Aussiephoenix

I have the following for sale:

[quote]5 HIPSHOT Ultralite tuners (YShaped) -chrome
Hipshot Bass Extender - Detuner BT2 -chrome
Wizard UK Magicmaster 4 string pickup
Musicman copy 4 string pickup[/quote]

I've a few other bits and pieces but I need a little time to sort through it all.

I'm in Lisbon, Portugal, so there's international postage involved, but turns out its cheaper to send stuff from here to the UK than in reverse.

[b]Trades considered: [/b]
I'm currently looking for a cheap distortion pedal like a bad monkey, or a pedal tuner (korg pitch black, TU2?)

[quote name='BoomBass' post='832984' date='May 10 2010, 12:47 PM']I bought Dave's Sadowsky Tokyo, and it was a smooth deal all the way through! :-) *SNIP* Thanks a lot, mate![/quote]

Thanks Kim for a great transaction, it was a pleasure dealing with you, true to your word, no nonsense.
Recomended!
Enjoy the Sadowsky buddy

cheers mate

GONE

Thanks a lot for helping out guys.

[quote name='neepheid' post='728619' date='Jan 29 2010, 12:52 PM']5) Difficult to say - just don't place them too close together or there won't be enough tonal difference to justify having 2 pickups.

[color="#0000FF"]So, its a Guesstimate... There are no real guidelines apart from the distance between pups keeping in mind their magnetic fields[/color]

7) Make sure you go deep enough for the pots to come through the top. I speak from experience, I guestimated the control cavity on Rich's (Ou7shined) holey head Jazz and had to go in again twice because of continual over cautiousness with the depth of cut. Repositioning a template over an existing hole isn't ideal, best get it done in one.

[color="#0000FF"]I was wondering how you'd go about finding that right depth... my guess would be:
( (height of pot "screw" - (height of washer + nut) ) - height of body )[/color]

9) I do mine 90 degrees. Also don't mess about - use a drill press. You'll never do them well freehand.

[color="#0000FF"]I dont have a Drill Press... Actually its something I've been meaning to buy anyway...[/color]

10) I don't think you'll need to bury the tailpiece, there should be more than enough height difference between it and the bridge saddles, even at their lowest. Distancewise, it's difficult to say. It's mostly aesthetic and practical considerations. Obviously not too close. Too far will look stupid. The 2 piece bridge may be ruled out by your bridge position.

[color="#0000FF"] The body isnt terribly long on this bass, so, I may have to rethink the 2 piece bridge or do something a little bolder... have to see when I have all the pieces...[/color]

11) It's possible. Your best bet would be to cut right off the curvy/irregular stuff on the bottom/end edge of the headstock so you have a flat area to glue. Glue ought to be stronger than the wood. Use the same type of wood (maple I'm guessing), use good quality wood glue and apply good clamping pressure for several hours (or even overnight)

[color="#0000FF"] Stupidly, I didnt think of that... I meant to shape the pieces to glue, but that sounds a much better approach[/color]

12) Shape the headstock first. I apply veneer in this (probably wrong) way - flatten the veneer if it isn't already, cut the veneer roughly to size, apply a thin layer of wood glue to the headstock with a roller, apply the veneer, position it, put an old t-shirt on top then place an iron on it (no steam) to speed up glue setting. Be very careful not to move/dislodge the veneer during this process. After you're done, trim round the veneer with a very sharp knife. Be very careful at corners, the veneer will love to split along its grain. It might be better to trim it close then sand it flush with some fine sand paper (200-400 grit so it doesn't snag the veneer and split it).

