JazzRay

What you want for the screw is a set of screw extractors, they aren't expensive either. They look like a cone shaped screw with a reverse thread. You drill the screw you want to remove then screw the right sized extractor into it, as you turn it anti clockwise it gets a bite of what's left of the screw and screws it out

The Fender Bass VI was introduced in the early 60s and they did a lefty, so another option is to try and find a vintage lefty Bass VI for easy money. Good luck. BTW, it not a Bass, it's a Baritone guitar, the most famous exponent being Robert Smith from The Cure

This is what I love to see, I turned a dull OLP Stingray into a roadworn pre Ernie Ball. I did notice something about your tuner problem, you could have used a left handed set and flipped them over, they'd turn the opposite way than normal but they'd fit better. It's great fun turning a pup into a pedigree isn't it

Veery veeery nice, you're an inspiration

It's Ash and yes that's why it's heavy. But it's also why it sounds great, so there's always gonna be a trade off. My next one will have a hollowed out, (A La Thinline Tele) Mahogany body with a quilted maple top to give good lows and highs and decent mids and not so much weight. We live and learn

Keep it AND buy a P J, you can't go wrong then

Sort a jig to rout the curved truss rod slot and bingo

Dave Crinson at Crinson guitars in Hartlepool, he's a Luthier who's won awards for his Cellos and Violins but his guitar work is spot on. Nice bloke too

Online from Mark at Bassdirect, £25 + p&p. A bit of drilling and modding, I got nuts for the thumb screws and fixed them under the bridge but you could drill and tap

Very Sabrey, and very Stingrayey. I used to have a Fender Jazz which was effortless to play but, and maybe this is just me, but I think Jazz pickups are a bit anaemic. Then I tried a Stingray and loved the tone but hated the fact that it felt like a Scaffold Batten, and one of the big ones to boot! So enter JazzRay, I did this really cheap seeing it was my first build, but the solid Ash, through body stringing and pair of 'Rays' and it sounds amazing, flick it into Overdrive and you're in tonal heaven. One drawback, the weight, Heavy! But what I've learnt from this one will go into my next one, I'll be making the neck myself also

Have you fitted the truss rod yet? There's been no mention of this essential piece of kit. And as for Oak, it's the same genus as Ash, even looks the same and since a certain Californian company have been using Ash in their guitars for over 60 years, then why not, but the best bit is it was lying round the shop for free rather than an expensive purchase. Don't use a switch, separate vols are infinitely versatile and less complicated. Good Luck

Looking good, slightly exotic for a first attempt but it's looking great. My second bass is on the drawing board, Birds Eye Maple neck and fingerboard, Mahogany Body, hollowed out barring a central tone block, Quilted Maple Top, cream binding to body and neck, set neck with ergonomic heel, EMG Jazz at neck, EMG Jazz at middle and EMG Stingray at bridge, vol and tone for each and a final active tone

Here's an active bass I built, I wrote a massive description but it disappeared when I tried to upload the photos, so use your imagination

[quote name='EssentialTension' timestamp='1388158004' post='2318981'] Only McCartney played a Hofner. In the early days Lennon played a Rickenbacker and Harrison played a Gretsch. [/quote] Stuart Sutcliffe played a Hofner, and Lennon and Harrison didn't play Gretsch and Ricky until around 62 when they got them on the never never

Squier VM Jaguar SS, very light, very comfy, nice player, decent tone, well built, or try the Squier Classic Vibe Mustang. The Beatles didn't play Hofners through choice, due to the trade embargoes after the war you just couldn't get Fenders, (and god knows who wanted Gibsons!) until around 1960. I love short scale basses, they're a do dele to play, the downside being less sustain but apart from that they're great!

I've been searching for string mutes for years but I've finally found someone who sells them, so I bought a set straight away. A little bit of drilling to do but nothing major, but now I feel complete!

Go onto eBay and look for Papa Ds Music Emporium, you will have to search for something like 'Bass Tuners' then scroll through until you find some being sold by Papa Ds, I've used them a lot and they are REALLY cheap, also C H Guitars who have a shop in South Shields have some great bodies and necks and again are very cheap. I bought a bass neck from them and it's very good

I've had lots down the years, but I never really got into a love affair with any of them, to me it's just a tool. I subscribe to the idea that it's better to buy something like a Squier for a couple of hundred quid and then spending a few hundred more 'Customising' it to my own sound. You see, computers make guitars these days and the woodwork in a cheap one is just as good as the woodwork in an expensive one, thus making a good basis for customisation. I've got an OLP Stingray 4, I bought the natural finish option cos you get an Elm body instead of Basswood, and I've turned it into a pre EB road worn Stingray, complete with string mutes. It's gonna get an EMG classic pick up with an active tone boost. The neck is identical to any Ernie Ball, including the Capstan Wheel truss rod adjuster but minus the Birds Eye Maple, which I can live without. I've also built my own bass from scratch, it has an Ash Stingray shaped body and a Jazz shaped neck with rosewood board and block inlays, it has two Stingray pick ups, an active pre-amp and through body stringing and it sounds amazing, it's a bit heavy however so my next one is on the drawing board. Watch this space

Well let's ask the man himself, Leo Fender, who designed both basses. The story of the Precision is well known, but when Leo sold the company to CBS in 1965, he had to sign a deal to not design any new guitars for ten years unless it was for Fender CBS, (Mustang Bass). In this time he worked on the replacement for the Precision, making improvements but also going back to his original design. In 1976 he was free from his contract with CBS and the Stingray Bass was launched under ex Fender employee, Tom Walkers MusicMan brand. So the last word goes to Leo, Stingray all day long