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Finished! It's a bass, Jim...


Andyjr1515

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Well what I've done is this:

CpvYZUWl.jpg

 

I've set in a piece of ebony into the top under the tuners to act as a visual balance.  I've been looking at this propped up in the evenings the past week thinking, 'there's something missing and I'm not sure what'.

 

Now I've done it, I know that is, indeed, what was missing:

QrxaAhkh.jpg

Fingers crossed that @Jus Lukin likes it too!

And so, the plan for today and tomorrow is to get this to finishing stage.  Tasks:

- Putting in the luminlay side dots

- Starting the neck carve

- cutting the control chamber hatch

- sanding all of the glue blobs, router burns and general lumps and bumps away ready for the first finish coats

:)

 

 

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1 hour ago, Andyjr1515 said:

Well what I've done is this:

Crafty.

How are you going to place the strap button(s)?  I am assuming that without one or two at the bridge end, the tuners will be prone to striking the floor when someone inevitably assumes it's okay to put the instrument directly on the floor and lean it against something.

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I've started the neck carve and the final sanding.

With the neck I still have probably 1mm to take off the thickness and I have to move from a U profile to a D.  With the sanding, I have to do the cutouts, the tail, anything I've missed and then re-establish the edge radii.  But, as many of you will know, I find it very useful to apply a quick coat of Tru-oil as a 'revealer'.  I don't know about other builders, but I find it exceptionally difficult to spot sanding marks, dips and dints in a dry sanded body.

So still loads to do here, but that sealing coat gives a decent indication of the wood tones that will be there in the finished article.  So it's time for a mockup :D:

kE6O3iDl.jpg

LftWaSRl.jpg

ZiYi8U9l.jpg

 

I think that's very promising :)

Edited by Andyjr1515
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47 minutes ago, Andyjr1515 said:

I've started the neck carve and the final sanding.

With the neck I still have probably 1mm to take off the thickness and I have to move from a U profile to a D.  With the sanding, I have to do the cutouts, the tail, anything I've missed and then re-establish the edge radii.  But, as many of you will know, I find it very useful to apply a quick coat of Tru-oil as a 'revealer'.  I don't know about other builders, but I find it exceptionally difficult to spot sanding marks, dips and dints in a dry sanded body.

So still loads to do here, but that sealing coat gives a decent indication of the wood tones that will be there in the finished article.  So it's time for a mockup :D:

kE6O3iDl.jpg

LftWaSRl.jpg

ZiYi8U9l.jpg

 

I think that's very promising :)

Absolutely stunning @Andyjr1515, I keep coming back to perv at this thread, even when there's no new posts!

Eude

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3 hours ago, Andyjr1515 said:

I've started the neck carve and the final sanding.

With the neck I still have probably 1mm to take off the thickness and I have to move from a U profile to a D.  With the sanding, I have to do the cutouts, the tail, anything I've missed and then re-establish the edge radii.  But, as many of you will know, I find it very useful to apply a quick coat of Tru-oil as a 'revealer'.  I don't know about other builders, but I find it exceptionally difficult to spot sanding marks, dips and dints in a dry sanded body.

So still loads to do here, but that sealing coat gives a decent indication of the wood tones that will be there in the finished article.  So it's time for a mockup :D:

kE6O3iDl.jpg

LftWaSRl.jpg

ZiYi8U9l.jpg

 

I think that's very promising :)

I think it looks gorgeous! 
 

Agreed on a dry body it can be very difficult to spot little dents and inconsistencies. I often use a damp cloth to highlight.

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5 hours ago, Andyjr1515 said:

I've started the neck carve and the final sanding.

With the neck I still have probably 1mm to take off the thickness and I have to move from a U profile to a D.  With the sanding, I have to do the cutouts, the tail, anything I've missed and then re-establish the edge radii.  But, as many of you will know, I find it very useful to apply a quick coat of Tru-oil as a 'revealer'.  I don't know about other builders, but I find it exceptionally difficult to spot sanding marks, dips and dints in a dry sanded body.

So still loads to do here, but that sealing coat gives a decent indication of the wood tones that will be there in the finished article.  So it's time for a mockup :D:

kE6O3iDl.jpg

LftWaSRl.jpg

ZiYi8U9l.jpg

 

I think that's very promising :)

Drop. Dead. Gorgeous.

