Rexel Matador

That would actually be the perfect name for my band if it weren't a tad unwieldy.

Sometimes a band might not seem perfect at first, but things get ironed out with a little perseverance. I joined a covers band and was very unsure about it, but once the second guitarist got kicked out due to his negative attitude and generally not being a great fit, we started to gel as a three piece. We're not perfect but audiences seem to like us and the gigs are steady. I'm taking a break now as there's a baby on the way, and they're adamant they want me back when I'm ready - we'll see. Either way, it's restored my faith a bit, both in what's out there and my own judgement.

Branding on the body.

I think I once recorded there too!

1981 Tokai Hard Puncher

Definitely more of an Ox than an Este here. Except for the regular winces when I hit a bum note.

It's been a while, but I have made a bit of progress. The neck is profiled, the fingerboard is attached and the wings are currently being glued on. I've gone for a neck break angle this time. The last one had no angle, just a step down to accommodate the bridge height, if that make sense. I glued on one wing then made a jig to match the angle with the second one. I was going to do a walnut headstock veneer to match the wings, but I forgot to cut one from the body stock and the bits of walnut veneer I had didn't match. So I'm going to leave it as it is. I think it'll look quite nice with the laminates on display.

Ok, watching that and consequently hearing it for a second time, I didn't find the song quite so bad... but I think that's only because it was relative to how utterly terrible the video is. What were they thinking?

Love Ron. Jim Hall's Concierto is one of my favourite jazz albums, thanks in no small part to his playing - so smooth.

Really weak. Almost as bad as Imagine. I have a lot of time for the Beatles, in general. Though living in Liverpool for the last 5 years and being beaten over the head with them daily may have dampened that a bit!

I'm in a 3-piece blues/classic rock covers band (what can I say, we saw a gap in the market 🤣) that mostly plays around the North-West of England. We usually get around £250 for two 45 minute sets. Some places are strict about the time so they get exactly that. If they're not bothered we'll play longer if we feel like it. We've all got day jobs so the cash is just split between us for a bit of extra pocket money. I wouldn't do it for free though, on principle. I've done my time playing original music to empty rooms and a gig is a fair bit of work when you factor in rehearsal, setting up, etc.

AC/DC's ode to the A63 - Highway to Hull

Not a particularly exciting update but this is where I'm up to: the neck blank is being glued up and the fingerboard is shaped (but not radiused). Still looking a bit rough as you can see, but it's going to look very pretty once it's finished, I can tell. I'm going to glue it on before radiusing and use it as a template to get the shape of the neck below it. I might need to do a slight neck angle on this one. Last time it was all flat and the body was just a bit lower than the neck, but there are no frets this time, so it would need to be an even bigger step. I should be able to angle the body section and attach the wings accordingly, but it is messing mith my head a bit!

No solutions from me I'm afraid but I'm curious - why do Mustangs have worse neck-dive than Precisions? They both seem to have the upper horn strap button roughly in line with the 12th fret and you would think that the shorter neck gave it less torque. Is it because the body is lighter providing less counter-weight?

I gigged one once when the one bass I'd brought with me didn't make any sound when I plugged in. In a ridiculous stroke of luck the singer just happened to have it in his van. It sounded absolutely fine and could have been a perfectly nice bass with a proper set up. Nice shoreline gold-ish finish too, which you don't often see. Was a while ago though so I have no idea if they still do that colour!

I've had a few periods like this over the years, but it always creeps back in. In the last few years I've discovered a passion for building basses and playing them is now firmly in second place. I'm in a gigging covers band at the moment, but if I wasn't I could see myself going ages without actually playing a bass, while still being fascinated by the instruments themselves - so the scrolling through bass websites, I totally understand!

You're feeling down and you like a bit of Tom Waits? I think I have just the thing...

Yeah , it might well be a viable solution. I do like a string through.

I'd read that that's unadvisable when using flats. Is it different for tapewounds?

It's all been said already but let me add to it - absolutely beautiful piece of work!

I wish I had more to tell you, but I haven't had much free time. Here are some pieces of wood. The slab of walnut on the left will become the wings. One of those pieces of maple carefully resawn in half and planed might just suffice for the two outer laminates, but I'll probably end up using both to be safe, as I don't know how much I'll lose in getting them ready for gluing up. The thinner pieces I cut off can be laminates in a future neck. There's going to be some kind of arrangement of maple and walnut veneer in between as well. I was going to split the purpleheart into two thinner stripes, but I quite like the look of it running down the middle. I think it'll be ok, grain-wise. Purpleheart goes a horrible colour when freshly planed, I found out today. Apparently it comes back over time. And the ebony board came with a big crack in it (bottom left), so I've asked for a replacement. That said, I'm pretty sure I can just about work around it. PS, sadly, that's not flame on the maple, just rough saw marks! I've started the sawing and planing and the next time I get a couple of hours of garage time, hopefully the neck blank can be glued up. Still buzzing (ironically) about not having to do frets this time. It's going to be the smoothest shiniest ebony fingerboard ever. I'm thinking of trying tapewound strings, just out of curiosity. I really wanted gold ones (flatwound or tapewound, purely for aesthetic reasons), but I can't find them in medium scale. And it would be ridiculous to fundamentally alter the design and playability of the bass just to accommodate strings chosen purely for their colour, right? In any case, black tapewounds will look (and hopefully sound) pretty cool. Sometimes I worry my build diaries are too much diary, not enough build!

Interesting! I was just trying to decide what value tone cap to put in the bass I'm building. It never occurred to me I could have them all!

Before I got into building basses from scratch I did a bit of modding. I defretted my old Ibanez SR300 just for the hell of it - turned out pretty well. I don't have it anymore but the fretless itch has returned of late... Also early in my bass journey I got an absolute gem of a MIM Fender P bass in Olympic white. Then decided I needed a Squier Matt Freeman in black as a backup. I bought a Seymour Duncan QP and an EMG GZR, tried both in both basses and ended up having to admit that the stock pickups were absolutely fine. The Fender in particular - that bog standard stock P pickup that came with it is one of the best I've ever heard. After that I decided, how hard can refinishing be? The Squier body was a write off, so the neck is now on a cheap and super light pawlonia body, which is great for long gigs. The fender is now surf green with a mint pickguard and white pickup cover - I love it, but it's way too heavy for me these days.

They just need a bit of discipline, they'll figure it out...

Sounds like the 12th fret might be a little too high. You'll want to check to see if it's just that fret or if the whole lot could do with being levelled. It's a job for a professional really unless you want to invest in a few specialist tools and a lot of practice!