The Bass Doc

[quote name='warwickhunt' post='476491' date='Apr 30 2009, 11:11 PM']I had a blast on this bass yesterday... tone, action, weight are all spot on and it is lush![/quote] I also had a go on this bass yesterday....tone, action, weight are all spot on and it is lush! (Can you pay direct into my account WoT? - I don't do Paypal)

[quote name='Greene-Mann' post='475496' date='Apr 29 2009, 09:32 PM']very slighly of the topic of selling the bass....do you need to drill new holes to get the schaller bridge on from the origional bridge? been meaning to change the bridge on my 5 for years now and never really got round to it[/quote] The Schaller 3D-5 bridge has three holes and the 'middle' one is not actually central so it does involve new holes being drilled - no great hassle when you consider any unused holes get hidden under the plate itself but if you are fussy they can be plugged/filled and then forgotten about. Be aware that this particular model Schaller may not be appropriate for every 5-string - it's maximum spacing 'string to string' is 70mm (can go narrower).

[quote name='wateroftyne' post='475178' date='Apr 29 2009, 03:40 PM']I had a bit tinker with this this morning (quite a feat, given that I'm terrified of 5s). It played very nicely indeed...[/quote] Thanks for your comment - I was rather hoping that Crazykiwi would follow up his interest so that I could strike a deal which would include the Burman 4x12" cabinet which apparently used to belong to Sting when he was just a local bass player before he joined the Old Bill.

[quote name='Crazykiwi' post='473285' date='Apr 27 2009, 12:21 PM']hey Howard, are there any dead spots on the neck? Is the bass capable of being set up so that its impossible to slide a pound coin cleanly under the strings at any point along the fingerboard?[/quote] This pound coin thing has me intrigued - there's not much money around here in Newcastle area on a Monday morning but I managed to borrow one off a loan shark (150% interest per diem) and I find that it will slide under most strings 'on the wood' but I'm hoping you meant 'on the fret' in which case it won't pass under any without touching them out of the way. Can't say there's any obvious dead spots other than that which will arise if I can't pay the loan shark back.

I've had a closer look at what may happen if the 19mm spacing bridge was fitted - by the time the strings hit the fingerboard the differential is not huge and I would suggest measuring the width of the neck of your current bass at the 20th fret. My Fender neck at that point is 71.5mm so with the suggested replacement bridge measuring 74mm string-to-string I reckon the B and G would still be safely on the board. Let me know how the above measurements compare - even if it's only for my future information.

[quote name='RayFW' post='473223' date='Apr 27 2009, 11:03 AM']Hi Doc, Does this have 19mm spacing at the bridge?[/quote] With the Schaller bridge adjusted to it's max. width the spacing is 17.5mm and seems to suit the set up nicely. I have in my spares box a chrome bridge which does provide 19mm fixed spacing but the strings themselves may be very close to the edge of the fingerboard - I could try it on properly if your'e interested.

Selling a 5-string bass I put together from parts that simply fell into my lap. Solid alder body, Fender Mex neck, (carrying the original Gotoh tuners), Bartolini 59J1 pickups, Schaller 3D-5 bridge, mint green guard and a finish which just looks black in ordinary light but does actually contain flakey bits visible in strong light e.g. sunlight (we will get another 10 mins. of this before the end of August) Asking price is £250 including delivery, and at £225 I would be prepared to deliver free of charge within a radius of 100 metres from my front door. [attachment=24344:DCFC0429.JPG]