[color="#0000FF"] I like the idea of shaping the headstock first, But since the "Veneer" isnt really really thin like most, I was thinking on trimming the headstock in depth to compensate for the extra height the veneer will have... Think that would be a bad idea? to illustrate what I mean, say that the lateral profile of the headstock is 2cm high... and I have 2 pieces of veneer 0.5cm high, so I'd shave the headstock down top and bottom by 0.5cm and after placing the 2 layers of veneer and pressing it all together, I'd be left with a 2cm profile again (ignore the measurements, just to facilitate the visualization)... I figure if I dont do that, the extra height might interfere with the Tuner shaft height[/color][/quote]



[quote name='Al Heeley' post='728628' date='Jan 29 2010, 12:59 PM']Second, have you drawn out the entire guitar, life-size, on a soutable roll of paper? This will help you make templates & take measurements to determine the exact location of pickups, neck, bridge, etc.
Use the plan to draw a side-view section, including height of bridge saddles, right along to the nut, then you can see if the height is right for the design.

[color="#0000FF"] I havent done that yet, but that's a great Idea. It'll help put all the loose thoughts into perspective[/color]

Right place for pickups - that's up to you but use the existing well known basses as your guide. They say Leo Fender was pretty good at this sort of thing - take a lead from his example.

[color="#0000FF"] Yeah, but I'll be using soapbar humbuckers... still, guiding myself from other existing models is a good idea, though there are so many different approaches... I'll have to do some research to find the pup positions that agree with me[/color]

Cavity routing: a lot of people use a Forstner bit to get the hole started, or a conventional 8 or 12mm drill bit, removing as much of the wood as possible first before starting to rout. Only trouble is you have to watch you don't drill too deep.
Templates are essential - I make mine from MDF, use a follower router bit with a bearing. You can buy templates for some guitars and pickups, you can make them yourself with care and a fretsaw or jigsaw.

[color="#0000FF"] Right, but in order to make the template, I should make the template hole bigger to accomodate the bearing, right? I also assume that I shouldnt try to dig the router bit straight in, but instead slowly deepen the hole (by layers)? [/color]

13) Maybe not a great idea, bear in mind you want to keep string travel thru nut to tuner posts as straight a path as possible.

[color="#0000FF"] I'll have to see what I'm left with once I've got the extra width on the headstock to work with, thanks for the tip though.[/color]

14) See the jack placement on a Dingwall bass - they are great. Don't bite off more than you can chew for your first project!

[color="#0000FF"] Actually I quite like that Idea, It doesnt fit my body perfectly as I dont have that "wave" at the end, but it's given me a new idea that just might work out better than what I'd thought originally. Cheers!
This is my first "Complex" Build, but I've gone through quite a few mods to my Frankensteins, and I've learned a lot from my previous mistakes. I'll try to keep my mouth closed while chewing
[/color][/quote]

In preparation for an upcoming build (Frankensteining Plus) project, I, the Noobius Supreme, need your tips on a few issues. First I'll Describe what the project holds in store for me:

Basically I have a Custom Body meant for a 5 String. it's shaping is unfinished, and there's been a start on the neck pocket, though that too was left unfinished.

The neck will be purchased, a Jazz 5 Replacement neck, which will probably be shaped too, and the headstock will be altered.

I have a few ideas for the hardware, but in the most part, nothing new there... Now that you have a general Idea, the specific issues so you can give me some tips/pointers. Feel free to post links in response to the specific issues so as not to repeat existing info:

[u][b]NECK POCKET[/b][/u]

[b]1) [/b]In shaping the neck pocket for the specific neck Im going to use, how do I make sure that the neck is completely inline with the centerline of the bass?

[b]2) [/b] How deep of a pocket should it be? Just the Fretboard sticking out or a little more?

[b]3) [/b] How do I make sure that the neck pocket isnt slanted down or up, so that the neck sits straight in relation to the boby top?

[u][b]HARDWARE PLACEMENT[/b][/u]

[b]4) [/b] How do I find the right place for the bridge? I know it has to do with the distance from the 12th to the bridge being the same as 12th to the nut, but even following that, sometimes i find that I'd placed the bridge slightly more towards the neck than I needed.

[b]5) [/b]How do I decide the positions of the pickups? there are so many examples to choose from. in my case I'll be using 2 soapbar type pups, probably Nordies Fat Stacks or something along those lines.

[u][b]ROUTING THE CAVITIES[/b][/u]

[b]6) [/b]How do I Safely use a router to open those holes? how do I keep the router on a straight line so as to cut the holes in a perfectly straight line? Templates? How do I make them? from what?

