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I reckon that's enough for today. I've got most of the cyano and epoxy overfill off the top: ...and routed the control chamber to depth: The observant amongst you will have spotted the pickup cable channel in the side wall. Depending if the truss rod arrives or not tomorrow, then I will probably complete the carve, adding the rear cutaways, etc, and rounding some of the hard corners. As always, thanks for looking and for the encouraging feedback, folks

Depending on where you live when we start gigging will be different Wisconsin will remain on lockdown until May 26th. I'm a senior with some health issues. I don't want gig until I'm confident it's safe. We're booked to play an outdoor gig on June 6th at The Cheel in Mequon WI. Blue

My first post in a very looong time! I just wanted to share with you this project I'm involved with....after a long break from playing bass. As a consequence of the Covid-19 situation, this project has been born and we have called it " Confinement Jam Experience". We are all in different cities, and some in different countries, but we came together online and decided to record a cover of the Red Hot Chili Peppers' "By The Way". It has been a great experience and it has helped making our time indoors more enjoyable. By the way, I'm on bass 😁 Give it a watch and....I hope you like it!

This just in! We're doing an acoustic outdoor gig next Friday We will be playing to the customers picking up their take out meals at the drive through. Blue

Too many to list here, but top of the list would be my trusty Hofner Comittee, which has a lot of story attached. One day, around a warm fire, with a cup of tea beside, maybe I'll regale the company with its telling...

The last structural job on the body will be to rout the control chamber to final depth and to rout the recess for the hatch. But before I do that, there's a bit of structural integrity to sort out. Knots - they can add beauty, especially to Yew - because the wood grain sweeps round what are emerging branches. But that is what they are - and so knots are always effectively separate parts of the wood and so have to be stabilised. So, today's scary picture to those who haven't got up close and personal to these kind of woods : And there's a related crack that goes all the way towards the pickup chambers. So my strategy is to stabilise and do the bulk filling at the same time. First step, I have 'wick'd' thin superglue into the cracks. Capillary action sucks the cyano deep into the crack which will help reduce future movement: Then - goodness, has this build turned Andyjr1515 to drugs?????? No - at least not yet . It's a syringe folks use to get medicines down cats and dogs throats. And perfect for forcing epoxy&wood dust mix deep into the larger fissures. Yes - I know what it looks like... And all done waiting cure and sanding: And after that, finishing off the control chamber.

I will be building a body for a fretless Status neck I have. It will take a while given the current viral climate, but the least I could do is do some sketching on what it will look like. Swamp ash, single pickup is what I will be doing. I like designing my own body shapes, generally going something more modern than classic. But since the neck is a Status (S2 shape) I am going for something that is a little Status but with a twist. What do you think of this shape? I am liking it.

Well it's not a build, refinish or anything exciting like that but I thought I'd do a little thread as it'll shame me into actually finishing stuff off. I've got a P bass, Hofner Club and a Danelectro Longhorn that all need scratchplates making for them. The P is a Hohner Arbor series fretless which I've just refinished in vintage white and want a mint plate for, it has an odd shaped plate so I can't just buy a replacement. The Longhorn has also just been refinished and needs either a clear plate or a mirrored one, so I'll make both and see. The Club bass is an Ignition model and comes with a very cheap looking white pearl scratchplate and control plate. I've made new plates for it out of cream acrylic sheet as I've never been a fan of pearloid and it matches the binding. This is the original white pearl. I've slightly exaggerated the curves of the scratchplate and slightly rounded the ends and corners of the control plate as I think it suits the shape of the bass better, still iconic Hofner but a bit of personal taste as well. Also added a little Hofner decal and a pair of old knobs I had in my spare bits box. I cut these out with a coping saw and finished with sandpaper and files, then polished. The three slots in the control panel were drilled in each corner and the filed out. You don't need any fancy tools, just a bit of patience. Danelectro coming tomorrow. 🙂

Depends on when churches in the UK re-open, as that's the only band I play in. For those of you who gig for a living, here's to full houses and safe travels when we're out of this!

Nobody turns up to our gigs, so no pressure.

From the PJB website: After graduating from college in electronics in the early 70’s, I enrolled into The Welsh College of Music & Drama in Cardiff, Wales where I was living at the time. The WCM&D then had a very conservative view on music. They did not even consider the bass guitar a real instrument! So I opted for learning the Upright Bass classical-style and taught by Earnest C. Haigh. (He was an 81-year old musician with 60 years of bass playing experience and a former principle bassist with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra). I was playing in Rock, R&B and Jazz groups in bars, nightclubs and did some studio work for the BBC TV company in order to pay for my music tuition. One thing that had always frustrated me was that the current equipment for bass players was never up to the sound that was in my mind. It seemed that there was always a disconnection between the equipment and me. So I started to modify my basses and amplification on the search of the Holy Grail of great bass tone. I learnt about loudspeakers from a true pioneer of audio, the late Mr. Reginald Solomon. A cinema – sound engineer, who worked most of his life for Western Electric. (W.E. was the original founder of the pro-sound industry). This led me to becoming a pro-sound engineer working first for Vitavox, a respected and old British Loudspeaker company that manufactured huge horn cinema speakers. After this I started my own sound reinforcement company in London. Two things stayed with me, my fascination for bass playing and sound. I was building a lot of my own recording equipment in my studio then. The speakers I used for near-field monitoring were my own design. These later became the Acoustic Energy AE1’s now considered a milestone in the evolution of hi-fi and also in the recording industry. GRP records (a renowned Jazz label) used AE speakers and even eventually the famed Abbey Road studios too. In 1990 I moved to USA and worked briefly for Boston Acoustics in New England designing their premier loudspeaker range, the Lynnfield series. In 1994 I founded Platinum Audio, which made expensive home hi-fi speakers and studio monitors. In that period I designed probably the worlds most expensive and massive home loudspeaker system: the Air-Pulse, which sold for $175,000 a pair! The Japan Audio Society praised the Air-Pulse as the best loudspeaker ever developed in the 100-year history of loudspeakers!

