Jump to content
Why become a member? ×

Finished Pics! Pete's Piccolo Bass


Andyjr1515
 Share

Recommended Posts

[quote name='sblueplanet' timestamp='1488571250' post='3250229']
If it was mine I would say "GLOSS VARNISH PLEASE!"
Looking great and seems a super-fast build. Almost like you sneakily bought a kit and stuck it together :-)
[/quote]
Can't believe I haven't missed something really important out. If it carries on the way it's gone so far, it will be done in half my normal build time! And I'm not entirely sure why! :)


Out in daylight, you can get a better idea of the likely end colour tone. This is just the sealer coat but will be fairly representative. I think you can also see why I'm getting a bit excited about the quilting - it's everywhere! It's confirmed in my head that gloss varnish is the way to go:




The only thing I may have to rethink is the hardware colour. I've gone for black, but I think it needs something to lift and contrast. Probably chrome, but...would gold be too bling?



The back has darkened also to a lovely...well...mahogany colour :D :

Link to comment
Share on other sites

[quote name='Andyjr1515' timestamp='1488619566' post='3250465']
If it carries on the way it's gone so far, it will be done in half my normal build time! And I'm not entirely sure why! :)

[/quote]

Must be the swift logo, Andy. :ph34r:

Looks sumptuous, like a slab of rich fruit cake.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

[quote name='Andyjr1515' timestamp='1488619566' post='3250465']

The only thing I may have to rethink is the hardware colour. I've gone for black, but I think it needs something to lift and contrast. Probably chrome, but...would gold be too bling?

[/quote]

Gold 'n' Brown? ya know that might just work :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well, I used to be indecisive but now I'm not so sure :rolleyes:

To varnish or not to varnish.

While I KNOW that the colour absolutely pops out when you gloss varnish a wood like this, there is NOTHING, SIMPLY NOTHING like the organic feel of a tru-oil slurry and buffed piece of wood. Silky smooth to the touch but undoubtedly wood, deep satin in colour tone.

Here it is, photo'd in the shade, after two applications:


..and in the sunshine:


The neck is going to be this finish whatever, but, I don't know...very tempted to forgo that extra bit of bling....

Edited by Andyjr1515
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just noticed that I started this thread on 8th Feb. I can't believe that, barring late disasters, this is within a few days or so of being finished!

Some of that is because Pete specifically wants the tactile slurry and buffed satin finished rather than a gloss, which would have added at least 3 weeks. I'm actually more than happy with that aesthetically as well as the silky feel of it, having had a sunny day at last so I can see what it actually looks like!



I'm waiting for some hardware, but sorted the magnetic catches while I was waiting:



And also for the truss-rod cover - worked well on Nic's Mouradian-esque build, so I thought I'd try it on this too :D :




I'm out tomorrow but will try to do the fret-levelling on Wednesday. For the build itself, that just leaves a possible tweak on the volute - it's in the perfect position for the treble strings but, because of the rake, might be a touch too forward for the bass. I won't know for sure until I've got the strings fitted and been able to try it for real...again hopefully Wednesday.

I've got a few weeks to sort out some of the domestic tasks and also to rearrange my work area a bit, and then there is a "this could be the final straw that broke the camel's back" project due to be on the drawing board. More about that one soon :D

Link to comment
Share on other sites

[quote name='Andyjr1515' timestamp='1488875502' post='3252472']
This?


[/quote]

There are, of course, limits and there are some downsides, but doing this significantly reduces weight, but also allows a very much slimmer neck heel:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've been fiddling about with permutations and combinations of the hardware.

I generally steer clear of gold, but the colours of the wood are just shouting out for something more than black to set them off. Chrome also wasn't quite right when I tried a couple of items. I tried gold tuners - they suited the headstock much more than the black. I tried a gold pickup ring - that looked the ticket. But gold bridge elements - screamed bling and cheap. So with some mixing and matching of components, I've come up with this:







What do you think? Too bling? Too John Player Special (although, even as a non-smoker, that was always pretty darned cool!)?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think the combinations on the body hardware are excellent! Understated, without being drab (which I think all black would have been). As for the tuners - I love the mix 'n' match approach, but am at a loss as to which one looks best! Sorry, not a lot of help... :lol:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It's a real personal taste thing, but FWIW I'd perhaps go all gold on the tuners without any black, as there's already a lot of different wood colours etc going on, so I think it might look a bit cleaner and draw more attention to the wood?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Restore formatting

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...