untune Posted March 22, 2011 Share Posted March 22, 2011 Hi all... People may have gotten used to me prattling on about bits for my project lately - specifically in the case of soapbars and humbuckers and the like. Well anyways, just so people are aware that it's not all in my head I thought I'd share a quick picture that the luthier sent across this weekend. I've always been a sucker for stuff that looks individual or unique and thought a bass would be a nice project to keep me busy. I spent a few weeks designing a custom jazz bass after seeing the Mark Hoppus signature, and fancied one with a single humbucker in the mid/neck position and nothing at the bridge, with a once piece jazz pickguard. Not being a fan of Hoppus in the slightest, however, I gradually changed it bit by bit to put a some distance between them and make something a bit more unique. I think I went through every possible combination of jazzmaster, jazz and precision scratchplates on a jazz body before I finally settled on something while I was trying to track down a neck. I eventually managed to sort one through a contact on BC and at the last minute decided that if I wanted a jazz, I could get a Squier CV or something. If I was going to lay down some real cash on something custom (suppose I can call it a bit of a treat for myself as uni is finishing soon and I've not spent a considerable sum on a 'luxury' item for myself since I was working full time, about 4 years ago) then I'd go for something more outlandish. Anyways, I knocked up a design in a night and pretty much settled on it when a mate threatened to terminate our friendship if I didn't get it made. Alas, this is the design... it's probably going to be a bit of a marmite one this. I always liked the telemaster guitar but being rubbish on guitar, I'll never own or have need for one. My original plan was to do all the painting myself, but working out what I'd need to spend on a mask etc, paints, supplies, plus not having anywhere decent to do any painting... I decided to have it finished properly. It's going to be slightly off white, sortof an aged olympic white. That wasn't really factored in so I'm going to be selling a guitar to pay for the finishing, but I don't play it anyway. So yeah, here you go. All I'm missing parts wise are a set of tuners, straplocks and a pickup. I also have no electronics yet, aside from a tasty PIO cap from nick It's routed for a standard 4 string humbucker the same size as an EMG35 or a Seymour Duncan SSB-4. I'm just not a fan of the EMG tone. I'd LOVE a chrome pickup like a 60's Thunderbird but you can't have it all.... I'll eventually get something made but for now something cheap and cheerful might do the trick. I wanted a Wizard but according to Andy the 4 string GEM is too wide... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tait Posted March 22, 2011 Share Posted March 22, 2011 That's fantastic looking! I want one now! Although I'd go for either natural or proper white (you know what I mean, white white!) instead of off white personally, but thats just me! Very cool though! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daz Posted March 22, 2011 Share Posted March 22, 2011 Its looking very stylish and retro, I hope you dont have to wait too long for its completion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scalpy Posted March 22, 2011 Share Posted March 22, 2011 Make 2 up and I'll have the other! Off white is fine... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hillbilly deluxe Posted March 23, 2011 Share Posted March 23, 2011 Vintage telecaster colour,butterscotch is it ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
untune Posted March 23, 2011 Author Share Posted March 23, 2011 Butterscotch (or some form of yellow) was my other option, but it would of only looked *really* good if the body was ash... also that's a tinted lacquer job. I've just managed to scrape what I need to have it finished solid white, and the black and white combo is one I've always really liked. My dream bass used to be a white precision with a black scratchplate - that's now metamorphosized into this My other two 'dream' basses if you will are a sunburst precision with black SP, and a black jazz with a tort SP. And a 51 Precision in butterscotch. Haha, three then. Cheers for the comments so far though, should be ready in about a month! I've just worked out that the additional finishing cost has overshot my original budget quite considerably, so if anyone has a set of decent tuners going cheap please drop me a PM! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nick Posted March 28, 2011 Share Posted March 28, 2011 (edited) Very nice. Looking forward to seeing this when complete. Shame you're after chrome, got some gold Ibanez humbuckers going cheap, that would have looked nice on it. Good luck with the build. Edited March 28, 2011 by nick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
untune Posted March 29, 2011 Author Share Posted March 29, 2011 Thanks Yeah I checked out the mini HBs but alas they're gold and also, wouldnt be able to mount them in the cavity very neatly. I keep thinking this would look cool with a Darkstar but no chance of getting one of those! I should have some more pictures in the next few weeks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henry norton Posted March 29, 2011 Share Posted March 29, 2011 (edited) [quote name='untune' post='1172431' date='Mar 22 2011, 08:46 PM']Hi all... People may have gotten used to me prattling on about bits for my project lately - specifically in the case of soapbars and humbuckers and the like. Well anyways, just so people are aware that it's not all in my head I thought I'd share a quick picture that the luthier sent across this weekend. I've always been a sucker for stuff that looks individual or unique and thought a bass would be a nice project to keep me busy. I spent a few weeks designing a custom jazz bass after seeing the Mark Hoppus