One day I will commission an @Andyjr1515 build. My playing will never justify it, but if nothing else my son will inherent and he plays bass too.

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37 minutes ago, BassTool said:

Lovely intricate job that, I'd have loved to have seen how you actually did those, any pics or how to please? 

@Andyjr1515

I forgot to photo this time round, but it's basically this:

These particular luminlay sticks are 3mm dia, so after pressing a sharp punch spike to mark the spot, I use a decent quality 3mm bradpoint drill bit in my little battery powered hand drill and drill to around 3mm deep.  The luminlay diameter is accurate and the drill point and diameter are also accurate and so you end up with a nice tight, gapless fit (this one is a previous build).  I buy the type with a black sleeve around the luminous core - it make the finished result look great:

8UrJOf2l.jpg

So after a trial fit, I then I just pull it out again, put a teeny spot of gel superglue on the end and push it firmly back in.  After a few minutes I can use a modeller's razor saw to cut it fairly flush, then either use a sharp chisel or just a sanding block to sand it flush with the board:

W8ZRoPUl.jpg

And because there are no gaps, that's it!  Nothing to fill - it's done.

It is one of the reasons I stick with Luminlay even though you have to buy it from Japan and, with VAT and the inevitable customs handling charge, it ends up pretty pricey for a teeny stick...but the accuracy means it is very easy to fit. 

I'm probably doing @Fishman 's Wal neck tomorrow - I'll try to remember to take shots of the whole process :)

 

 

 

 

Edited by Andyjr1515
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On 22/01/2021 at 09:56, Andyjr1515 said:

..... I've been looking at this propped up in the evenings the past week......... 

 

I'm glad I'm not the only one who does this. My wife thinks I've got problems as while she's watching telly, I'm sat staring at a bass. 

When doing a bass*, I lean it on the sofa opposite me in the evenings and ideas will emerge over time, or ideas I had will get scrapped as my little brain ticks over. 

 

*I'm not comparing my tarting up old tat to your creations you understand, merely the similarity in idea evolution. 😉

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In pictures, @BassTool :

Here's basically what I use:

EHdFBINm.jpg

I position with the steel rule:

ynEjZOPm.jpg

then I use a sharp ended punch to mark the entry point for the bradpoint drill bit to avoid any wander:

5QMJCqrm.jpg

then drill a few mm deep - taking care not to 'wiggle' the drill:

CVgxdSjm.jpg

After a dry test fit - ideally it is a tight push fit - a drop of gel superglue on the end of the stick:

ugWb7asm.jpg

Then it is pushed fully home and the excess glue wiped quickly away:

jhfqR4em.jpg

Personally, I find the x-acto modellers razor saw the best to cut it off:

mYh7Lz0m.jpg

Finally, I trim it flush with either a very sharp chisel or a single-edged razor.  With an unfinished neck, I would just sand it flush as part of the final sanding but I don't want to accidentally catch the varnish on this Wal:

2E8k0sfm.jpg

 

2 1/2 done, 8 1/2 to go! :) :

B8W752Rm.jpg

 

 

 

 

 

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7 hours ago, Andyjr1515 said:

In pictures, @BassTool :

Here's basically what I use:

EHdFBINm.jpg

I position with the steel rule:

ynEjZOPm.jpg

then I use a sharp ended punch to mark the entry point for the bradpoint drill bit to avoid any wander:

5QMJCqrm.jpg

then drill a few mm deep - taking care not to 'wiggle' the drill:

CVgxdSjm.jpg

After a dry test fit - ideally it is a tight push fit - a drop of gel superglue on the end of the stick:

ugWb7asm.jpg

Then it is pushed fully home and the excess glue wiped quickly away:

jhfqR4em.jpg

Personally, I find the x-acto modellers razor saw the best to cut it off:

mYh7Lz0m.jpg

Finally, I trim it flush with either a very sharp chisel or a single-edged razor.  With an unfinished neck, I would just sand it flush as part of the final sanding but I don't want to accidentally catch the varnish on this Wal:

2E8k0sfm.jpg

 

2 1/2 done, 8 1/2 to go! :) :

B8W752Rm.jpg

 

 

 

 

 

Ask, and you shall receive!

 

Brilliant as usual, thanks @Andyjr1515

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