Manton Customs

Thanks . Yes, please see our website (below) for the email address and more info.

It's a little steep yes. It's not really a one piece neck if it has a rosewood board and Maple neck, a one piece is when there is no separate fingerboard and the truss rod installed from the rear (which would cost a little more). So what he has been quoted for is the same as most other necks out there. A multi lam neck would/should still cost more than a one piece, so I'm not seeing the logic. Feel free to point your friend in our direction if he needs another quote (we do custom necks).

[color=#141823][font=Helvetica, Arial,]Onto grain filling. Here is the before shot, the body has been sanded to 320 grit and is ready for the filler. We have chosen to highlight the grain by using black grain filler. The basic process is to apply filler, scrape off with a squeeze then allow to dry for 24 hours before sanding away the excess.[/font][/color] [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/grainfillbefore.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/grainfillbefore.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [color=#141823][font=Helvetica, Arial,]Here is the body after grain filling and sanding. The neck gets the same treatment.[/font][/color] [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/grainfillafter.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/grainfillafter.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [color=#141823][font=Helvetica, Arial,]Now to give it some colour! Rather than dye the wood itself this time we are going to spray the translucent colour mixed with shellac. This is my preferred way of working when the guitar has had the grain filler treatment.[/font][/color] [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/front-2.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/front-2.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [color=#141823][font=Helvetica, Arial,]Here's a shot of the back.[/font][/color] [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/bodyback.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/bodyback.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [color=#141823][font=Helvetica, Arial,]...And the neck![/font][/color] [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/neck1.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/neck1.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [color=#141823][font=Helvetica, Arial,]A shot showing the colour a little better. The next step is adding the clear coat.[/font][/color] [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/neck2.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/neck2.jpg[/IMG][/URL] Getting there now! Thanks for checking out this build .

Carbon fibre, yes

Could be your third choice (thinned too much) though I doubt it unless you went mega skinny, how thin did you go? Most truss rods are pretty much the same, so I doubt it's to blame. Normally the most likely cause of an unstable neck is the wood itself and I'm not talking the species (Birdseye is fine) but more how it was dried and for how long. There is also such thing as crap wood which will never become stable!

Yes, the 30" will be quite a bit more comfortable for that stretch. Below is the distance between the 2nd to 5th fret on a 34" bass and for a 30". As you can see there is a 14.5 mm difference. While that doesn't sound huge and it isn't going to be the difference between not being able to reach a note ,it can be enough to make a big difference in comfort. 34" 4.82 (122.5 mm) 30" 4.252 (108 mm)

Thank you

First up we are routing the neck pocket. The template is attached with two screws which go into where the neck pickup will be. [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/neckrout1.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/neckrout1.jpg[/IMG][/URL] The router wont be able to get into the very corners of the pocket, so here I'm tidying/trimming them up with a few chisels. [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/neckchisel2.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/neckchisel2.jpg[/IMG][/URL] We have chosen ferrules rather than a plate to attach the neck, which gives a much nicer more modern look. Here they have been drilled for and are being test fitted [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/neckferrule4.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/neckferrule4.jpg[/IMG][/URL] And the test fit....like a glove! Now it's time to rout for the pickups. [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/testfit3.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/testfit3.jpg[/IMG][/URL] Drilling away the waste in the neck pickup cavity before moving on to routing. It looks a little messy at this point, but it's all going to be routed away very shortly! [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/neckpickup5.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/neckpickup5.jpg[/IMG][/URL] Here I'm routing for the bridge pickup, ignore all the unnecessary lines (such as the bridge outline), they are from previous uses. Notice how I attach the template with the bridge screws, this ensures the rout is in the right place and at the right angle. It also prevents it moving! [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/bridgepickup6.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/bridgepickup6.jpg[/IMG][/URL] This is the control cavity template. I'm drilling away the waste in the control cavity with Forstners bits before routing. [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/cavity7.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/cavity7.jpg[/IMG][/URL] All routs completed, next up is the roundover. [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/beforeroundover8.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/beforeroundover8.jpg[/IMG][/URL] Here is the roughed out roundover. We have gone for a much more rounded edge than that of a Tele to again give a more modern, flowing look. [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/roundover10.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/roundover10.jpg[/IMG][/URL] Drilling the jack with a 20 mm Forstner bit. It's important this is done after the roundover! Otherwise your roundover bit will "fall" into this hole when routing and make a huge mess! [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/Jackdrilling9.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/Jackdrilling9.jpg[/IMG][/URL] And here we are, the nearly finished body! All that remains to do is to sand and apply dye, grain filler and finish. [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/afterroundover11.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/afterroundover11.jpg[/IMG][/URL] That's all for now, thank you for checking out this build

Thanks, I agree 100%, sometimes subtlety can be more fitting than flash, the added bonus of knowing the wood was all sourced (reasonably) locally is also a nice feeling .