[b]7) [/b]How should I plan out the back routing for the preamp (Aguilar OBP3 at 18V) ?


[u][b]BRIDGE IMPLEMENTATION[/b][/u]
For the Bridge, I havent decided which system to implement, but Im leaning away from the conventional bridges, leaving me with 2 options:

[b]8) [/b] If i Go for a "Single Saddle" Bridge, how do I calculate the distance between each saddle mount and why are some inline and others progressively delayed in relation to each other (body position)

[b]9) [/b]if those saddles allow for string-thru-body, should the holes at the back be drilled at exactly 90º to the body or slanted?

[b]10) [/b] if I go for a Warwick type 2 piece bridge, how do I calculate the distance between the saddle (1st) part and the ball end holder (2nd) part? Should the 2nd part be burried in the wood so as to increment the angle of the strings to the saddles?


[u][b]HEADSTOCK ALTERATION[/b][/u]
Its a Fender replacement, but I want to make some changes.
The Idea would be to Add wood around the headstock so as to have a bigger area to work with for shaping, and in the end, adding veneer to hold it all together as well as making it a matching headstock.

[b]11) [/b]Is it possible to "ADD" small pieces of wood around a headstock? how? (See Q. 12 for relevant info)

[b]12) [/b] the idea, after having the necessary area would be to shave down a bit of the top of the headstock, so that I can replace the shaved part with a fat "veneer" (2.5mm or so)... Maybe top and bottom. Dont know yet. This would also help hide the extra glued wood. Any ideas or Opinions on something like this?

[b]13) [/b] On a Fender 5 Headstock, Would it be a bad idea to transform it from a 4+1 to a 3+2 i terms of balance or preassure/weakening on the Headstock?

[u][b]JACK CASING AND LOCATION[/b][/u]

[b]14) [/b] I saw a bass that used what looked to be a Stratocaster Jack casing on the BACK of the bass ( Close to the Strap Button and the bottom of the bass. Can anyone oppinionate on any PROS & CONS of this approach?

Thats enough questions for now lol.

Thanks for your patience and I hope you like sharing your valuable experience with more inexperienced but motivated people like me that are finding it increasingly hard to stop finding excuses to build another project.

You woulnt happen to have the matching tuner "bridge"would you?

mods delete please

bump

.

Bumpetty Bump Bump

Bump

[quote name='MattCvijan' post='666783' date='Nov 26 2009, 09:46 PM']Interested. Still available? any idea on shipping to UK?[/quote]

Hi.

Here are a few quotes for you. (Calc'd to London)

DHL - 1 Day Delivery 154.60 eur (+15 eur for insurance)

MRW - 4-5 Day Delivery (w/out insurance): 78.20 eur
MRW - 2 Day Delivery (w/out insurance): 104.50 eur

Cheers,

Dave.

The shipping quotes I've been checking to Slovenia and COuntries there abouts, have been coming in at around 220 eur inc insurance.

Still up for grabs...

ps.: Gwilym, I'd trade it back to you for that Lovely FBass

That is one gorgeous bass! have a bump

[quote name='Manu Berdin' post='659977' date='Nov 20 2009, 11:13 AM']Hi , i really want to know the weight of this bass & also the pickups type ( single or humbuckers ) ...

Thanks[/quote]

Hi.

I can only guess at the weight... the missus doesnt like having scales in the house lool.

I'd say its 9-10lbs bassaussie's played it, and he concurs about that estimate.

the pups, so far as I know are singles, though there is no "singles" noise. the covers are sadowsky, but its been hinted that the original owner had swapped them for nordstrands. no idea, all I know is it sounds great.

a few sniffins, no biters yet...

Could be interested in a partial trade, depending on what's on offer. Specially interested in a 5str Stingray

[quote name='wateroftyne' post='648894' date='Nov 8 2009, 04:28 PM']Try a Wizard Thumper. You lose a little sizzle, but gain a lot of output and pokier mids.[/quote]

+1 I've become quite a fan of Wizard Pickups. got the thumper on my frankenstein, and it does deserve its name

[quote name='arpi' post='650080' date='Nov 9 2009, 08:52 PM']Hallo, looks very nice, can you tell me the weight and the scale length of this bass and shipping costs to Germany?

