Big_Stu

When I used to go thru a lot (I had a girlfriend in Kirkintilloch) there was a cracking used guitar shop away down past Central Station. I remember there was a shop two doors along from it where the neds used to buy their chibs - but also sold used guitars too.

[quote name='keeptrying' timestamp='1343764750' post='1754973'] why don't they give away stickers with strings?[/quote] I did suggest that to Jason once, he was going to look into it. If you want stickers just phone up & ask, the wonderful ladies on c/s sent me two sheets of them.

[quote name='ToastBeans' timestamp='1343600548' post='1752667'] Hello everyone, For several years now I have owned a Washburn XB-102 (I know, I know...). It has been playable but just barely. The action and string tension are just way too high. I took it in to have it set up properly, the tech did the best he could but pointed out to me that the neck was splitting apart at the scallop shaped seam between the neck and headstock (see photo). Is there any relatively easy fix for this, or is it one of those "you have to break it all the way to fix it" types of things? Should I just get a new neck? Would a Mighty Mite fit it? [/quote] Before you went doing anything that can't be undone try this route [url="http://basschat.co.uk/topic/49897-how-to-shim-a-neck/"]http://basschat.co.u...to-shim-a-neck/[/url] If the action is as high as you say (what is the gap measurement between the bottom of your two E strings and the 12th fret for example?) I would doubt it's been caused entirely by such a fine gap in your scarf joint. Hard to tell from your pic, at face value I'd agree it could be just shrinkage. Try detuning completely then study the "gap" as you retune, does it become more obvious - can you see it widen? What you could try is some of the Evostik wood glue (in the green bottle) - not the quick drying one. Water it down [i]slightly[/i] so that it flows better and paint it into the crack with a paintbrush (when the guitar is tuned up & the gap is open). Get as much of it in there as you can, try blowing it in there as hard as you can, until no more will go in. Then detune, push teh strings to the sides & clamp it closed between two pieces of soft wood. Leave it at least 48 hours, more preferably. If it doesn't work you only lost the price of the glue. What "Dad3353" describes is the usual way of fixing a broken scarf, many SGs have suffered that fate. It works, but it ain't pretty - and a real luthier will charge for it. If Mighty Mite don't do a straight retro-fit replacement you'd still be paying someone to alter the heel or the pocket - or both - to fit them together. MM necks are very good & priced accordingly. There's a bass like yours on Ebay just now at £100, not much more than a MM neck alone, for a donor neck & lots of spare parts. PS. Might be asking the obvious - but have you asked Washburn if they've heard of this before - or if they carry spare necks for them? I've only approached them once, but they were helpful.

TBH - I don't see the point of an originals band NOT having a visual image of some kind. Whether they mean to be discovered or "make it" or not, it's another way of creating a unique identity. It's also very easy - human senses working as they do - to associate a particular song/track that a new listener may wish to remember, by being able to associate it with a particular image they saw at the time they liked what they heard. The other benefit is that if you go so far as to wear make-up or masks, and your band is really bad then you don't get punters telling you "You were sh*t mate!". I bet no members of Lordi get bothered by critics while pottering around Ikea (yeah I know, but it's still Scandic); conversely, Gene Simmons has been revealed to be a knob many times since he was seen sans make-up.

When I ordered a Roqsolid for my Hiwatt cab it was one they hadn't done before so it's my measurements that they now use for their template. Mine fits perfectly, so if any BCer gets a Hiwatt 4122 or 4123 cab cover & it doesn't fit ................. you ain't see me - roight?

[quote name='Mr Fretbuzz' timestamp='1343408600' post='1750396']I have bought a rattle snake hat band with a rattle on it :-) ...just need to be able to play bass[/quote] In the meantime you could just shake your head around a lot? FWIW - I'm in the image counts a lot too camp, I mean ........... my interest in playing started as being a 1970s Slade fan FFS!

