Pete1967

For me... Abe Laboriel Jr Steve Gadd Vinne Colaiuta

[quote name='Old Horse Murphy' timestamp='1383388974' post='2263882'] They're not actually too deep; just enough to make them noticeable. The back of the neck is a little bit sticky too and despite cleaning it, it's difficult to remove the stickiness. I think I might go over it with wire wool as suggested to make it feel a bit more satin and see if that helps at all [/quote] Cool... I'd try some 0000 grade wool first. You might find that 000 puts too many noticeable scratches in. I've got whacking great rolls of both - more than I'll ever use, so I'll happily send you a chunk of both if you want? P

I don't know of a technique that's not intricate.... except replacing the neck Techniques I've heard of or used are filling them and flatting and polishing the lacquer back or sanding them out by re-profiling the neck slightly and refinishing completely. I've heard of people making them less noticible by steaming them out with a steam cleaner... the type with a nozzle that you see on the crappy JML ads on telly, or a damp cloth and an iron tip but I am certainly not going to endorse those! Personally I'd take it to a good luthier if it's a keeper. P

should we assume from the lack of updates that the bass hasn't yet left your body, thereby preventing access to a computer keyboard... Seriously - how does it sound. Really hoping it's sounds as good as it looks?

Have a look at the Bartolini MPB2-918. I think that would do the job quite nicely - I believe you can use it on its own ad wire straight to pots for a 'passive' set up or combine it with additional pre/eq. I nearly used it in my Piezo/Mag build but went a different route in the end, but it was recommended to me by Jon S. Info and wiring diagrams here [url="http://www.bestbassgear.com/bartolini-preamps-piezo-buffer.htm"]http://www.bestbassgear.com/bartolini-preamps-piezo-buffer.htm[/url]

I was lucky enough to see this in the flesh at Jon's workshop. The top is almost otherworldly in the flesh. Nice pics but no photo could ever do it justice really. Simply stunning!

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1381845088' post='2244454'] Actually that looks like a fairly clean break - has the scarf-joint for the headstock failed? My biggest concern would be any distortion to the fingerboard - especially since one of the frets has popped out. Still a job for a decent luthier IMO. Not to fix the break itself, but all the extra work like replacing the missing fret and nut to make it playable again. [/quote] Agreed - Looks like it's split the fretboard which might be a bit tricky to relocate when it's trying to slide on the adhesive, but I've seen worse breaks glue up successfully. Making playable afterwards is the tough bit... plus the finish has taken a bit of a hammering so making it pretty again will need some skill. I'd be looking in the Luthiers thread for someone fairly local with a good rep to recommend.

Oooh.... I'm in too. Any number of strings any number of frets (other than those of Chapman Stick proportions) is OK by me. I have a pile of recording to do so it would be nice to try something a little different.

I spent nigh on 15 years doing pit work for musicals, with all kinds of band combinations. Like all bass players I experimented with kit (still do ) and ended up with a sound that seemed to work well in a quasi orchestral situation - at least the MD's seemed to like it!!. The secret seemed to be that the tone needed to be 'woody', 'organic' and 'polite' to blend with the other strings, but defined enough to punch through and give them something to sit on. My 'golden' combination was a Warwick Corvette, fretted and used passive with nickel plated stings played through 2x10 + 1x15 Eden Nemesis amp (which I still use to this day) with 3db of lift at 500k and 50k and 3db of cut at 250k, but otherwise flat. A smidge of compression - 2:1 with a fast attack and slowish release just to even the bumps out a bit. Like the post above I used a Yammy volume pedal (paired with a Boss O/D stomp for when the moment was right!). I even did Westside Story on this setup because there wasn't room in the pit for a DB. Personally I found fretless to be too indistinct and had a tendency to get lost in the cacophony. The rest as they say, is in the fingers. Just my tuppence worth. P

I tend to use CA, but just a dot. All you should need to do is hold it in place (glueing is not a solution for a poorly fitting nut). CA has a very low shear strength so the nut should pop out if needed in the future with a smart tap from one side, and its really quick.... PVA works too because it doesn't bond to the nut well, but it can leave the nut slot a bit gummy and in need of a clean when it comes to replacing it IME.