[quote name='6v6' timestamp='1405430629' post='2501818'] Wow luthiers must be cheap in France, that's how much I'd expect to pay for a setup! Planing off the old 'board without ruining the neck, and accurately installing and finishing the new one is a fair bit of work IMO, I'd be surprised if you got much change from £200 in the UK. Pulling the frets and installing some wood strips to match the fretboard would be most likely a fair bit cheaper. [/quote] I thought that too! I'm guessing he meant for the fingerboard blank? £30 to £60 sounds about right for the blank depending on species, though normally a bit cheaper. And yes, the fingerboard would be removed with heat/steam.

Thank you, getting close (ish!) now!

[color=#333333][font=Helvetica, Arial,]Onto carving the neck profile, the most enjoyable part of the whole build! After deciding on a neck profile shape we draw it up. This drawing gives us a series of facets which need to be carved from the currently square neck. Here you can see these facets have been drawn on to the neck.[/font][/color] [url="http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/facets.jpg.html"][/url] [color=#333333][font=Helvetica, Arial,]These primary facets are removed with the drawknife, I'm using this awesome tool more and more these days.,..it can take off large amounts of wood and do fine shaving like you see here.[/font][/color] [url="http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/drawknife.jpg.html"][/url] [color=#333333][font=Helvetica, Arial,]Some of the tools used for the carving: the drawknife and a Micro Plane rasp (used to get into smaller areas). Not in the picture is a sander and lots of paper, plus chisels for carving the heel and headstock transitions.[/font][/color] [url="http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/neckcarving.jpg.html"][/url] [color=#333333][font=Helvetica, Arial,]Here is the rough carved neck. After all the carving it has revealed a rather attractive neck![/font][/color] [url="http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/carved.jpg.html"][/url] [color=#333333][font=Helvetica, Arial,]Onto fretwork. The board has been carefully masked off before moving onto leveling, beveling and crowning. The frets went in almost completely level, so there it wasn't a lot of material to remove during leveling.[/font][/color] [url="http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/fretwork.jpg.html"][/url] [color=#333333][font=Helvetica, Arial,]Here's the (almost) finished frets which have been carefully shaped/beveled to give a nice comfy feel at the edges. All that remains for them is a fine polish. Also notice the side position dots have been fitted. Please excuse the wood dust all over the fingerboard![/font][/color] [url="http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/fretendsandsidedots.jpg.html"][/url] [color=#333333][font=Helvetica, Arial,]Next it was fine sanded to 320 grit, I would have gone higher if it were to get a natural finish, but polished wood does not take dye as well. This is a shot of the neck being wet back to raise the grain during the sanding process.[/font][/color] [url="http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/overviewedited.jpg.html"][/url] [color=#333333][font=Helvetica, Arial,]Test fitting the tuners to drill the small mounting screw holes.[/font][/color] [url="http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/tuners.jpg.html"][/url] [color=#333333][font=Helvetica, Arial,]That's the neck done minus finishing and dyeing. Onto the body now![/font][/color] [url="http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/overview1edited-1.jpg.html"][/url] Thanks for checking out this build .

[quote name='kodiakblair' timestamp='1405055049' post='2498299'] Thanks I castle. A fella over on TB was saying his fretless with black beauties was "dull" and he wanted to add a steel plate. Have no idea if it would work but I know a guy used an aluminium fingerboard ,he swore by it. Can't really see what he wants to achieve? He's talking about keeping the "clang" but having more "clatch"? [/quote] He's probably after a different slap sound...Either that or he is mistaken and thinks it will alter the overall tone (assuming he meant just a plate at the last fret).