I heard Lemmy do an interview a couple of years ago - and he was introduced as singer and bassist with Motorhead. His answer was along the lines of "Get your facts right, I'm a rhythm guitarist who happens to use a bass"

[quote name='mr bassie' timestamp='1343562009' post='1752048'] when you adjust the two concentric pup selectors they seem to turn the sound completely off at various points... [/quote] If they are there instead of a pickup selector switch are you not just turning the volume of both down? If it's at more than one point it could be the pot's sweeper is oxidised, it's possible a squirt of switch cleaner might help. Standard procedure would be to try it with a different lead, & then with a different amp. After you've put a new battery in it of course. Have you a decent music store near you, one that might have a good repairs guy?

[quote name='MrFingers' timestamp='1343421638' post='1750684']Two DPDT switches, one phase-invertor for the middle pickup, and one "master series-parallel" switch. Both work independent from eachother, the series-parallel in conjunction with the 5-way. Here is what the switching does in terms of the 5-way switch Phase off, S/P off: neck / neckmid parallel / mid / midbridge parallel / brug (standard strat wiring) Phase off, S/P on: neck / neck / neckmid serie /midbridge parallel in series with neck / neckbridge series) Phase on, S/P off: neck / neckmid parallel out phase / mid / midbridge parallel out fase / brug (standard strat with out-phase stands 2 & 4) Phase on, S/P on: neck / neck / neckmid series out phase / midbridge parallel out fase, in series with neck /neckbridge series I can make the strat growl like a LP, quack like an out-of-phase mustang and wail like a 335. [/quote] Amazing, you are the new John Birch! he had a similar intention on this SG that he customised, how long did it take you to memorise all your options?

[quote name='MrFingers' timestamp='1343336605' post='1749307'] 1974 Fender stratocaster (modded beyond recognition, the only thing original is the body, ALL the rest is replacement. Red, with black pickguard, [i][b]12-way switching[/b][/i], humbucker in bridge, rosewood fretboard)[/quote] That! I would like to see!

[quote name='Johnston' timestamp='1343323533' post='1749012'] I would disagree. Most guitards I have come across have a Super-strat with a Floyd rose and go Widdly widdly weeeeeeeee whilst doing an Irish jig on a multi FX.[/quote] Excellently put! I can picture it easily! IME the vast majority of Tele players see it as a basic workhorse instrument and just get on with it. Still I suppose the likes of Keith Richards, Muddy Waters, Steve Cropper, Wilco, Dave Edmunds, Micky Moody, Hugh Cornwell and a whole list of other "names" wouldn't give a rat's arse what unknowns think of their attitude. Though to get back on topic all of the above have been seen on a regular basis at some stage in their careers using other guitars too.

[quote name='BRANCINI' timestamp='1343294512' post='1748343'] Wouldnt want to split hairs, nor argue with wikipedia... which is always right But I clearly remember hearing Cyndi Lauper being interviewed on the radio, on a Saturday afternoon when the single was current. and stating how much she dug the Roy Orbison track, and reasons why she covered it etc etc Orbison was a little bit out of fashion at the time I think.. [/quote] Don't know much about Lauper, but always had a passing interest in Orbison. Wasn't he doing the Travelling Wilburys stuff while Lauper was reaching her peak?

Excellent thread idea! I didn't even know this version existed until a few weeks ago when Brian Matthew played it on Radio 2. Heavy? Black who???? [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a3yHVvOsuwQ[/media]

Not sure I'd elevate any of them to "heroes", but of the ones I wanted to see were;- Jimmy Lea, 36x with Slade, once solo (but he was on guitar at the time) Lemmy - not sure - around a dozen maybe Alan Lancaster, didn't realise at the time, but he was an essential part of the overall Quo sound & show. Mark King, once - because I had to to salve my curiosity. Gutted I'll never see Duck Dunn - offhand I can't think of any others that I'd go miles out of my way to see now, though from film I've seen The Ox must have been awesome in his prime.

[quote name='skankdelvar' timestamp='1343228265' post='1747401'][size=2]+ This despite the recent deplorable trend towards blinging the Tele up to look like a drunken dowager unleashed in TopShop. John 5 Tele, anyone?[/size][/quote] I represent what you're trying to incinerate!

