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RIM Custom Basses 5 String


Snakey Lane
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Looking for something a bit more special than my Warwick Rockbass Corvette 5 String, I did some research on Basschat and other websites. I soon realised that what I [i]really [/i]wanted was a British-made custom bass.

I discovered Robbie at RIM Custom Basses in his own forum elsewhere on Basschat. He has made some lovely looking basses, and they seem to get rave reviews from his customers. So yesterday I went to see Robbie in Luton. A very warm welcome, some good advice about choice of materials and it looks like we are going ahead!

I'm not in a hurry for the new bass - quality is more important than time. With other orders already in the queue, Robbie estimated 6 - 8 months. Which will make it a birthday present for me next year, give or take a couple of weeks.

I'm going to keep this diary of the steps in the process from the customer's point of view. I guess Robbie will keep everyone updated on progress through his forum. The draft spec to date is:
[list]
[*]maple or ash front
[*]bubinga back
[*]ebony or wenge fingerboard
[*]satin finish
[*]Q-Tuner pickups
[*]through neck
[*]34" scale
[*]16mm string spacing
[/list]
Hope Robbie is ok about me including some images from his website of basses he has already made. The look I'm after is the shape of the 5 string with the contrasting woods of the 4 string.

Edited by Snakey Lane
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Snakey Lane, looking forward to seeing this one take shape! we're all in for a treat here :)

[quote name='alexclaber' post='219414' date='Jun 15 2008, 08:27 PM']I continue to be blown away by my RIM Custom 5 and am almost certain it'll still be my main bass come the middle of the century![/quote]

hi Alex, im new to this forum but watched this bass being built over on talkbass.com, i must say Robbies basses look really awesome!

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The spec is now agreed:
[list]
[*]5 string custom Marseer
[*]5 piece bubinga / wenge neck
[*]Ebony 34" scale fretboard, jumbo frets
[*]Ebony nut
[*]Tiger maple top
[*]Bubinga wings
[*]Dyed black tulipwood contrast veneer.
[*]Maple headstock cap
[*]Q tuner BL-5 pickups
[*]ETS MKIII bridge and custom RIM anchor plate
[*]Sperzel tuners
[*]JD straplocks
[*]Passive wiring
[/list]
And as a final touch, since my son and I share the same initials, a custom 12th fret inlay of "RB" :-)

Now all I have to do is be patient !

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I love RIM build diaries, Robbie does great work.

If ever I manage to find a way to afford a custom bass, it will definitely be a RIM. He did a set up on one of my basses a few years ago and he is a good guy to deal with as well as a top luthier.

My current fantasy is to have a 6 string and a matching short scale 3 string made by him! Of course some kind of lottery win will have to involved I'm afraid!

Looking forward to this one.

Paul.

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Cheers Guys,

It means alot to me, to see you love my work as much as I do. Gonna get started in a week or so on 3 necks and I hope you all look forward to the build threads in my section and on the website.

Peace,

Robbie.

Edited by RIM Basses
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  • 3 weeks later...

[quote name='alexclaber' post='239219' date='Jul 14 2008, 03:03 PM']I'm getting to know the Q-Tuners and passive electronics better and I can't get over the versatility of such a simple arrangement. Are you going for the same pickup spacing as me, though adjusted for 34" scale?

Alex[/quote]

I have not got into that level of detail :) I'll take Robbie's advice, I guess, on what works best.

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[quote name='Snakey Lane' post='240756' date='Jul 16 2008, 12:06 PM']I have not got into that level of detail :) I'll take Robbie's advice, I guess, on what works best.[/quote]

I think Robbie got quite a shock when my specs for the bass turned out to be about as long as a Phd thesis... :huh:

Alex

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Robbie dropped me a note earlier this week. He is ready to start work on the wood for the top of the bass. I'm away for a couple of weeks, but I'm going to pop round to look at the different maples he has before I make a final decision. This is too important to do via photos and email :-)

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  • 3 weeks later...

Very good customer service from Robbie. He was concerned that the piece of maple I had chosen for the top of my bass from photos was not quite as nice "in the flesh" as the photo suggested. So he gave up a bit of his Sunday for me to come round and look at it. Upshot is, Robbie will source a better piece for me.

But it did give me - and my son, who I dragged along even though he thinks that "bass sucks" :-) - a chance to see the neck which Robbie has blocked up ready for drilling for truss rod and machining to shape. It looked very nice indeed, even in its raw state.

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I reckon Robbie's work has got to be the most distinctive of any luthier I can think of and definitely in a good way. I'm definitely a fan and I really fancy trying one of his basses at some point. I just LOVE those headstocks!!

Keep up the good work Rob dude!!

Edited by presoulnation
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