Time to start shaping the headstock/fingerboard transition. Here I'm about a quarter of the way through and just roughing it out with a chisel. [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/slopechisel.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/slopechisel.jpg[/IMG][/URL] Here is the slope nearly finished... it just needs some sanding. [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/slopedone-1.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/slopedone-1.jpg[/IMG][/URL] Installing frets will be the next job but first we need to polish up the Ebony to a mirror. It's quite difficult to photo gloss but you can see the tree reflecting off the board. It was sanded to 600 before moving onto Micro Mesh up to 12000 grit. [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/polish.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/polish.jpg[/IMG][/URL] I have also rolled the edges of the fretboard slightly to give a more comfortable feel. [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/rollededge.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/rollededge.jpg[/IMG][/URL] Then the frets go in! The EVO gold wire looks quite striking against the black Ebony! Normally I'd have to give the fret wire a radius first with my fret bender, but the EVO wire came pre bent. I use a non damaging hammer to install them. [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/fretsin.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/fretsin.jpg[/IMG][/URL] Onto the neck taper, or lack of in this case...it has been commissioned with no taper, so the thickness at the first fret will be the same as the thickness at the 17th. This is to recreate a Strat neck he once had and loved the feel of. Even though it's not tapered, it still needed taking down to the correct thickness, this was done once again with the Safe T Planer. [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/necktaper.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/necktaper.jpg[/IMG][/URL] That's all for now, thank you for checking out this build

[quote name='visog' timestamp='1404511572' post='2493459'] I'd be cautious about a maple board... don't take the strings as well as ebony or rosewood. Only fretless players I've seen go maple are Sting and Christian McBride - both of whom carry it off well though... [/quote] True, I would epoxy the fingerboard of a Maple fretless if it's ever likely to come into contact with roundwound strings.

Check Ebay and other websites for a pre made one, the action will not be anywhere near good enough off the shelf, but you can then take it to your local tech/luthier and ask him to cut the slots to the right depth for you. This should be quite cheap....somewhere around £10-£20 for the luthier and £10 or so for the pre-made nut. Obviously it goes without saying to check the measurements of the one you buy against yours existing nut!

Thanks, and I love visiting Aber in the Summer .

Continuing on with the neck, I drill the tuners. A simple job done with a 10 mm Brad point bit and careful measurements. [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/1.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/1.jpg[/IMG][/URL] Next the fingerboard gets its radius, here is the neck in the radius jig. The router runs on rails above in a cradle and the rails rest on the two semi circular end pieces. We are going for a 16" radius here. You may also notice I have roughly thinned the headstock to the correct thickness, I did this using the Safe T Planer. [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/2.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/2.jpg[/IMG][/URL] Onto some body work. The body blank unfortunately came with some nasty tearout from where the mill planed it, so my first job to the blank was to plane these out. The one piece blank is too wide for the planer we have, so we did it the old fashioned way with a hand plane! Which was no bid deal and didn't take long. [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/3.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/3.jpg[/IMG][/URL] Here's the body with templates attached. I missed a couple of pictures here, prior to this the waste was sawn away on the bandsaw and then routed flush to the template. You can see I attach the template with two screws, one is in the neck pocket so will be routed away and the other under the bridge which will be utilised for the start of the ground wire hole. I also use double sided tape but the screws ensure it stays in place. [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/4.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/4.jpg[/IMG][/URL] Here the template has been removed leaving nice clean edges. [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/5.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/5.jpg[/IMG][/URL] A shot of the back. We are further advanced than the progress shown here, so more updates coming soon! [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/6.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/6.jpg[/IMG][/URL] Thank you for checking out this build .

Thank you both. For the orange we are going for something like the colour of this poppy!...With contrasting black grain fill.

We'll start work on the neck first. The first job is to rout for the truss rod, you can see the very simple jig I use for this in this picture. It is attached to the blank with double sided tape and a router bushing is used to rout the rod in multiple passes. [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/IMG_3884.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/IMG_3884.jpg[/IMG][/URL] Next we prepare for cutting out the outline of the neck. In this picture the templates are attached to the blank, the next step will be to rough cut on the bandsaw to within 2mm or less to the template. [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/IMG_3885.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/IMG_3885.jpg[/IMG][/URL] After rough cutting on the bandsaw, we use the router to trim the neck to the template. This has been completed here. [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/IMG_3886.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/IMG_3886.jpg[/IMG][/URL] Next is time to place the russ rod into the neck and glue the fingerboard to the neck. It is extremely important both neck and fingerboard are perfectly flat to get a good joint. You'll notice I use a 2 X 4" to distribute the clamping pressure evenly. Before this I have inserted a couple of brass tacks through two of the fret slots to keep the board from slipping ...And yes, I got my thumb over the camera lens *facepalm*. [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/IMG_3898.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/IMG_3898.jpg[/IMG][/URL] Out of the clamps before trimming. Notice the brass tacks mentioned earlier. These are a real life saver, ensuring the board does not move while the clamps are tightened. [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/IMG_3899.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/IMG_3899.jpg[/IMG][/URL] Next we cut the board (again to around 2 mm) from the neck with the bandsaw and follow up with the router using a bottom bearing flush cutting bit. Its important not to leave too much material for the router to remove or you'll get tear out so I always get as close as is safe with the saw. [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/IMG_3902.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/IMG_3902.jpg[/IMG][/URL] A shot of the now tapered fingerboard with an air tight glue joint. Stay tuned for more neck work! [URL=http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/IMG_3903.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u425/Manton-Customs/IMG_3903.jpg[/IMG][/URL] Thank you for checking out this build

