Chopthebass

It’s amazing what a difference strings make to the look (and sound!). Now time to sell it!!

Finished, but forgot to buy some strings! I decided to install the BP122 pickup. No idea how it sounds yet!

I have done custom pickguards by just cutting the outline and don't worry about pickup and neck cavity just yet. Then I tape in position and drill a hole through the pickup holes and neck pocket while taped to the body. This is to allow router cutter to plunge thru. . Then use the routs as template guides. Youll need a cutter with the bearing on the bottom. Still a good idea to make a mdf template of the outline, especially if you are trying different colours. But the above method makes for perfect aligned edges!

I heard they are pretty darn good!

Thanks ! My only regret is I wish I’d made it 5 string! It started as an experiment but turned out great! I will fit whatever pickup a potential buyer wants!!

The fingerboard has been buffed and frets pre-polished, then installed. I trimmed the tangs so that I have a gap to fill.

That’s how I now run it, but it has same problem. It’s odd. Running on its own is perfectly fine

I have the same pedal and same issue when the compressor is on, on my Bergantino Forte HP. I also have the new Empress compressor pedal, and same thing happens no matter where the compressor is in my chain. I don't use the octave pedal much, but when I do I just have to turn the comp off.

Gorgeous! And the correct number of strings too 😆

Thanks! I really like maple boards. When I ordered my Mayones Jabba I upgraded to birdseye. I watched a you tube video comparing P bass pickups, and I have to say I really like the Seymour SPB-3. I do have an old DiMarzio I could try. But I'm not a P-bass guy (or 4 string come to that!) so not sure what it should sound like. I just have to pre-polish the frets before installing. I like to get them as shiny as possible before they go in, as its difficult to polish right close to the maple otherwise. And this part is untouched when levelling.

I did some work on the neck. I like to lacquer before frets go in on a maple board.

I’m liking it the more I look at it! I'm still not sure which pickup to throw in. Any ideas? I want to keep it passive

Looks quite good satin black but I think I’ll do the high gloss clear coat.

True, but I don’t have a ton of room, and as I already know how to use AutoCAD it is a breeze to draw up anything I need and upload to the Shaper.

Primed and ready for color. Bit cold to spray so will have to wait until after xmas

Use superglue on your fingertips. Use the activator and it goes rock hard. I only used this when I split my fingertip and had a small but very painful tip. It actually worked a treat! Brightened up the sound too!

Berg make great gear. I have the Forte HP and HDN410. Brilliant combination.

I cut the outline to a depth of 8mm, then moved to overhead pin router and used this groove as a guide. Just quicker on the overhead

Did body rounding in the usual way! No more tasks for the Shaper on this. So I’ll post progress pics. Shame I don’t play 4 string! I’m sure someone will want it.

To answer some questions.... placement: I have built a height adjustable table and you can see it in the pic with the tape on it. I have side wings to the table so it wraps around a body blank. On those I have a fixed centre line. When I place my body blank I line up the to the body centre line. You then scan the work area and it creates a workspace that you can name. You then upload your file into that workspace. Finally you set a grid and define the centre line (2 points) and blank edge (1 point) . You place your imported file either manually or you define a distance from the edge. Once all this is done you can come back a year later and select that workspace and cut another body. It retains everything in the workspace. So you can have numerous workspaces. Jazz bass, block inlays, control covers , etc. creation: the Shaper has a built in library of basic shaper like circles and rectangles etc. So you can do fingerboard dots if they are odd sizes, and you can undersize a little to get a snug fit. As long as you don’t remove your workpiece you can revisit any of the cuts. tracking: your uploaded file is displayed on the hi res screen and you follow this when making the cut. The motor has two built in motors that constantly adjust the X and Y to keep it exactly on the line.

I just bought a Shaper Origin, which is a handheld CNC router. It’s flipping amazing! very easy to program and use. so I drew the precision outline, pickup cavity, control cavity and neck pocket in CAD. Convert to SVG, and upload to the Shaper. You set the depth and away you go. You have a visual line to follow on the screen and you can deviate by half an inch and the tool corrects itself. You can even undercut or over cut in 0.1mm increments to enable a tight neck fit for example.

Thanks Al. And the magic knob works on top of the main mid control settings, which also affects the sound. Its just hard to re-visit a sound on the fly, as you have to remember where the main 3 knob eq is set, and then the magic knob.

I find the magic knob has quite a small window of useable tones. Too high and it goes super thin, and too low gets a bit honky. Just my opinion. but you’re right - it does have a beefy low end. And the preamp just needs a small tweak to make a big change. I still very much love the Spector 5LT. Equally large bottom!

looks great with a maple neck.

No worse than my Spector. Comes in at 9.8 LB