Fireman - this could be the start of something.. umm..

[Woodinblack]

21 minutes ago, Jimothey said:

Have you started planning your next one? 😁

Haha, I started the planning when I first glued the sides of this together!

i also have one of those paulownia p bass bodies I wanted to practice spraying with

[SpondonBassed]

9 minutes ago, BreadBin said:

You've already inspired me, I now have a set of 12 clamps and a bottle of Titebond. Next - a router!

12 clamps?  Amateur.  As has been said before... you can never have too many clamps.

Heeheehee.  In seriousness though, 12 is a good place to start because you won't know if they are suitable for the purpose until you start using them in anger, as it were.  Once the job is underway you might decide that more are needed but of different sizes to the dozen you already have.

Never, ever, buy a whole toolkit brand new unless you want it as an ornament.  Start with what you know you need right now and as you do more jobs add the right tools incrementally.  That way you won't be troubled by lots of clutter with stuff you aren't going to use.

[BreadBin]

Oh absolutely @SpondonBassed I actually needed clamps to repair a fretless neck but there was a bundle bargain I couldn't resist as I was watching @Woodinblack 's progress with great interest. 

[Woodinblack]

So today I redid the wiring as it worked passive but not active. Some idiot had swapped the in and out wires round! I put the back on, I put the new machineheads on, I put the knobs on (of which one is nice and the other 4 will be replaced). I made another scratch on the front 🙄

I adjusted the bridge, I put strings on, I played it. For the first time active (played it passive on one pickup before!).

The pickups have a high output, and that is on normal mode, in serial the really have a huge output. In single coil a lot less but still sound quite full. The bridge pickup is very bassy, more than I thought it would be, the bridge a little less so but very clear. So happy with these pickups (they are cheap). And even happier with the switching, it gives a clear difference in each mode.

So thats it, pretty well done. I will gig it next week.

There are a few rough edges, both literally and figuratively, and a few things that if I had known then I would have done differently. I need to do the frets, there is a high fret at about 23 choking off some strings, and I need to do intonation and stuff, but no big deal.

Where I am very sweaty in this weather, the red seeps a bit - maybe some wax or something?

But honestly, I couldn't be happier!

 

So here are some more gratuitous photos, just because it seems a good way to finish a thread.

 

[SpondonBassed]

It looks grand.

I think you've done well for a first build.  If you think about it, it's two builds.  The bass and the workshop itself.

I'm wondering what's on the shortlist for the next build.

 

[Woodinblack]

I have a 12 string I have to redo the headstock for.

I have a paulownia P bass body that I want to add a thin 5 string neck on.

But what I really want to do now is make a bass completely including the neck. That seems like the bit that seems like the hardest thing to do for me, so presumably a complete neck through something!

[SpondonBassed]

8 minutes ago, Woodinblack said:

I have a 12 string I have to redo the headstock for.

I have a paulownia P bass body that I want to add a thin 5 string neck on.

But what I really want to do now is make a bass completely including the neck. That seems like the bit that seems like the hardest thing to do for me, so presumably a complete neck through something!

No shortage of ideas to tease out then.  Good man.

I'd say you're right about necks being the challenge.

If you think, the neck is what it all comes down to in the end and like the Chapman Stick, all you need is a beam with anchorage for strings and pick-ups in between.  The body is dressing to a degree.

[Andyjr1515]

16 minutes ago, Woodinblack said:

But what I really want to do now is make a bass completely including the neck. That seems like the bit that seems like the hardest thing to do for me, so presumably a complete neck through something!

As I found out in my journey of mods and builds, it's just a few extra steps up from the skills you've already gained.

And neck carving is also one of the most satisfying part of a build

If you want to lower the learning curve just a touch, buy a preslotted fretboard blank.  David Dyke only charges £10 to slot the blanks he sells.

[Andyjr1515]

10 hours ago, Woodinblack said:

So today I redid the wiring as it worked passive but not active. Some idiot had swapped the in and out wires round! I put the back on, I put the new machineheads on, I put the knobs on (of which one is nice and the other 4 will be replaced). I made another scratch on the front 🙄

I adjusted the bridge, I put strings on, I played it. For the first time active (played it passive on one pickup before!).

The pickups have a high output, and that is on normal mode, in serial the really have a huge output. In single coil a lot less but still sound quite full. The bridge pickup is very bassy, more than I thought it would be, the bridge a little less so but very clear. So happy with these pickups (they are cheap). And even happier with the switching, it gives a clear difference in each mode.

So thats it, pretty well done. I will gig it next week.

There are a few rough edges, both literally and figuratively, and a few things that if I had known then I would have done differently. I need to do the frets, there is a high fret at about 23 choking off some strings, and I need to do intonation and stuff, but no big deal.

Where I am very sweaty in this weather, the red seeps a bit - maybe some wax or something?

But honestly, I couldn't be happier!

 

So here are some more gratuitous photos, just because it seems a good way to finish a thread.

 

Oh...and this is absolutely splendid, by the way Great job!

[Jimothey]

4 hours ago, Woodinblack said:

But what I really want to do now is make a bass completely including the neck. That seems like the bit that seems like the hardest thing to do for me, so presumably a complete neck through something!

That's what I've done now a couple of kit builds then jumped in doing a neck thru 

@Andyjr1515 is right when you carve the neck and then you step back and look at it it's really satisfying 😊

[Jabba_the_gut]

16 hours ago, Woodinblack said:

 

That's turned out really nicely - look forward to seeing what you build next!!

Cheers