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Batcat:

I bought a couple of slabs of sycamore from a local place in 2016. It was relatively fresh cut hence why I have been storing it to let it air dry. I weighed both pieces when I bought them so I decided to weigh them again today to see how much moisture has been lost. This one slab started at 24kg and now weighs 16.8kg. I've scraped the surface of it to get through the saw marks and there is a really nice tight ripple. You have no idea what the wood will be like until this point. Now I just want to turn it into something!! The other slab is still very nice but no signs of rippling - will still make something nice though. Just got to figure out how to get this wood processed....

We/some/most of us have heard it. Didn't know he played it on his Jazz bass. Although we only hear clips of his playing lets not forget how much of a beast of a player he is.. Fantastic drumming and keys.

Well, he’s a bass player, with a bass channel on YouTube, and is a member. Just current affairs I guess. Plus there was that other thread.... ps - much respect to the man and the playing!

Well my avatar went, and I can't find the original 'cat on toilet' photo. I'm sure I have it somewhere but I just can't locate it atm. In the meantime, my avatar remains a picture of my cat Billie, but she's looking a bit more demure in this one. 🙂

Normally I like to sell the space to a bass related company like Elixir and Rotosound and the London Bass Guitar Show. The other ads are supplied to fill in the gaps when we don't have a specific ad booked there. I could get rid of them entirely if we had more people subbing, maybe another 50 people a month. Originally they were put in place because we had companies beating our door down asking for them, but the game seems to have changed and I'm finding it hard work filling them myself. Normally I get so far then the company stop responding. So when they're all set up properly, they help keep us afloat. Pop ups were never part of the plan and as I have said in various places many times so far, they will be gone soon. I don't like them any more than anyone else and agree they just put people off.

HatCat

Ahem* Bassbat

Ooo you've just reminded me of a Fender amp made from a whisky barrel. Not strictly a relic but still a lovely thing, very Seasick Steve 😁

I will build another couple of these that will have a slight tweak to the lower horn, based on feedback from the last bash. I've also started looking at making a new neck to try on one of these to give a scale of around 27" rather than 23" just to see how that feels and balances - details will be posted on here as usual to how that goes! I'll be taking these two mini basses to the Midlands Bass Bash next month for anyone that wants to give then a go. Cheers Jez

Every now and again something pops up that you just want to share...

Sadly no Shaggy on this date. I'm actually playing guitar and organ for this show, but when I asked the guitarists nobody knew who Sting was and then the keyboardists just started talking to me about modular euroracks and other nonsense so I thought I'd tell you fellas instead. Anyway, get your important bass-playing questions in now and I'll get you the lowdown on all those crucial details: Do tortoise pickguards really sound better? What HPF do you use to make your rig cut through in the back room of the Dog and Duck? Where did your accent go? How do you stop having tantric sex??

yamaha custom shop in california made jack's custom BBs and they speak english

That's the problem with reproduction relics. Folk seldom get the details right. They usually over do it.

The guy phoned the depot and the depot phoned me and said he would meet up with me. Sadly I was on a Dual Carriageway towing a caravan in the opposite direction. I did a 3 hour detour on our honeymoon to buy a Stingray 5. My wife would not stand for such behaviour when we were meant to be driving off on holiday. I will be back on Weds but it will be delivered to work on Monday. Phew.

Keef uses that guitar tuned in open G and plays it without a low e string. Still doesn't explain the lack of wear under the A or what he's been doing to cause that much damage to the end of the fretboard after the 22nd fret. Edit:It's also slightly odd that the 'reproduction' has 22 frets. The original has the usual 21.

Looks like Ronnie Pickering in camo.

I’m normally a fender jazz or Sandberg fan , but I’ve had my BB 415 about 3 weeks now and really can’t fault it in any way, I like the pickup switch , it makes it really easy to change between tones quickly, and the lows on this are great . Also the nut width is about 43 mm , which I didn’t think was bad for a 5 string, Imo they are well worth the money 🙂

At one point I owned a BB1024 and a BB3000. Now I just own the 3000. They both have a very similar tone however the reason the 3000 has stuck around was the comparatively lighter weight (my 3000 is 4kg) and the depth of the neck was slimmer front to back. Both awesome basses though and there’s really not much in it.

thanks for advice and comments all are very appreciated, nothing is set out yet i haven't even taken any measurements neck and pups are just placed on there to see if i like what the bass will look like, have lots to think about like colour or stain or oil do i put binding on it, too much to think about.