Cheers Arpi[/quote]

Arpi, as far as I know, all Sadowskies are 34inch, I dont have a way to weigh it here, but since its not chambered, I would guess its weight at around 9-10lbs.

There's a quote of 120eur estimated to Berlin, Germany (Delivery in 1 or 2 days, no insurance... stupidly, they dont do it.)

Cheers. Dave.

I'd be a little biased to answer that... This bass went through a lot of mods...
When I got it from Bassaussie, it was covered in black cracked paint, and it had cutouts for soapbar pickups.
So I made some plugs for it and then carved the P and MM holes.
At the time, I had a Precision pup rewired by a friend, and a no-name MM humbucker... first time I put it together with strings, I realised that the pups sucked, but, that aside, I liked the general effect (this without a preamp and wired direct to the jack)
With the new Wizard Pickups... specially that Thumper... its a totally diferent bass... (Thanks to the BC'rs that sold me the Wizards. love'em.)
Unfortunately I dont have any clips recorded... I've been meaning to do that for ages now, yet never get around to it.

The pickups kinda follow the sandberg idea. the P is reversed so that the Bass side is lower than the Trebble side, which does add more sound definition.

The bass was already routed for a preamp cavity, so I knew what to put in there, in went the OBP3 (Had a hard time arranging everything so it'd fit... its a small enclosure).
So other than the normal OBP3 shaping options, I added a 3way coil tap on the MM pup to give me Series, Parallel and Bridge coil Soloed.

With the dr Parts neck its very snappy and brings out a thunderous slap sound. I'M quite happy with it. it was my first attempt at frankensteining, so, the finish, etc isnt perfect, but its a very usable bass, and the main thing is that its actually put together very solidly, the neck pocket is a perfect fit, etc.

[quote name='spacecowboy' post='652172' date='Nov 12 2009, 12:39 AM']It certainly wouldn't have gone for £200 loaded with Nordstrand Pups and a Audere Preamp in it never mind all the other mods.

As for the values i really don't know mate, probably the sum of all parts minus 25% - 30% but that Precision looks immense! must sound huge?![/quote]

Yeah, I must have had my mad scientist's cap when I thought it up. Even though the OBP3 gives a lot of shaping options, this isnt a subtle instrument...it doesnt lay down the tracks, it pounds them home

boas.

Welcome

hey guys, this is just a feeler so I get an Idea of what my frankensteins are worth. (These aren't the latest photos, but they are recent enough.)

First up, the Real Frankenstein:

Specs:
[list]
[*]Precision body (unknown source)
[*]Maple Jazz Neck (Dr. Parts)
[*]Wizard Thumper (Precision Pickup)
[*]Wizard Magic (Musicman Humbucker)
[*]Aguilar OBP3 TK
[*]See-through Stingray scratchplate (Modified)
[*]Neck Pickup Precision Cover.
[*]Schaller 2000 fully adjustable Bridge
[*]Straplocks
[/list]


Next Up, The Upgraded Squier:

This is a Squier Jazz 5 Deluxe (a nice base actually, surprised me.) with a few mods:

[list]
[*]Nordstrand NJ5 Pickups
[*]Audere-Z Preamp
[*]Schaller 2000 fully adjustable Bridge
[*]Straplocks
[*]The string retainer has been swapped for a bigger retainer, covering the 5 strings
[/list]


Im not really looking to sell them, just curious at what people think they are worth.
Thanks for your opinions.

[quote name='arpi' post='650080' date='Nov 9 2009, 08:52 PM']Hallo, looks very nice, can you tell me the weight and the scale length of this bass and shipping costs to Germany?

Cheers Arpi[/quote]

Hey Arpi, I'll check it out and let you know.

Cheers,
Dave

Thanks for the kind words gentlemen