mybass

I use tool bags for cables etc and another for a PA mixer amp. One is made by JCB and the bigger one by Makita and it’s a sky blue colour which is great for finding it on dark stages or at night! Ebay, about £17 for the big gblue.

Leave it as is until you’ve tried the new strings on it...as mentioned by Johnny Wishbone you may not need to adjust at all as the truss rod may be able to cope with the ‘average’ of gauages around E string 95 to 105. Once the strings are on you could lay a straight edge metal rule ( in good condition!) along the frets to see if string clearance is too much or not. (It might also mean that the nut grooves for the E and A strings could very possibly need a very slight widening to allow the strings to sit flush in their seating. If they are sitting slightly proud your action could be affected).

I have another idea about tinnitus in that as our ears are very near the jaw joints and muscles, there may well be some distress to the ears caused by jaw action, teeth problems or grinding in the night or anything to do with this 'area'.

Lovely looking and made bass. May I ask, did the luthier describe it as AAAAAAAA grade wood?

....check the walls are strong and thick enough to take the weight (and screws) as one of my hangers has slightly collapsed holes in the partition wall.

There are U.K. dealers selling relatively cheap bows online, or you can get them through Ebay from China. However I tried the China route and the bow was already bent on arrival. I did get my money back but I had to send the frog end only back to the dealer.! You may be able to hire a French and German bow from a bass shop but seeing where you are located, that may be difficult. Are there any orchestras you can contact to see if any bassist can help, with lessons or hands on advice? I’ve had a French bow for years and now believe I should try a German one. I seem to have problems holding the French bow so one day I might try a cheap German bow, maybe a cheap graphite type one. Good luck.

Yes Lownote, I’ve read the same alert about oils. I usually leave my oily Tru oil rag on the garage concrete floor to dry out before chucking.

For some reason I prefer the Tru Oil purchased from David Dykes. David first told me about it via an acoustic guitar builder near Petersfield described how he used micro mesh first to polish the wood and then Tru oil. Whether this builder made his own formula or not I am not sure about. One batch or Birchwood Casey I tried really did smell of 'industrial' oil but Dykes doesn't appear to have any real after odour.

I think its import duty plus the VAT on that for everything you've paid for regarding the bass, as in the bass cost and courier fees. (I think there is a Basschatter who is quite knowledgeable about this subject).

Can you put a pic up ? I'm sure some tech minds will see any problem straight away.

I think they do arrange that from Japan. Guitar Den imports them to the U.K. but in what quantity I’m not sure. I think if a particular Japanese made bass is needed it has to be ordered due to them not being mass produced in Japan anyway, all-hand done.

I posted up last week about a 33” scale Woodline Bacchus I looked at via Joe at ‘The Guitar Den’ near Petersfield. Very well made and finished. This line is constructed in the Philippines under Bacchus admin and frankly for £650 with a soft case, not too shabby at all. Looking at Bacchus basses on EBay will show a huge variety of models but all overseas sales, mainly Japan.

I found the bridge a bit fiddly to set up but it is stable and the 4 stringer I own has been a main recording bass for many years due to the great signal and choice of sounds off the passive circuit. I think Bill Lawrence designed it? I’m pretty sure the pups are Bill Lawrence ones. I did have a Shoreline Gold 5 string but just found the neck too hefty for my hands. Silverfoxnik took that one off me.

Tone control pulls up too.

Go and buy a (metal) wood workers scraper from a local or high street diy store to take off the worst....don’t dig it into the finish, just pass it along and scrape off a little with each pass. Then sand down, then you could use micro mesh ( Ebay ) to polish it to a real smooth finish. Now use your oil, danish oil or Tru oil (from Luthier Supplies aka David Dyke in Sussex) leaving on the first good coat for a minute or three and wipe back any surplus and let it dry off. You can do a couple of coats.

I'm wondering about the 'factory fitted cardboard'? Can't see any factory made instrument having that in place from new. Sounds like someones had a shot at a shim already. I'm thinking that you put a full length 'shim' of cardboard up to 2 to 3mm thickness in the whole neck length slot BEFORE trying anything else, see what thickness works to get those saddles higher and more effective before buying some veneer to make a shim.

I'm not sure ped, all I found was if the bridge pup was only used then pulling the tone pot cancelled the volume entirely. Using only the neck pup with the tone pot pulled up boosted that pup. I thought it kind of a strange set up. I just found this on VSN Guitars site so your thoughts were correct. "The push-pull tone pot works as a 'Turbo Switch' function. When pulled up, the 2 pickups are then connected in series and will produce a more powerful sound. WL-001 inherits the craftsmanship philosophy and high quality standards of the original Woodline, as well as its appearance. Nothing is more important than precise handcrafting and great attention to detail when making an instrument with ideal tone."

If any one is interested in Bacchus WL-433....33" scale as pictured. I dropped down to 'The Guitar Den' run by Joe near Petersfield to check out this one. Very nice bass, well put together. Great wood work, frets, finish, sound, the lot. The tone pot pulls up to boost the neck pup, ( I think it cancels the bridge one). Not Gotoh parts I'm told but still Impressive for a 33" scale and the string tension felt fine. Made in Bacchus's Philippines shop under strict control. I read somewhere that Bacchus basses are all hand made. I should add it was played straight out of the box and did play very well, slightly low action so plenty to play with. Picture shows the same model/colour/maple board.

I would try a shim first before radically altering with a file! I always think there is a better string tension if the bridge saddles are higher rather than flat to surface and I’m sure you will benefit from the feel too. So filing the saddle may leave the saddle still quite flat and you don’t want to file the saddle away too much? Maybe put a narrow width shim wood under the top end of the neck slot. ( Old story....years ago we used to put an ice cream stick ‘shim’ in Fender bass slots). There are full size shims made by Stewmac (USA), some argue too costly or not necessary against a simple narrow width shim just across the top end etc but thats down to how you feel about it.

If its a bolt on neck, maybe take the neck off....if you don't have a dedicated case for the bass then the package will be smaller and far less likely to be prone damage.