signature, and fancied one with a single humbucker in the mid/neck position and nothing at the bridge, with a once piece jazz pickguard. Not being a fan of Hoppus in the slightest, however, I gradually changed it bit by bit to put a some distance between them and make something a bit more unique. I think I went through every possible combination of jazzmaster, jazz and precision scratchplates on a jazz body before I finally settled on something while I was trying to track down a neck. I eventually managed to sort one through a contact on BC and at the last minute decided that if I wanted a jazz, I could get a Squier CV or something. If I was going to lay down some real cash on something custom (suppose I can call it a bit of a treat for myself as uni is finishing soon and I've not spent a considerable sum on a 'luxury' item for myself since I was working full time, about 4 years ago) then I'd go for something more outlandish. Anyways, I knocked up a design in a night and pretty much settled on it when a mate threatened to terminate our friendship if I didn't get it made. Alas, this is the design... it's probably going to be a bit of a marmite one this. I always liked the telemaster guitar but being rubbish on guitar, I'll never own or have need for one. My original plan was to do all the painting myself, but working out what I'd need to spend on a mask etc, paints, supplies, plus not having anywhere decent to do any painting... I decided to have it finished properly. It's going to be slightly off white, sortof an aged olympic white. That wasn't really factored in so I'm going to be selling a guitar to pay for the finishing, but I don't play it anyway. So yeah, here you go. All I'm missing parts wise are a set of tuners, straplocks and a pickup. I also have no electronics yet, aside from a tasty PIO cap from nick It's routed for a standard 4 string humbucker the same size as an EMG35 or a Seymour Duncan SSB-4. I'm just not a fan of the EMG tone. I'd LOVE a chrome pickup like a 60's Thunderbird but you can't have it all.... I'll eventually get something made but for now something cheap and cheerful might do the trick. I wanted a Wizard but according to Andy the 4 string GEM is too wide...[/quote] If it's routed for an EMG35 then you could go for this [url="http://www.fretsonthenet.com/other_parts.htm"]EMG/Duncan chrome covers[/url] I discovered them whilst looking for the same thing as you, chrome covers for soapbar pickups (it's a long page so scroll down to near the bottom). They aren't cheap but the bass will look the bo##ocks. Or the Mike Lull T.Bird Repros [url="http://www.mikelull.com/t%20bass%20parts.htm"]Lull pickups[/url] although they're even more money than the Darkstar you were hankering after Edited March 29, 2011 by henry norton Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
untune Posted March 29, 2011 Author Share Posted March 29, 2011 (edited) Funnily enough I'd checked both of those options out, but to be honest the price is just ridiculous... I mean, $185 for an empty chrome cover? I could probably smelt one from gold for cheaper than that I've pondered the option of having something made, it's a bit awkward though as if you look at the picture, the gap between the actual route on the left side and the scratchplate screw is tiny, so chrome rings are out of the question unless they're more Thunderbird style with the thin lip at the sides... I had a thought when looking at the darkstar thouh... perhaps it would be possible to have a thin flat chrome cover that is almost vaccuum formed to the shape of a soapbar with a tiny lip round the edges, with a hole in the top you can see the black plastic through. Then it could sit over the top of a soapbar and would look a bit darkstar-esque, only without pole pieces. Did you get hold of any chrome covers? The only alternative I found was that Artec make a chrome coated plastic soapbar. These are fitted as standard in BaCH Thunderbird copies, so I emailed them to see if they'd sell them individually as I've heard that it's supposed to be a pretty solid pickup. They replied with a very enthusiastic yes but they said they were waiting for more stock, so I'm not going to hold my breath... Edited March 29, 2011 by untune Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henry norton Posted March 29, 2011 Share Posted March 29, 2011 [quote name='untune' post='1180599' date='Mar 29 2011, 12:23 PM']Funnily enough I'd checked both of those options out, but to be honest the price is just rediculous... I mean, $185 for an empty chrome cover? I could probably smelt one from gold for cheaper than that I've pondered the option of having something made, it's a bit awkward though as if you look at the picture, the gap between the actual route on the left side and the scratchplate screw is tiny, so chrome rings are out of the question unless they're more Thunderbird style with the thin lip at the sides... I had a thought when looking at the darkstar thouh... perhaps it would be possible to have a thin flat chrome cover that is almost vaccuum formed to the shape of a soapbar with a tiny lip round the edges, with a hole in the top you can see the black plastic through. Then it could sit over the top of a soapbar and would look a bit darkstar-esque, only without pole pieces. Did you get hold of any chrome covers? The only alternative I found was that Artec make a chrome coated plastic soapbar. These are fitted as standard in BaCH Thunderbird copies, so I emailed them to see if they'd sell them individually as I've heard that it's supposed to be a pretty solid pickup. They replied with a very enthusiastic yes but they said they were waiting for more stock, so I'm not going to hold my breath...[/quote] Not as yet as I've had about a million other things to do including chrome covers for DiMarzio Model Ones (like the big Gibson Mudbucker but with 8 adjustable pole pieces instead of 4 which unfortunately only comes in matt black). In the end I thought I would have a go at getting them made myself, both the T.Birds and the Model Ones. You're right in that it's a huge amount of money for just a chrome cover and I know there's a cheaper and more local way. At the moment I'm looking at a jeweller friend running off a few in very thin brass then getting them chromed. It's a slow burner but I can keep you posted if you want. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
