Maude Posted October 14, 2019 Share Posted October 14, 2019 (edited) I was just typing a post in the recent ramp thread as I've now made my ramp which I mentioned in said thread, and I thought I'd do a very small build thread instead as it was a bit overkill for a reply to the ramp thread. My Rickenbacker 4005 copy has a massive gap under the strings due to it's design, the toaster pickups on Rickenbackers are mounted straight on the surface with no routing meaning the strings have to sit really high compared to a conventionally designed bass. This feels very odd when going for the occasional pop or when playing octaves with thumb and forefinger. Also the pickups are so far apart that neither one is really suitable as a thumbrest for my normal playing style, and the huge string to body gap make it weird to play resting my thumb on the body. So I've made a clear Plexiglass ramp to act as a full length thumbrest and to make the string to body clearance more like every other bass I've played, so it isn't a ramp as such. I just bought a rectangle of Plexiglass cut to my measurements on ebay for £6.50 and cut the strange shape in to the top right corner. This is for a weird quirk of mine where I always seem to rest my thumb on a pickup but hook my little finger down the side of it, I don't know why but I feel comfortable that way so I cut this chamfered bit to accommodate my pinky. The edges and corners were rounded of and then all polished up and it really is crystal clear. I'm hoping that under stage lights it will virtually disappear rather than trying to make a wood one that will never match the colour and grain of the top. The lower edge butts against the scratchplate to hide the edge and the top edge looks darker in these photos because of light refraction, or lack of light. I've fixed it with two screws under the strings which I don't think are out of place with the scratchplate and tug bar screws. I was going to use clear doubled sided tape but it looked odd and would collect dirt, this way I can remove to clean any dust that may get underneath. So there you go, a clear ramp/thumbrest/faux top thingymajiggy. 🙂 Edited October 14, 2019 by Maude 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpondonBassed Posted October 14, 2019 Share Posted October 14, 2019 You've made a good job of the polishing. May I ask what you used? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maude Posted October 14, 2019 Author Share Posted October 14, 2019 (edited) 12 minutes ago, SpondonBassed said: You've made a good job of the polishing. May I ask what you used? I'm a panelbeater so it's always whatever we're using at work. At the moment we're using Farecla G360 super fast compound followed by Farecla G360 super fast finish using a mini polisher. I was surprised how easily it polished up. I filed the cutout out then sanded it with P180, 320, 500, then 800 wet n dry, 1000w&d, 1500w&d and finally 3000w&d, then the polishes. Seems a bit laboured but it only took thirty seconds or so of each grade. Edited October 14, 2019 by Maude 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reggaebass Posted October 14, 2019 Share Posted October 14, 2019 Top job Maude, that looks like it’s meant to be there 👍 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maude Posted October 14, 2019 Author Share Posted October 14, 2019 I've just measured and there's still 8-9mm clearance between the ramp and strings, and the ramp is 15mm thick. So just to give an idea of the issue I had, imagine being used to playing over a pickup, most of us do, but that pickup being nearly 2.5cm from the strings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ricky 4000 Posted October 14, 2019 Share Posted October 14, 2019 Nice job Mr Maude, and inspirational 😎 It's a shame you have such a weird little finger. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maude Posted October 14, 2019 Author Share Posted October 14, 2019 3 minutes ago, Ricky 4000 said: Nice job Mr Maude, and inspirational 😎 It's a shame you have such a weird little finger. Ha ha, its not just my little finger that's weird 😯 I think it's something I've developed to keep my plucking hand in place as I get a bit lively when playing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimothey Posted October 14, 2019 Share Posted October 14, 2019 Looks great!! Much more professional looking than my attempt!! My only criticism is that it’s a shame about the bass it’s fitted to!!........😜 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bassassin Posted October 14, 2019 Share Posted October 14, 2019 Very nice work! I've done a couple of these, for basses where the pickup positioning didn't give me anywhere natural-feeling to prop my thumb. I love working with acrylic, very easy to cut & shape, and really satisfying to get a nice finish. Cort B2 Headless: Kawai Sleekline: 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maude Posted October 14, 2019 Author Share Posted October 14, 2019 @Bassassin Those look lovely, nice organic shapes. I'd have liked to have done more shaping but for what I needed the straight edges worked best. It's a fair old slab and does add a bit of weight to the bass but it's relatively light to start with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maude Posted October 14, 2019 Author Share Posted October 14, 2019 8 minutes ago, Jimothey said: My only criticism is that it’s a shame about the bass it’s fitted to!!........