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1343044604' post='1744133'] Joel, just finished reading all the way through Issue 80, July 2012 (the one with Geddy Lee on the cover). One of the things a good editor should be doing is checking for consistency throughout the publication. So I was surprised to read in the review of the TC Electronic BG250 Combo on page 58 the following: "Of course, with a 15" speaker, the low end is pleasingly full..." and then to find 14 pages later a whole article by Alex Claber completely disbunking the myth that a particular sized speaker has a particular sound and that the bigger the speaker diameter the bassier the sound. Also your artworkers still haven't worked out the difference between " the inch symbol and ” the closing double quote symbol. [/quote] Fixed it for you.

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1343165183' post='1746564'] Didn't seem to stop him from posing for some publicity photos with them first though...[/quote] And quite right too, it's the American way! ch-ching! $$

[quote name='PauBass' timestamp='1343137118' post='1745852'] I'm trying to find a couple of 50K pots with center detent for my bass preamp but I can't locate them anywhere. Aguilar seems to sell them but their shipping charges are quite high, $50 and the pots cost $11 I have tried with Allparts, Doctorweek and a few other places but no luck so far....Any ideas, please Thanks in advance for your help! [/quote]Have you tried WD? they're not on their website at 50k but they may be able to source - and they're UK based. They were recommended to me by JayDee which was as good a recommendation as I could wish for.

[quote name='billyapple' timestamp='1343163240' post='1746526'] but It's also an SG.. As in Solid Guitar [/quote] ................ and Les Paul withdrew permission for Gibson to call the SG a Les Paul when he saw it, he hated the shape THAT much!

[quote name='Bass-Thing' timestamp='1343127564' post='1745608'] A few years ago I had a prolapsed disc in my lower back which was absolute agony, plus I couldn't sit because it was catching on mu sciatic nerve (I could only stand or lie down). It took 8 weeks for me to get back to something like normal but one of the things that really helped was and Inversion Table. Basically to varying degrees you can hang upside down and the traction it provides is wonderful for your back. I still use it regularly, don't really have lower back trouble any more an I've grown in height by about half an inch. It folds up behind the sofa too. Worth checking out if you have back problems and gelps lower blood pressure too. [/quote] Thanks, I'll bear it in mind, though so far I've not had a problem that a good sports physio can't deal with, but there's always a first time.

[quote name='Wil' timestamp='1343121682' post='1745434'] If it looks like an SG, plays like an SG, sounds like an SG, then... [/quote] Do you think that approach would work to convince John Hall?

[quote name='Rayman' timestamp='1343063539' post='1744632']I used to be very fit, I was into the gym big time about ten years ago, and rode mountain bikes regularly, but anyone who knows me knows that I'm now a tub of lard with knackered knees, 6'3" and 18st....and 47 years old. I REALLY need to loose some weight.[i] Really[/i]. [/quote] I'm an inch taller, a stone heavier and 3 years older. My knees are fine, but my back goes out on a fairly regular basis, it was worse when I did the CC mountain biking (which is what caused it) but it seemed worth it. Swimming would probably be your best low impact direction (I hate swimming!) Years ago my excellent physio told me that regular [i]"frightfulness"[/i] is perfect for a bad back & should drop everything back into place, but my other half wants it in writing & the physio's 200+ miles away & retired now.

You really can't argue with all of the OBBM endorsements on here; if I was looking now it's the way I would go. But I still have 4 x excellent cables I made up from Klotz cable off the reel (at Scayles Edinburgh since you ask) and Neutrik jacks. I think the oldest pair are about 15 years old.

If I had to get rid of one; it'd be my SG. I've had my Tele longer and I've put more work into it. Though I disagree with the comments re the looks of an SG, not much is cooler than an early 60's SG Junior with single P90 and the curly scratchplate.

[quote name='Dave Vader' timestamp='1343043309' post='1744105'] I never realised how hard it is to find pictures of Lemmy's super-iconic ric, the "Born to Lose, Out to lunch" one. With the stars and the cross on it. Or I can't use google properly anymore (If I could only own one bass, it would be that one) [/quote] You mean (sans stars)...........? and