Its a non bass build but thought I'd share this commission here. We already had the Echo bass in the range before which was very much in the style of a Tele but with some unique features (30" bass with MM pickup). However with this guitar we have slightly revised the body shape to give a more sophisticated curvy look, a long with a more dynamic headstock, though it is still very much Telecaster inspired. Here are the specs. 1 Piece Ash Body Quarter Sawn Ash Neck AAA Grade Ebony Fingerboard With 24 Frets Gotoh Tuners Wilkinson Compensated Bridge Kent Armstrong Pickups Brass Nut EVO gold Fret Wire Finish: Trans Orange With Black Grain Fill As you may be able to tell, the theme will be black and orange which is why we are going for the Wilkinson bridge, brass nut and EVO fretwire to compliment the Ebony fingerboard. Work has begun already, so here we go! Ok, to get the ball rolling we have a shot of the 1 piece body blank and some of the parts: the Wilkinson bridge Kent Armstrong pickups and the Gotoh control plate. Apologies for continuing to get my feet in the pictures! [url="http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/IMG_3877.jpg.html"][/url] Here is the quarter sawn neck blank and double action truss rod. Ignore the curly grain and knots to the edges, this will be cut away leaving a stable neck. [url="http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/IMG_3879.jpg.html"][/url] The body template, as you can see we have gone for a rounded bottom as opposed to the standard flat Tele's. We have also reduced the waist of the guitar to give a more flowing shape...and the horn is a little curvier too! [url="http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/IMG_3880.jpg.html"][/url] Here is the revised headstock shape, just a little sharper than the standard offering. [url="http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/IMG_3881.jpg.html"][/url] And all the templates together. [url="http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/IMG_3882.jpg.html"][/url] The AAA grade Ebony fingerboard with 24 frets slots already cut. [url="http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/Manton-Customs/media/IMG_3883.jpg.html"][/url]

[quote name='aende' timestamp='1402478259' post='2473865'] Aha! Could you put graphite rods in the old neck? [/quote] Yes, it could be done but I would probably advise against it, as fingerboard removal is something you don't really want to do unless you have to. It would take a substantial amount of work and a little bit of risk as sometimes the fingerboard can react badly to the heat and bending used to remove it and warp. Are you considering the graphite rods because you are having stability issues? We could have a lot of fun if you went the new neck route, we could create a more exotic attractive neck than the original and with your choice of woods and inlay if required. [quote name='fretmeister' timestamp='1402479440' post='2473884'] This interests me too - I have an old bass that sound amazing but the neck is just a bit too chunky. How much wood can be safely taken off? How can you tell how deep the truss rod channel is so you don't sand through the back? (Excuse my ignorance - I don't even trust myself to do pickup unstallations!) [/quote] It's a good question and the only real safe way of doing it is removing wood from the shoulders/profile of the neck rather than actually reducing the thickness in the middle to any large degree. This will still make the neck feel a lot slimmer as its often the profile of the neck which makes it feel chunky rather than the actual front to back thickness. The only really accurate way of knowing exactly where the truss rod is to have an X ray done, which I have seen done before.

We could make you neck or mod your existing one . Check out the website if interested.

I would go for a CTS (250k) pot, I would also change all pots while you're at it so they match. For the jack: Switchcraft. These pots and jacks are pretty much the standard for decent basses. If you need a jack plate I like the Gotoh ones, but that's just personal preference.

You'll be better off with aluminum rather than steel as you will be able to work it much easier and its plenty hard enough. Copying a nut shouldn't make it much easier other than the spacing of the strings, you'll need to buy or make a nut spacing rule for this if you don't have one to copy. The depth of the nut slots do not need to be copied and you'd be better off starting from scratch and filing them until you have the appropriate amount of relief (extra height), this varies from player to player but it's just a fraction more than the first fret (which can be measured with feeler gauges). File the slots with the strings on and gradually bring the depth of the slots down.