Silky999

We use a Starling account for the band. It really is only 10 mins to set one up

Yes it is.

Well, I bit the bullet and dipped my toe in the water of nitro spraying a body and headstock front. Previously I had only used oil finishes and wipe on polyurethane. I must admit it has been a very steep learning curve and introduced me to the world of grain fillers and sanding sealers. I used a Okoume JB body from China that was already semi-finished so was routed and sanded to an extent. I had not really heard of Okoume but I believe it is from the same family as Mahogany and is being used more often for guitar and bass builds. The neck is from China. I can honestly say the Chinese stuff is really top notch in respect of the quality and finish. The biggest issue, as I used rattle cans and sprayed in the back garden, was dealing with little pieces of crap been blown onto the finish when wet due to not having anywhere inside suitable to spray. I used Northwest Guitars paint and gloss lacquer as well as gloss lacquer from Nu-gane. I’m not sure I am in a rush to use nitro again as it is not as forgiving as finishing with Liberon Finishing Oil but certainly the clearcoat is a lot easier to rectify runs/burn through etc than using the poly. Blending in the headstock decal was nerve racking as well as the drilling holes for the pickguard, bridge, tuner screw and reaming out the tuner holes by a couple of mm as I was anxious about ruining the finish and having to go back several stages. I would also choose a 21 fret neck instead of 20 from now on as the fretboard overhang on a 21 neatens up the join where the pickguard meets the neck heel. Overall for a first spraying effort and only my 4th build, I am really pleased with how the bass has turned out……is it factory perfect?…absolutely not but for the intended sale price it is a fantastic looking and playing bass. if you’re interested in buying, it should be on the BC basses for sale thread in the next week as I am just waiting for a replacement bridge pickup as the first one was faulty, Specs are: Okoume body Roasted maple 20 fret, black block inlay neck with rolled edges Guyker tuners Gotoh bridge Wilkinson M Series pickups Bloodstone Guitarworks wiring with CTS pots and Spragg capacitor running volume/volume/tone Schaller type strap buttons I will get it weighed as soon as it’s all back together. I have and continue to learn so much with each build and my next ambition is to get to a stage with my knowledge and tools where I can turn a body blank and top into a body myself, route it out to attach a pre-made neck. My ultimate goal is to be able to make the necks as well but baby steps as they say…..

These are examples of some of the necks I have had from China off eBay. The two sellers I have used are; High End Guitar Neck Store and Guitarpart666. i have never had an major issue with any with the 6 necks I have had so far and they take about 2 weeks or so to come. All have been well packaged and just needed the odd fret knocked down, levelled and or a sharp fret end filed. The Daphne Blue one is a work in progress where I have nitro painted the headstock to match the painted body. It is a roasted maple with black block inlay neck.

Sean, I had the pleasure of buying your L2000……great bass and a very painless process with you. I have now put an imported Japanese Premium version neck on which is the Jazz Bass width version and works better with my little hands. I agree that I will never see the money back for the neck change but maybe can offset it by selling the original neck or I will keep it to pass on with the bass IF I ever sell it and someone wants to put it back to original. G and L is a very unrated brand and therefore often creates the opportunity to get a fantastic bit of kit at a great price, such as the ones you have sold.

I have had 3 necks off eBay in the last month; 2 x maple gloss and a flame roasted maple. All three are excellent quality at a fraction of the price of an equivalent source locally. All three were individually less than £100 with the gloss maple about £75. The flame maple allegedly even has SS frets I’ve only fitted one so far but I can honestly say, it plays really well and required a couple of sharp fret ends sorting but that is about it. All three necks arrived quickly and well packaged. With the flame maple one, the seller even gave me a choice of 3 different necks to chose from by sending loads of photos of the 3 options which I was not expecting. I don’t yet have the skill or tools to make a neck so for me this is the best and most cost effective option. I have put poly on the headstock of the flam as I really wanted a high gloss finish.

I also have Blackstar’s Unity 500 210 combo and ACT 250 extension cab. The 500 on its own will deal with most gigs and has a lovely full sound with some tonal options with the settings. It is not massively heavy and both cabs stacked look quite fetching with the Blackstar logo. It is just a nice and easy bit of kit to work with and has volume behind it/them.

Thank you for all your advice and comments. I went in a completely un-expected direction and have this coming……without trying before buying…… 2014 G & L Tribute L2000 which was advertised on BC. It has been modded with an East MMSR pre-amp, some switching mods, upgraded tuners and a new nut. I’m looking forward to trying a different style of neck than the SRs I’m used to. Thanks again to everyone that commented

Brilliant thank you……you have thrown a cat among the pigeons with the Z7 review as I really like the mint one from a colour point of view

Thanks Terry, I was leaning more towards the Z3 anyway…

Thanks, I have read about some Sire QC issues as well so it appears to be just luck of the draw and sometimes you get that Friday afternoon bass.

It’s good to know that I’m not alone in the leap of faith. Does anyone have any experience with the newish Sire Z series compared with the Stirlings? Are they a million miles apart? I watched the Andertons YouTube on them but I’m a little suspicious of their content as they seem heavily pro Sire with some of their previous videos.

Lozz, thank you. Not worked out horrifically or just “not right”? Did you return them or sell on and any issues if you returned them under the “this is not for me” reason lol

Folks, Exactly as above…….do you always try play a bass before deciding to buy it or do you sometimes take a leap of faith? I has some serious GAS for either SIre Z3, Z7 or a Sterling Musicman Ray 34. I know there is quite a price difference’s between the Sires and the Stirling but I am lusting after something with the Musicman single pickup vibe. My current basses are all Ibanez SRs so I also understand that there will be some quite profound neck width difference between them. So which one? (can’t afford a real EB version) then would you order it or would you never buy new bass without seeing it it worked for you first?

I had an SR1820 with the big singles which I really regret getting rid of. I’d have another one in a heartbeat.

I have just sold my old Peavey VB810 and I am looking to downsize especially in the weight dept for a cab for my Hartke LH1000. It will need to be 4 ohms and I don’t want to risk blowing it so it must be capable of handling a fair chunk of the Hartke’s wattage. I will be using it for smaller stand alone gigs but with PA support for larger so speaker configuration I’m also not sure of but I do fancy a 212 of some sort. It’s for rock and pop 4 piece band. To be honest, I have no experience of cabs other than the more “budget” brands and certainly not the likes of Bergantino, Vanderkley etc. What’s a good bang for buck, decent sounding, lightweight cab maybe 212 in the £500 used range that would be a step up on what I have used before?

This is my only regret……kit comes and goes which is sometimes a good decision, sometimes bad and the same can be said of bands and opportunities. Time, however, is irreplaceable and unfortunately you only notice the lack of it when it’s running out.

I have a Peavey VB810 which I I love playing through. Built to be indestructible and heavier than most cars. Got it from Iggy Pop’s bass player so has been around the block a bit.

Mr Grey’s Jailhouse Jukebox or MGJJ for short playing rock and pop covers.