malbass Posted June 26, 2017 Share Posted June 26, 2017 (edited) Had a bit of a nightmare on my way to a gig on Saturday night. One of the shoulder straps on my gig bag snapped and ended up dropping my bass from a height of about thee feet! It landed directly on the end pin which seems to have taken the brunt of the force. No damage to the front/back/ribs, soundpost is still in place, but the end pin collar has been pushed into its hole causing it to split. This has meant that now the end pin is sticking out of the body at a very slight angle. My first thought was to try taking the end pin out and repositioning it, perhaps replacing it if necessary, but it's now firmly wedged in the hole and I can't get it out (though I haven't tried to use that much force yet). So, 10 days till the next gig, doubtful I'm going to have a chance to get it to a luthier before then, what's my next move? Carry on and play with it as it is? Its playable at the moment but I'm thinking this could possibly make things worse and do more damage? Try using more force to get the collar out? Any tips on how to do this? Any advice greatly welcome! [URL=http://s400.photobucket.com/user/malw_2008/media/12074368-50E7-4CD3-9907-9B41E0D18FCB.jpg.html][IMG]http://i400.photobucket.com/albums/pp86/malw_2008/12074368-50E7-4CD3-9907-9B41E0D18FCB.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [URL=http://s400.photobucket.com/user/malw_2008/media/13E64A47-4B00-4287-87A0-D28AF4186A01.jpg.html][IMG]http://i400.photobucket.com/albums/pp86/malw_2008/13E64A47-4B00-4287-87A0-D28AF4186A01.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [URL=http://s400.photobucket.com/user/malw_2008/media/F341AC6E-2AF5-4CF6-BBC6-B4585A9E6E00.jpg.html][IMG]http://i400.photobucket.com/albums/pp86/malw_2008/F341AC6E-2AF5-4CF6-BBC6-B4585A9E6E00.jpg[/IMG][/URL] Edited June 26, 2017 by malbass Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beer of the Bass Posted June 26, 2017 Share Posted June 26, 2017 (edited) When you look inside the bass through the f-holes, is the end block that the end pin slots into split? If it is, it's time to start looking for a loaner bass for your gig. If the end block looks OK, then I think I'd risk it until you can get to a luthier. Edited June 26, 2017 by Beer of the Bass Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malbass Posted June 26, 2017 Author Share Posted June 26, 2017 [quote name='Beer of the Bass' timestamp='1498458499' post='3324671'] When you look inside the bass through the f-holes, is the end block that the end pin slots into split? If it is, it's time to start looking for a loaner bass for your gig. [/quote] Just checked that, there's no evidence of any splitting Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SubsonicSimpleton Posted June 26, 2017 Share Posted June 26, 2017 Don't try to force it out - endpins are taper fit, so the impact will have wedged the hard ebony fitting into the softer endblock, and attempting to remove it by force is likely to cause damage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grangur Posted June 26, 2017 Share Posted June 26, 2017 I don't know if you can get down to Cambridge, but Jonathan Woolston is a really good friend. http://woolstonviolins.com/ Jonathan is more a violin and cello man, but he may be able to help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beedster Posted June 26, 2017 Share Posted June 26, 2017 If it still plays, carry on. Most of my DBs looked far worse than that when I got them. They're pretty tough things in the main, and there's the school of thought that suggests that it's better to live with the slight damage/misalignment than try to fix it Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malbass Posted June 26, 2017 Author Share Posted June 26, 2017 Thanks guys, appreciate the comments. I had a flash of inspiration today and remembered a physic lesson about applying force through levers. I put the end pin back in and with it tightened in an extended position was able to apply a suprisingly little amount of force to wiggle the collar free!! Have ordered a new end pin unit which should hopefully arrive on Wednesday so fingers crossed everything should be sorted in time for next weeks gig. As an aside, the bass is currently flat on its back on the spare bed, much to the consternation of the wife. I've explained about the risk of dropping the soundpost in its current state but she wasn't impressed as her mother is due to stay at the weekend. A few choice words were hear when I suggested there would be enough room for the mother in law to share the bed with it :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bassace Posted June 27, 2017 Share Posted June 27, 2017 [quote name='malbass' timestamp='1498513859' post='3325219'] As an aside, the bass is currently flat on its back on the spare bed, much to the consternation of the wife. I've explained about the risk of dropping the soundpost in its current state but she wasn't impressed as her mother is due to stay at the weekend. A few choice words were hear when I suggested there would be enough room for the mother in law to share the bed with it :-) [/quote] Yes, but make sure the bass has the right amount of room. 😀 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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