😜 😆 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maude Posted October 14, 2019 Author Share Posted October 14, 2019 I've noticed in the pictures that the bridge pickup is not square and quite noticeable now the ramp is fitted. I might have to realign that as can't unsee it now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ricky 4000 Posted October 14, 2019 Share Posted October 14, 2019 (edited) 20 minutes ago, Maude said: I've noticed in the pictures that the bridge pickup is not square and quite noticeable now the ramp is fitted. I might have to realign that as can't unsee it now. A faithfully copied feature from the original 4005? 😀 (I noticed that the neck pickup is also slightly off-square on Mr Bassassin's second picture) 😉 Edited October 14, 2019 by Ricky 4000 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
honza992 Posted October 17, 2019 Share Posted October 17, 2019 They look really great! Could I ask how you cut the plexiglass? Whenever I've tried it either melts or gums up the blade... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maude Posted October 19, 2019 Author Share Posted October 19, 2019 On 17/10/2019 at 21:02, honza992 said: They look really great! Could I ask how you cut the plexiglass? Whenever I've tried it either melts or gums up the blade... I'm guessing that's aimed @Bassassin more than me as mine is just a rectangle ordered cut to the correct size. I just filed out the 'pinky recess' and the rounded the edges, corners and recess with sandpaper. Whenever I have cut any acrylic I've used a pneumatic reciprocating saw with a standard hacksaw blade, albeit cut down to about a third of its length. I turn the speed down and use a fairly course blade (14tpi) to combat melting and clogging, if the acrylic is thin then I'll lower the angle I cut at so I'm cutting through more material to prevent cracking, obviously a curved cut will need the blade to be more upright. It only needs to be close to the desired shape as acrylic sands to shape so easily with sandpaper and a block. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpondonBassed Posted October 19, 2019 Share Posted October 19, 2019 (edited) On 17/10/2019 at 21:02, honza992 said: They look really great! Could I ask how you cut the plexiglass? Whenever I've tried it either melts or gums up the blade... 1 hour ago, Maude said: I'm guessing that's aimed @Bassassin more than me as mine is just a rectangle ordered cut to the correct size. I just filed out the 'pinky recess' and the rounded the edges, corners and recess with sandpaper. Whenever I have cut any acrylic I've used a pneumatic reciprocating saw with a standard hacksaw blade, albeit cut down to about a third of its length. I turn the speed down and use a fairly course blade (14tpi) to combat melting and clogging, if the acrylic is thin then I'll lower the angle I cut at so I'm cutting through more material to prevent cracking, obviously a curved cut will need the blade to be more upright. It only needs to be close to the desired shape as acrylic sands to shape so easily with sandpaper and a block. It is a satisfying material to work with if you follow a few simple rules. Most of these are to do with it being a notch sensitive material. In other words it will easily start to crack wherever there is a sharp nick or inside corner to concentrate stresses within the material. As Maude says, careful choice of sawblade pitch in tpi (Teeth Per Inch) relative to the thickness of the material and rate of cut should produce good results even with a hacksaw. Sometimes however, trial and error is the way to go with more complex cuts. Be prepared to do the same piece over from scratch if it goes bang (usually just as you're finishing it in my humble experience). Edited October 19, 2019 by SpondonBassed 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bassassin Posted October 25, 2019 Share Posted October 25, 2019 On 17/10/2019 at 21:02, honza992 said: They look really great! Could I ask how you cut the plexiglass? Whenever I've tried it either melts or gums up the blade... Sorry about the belated reply! Hand-cut fairly roughly with a junior hacksaw, shaped with various files followed by increasingly fine grades of sandpaper, final polish with good, old-fashioned T-Cut! They're fairly small pieces so hand-cutting's not much of a chore given how easy the material is to work with. I have a scroll saw but that does tend to melt the acrylic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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