Manton Customs

As it's been defretted it's most likely that the board needs dressing, there's probably a bump in there somewhere. Basically the fretless equivalent of needing fretwork! To check: first slacken the strings, then set relief to zero (flat neck) then check the board with a straight edge a long the string paths. My bet would be one of the filled fret slots is proud.

Google guitar radius gauge and it'll bring up a printable gauge which you can use on your neck. There are other ways, but this is the simplest for the majority of people. You could also buy one if you'd like something more sturdy. What's the plan for it? Edit: I may have missed the point and you might not actually own the bass yet.

Keep in mind that unless you are buying something specialist (exotics for example) a sawmill nearby will be able to sell you blanks at under half the price of luthier specific suppliers. For example you'll often see 1 pc Ash and Alder blanks go for Ebay for £100 or so, but a local sawmill would charge you around £30 for more wood than you need. There is nothing inferior about the sawmill wood, it just often needs planing. Many sawmills will deal in woods from the US such as Black Walnut and Maple, so you aren't just limited to native species. Explore your local area and see what you can find. When you do find a mill, give them a ring and you'll often find they are interested in what you're doing and be glad to help.

Yep, it's firewood. Just kidding! A luthier should be able to sort that out easily for you.

No problem. That sounds like a good idea and thanks to the deep set neck, very possible!

Shaving the neck down shouldn't be too much of a task for a decent luthier, though I'd probably advise a change of neck profile (thinning the shoulders for example) rather than actually reducing the thickness front to back too much. It's often the neck profile rather than the actual depth which causes the most problems with comfort and it's a lot safer to remove it from here instead of the middle. You could also have a bit taken from the depth at the same time, but there's a truss rod in there somewhere and if whoever is carving the neck exposed it, then it's game over ! I use a magnet when doing this type of work to keep an eye on the depth. So basically what I'm saying in a round a bout way...don't expect to be able to go too thin . Keep in mind the neck will need to be refinished after, which will be the more expensive part of the job and if it's a valuable bass will most likely decrease the resale value unless the whole neck is stripped. Often an oil finish is used and the headstock and heel finish blended in as best as possible, which is considerably cheaper. Regarding a new custom neck, I offer those, but changing scale would be a bit of an issue as the bridge would need to be moved and doing this would throw off the location of the pickups a little, so it might not sound quite the same afterwards. Feel free to PM or email me if I can help in any way.

Where are you measuring to...the outer edge of the string or the center?

It may be possible to restore the damaged area. You could try lightly wetsanding the area and then buffing it back up to a gloss (or even just the buffing if it's minor). It would obviously depend on how deep the reaction has gone (pics would be good) for this to be effective. Do some reading up on the wetsanding and buffing process and see if you think it's a job you you'd like to have a go at. If that doesn't work or you burn through (try not to!) you should be able find a luthier to touch up just the effected area if necessary. It sounds like it must have been refinished in Nitro to have a reaction like that with the stand. This is a great benefit for you, as Nitro is quite easy to touch up. This would be much cheaper than a full respray even if it didn't come out 100% perfect (though it should be pretty good).

[quote name='Twincam' timestamp='1464357308' post='3058818'] Just to say I always run any left over rags under the tap before I safely dispose of them as I've seen a shed combust from left over rags. [/quote] Yep, that works. I leave mine in the log burner where it won't matter if they do go up...I've seen a few catch light in there before!

Do some research online, you should find plenty and it doesn't matter if it's not specifically guitar related. Here is a very basic outline: prep is key, make sure your neck is perfect before oiling and sanded to at least 320. For a natural feel I'd apply the oil heavily then leave 10 or so minutes while watching the neck for obvious dry spots where the oil gets absorbed, if you see any of these apply more oil to these spots. After 10-15 minutes rub off all the excess with a cloth and leave 6 hours (duration will depend on brand) before re-coating. As you want it to feel like natural wood, you probably won't need much more than 2-4 coats, but it depends on the wood, just stop when you're happy that you have built up enough and you have no dry spots. Wax is simply "wax on wax off", directions will be on the can, but make sure the oil has been dry for at least a few days before waxing. Oh and make sure you dispose of the oily rags safely....they can self combust if left crumpled up.

Danish oil, Liberon finishing oil, Tru oil, Tung oil....take your pick! I'd probably go for Danish or Tung if you want that natural feel. Danish will pop the grain a bit more as it's got Linseed in it. Tru oil will gloss up on you after a few coats and I personally think it's over rated, but a lot of people love it. You can put beeswax (I prefer renneaisance wax though) over the oil finish when dry. This offers a bit more protection and a nicer feel. Wax is not really durable enough to be a guitar finish by itself, so you'd be reapplying quite often if you just used wax, which wouldn't seal the wood particularly well either. It also wouldn't look very nice without the oil first, which brings out the grain in the wood. So go for an oil and wax finish, which is used on many basses to great effect.

It depends on the wood, I'm going to assume it's Maple. So yes, it does require a finish. It doesn't need to be lacquer though, a thin oil finish will feel quite natural and is very easy to apply.

