks very much for listing your finishing steps, your fantasy is very inspiring!

=wr=
Click to expand...

I sanded the original finish off and unless SW has changed what he's doing it's very easy to do with medium grit sandpaper!
 
#72
Someone posted ealier wanting to know about fretted wishbasses. I have two, a custom I ordered in 06 and one I picked up on the bay. good intonation on the non adjustable bridge, almost perfect intonation on the fanned fret.
100_2199.5.jpg

100_2205.5.jpg
 
#76
rollerberg2000 said:
Someone posted ealier wanting to know about fretted wishbasses. I have two, a custom I ordered in 06 and one I picked up on the bay. good intonation on the non adjustable bridge, almost perfect intonation on the fanned fret.
Click to expand...

I sincerely wish you only the best in life and your future circumstances, but....... If you should ever need to part with your scroll, it would hold a place of high honor in my household, and make an excellent mate to my scroll.

Peace JBY
Scroll474.jpg
 
#77
Gubna said:
the same might not be the case if the control plate is on the back as is mine, but I'll consider this when I order one. The control cavity should be bigger than the top mounted ones, NO?
Click to expand...


Wish uses the same size for front and rear routed control cavities. You won't have to worry about the depth on the rear routed cavity. Varitones will definitely fit. You'll just need to solder the controls together before mounting them to the body. Be sure to use very short lead wires (2-3" max) between the controls and jack in order fit everything in there. With the Varitone, you should definitely use a smaller sized volume pot.
 
#79
jbybj said:
Well, #943 arrived, unmolested by Fed Ex, and it makes me wonder if Wish's heart is still in this. Like 49sfine Stude, this one seems to have hit a new low in the finish department. Not only the usual Wish stuff, but for instance, the nut. The E and G strings have been cut, but the A and D strings still have the pencil marks where he was going to file the nut, but it is uncut for those two strings. The neck has a very unusual shape, and from the third fret postition to the 12th fret position, it is so rough that if I move too fast I will get a friction burn, I'm NOT kidding. It is AS IF his mental acuity has become compromised. Forgetting to finish the nut? As I said in an earlier post, I hope he is well......

Still, when I'm done filing, sanding, shaping, leveling, and rubbing, it will be awesome. But frankly, I think retirement is probably a good idea. I'm just happy that I've got my Wishbass collection all in order, I would hate to be discovering Wishbass just now..........

Peace, James jbybj
Click to expand...

It really depends on the instrument. He's told me that he does not prefer to build custom order instruments. From my experience, most of the custom orders he's made for me have been substandard compared to his eBay listings (with exception of a few that were artistically different.) He would rather make a Wishbass to suit his own interests and put it on eBay for $300-400. The "artist" comes out when he's building instruments that are entirely HIS idea from start to finish.
 
#80
3stringpete said:
It really depends on the instrument. He's told me that he does not prefer to build custom order instruments. From my experience, most of the custom orders he's made for me have been substandard compared to his eBay listings (with exception of a few that were artistically different.) He would rather make a Wishbass to suit his own interests and put it on eBay for $300-400. The "artist" comes out when he's building instruments that are entirely HIS idea from start to finish.
Click to expand...
Hmmm, #943 purpleheart Hyper was an ebay listing, of his own creation. The weird thing is, the very first time I put my finger on the A string, I could tell the nut was way too high, it wasn't subtle. Did Wish never play it? Then when I saw the pencil marks and realized he had cut two, and left two undone, that's just plain forgetful. When he misplaced the pickup I had sent him to measure the route on an earlier custom, he said he was a bit muddle headed recently. He found it three weeks later and sent it to me. The route he had made was still too small for the pup. He never even used it.

It's not my intention to trash Wish, I think he is exactly what makes this a great country, and a great time to be alive. He's an artist, and a rebel, and a free thinker. Though I've never met the man, I can't help but like him. I'm just making the observation that something has definitely changed in the last 6 months or so.

On a happier note, I removed about 15% of the neck today, leaving behind something that feels reasonably good. From here on out it will just be sandpaper, no more files or planes. Looking at my finished purpleheart Scarab, and my unfinished purpleheart Hyper next to each other on stands, I get giddy.

Tomorrow is Sunday, a day to reflect, and sand some wood :-)
 
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