untune Posted March 29, 2011 Author Share Posted March 29, 2011 That would be great, let me know if anything comes of it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
untune Posted May 5, 2011 Author Share Posted May 5, 2011 Update, couple of new pictures today from the finishing process. Not long left now! Just needs to wait before flatting and buffing. First one is primer, second is with all the topcoats Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Horton Posted May 6, 2011 Share Posted May 6, 2011 That build looks really interesting . I love the body shape. I have thought about having a go at building one myself , but i dont want to mess it up . im really looking forward to seeing the pictures of the finished Bass Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
untune Posted May 18, 2011 Author Share Posted May 18, 2011 Hi all, Couple more pics here, if anyone is interested.... I should have it before next week Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahpook Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 (edited) looking good. nice n' tidy ! edit: just out of curiosity, what are the dimensions of the pickup rout ? Edited May 18, 2011 by ahpook Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rOB Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 Oo like the look of this. Looking forward to seeing the finished result. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
untune Posted May 18, 2011 Author Share Posted May 18, 2011 (edited) Thanks for the comments! @ahpook, routed for a 3.5" x 1.5" soapbar, actual route is 91.5mm x 39.5mm according to the luthier EDIT: I believe it's 1" deep too, it was a while ago the route was done so I've forgotten the exact details of the depth Edited May 18, 2011 by untune Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahpook Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 (edited) [quote name='untune' post='1236220' date='May 18 2011, 07:56 PM']Thanks for the comments! @ahpook, routed for a 3.5" x 1.5" soapbar, actual route is 91.5mm x 39.5mm according to the luthier [/quote] have you considered the bartolini 'BB'-style pickups, they're 38mm x 89mm ? i put a bart in my warwick streamer std and, although quite modern-sounding, it isn't as ultra-bright as i thought it'd be Edited May 18, 2011 by ahpook Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
untune Posted May 18, 2011 Author Share Posted May 18, 2011 I think I've looked at every possible soapbar out there I think, haha, I'm sure barts sound great but I don't like that huge embossed logo on them, think it looks a bit tacky Either way I've sorted a custom one out, turns out that it'd cost roughly the same as a Seymour Duncan etc but I get it made to my spec, so I thought why not Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahpook Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 (edited) [quote name='untune' post='1236291' date='May 18 2011, 08:48 PM']I think I've looked at every possible soapbar out there I think, haha, I'm sure barts sound great but I don't like that huge embossed logo on them, think it looks a bit tacky Either way I've sorted a custom one out, turns out that it'd cost roughly the same as a Seymour Duncan etc but I get it made to my spec, so I thought why not [/quote] sounds like a plan - sure it'll sound great. btw - the logo on the bartolinis isn't actually as obvious as you'd think, and there's always black tape Edited May 18, 2011 by ahpook Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
untune Posted May 18, 2011 Author Share Posted May 18, 2011 [quote name='ahpook' post='1236296' date='May 18 2011, 08:51 PM']sounds like a plan - sure it'll sound great. btw - the logo on the bartolinis isn't actually as obvious as you'd think.[/quote] It's probably just been over-emphasised by illustrations and that's why it's stuck in my head like that But either way, I just tried to avoid 'branding' on anything when I can, there'll be nothing on the headstock either, just think it looks nicer and then it's more about how it sounds and less about what's written on it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henry norton Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 [quote name='untune' post='1236291' date='May 18 2011, 09:48 PM']I think I've looked at every possible soapbar out there I think, haha, I'm sure barts sound great but I don't like that huge embossed logo on them, think it looks a bit tacky Either way I've sorted a custom one out, turns out that it'd cost roughly the same as a Seymour Duncan etc but I get it made to my spec, so I thought why not [/quote] Is it in chrome or is it going to be in the typical soapbar 'any colour so long as it's black'? I was in touch with Lollar's a while back and they're working on a chrome T.Bird pickup which should come in comfortably under the Lull version if all things are equal and add up. That said, it won't be available for a few months Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cycrowave Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 you seen these? [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=170626322822&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...e=STRK:MEWAX:IT[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henry norton Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 That covers the strings too - it's quite an extreme measure just so you can't see the writing on top of the pickup Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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