[quote name='lefrash' timestamp='1464015711' post='3055761'] Cheers guys for the hints and tips. I never even thought about it possible falling off... so as suggested i will use heat for the majority of it but then maybe a mix of sanding and delicate heat round the edges. I'm also contemplating leaving the wood 'au naturel' or perhaps a clear laquer so refinishing 'shouldnt' be an issue I hope... In my head its going to look very cool!! . [/quote] Good luck if you decide to go ahead. One thing to keep in mind is that the paint could well be hiding some pretty unattractive wood, which might make a natural finish be a bad choice. I believe the aerodynes are basswood, which is a particularly boring wood to look at, it'll also likely be 3 or more pieces joined...not to mention its paint grade wood so could also have natural defects. It's a bit of a gamble what you're going to find under the paint! So have a backup colour in mind.

How did the washing up liquid effect the finish? Or did he just scratch it while scrubbing at it? Washing up liquid is safe for most finishes, the exception being shellac/french polish, which would be the water rather than the soap causing an issue. If it's just scratches, it should buff out with polishing compound. If you really need to find out which finish it is, you can find out with by doing the below. It's not really possible to tell which finish it is by simply looking at it unless there are some telltale signs (such as checking in Nitro). However you can test the finish pretty easily. This is done with a solvent on the most inconspicuous area you can find. Such an area may be a little difficult to find on an acoustic, if there is any overspray inside/around the sound hole, there would be a good place to try. As it's an acoustic guitar there are more possibilities than just Poly or Nitro, such as French Polish and Varnish, the solvents are: Nitro.....Acetone (nail varnish remover) or lacquer thinner. French Polish/Shellac.....Alcohol Varnish.....often Turpentine or White Spirit Poly......Doesn't really have one, so if all of the above do not have any kind of reaction, it's Poly. Remember a [b]very[/b] tiny amount on a [b]very[/b] inconspicuous area, the correct solvent will take effect instantaneously with even a drop. Use a cotton bud.

Nope it's a pretty big job replacing binding. It's standard practice to mask off binding from colour coats...and yes it's a pain!

Binding will melt if you get it hot enough. It would also be possible to melt the glue and it delaminate from the body. So I'd do the sides and around the edges of the body by just sanding and scraping. You can also use one of the attachments on the end of the heat gun to focus the heat, so you don't end up accidentally heating up the binding. Regarding resale, you might be surprised what people will buy. I'd look into moving it on as is before attempting a refin. The refin could actually devalue the bass more than the damage.

I'd be happy to help, send me a PM or email through the site if you'd like to talk in more detail. I do quite a few custom necks.

It'll be the string binding in the nut slot. It's too tight, so get a tech to file it.

How did you measure the scale length? I.e where was the saddle set and did you measure from the correct side of nut. A 34" scale E string will never be set at 34" and be in tune at the 12th fret. Additional distance is required for compensation. If you measured 34.5" with the saddle set all the way forward, then you're out of luck and will need to reposition.

It could be that either you've cooked the volume pot, or the first lug that gets grounded to the pot casing is not making contact anymore (via the lug itself or short wire). So check the lug first .

Get yourself a heat gun much easier than sanding. Just keep moving so you don't scorch the wood.

What Twincam said basically. White Spirit or lighter fluid will work and is safe for both Poly and Nitro, it'll also have the added benefit of removing any stubborn grime elsewhere on the bass. Don't use it on an oil/wax finish though!

The number refers to the radius of a fretboard, the higher the number the flatter the fingerboard so a 7.25" radius would be quite rounded and 20" would be very flat. A standard modern P basses has a 9.5" radius. Read this for more info on fingerboard radius http://www.ratcliffe.co.za/articles/radius.shtml. You can use either CA (superglue) or PVA to glue the frets. PVA will not actually stick to the metal particularly well, but it'll fill any small voids in the fret slot, which will in turn secure the fret tang. CA will actually glue metal to wood, but you do not want or need to be reliant on the glue holding the fret down. PVA is a lot easier to clean up! I would strongly recommend you buy and read Melvyn Hiscocks book "Make your own electric guitar" before progressing too much further. It's a great book and will help you no end . It mainly focuses on guitars, but the process is exactly the same for bass (just different measurements!).

Here goes: 1, Typically 1/4" (6.35 mm) or 6 mm will do 2, I use a router jig, but a radius block is the cheap way if you aren't setup. You can find radius blocks at any of the luthiers supplies sites, or Ebay. 3, Some people glue, some do not, it can add a bit of extra insurance to do so, but if everything is done correctly it's not strictly necessary. Keep in mind you'll have to deal with squeeze out if you do glue.

[quote name='Andyjr1515' timestamp='1461686134' post='3036765'] I think you're right about the back being Oak. The end grain that can now be seen on the edge of the section I've got off, looks just like Oak end grain.... Thanks for the tip-off [/quote] No problem, glad I stopped by and found the thread, it looks like it's going to be fun to watch . It definitely looks even more "oaky" in the latest pics. Those pale white markings I mentioned earlier are called Medullary Rays if we are going to be technical. I'd be tempted to rout the other half off as it was such a pain to remove! Then give it a new back with the grain running the right direction. But maybe that's part of its character!