[quote name='shizznit' timestamp='1378905857' post='2206302'] The top has a satin finish, so I would imagine that it would hold the thumb rest with normal wood glue [/quote] I'm not sure I agree mate... essentially what you're doing is sticking wood to plastic, not wood to wood. What you really need is something that is designed to bond dissimilar materials.

Hmmmmmmmmmmm.... I didn't think I recognised one of the Leeds shops in the photo.... [url="http://www.doctorbass.net/en/producto.asp?id=1000171728&idfam="]http://www.doctorbas...00171728&idfam=[/url]

I'm assuming that the top will have a finish on it of some sort - probably polyurethane, in which case wood glue isn't going to be your friend. PVA/Aliphatic and derivatives need open pores and pressure to do the job. You could superglue it or use epoxy but that's utterly permanent and will destroy the finish if it pings off of you want to remove it. Personally I'd use a good double sided tape. A 3M or Tesa film backed tape that has pressure sensitive adhesive. It'll stick like sh*t and it should allow you to carefully remove the rest at a later date and clean the tape off with a bit of white spirit (won't affect a fully cured polyurethane or polyester finish) HTH

www.exotichardwoodsukltd.com are in Chapel-en-le-Frith if you fancy a trip over Snake Pass. Kirk will sell you the bits you need cut to size rather than have to buy whole boards. Have a look at his instrument wood store. The cost of Swamp Ash has soared recently, to around £200 a board so a single body would be £80ish, however I happen to know that Kirk has some very light White (American) Ash which is much cheaper (and sonically superior to Swamp). Hard Maple too has gone up a lot recently. Neck blank £30 and the same again for a f/b.

Basslines Quarterpounders.....

[quote name='4 Strings' timestamp='1377612687' post='2189376'] A BBoT would certainly go with the 'utility' nature of the bass! For tuners, Rubner make incredible tuners for double basses, we're talking with them right now to see if they can adapt one of their designs. They are mostly tapered and have holes rather than Fender's slots and the wonderful perpendicular drilling for the string end. The Rubners are amazing value and stunning, especially the 'French' style. Have a look... [url="http://rubner-markneukirchen.de/onlineshop/product_info.php?info=p140_french-bass-mechanic-140-"]http://rubner-markne...s-mechanic-140-[/url] 117.html&XTCsid=2f12a9f89aa9a9b23af01aaa8627634e (It's in German, so you'll have to dig about a bit. If you come across their catalogue pdf, that's the easiest to get around) [/quote] You might want them to advise on how heavy an adapted product is likely to be. IIRC Rubner specialise in machining out of brass (I haven't looked at the website as I'm on my mobile and my info is some years dated so apologies if I'm talking complete cack) which might weigh a bit, and it would be a shame to end up with neck dive.

Also subscribed... very very interesting! [quote name='JPJ' timestamp='1377608892' post='2189323'] Oh and when glueing a top on, you can never have too much glue :-) [/quote] or too many clamps it seems!

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1377607893' post='2189309'] BTW does anyone actually know if the Schaller parts are made in Germany still or just designed there and the production out-sourced to somewhere cheaper? [/quote] Stentor told me that Schaller only manufacture in house, in Germany, a statement supported by their website [url="http://schaller-electronic.com/hp801/Produktion.htm"]http://schaller-electronic.com/hp801/Produktion.htm[/url], but it doesn't say so explicitly.

I notice the seller's name is raygunrelics.... more like ryobirelics....

Chromes come instantly to mind because they're pretty pingy for flats, but if you want a little more zing, you could try D'Addario half rounds. I have them on my fretless and the feel is great, smooth but with not quite as much friction as flats so I find them a bit quicker to play. Sound wise, plenty of mellowness but with a brigher more cutting edge I've yet to find in any flat wound string, which suits me.... Available in a fairly decent range of gauges and under £30 for a 4 string set

I had exactly the same thought process a while ago and came up blank. As already mentioned Schaller is the obvious choice (have a look at the BM Light tuners - they're brilliant) if you're considering European, or ABM do great bridges (but not tuners sadly).