BatHat

That guy was partly responsible for my going ahead and buying a Schecter Model T Session without even having tried one: the bass caught me by its looks and it had the right configuration for what I was looking for... and this guy on the video had a few interesting songs posted playing along to. It led to my buying the bass (it quickly became my #2, which is as high as any bass could get for me, since #1 is firmly my Stingray) and to creating a cool playlist of music I didn't know...

Here's a quick mockup I can't decide if the pickguard looks OK?? With or without opinions please?? If I decide to use the pickguard I will have to adjust it a bit so its not too close to the last knob......... 😀

This was dicussed recently on Rubis' day of birth Precision thread: I've always referred to these things as the scratchplate, but never new the material changed in '65 @spencer.b I have seen post '65s age and discolour also, but maybe not to the same degree (not actually looked closely enough). Having owned a number of early '60s Fender basses I became familiar with the colour change and distortion that occurs - I'm certain a large part of it is exposure to UV. If you remove the pot knobs and the retaining nut, you'll see the whiter shade underneath. I've heard about tobacco smoke and pollutants - don't buy any of it, maybe pollutants to a 5% degree. If I was trying to do this I would definitely test UV exposure - a cheap uv bulb, cardboard 'light box' and a few days (maybe weeks) soak. The important thing is the colour change is not on the surface but permeates the white upper layer giving the effect of depth. So I don't think tea or any other surface stain will ever really do it.

I took this as a genuine question, it's one I've pondered myself. I'm personally quite a fan of a well done relic but I also love a minter. There is a certain beauty in an object which is aged and weathered, not to mention a uniqueness. I think it also gives an authenticity to the player, making them look like a seasoned pro. My understanding of the origin of relicing is that it comes from Keith Richards asking Fender to relic a new Tele they built for him as it was too new and shiny. I believe he wanted a copy of his fav guitar (called Micawber!?), fender custom shop did it and relicing was born. I like your classic car analogy, although there is a section of enthusiasts who restore some cars (and bikes) to a standard which keeps the patina of rusty/sunbleached paint etc. I feel this is an American thing more than European, think rusty pickups and ratty harleys. That said, I wouldn't know if they'd take unoriginal wear and add it like with guitars. Probably though. In Merica, if they can, they do. The only simile I can think of of relicing (although I'm sure there's many more), is with furniture and the whole shabby chic thing. That too can look great when done really well, but like guitars, it's not easy to get the authentic look.

Having read this forum, there is someone on here that is uncredited for the amount of time someone who's professionally worked around Yamaha's day in, day out (guitars, basses, drums, keys and audio) selling them for a living and if not someone to be surrounded them at work, he's someone who's working with them in another sense: he's out practicing, performing and recording with them. Probably the BB collection has dwindled lately since I brought him over to the Attitude way of life but this is someone who still knows his beans when it comes to it, someone I still speak to, to gather information on my own gear or inbound purchases 😂 If anyone is to know a thing or two about Yamaha basses, @AndyTravis is the one to ask. Just some of his collection and at one period of time. I'm sure if there was a picture of the entire collection, there wouldn't be enough sofas to stick them on 😂😂😂

“Better” is subjective. How do you quantify “better” - I could certainly spot the difference blindfolded. The decay of the notes, the feel of the harmonic ring, loads of ways to spot the difference. What’s “better” for you might be “absolutely useless” to me. Hence the fact I only use passive basses and you seem to favour active ones, for example. I’d have the 3000 for a different job to the 1024 or 414 - my modded 414 does things differently to my 1024, so they both come along...and there are 3 tracks I always use the 414 for, and in some instances it does the other tunes when I can’t be bothered swapping between the two. I was talking to a mate the other day about eq and fx, compression etc - I really don’t apply much thought to it. He labours over it. And he plays predominantly at home. Makes no sense to me. But it seemingly matters to him. Does that make him “better” or “worse” than me? Nah - just different. Worries me when music or instruments are turned into objects of sport - “not for me” is my favourite phrase with gear.

I'm definitely not doing the cat thing.

Stupid idea. 😃

It is this mindset that makes your stuff so attractive.

It was great to see the looks on peoples face when they tried these little basses - it was probably similar to when I tried Ped's Wingbass 18 months ago. You think they shouldn't sound like proper basses but they do! This is the rough spec of the two basses: The Buckeye topped one has a single active EMG jazz bass pickup with volume and tone controls. The strings on it are old roundwounds .105 to .045 and tuned to standard EADG tuning. The Maple topped one had an ENG 35DC fitted with an EMG BTC preamp with volume and stacked treble/bass controls. The strings on it are roundwounds .130 to .065 (roughly) also tuned to standard EADG So, same scale length, same tuning but completely different gauges!! And they both feel fine to play to me!! Not to floppy and not too tight.