Got some crazy flaming going on the edges.

Maybe I'm an odd sort, but I would really like to have one of these. Preferably in black. Then I can pretend I'm a bass playing James Hetfield. Oooooo yeah!!

1967 Gibson J 50 Adj that I bought new. Played at many gigs and jams over the years and still a joy to play, I can't believe I've had it for 53 years...I'm getting pretty old I guess.😕

I think everyone’s seen them , My 62RI nitro finish jazz , and my trusty old shell pink jazz , which is probably what I play the most 🙂

Haven't posted in here in ages. The Beech girl...and my MKIi

Oh there's more, but I thought people would get bored: plus it was to make the point Phil Jones is not Welsh but did live there...

...and you only discovered all this during the lockdown? Must have been quite an afternoon on Google.

Mixing cabs seldom works anywhere near as well as using identical cabs. That's not to say that any two cabs together won't usually work better than either alone, because they will. But what you're proposing is more like having summer tires on one side of your car and winter on the other, so you're ready for any condition. The reality is that it won't work well in either summer or winter. Find a cab that you like. If one isn't loud enough get another. If what you have doesn't work for you try something else.

So you are at least 100 years old, Douglas. 😲 What a sweet revenge... 🤣

One of Richie's lesser-known accomplishments 🙂

I've got a stack knob Jazz which I made. It's got the stack Knobs, wired in the modern version of the circuit. I initially had the original stack knob layout with the pair of resistors between the pots. Using that layout made me realise why Jack Pastorius changed his bass from stack to the later 3 knob style. With the original wiring, the bass has less output than with the modern circuit, plus you can't roll back one of the volume pots to get the classic Jazz Bass "honk". The modern circuit allows you to get the Jazz tones we all know, with the added facility to roll off the tone on each pickup, independently from the other pickup. Guy Pratt borrowed it from me for a few weeks, and really liked it.

Here you go. The lesser spotted stack knob PJ-Ray 5.

Boredom led me to figure out a song that’s been nagging me for years . Namely the “numbers Counting song” from 70’s Sesame Street. “Hair” is another funky one that’s really bothering me , I think Scott has a video on it ...not sure if I’m up to it tho

No it's not, I've had that too. It's not in the mind, different strings on different basses can sound very different, IMHE. Stands to reasons that they would, with different wood, electrics, 'n all. I think it depends on how much you listen to the nuances of your bass though, especially high up. If you mean feel different then I'm not so sure, but in general I find big differences between brands. Not sure if I'd get through a blind test though...

I'm with you, I like it 👍

And a short scale version could be a Trump Bass.

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Would these be any good?

"Tin Man" by America. I'm going through it slowly, writing down the name of the notes and working our the fingering for it. Then I shall put it into notation-al form on manuscript paper. By doing this I'm improving my Ear Training, music reading and finger dexterity all at the same time! I need a cup of tea!

No here

Rotosound Stainless Steels And Nickels (although I used to use the nickels religiously - I have a set on my fretless because they died after one rehearsal, and I can’t stand the feel of flats, but love the dead sound on a fretless) DR Sunbeams - they were free, so 🤷🏻‍♂️ D’addario Chromes - stiff buggers Warwick Red Label - What farmers use when they run out of razor wire. thats just me though.

I'll never "get" jazz. I'm not doubting the blokes ability to play, but to me that's just a load of meaningless noise. Then again, I suppose many people would say the same about music in the rock genre, which is where I'm much more at home.

If you're walking through the 'hood you'd best be wearing a hood. Wear a bonnet and you'll get rolled, and not the way a car rolls.

I have a LOT of guitars, but these are my faves, all hand built by me. Numero uno is the Strat.

Oh, and meant to mention, I'm another Tortex Triangle man. I recall watching a programme with Brian May and he's very much of your school of thought. He uses a coin (a shilling?) as a pick, and the same as you he likes all the flexibility to be in the way he holds it.

Or a hazmat suit. Bit hot though....

They are open but.... the normal slick service is stumbling. I was told my order would be late as one item was missing. Then told the order would be sent in two parts because one item was out of stock - but not the same item as previously missing. I emailed to ask if I could swap the now out of stock item for a different, more in stock item, but I seem to have broken them.

I didn't know that I loved Elites until I asked what was on a bass I'd bought. Loved the strings so much I had to know. Stadium Elites. The flats they make are amazing too.