Jim Fleeting

Thanks for your comments. If you want to see some pics from that night, and of the bass, here they are, on my blog: [url="http://luthiery.co.uk/2011/02/01/michael-henderson-starship-bass/"]http://luthiery.co.uk/2011/02/01/michael-h...-starship-bass/[/url] Hope I haven't broken any rules of self-promotion on here. Apologies if I have, and I'll delete this post and PM if so. Let me know. The Jazz/MM pickups combo is because Michael said "Imagine if I could have a bass that sounded like a jazz bass, but if you flick a switch, it's a MM". Fortunately, Delano make the hybrid, which does that very thing, and looks cool. Jim

Thanks to all for a great weekend. Saturday night was a hoot, and I loved geeking out on Sunday. It was really nice to meet everyone. Particular thanks to Alan for organising it, and to "the band" for helping out and giving us something to jam along to. Thanks for the compliment on my playing, Dave. There was some amazing players there, and I loved listening to other people playing. I wonder if I'd have understood a bit more of the lecture on theory if I wasn't a bit jaded from the beer the previous evening.

[quote name='TK4108' post='410282' date='Feb 15 2009, 07:49 PM']Sorry for the delay. Here is a link to the photos. Thank again Keith and Phil! What a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon! [url="http://picasaweb.google.com/kithdotus/YorkshireBassBash2009?feat=directlink"]Yorkshire Bass Bash 2009 Photos[/url][/quote] Do you mind if I use a couple of these on my blog? [url="http://luthiery.co.uk"]Jim's Blog[/url] I'll credit you, of course.

[quote name='BigRedX' post='410357' date='Feb 15 2009, 08:49 PM']Looks like a fun day! and a smart venue. What was the half fretted/fretless bass and who did that belong to? GAS![/quote] That is mine. It's the first one I made, so I can't part with it for personal reasons. I've gigged it a lot, anyway, so it would have to be a second hand sale, and I experiment on it all the time. If you liked the fretted/fretless thing, I can retrofit it on most basses (binding and maple fingerboards complicate matters, but it is still do-able). Obviouly I can always make you one. Thanks to Phil et al for putting it together, it was great to try out other peoples gear, and generally have a chat with so many bass players. Finding out what you all want is important for us builders, otherwise we'll just end up making basses that we want. Looking forward to the next one. Jim

Hi Phil I'll be there. 15th is fine for me. As to doing something more than just attending, I'll email you some thoughts. In the meantime, of anyone has anything on any subject they'd like to hear a luthier's perspective on, put it on this forum. Cheers Jim

Hello again I've been keeping my eye on this post, and the last comment worried me a little. These aren't [i]my[/i] opinions regurgitated. Wood is really important. It's all really important. That's my opinion. Cheers Jim

Hello all, Thanks for the comments. Even the "bug splat"! The main topic seems to revolve around the pros and cons of the wooden knife-edge bridge. I'm usually loathe to comment on threads about my own instruments, but I have read the points raised here with interest, and I'd like to add my thoughts. The intonation isn't perfect, much like an acoustic guitar. It works on the principle that if you intonate it on the strings at the extremes, then the other strings will be a good approximation. This works well on an acoustic, and it works on this bass, too. The only differences are that in this case I set the intonation correct on the E and G, as the middle four strings are most likely to be the most played on a six string bass, and the bridge isn't glued down - so if you change the string gauge, you can change the positioning of the bridge. Argh is correct that it actually doesn't matter on a fretless, but if you intonate it well, the fret lines will be a good indication. I agree that the lines don't make sense in this argument, but if you play on the lines it'll play as in tune as a fretted instrument. I think one of the points of a fretless instrument is that not only are you no longer relying on the even tempered scale, but also that the deflection of the strings no longer matters, as you can compensate for it with the left hand. If you follow this argument, then lines on a fretless bass don't make sense, regardless of what type of bridge you have. Actually, the only point of a fretless bass is that it sounds great. Setting the action on this bass is as much of a problem as it is on an acoustic guitar. Both have unsophisticated bridge systems. Both have a specific tone that requires the bridge system that they have. The bottom line is, I made this bass to order. All spec was decided by the customer. The challenges of the knife-edge bridge system were explained to him, but he liked the tone and the look of this system. If you're changing the action and or string gauges on your bass all the time, have a fully adjustable bridge fitted. It's a lot easier for me to do. Earthing the strings on this system is no mean feat. Best wishes, Jim