uk_lefty Posted October 3, 2023 Share Posted October 3, 2023 I've got the itch again... I really want an unlined fretless but cash is tight at the moment. I've got my eye on a few possibilities: buying a decent bass body and having someone make a neck for me to spec, or buying a good value second hand bass and having it defretted or ideally board ripped off and nice unlined board added. Failing that, just a professional defret. I'm trying to get a rough idea of cost for these options: Make a jazz style neck with an unlined fretless board; Defret a fretted bass and finish nicely; Take the fretboard off a bass and replace with a nice unlined board. Any inputs gratefully received, and may stop me doing something stupid. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnH89 Posted October 3, 2023 Share Posted October 3, 2023 Can't help you on the cost being a DIY man when it comes to instruments . Option 3 for me . I have done 2 now . Plane board off , make new unlined board . Set up . Sounds easier rhan it is but not beyond the reach of someone who is handy with tools . First board was made of Richlite which I absolutely love . Second one was a P bass with a cheap neck that I made a board from a piece of unknown hardwood (sapele?) . Very happy with both . I originally did this due to the sparseness of unlined fretless options . In my heavy handed butchers way of doing things , the original board had the frets pulled and the board taken off with a power plane . 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JPJ Posted October 3, 2023 Share Posted October 3, 2023 I had my Overwater Perception defretted and refinished by David Wilson. The bass had an ebony fretboard so Dave used some ebony veneer to fill the slots and they are now hardly noticeable under stage lights. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uk_lefty Posted October 3, 2023 Author Share Posted October 3, 2023 5 hours ago, JPJ said: I had my Overwater Perception defretted and refinished by David Wilson. The bass had an ebony fretboard so Dave used some ebony veneer to fill the slots and they are now hardly noticeable under stage lights. How much were you looking at paying for that job, if you don't mind me asking? Just ballpark... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheGreek Posted October 13, 2023 Share Posted October 13, 2023 (edited) Hey Ross Have you spoken to @Garymac...he's local too. There's a new luthier, Matt Kersey, in Symondshyde who I used to install a preamp. https://www.kerseyguitars.com/ Edited October 13, 2023 by TheGreek 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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