LowMoFo

Hi guys, Thanks Bass Apprentice, I'll investigate Dropbox v soon, think I'm gonna need to at this rate. In the meantime, I'm almost done with the staining, and am approaching the sealer & grain filler quandry. Once I've finished staining, I don't want to lift the grain any further, so (I think) I don't want to use a sanding sealer. I want to avoid nitrocellulose entirely if I can, much preferring what I've read about Poly finishes in comparison. So I need to find a sealer which will work with a) bursting down to V dark brown, and poly lacquers, clear or tinted. I found a Rustoleum poly sealer (spray) online, would that work?

I'd love to, but I've reached the max attachment for this topic. Have removed a few but hasn't made any difference.

Hi Norris, The board is in the way by roughly 3mm, excluding the jack pins, which can be bent aside a little for clearance. There's about 1.5mm of board before I hit tracks. Same on both sides so rotating it won't make a difference. I checked the socket with a jack plug last night, there's about 6-7mm of socket after the plug end, so may be able to remove 3-4mm from the end & refit the pins, after trimming & re-shaping them.

Hey guys, Thanks heaps for all the suggestions & tips, you've given me plenty to think about. I'd considered an oval jack plate, but not sure if I can bend it in two directions - the edge of the bass is curved as opposed to flat. I've heard that barrel-jacks are pretty much the work of Satan anyway, so will definitely avoid these in the future. Samhay, in all of this, I hadn't considered the jack itself. Top man! Neither had I thought of using a dowel. Jabba, if I do drill the hole out, and I might, you have already saved me from potential doom. You're a star! Yep, a stereo socket is exactly what I need, hadn't thought of that either! Andy saves me from further brain-ache again! The reason I went for this pre-amp is that it's neat, built for tight spaces, and it's idiot-proof, even for me. So Norris, as terrifying as your suggestion is (to me), it's started some cogs turning already. Gentlemen, thank you for your time and your wisdom, I salute you all! Again!

Hi Norris, I guess I should have uploaded a pic in the first place. The jack port is pre-drilled unfortunately, hopefully this (dodgy, sorry) pic will illustrate the problem.[attachment=240992:IMG_2076.jpg]

Thanks guys, Have hit a snag, and I'm hoping you guys can help. I've already posted this in Repairs & Technical, but thought I'd post it here too, so apologies for any unnecessary repetition. Probably a daft question, but here goes. Does anyone know of anyone who supplies short-threaded barrel-jacks? Or even some genius who can shorten one by about 4mm?? I've bought a pcb-mounted pre-amp system, which fits into the cavity & pot holes perfectly, except that the barrel-jack supplied makes contact with the edge of the board. The threaded cylinder is approx 34mm long. I found a 'short-threaded' jack online at Guitar Mania last night, but that cylinder is 33mm long. Not quite as short as I'd hoped... Unfortunately, there is almost no space to dremel some clearance on the edge of the board, which means I have to either find a shorter barrel-jack, or shorten the existing one. If that option is a non-starter, I have to find a pre-amp & pots on a loom, and have a redundant pre-amp board here. I thought about a jack plate on the outside to act as a spacer, but it would need to be bulky, and would just make the jack mount ugly. Praying that someone among all you legends can come up with an idea or two.

Hi there, This is probably a daft question, but here goes. Does anyone know of anyone who supplies short-threaded barrel-jacks? Or even some genius who can shorten one by about 4mm?? I'm building a kit bass, and have bought a pcb-mounted pre-amp system, which fits into the cavity & pot holes perfectly, except that the barrel-jack supplied makes contact with the edge of the board. The threaded cylinder is approx 34mm long. I found a 'short-threaded' jack online at Guitar Mania last night, but that cylinder is 33mm long. Not quite as short as I'd hoped... Unfortunately, there is almost no space to dremel some clearance on the edge of the board, which means I have to either find a shorter barrel-jack, or shorten the existing one. If that option is a non-starter, I have to find a pre-amp & pots on a loom, and have a redundant pre-amp board here. I thought about a jack plate on the outside to act as a spacer, but it would need to be bulky, and would just make the jack mount ugly. Praying that someone among all you legends can come up with an idea or two.

Thanks guys! Yeah, I have to agree, I'm very impressed with the way the wood has responded to the staining, so much so that I'm now wondering whether I should stick with the original idea to burst it, or whether to stick with stain, seal, clear-coat. Andy, thanks loads for your recommendation of Chestnut stains, they're really effective, and really easy for a novice to use! Sir, you're a star! Think I might make use of this glorious afternoon & break out some mid-oak next...

Hi all, Thought I'd update this post with a few pics: Re-shaping the body to make the curves smoother [attachment=240582:IMG_2064 copy.jpg] I intend to re-shape the heel of the neck so it sits into the joint a little more smoothly too. [attachment=240584:IMG_2063 copy.jpg] Aaaaannnd so to colour... [attachment=240585:IMG_0347 copy.jpg] Three coats of Red Mahogany, one coat of Golden Oak. 400grit Aluminium Oxide, 1 coat of English Walnut. So far... [attachment=240586:IMG_0348 copy.jpg] REALLY starting to enjoy this! Cheers!