Sorry but I couldn’t face putting it on....too many painful memories. Here it is adorning a forlorn Mustang. Oh the shame....

The fascination is cos up to 65 fender pickguards were nitrate celluloid which looked very different and started aging very quickly , a 2nd hand pickguard would also be shiny, the nitro paint was also totally different hence why that worn look has become such a thing for fenders Why does every thread about aged stuff get hijacked by people saying you shouldn't do it , it's wrong etc etc There's some styles of bass that aren't for me so I wouldn't buy one however I wouldn't find a thread about em and say I hate them and so should you

Heard this on the radio, and reminded me what an amazing song and bassline it is. Love it.

I always look back at Whitesnake with such mixed feelings - They were such a great - different - band when they started, smokey blues rock with a hint of soul and such musical depth with Murray, Marsden, Lord and Moody then they just turned into this generic american see how fast you can play it rubbish with Vandenberg and Vai - all inside a few years. I saw them on the Slide it In tour and they were superb (despite everything that was happening in the background) - saw them on the 1987 tour and I don't think I've ever been more disappointed - all the soul sucked out and just frizzy hair and arpeggios left. FFYL when you listen to the two versions sums this up better than anything.

May well be down to pick wear? In his later years Keith often plays over the neck/body joint with the neck at a more upright position than he used to. As in this performance - JJ Flash, Glastonbury 2013. This would also explain the wear on the body of the Tele above the neck.

I use Procreate but also have an app called Graphic on my iPad. I have not used it much yet but it may do what you want. Certainly worth having a look at.

Yeah I think you're right in this case - that if you plug something into channel 3, it will only come out of the left channel. I looked at the manual and its unclear, but most mixers with a stereo input of that type (ie 2x line level 1/4" mono TS) will sense that nothing is plugged into the right side, and treat the left side as a "mono" ie put it to both channels. Given that it also only has 2 mic-level inputs, I'd hunt around for something a bit more generous in its inputs for your needs. You could get an adapter to manually split it if you really wanted, though. There does seem to be a trend of advertising eg "4 inputs" but only 1 or 2 of them are useful enough to be usable.

You just need a good interpretation of the song, so that it sounds faithful to the original and is enjoyable to listen to. Have a look at massive bands of the 70s and 80s. Listen to their albums, then see what they play live. Youd think they'd be identical, but the reality is they are much more watered down versions. They still feel and sound great, and youd hardly notice, but so many big bands did this. The experience of listening to a lp or cd and the experience of being involved in all that is going on when watching and experiencing a band live, are two completely different things.

Re. pick guard, I'd be inclined not to use it and instead have a decal of the logo printed and just apply it to the body where the thunderbird logo would sit

Syrups r us? I smell a pop up ad in the offing! 😩

Cheers chaps. I think you have pretty accurately summed me up!! I'm certainly no salesman, and I'm not the most confident person in my own ability - if I were ever on 'The Apprentice' I would lose!! For those that don't know me, my day job is in quality assurance and involves reviewing paperwork and writing reports. I started doing some woodwork a few years back as an outlet to make something other than a bigger pile of paperwork, and to physically see something constructive that I'd made. I really enjoy the design, build and learning that I get from making a bass and the recent feedback I've got is genuinely much appreciated. I'm not a particularly good bassist (even though |'ve played for long enough!!) so I really enjoy the bass bashes to hear what my basses sound like in other hands and for the constructive feedback I get. Building basses is something I do as a hobby that fits around my family life which is probably why I struggle when anyone asks me how much I would sell something for!! That isn't the reason I build basses and I don't count the hours it takes to make (I've been asked a few time and I haven't a clue!!). I've got a couple of builds in the pipeline that I'm going to do for a couple of people so we'll see how that goes!! Cheers again for all the positive and constructive comments!

The best covers are always those that don't slavishly copy the originals and the most pointless are the ones that are note for note perfect. I'd much rather watch an entertaining, even if a merely competant, band playing interesting and fun versions of well-known tunes than a bunch of top or 2nd notch players performing carbon copies.

*does a quick homage to Dood's picture* 😀 It's JD's desert island bass. If he was washed up on a desert island, and a Westfield was all that was there - he'd have to play it. 👍