Hi guys, thanks for the tips. To be honest, I thought aluminium oxide [i]was[/i] wet & dry. Was only going to use it dry anyway, kinda wanting the only 'water' hitting it to be the staining. But I'm glad i asked now, thanks guys. Have ordered the stain set recommended by Andy, now on a mission for Silverline. Thanks again, all!

Hey guys, I've watched a few Crimson Guitars vids on YouTube, very interesting, although I hadn't yet stumbled across this particular series, so thanks very much! I've found a few spots on it where curves need a little smoothing here and there (in addition to wanting to 'teardrop' the plectrum-profiled horns), and I must confess to spending quite some time 'molesting' the body, eyes shut, neck in place & body only. Gotta say I can kinda feel where it feels right, and where I want to tweak. So I was looking at wet&dry earlier, and am wondering about grades. What do you guys recommend? Kinda thinking 320, 600 & 1200? Gents, thanks for the advice, incl regarding the gimmick tail-off!

Hi guys, Thanks loads for the replies. The Greek: Yes I intend to do some reshaping, definitely. The horns, for example, need more contouring. If one were to cut the tips of the horns off, the resulting cross-section would look triangular, like a plectrum. I'm thinking of something more 'teardroppy' in the cut-outs. The back of the body has a nice smooth curve to it already, but I do intend to slope a 'belly pocket' into it. As for the horns, I hadn't considered shortening the lower one, but I do like the rake you have suggested on your diagram. You now have my grey cells bubbling away... Andy: Wasn't even aware that these sample sets existed. Now in my Ebay basket, so thanks loads for that, as well as the procedure tips. Think I'm also gonna hunt down some scrap Ash upon which to make multiple mistakes... Gentlemen, thank you for taking the time to reply, 'tis very, VERY much appreciated.

Hi Grangur, I found the pickups in question, they were indeed Bartolinis, but have now been discontinued. As have their replacements. *Seethe* The hunt continues...

Hi all, Much like many other BCers, I have for some time been dreaming of my very own, unique, hand built basses. You know the drill, beautifully figured woods, stunningly stained, good hardware, all of which combine to produce a tonal range to die for, but it all looks too damn gorgeous to even dare taking fingertips to it. Well I'm about a lifetime away from being able to do that, so decided to start cheap, meaning that as & when I mess up, it won't break the bank, just my will to live. Finding what I'm after didn't take too long: Every bass kit supplier on the planet seems VERY insistent that buyers WILL want a P or J bass. Not true. So finding someone who supplies different shaped bodies etc became fairly simple: It appears there's only one. kitbuiltguitars.co.uk A few (v helpful) chats with Mike @ KBG later, and I ordered this: [attachment=239383:IMG_0340.JPG] I've ordered an Artec pre-amp unit to replace the kit's passive wiring, and will upgrade hardware as I go along. All good. But the bit that slows me down is the body. Or rather, how to colour it. I've been thinking about bursting the body, going from a red/brown centre (think Ibanez's CNB finish), out to either a VERY dark brown or black edge. The joins in the three-piece body are off-centre (see pic), so I'm thinking the back should be solid brown/black. [attachment=239385:IMG_0341.JPG] [attachment=239386:IMG_0344.JPG] However. Being the least experienced builder on the planet, I thought it would be prudent to seek suggestions and advice from those who know FAR more than I do. I also want to darken the fingerboard, but don't want to 'ebonise' it. All thoughts, tips, warnings etc are more welcome than you could possibly imagine. S

Hi, they're listed on the spec as 'Dynamix H' pups, passive, and the EQ is listed as 'PHAT II EQ'. That lot, combined with a set of Ernie Ball Cobalts, produce a phenomenally lively sound. As for whether they are Ibby-made or not, I have no idea, as they have no branding whatsoever.

Hi all, I'm new to this site, so humble apologies and please excuse if I'm about to start a not-so 'new' topic... I'm thinking more and more about buying a kit guitar. Ultimately, I want to build my own guitar from scratch (through-neck, exotic woods, you know the dream!) so figured it would be prudent to start learning (& making mistakes) on cheapies. Have found a company which will supply the type of guitar I want (5-string fretless) with the body style I like (SR based), at not too cheap a price. I know, it's a kit, so it's not gonna be that good. It's one to make mistakes on. But what if it sounds ok? I'm thinking that if the wood sounds ok, ditch the kit pups & spaghetti for something... Ibanezzy? So here I am hunting down pre-amp kits to fit control cavities without additional routing & drilling. Suggestions please...! ((Gotta say at this point, I have a 5-string fretted Ibby, and I absolutely adore the sound from the pups & spag, so being able to replicate this, or provide an equally eargasmic alternative would be awesome.))