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WOO HOO! I now have the bass back! It still has the cables and strap that were in the gig bag too. It did take an email from my MSP to help move things along, though I was mostly raising concerns about police funding and restructure making the cops' job difficult. I now also have twins.... (kind of)

Hello again. For anyone who missed out on my last offering: https://www.basschat.co.uk/topic/340516-recycling-a-piano-short-scale-tele-bass/?tab=comments#comment-3737079 Since then I've moved to Dorset (clue in new user name) and set up a temporary workshop in my mother's shed. I have a few projects on the go , all involving recycled materials , notably pianos. I'll start with what I hope will be a fairly straight forward Precision Bass build. For now I'm calling it the P34 as it's a 34" scale P bass. I cut a blank for the neck and started to remove the veneer from the surface that will take the fretboard. The veneer is stuck on with old animal glue and I don't want to run the risk of the fretboard coming off at a later date. Then I noticed that there was a join in the wood just off centre that could weaken the neck and make the headstock look crap so...start again! New neck blank, this one only has veneer on one side. It has the number 31093 stamped on it, probably the pianos workshop number to ensure that parts of each instrument in production stay together. This will be lost when the fretboard goes on. Take a last look : Slot routed for the truss rod: The fretboard , made from some sort of mahogany, no idea exactly what. The body so far. It's based on the previous Tele body but solid and with the upper horn added. I didn't have my glasses on when I took that! The fretboard has been glued , hopefully I'll get back in the workshop tomorrow.

Updates! So while it seems like my new truss rod is being sent by carrier pigeon, I've left the neck for now and moved on to the bridge. For now I have no idea how well this will work, but If i'm designing and making my own bass I'm going to try and make my own bridge. I routed out the saddle shoulders and a slot for the string block? Is that what it's called? I've been referring to it as a choke. Decided against timber saddles so will use these 3D adjustable saddles I have. Think brass / gold would look better... Rounded the sharp edges and cut the string block / choke / tree / thing... out of Ovangkol, spent about an hour sanding it to fit and glued it in place. Aesthetically I love it, so hopefully it works well. Next! Well I'm heading off on holiday today... so I'm going to have a relax! but when I get back hopefully the pigeons have made it here and left me a truss rod and I can finish the neck routing. The bridge needs slimming down the block is currently 30mm thick and will be taken down to 20mm and then drilled, the bridge will be set for string through stringing and I need 5 mounting screws under the bridge saddles to mount this on the bass. Really don't think I'll glue the bridge to the bass in case I need to repair or replace in the future. Thanks again guys!

Sanded a little more.....

OK - I've come across what I think is a 'new kid on the block' in terms of guitar hardware, parts and tools. And I'll be very irritated if you all know about them and haven't told me! Glued To Music - gluedtomusic.com I had ordered the Schaller M6 mini tuners (I needed 3 sets), all shown in stock at Gear4music (usually a reliable supplier). After a few days got message that they were delayed. Waited another week. On further checking, the estimated delivery was late September!! Gluedtomusic - in stock, received in 2 days I wanted the improved version of Stewmac's dremel binding jig. Tried Tonetech Luthier Supplies. Out of stock - no estimate of when back in. Gluedtomusic - in stock. Received in 2 days So a positive call out to Gluedtomusic.com - thanks, folks And so - what is this modified binding channel cutting jig? Well, the Stewmac one unmodified is pretty much unusable. There is no way at all you can keep the top-heavy Dremel vertical. And if Dremel isn't vertical, the binding channel is too deep or too shallow. So Andyjr1515 a few years ago made a simple mod. He glued a stick onto it. It's here on the left: Now obviously the CEO some enterprising concern saw this, saw that it was Andyjr1515 who had modded it and made a phone call to the Chairman. "What...THE Andyjr1515?? Do it! Get it into production!! Quick!!!" OK...maybe they found the same issue and just did a better job of it So the modded version is the one on the right. And WHAT a difference. Because cutting the binding channels on the top of a acoustic build is, without any doubt, THE most scary bit of any of the aspects of any of the builds I do, and THE most likely for it to go irreparably wrong. And even with this modded jig, it was still scary. But, other than a bit of tidying up with a very sharp chisel, it's done: And why the two cuts? Because on the inside I'm going to put some herringbone purfling, bent to shape over the bending iron: And outside that, the Rocklite Sundari binding, complete with feature line: Couple of things needed to be done before these are glued but they are ready to be attached. Oh yes...and I'm going to iron them on

So progress! The bass was actually at my parents so finally got my hands on it. First thing - take it apart. The bass itself isn't in bad condition few battle scars on the back but nothing that bothers me. Something that did bother me were those tuners. Wow - I had heard they were bad but these are proper s***e 😂 so straight in the bin. Few minutes working away at the body to get rid of the gloss and then on to the spraying! As always with paint, I wasn't sure what colour this was going to be. I was aiming for the colour on the Flea signature bass and I'm pretty happy with the way it came out! Few more coats and sanding and I think it will be almost there, not sure if I am going to go down the gloss finish or leave it matte. Will see how it comes out across the next few days!

All of my guitars could be described as upside down by most... My Kramer fretless here being gigged when it was new in my teens and still being gigged two years ago:

So I got my Spark today. As long as you temper your expectations, it's actually pretty bloody good, and quite clever. Firstly, it doesn't put out a load of bottom end. It's only got two 4" speakers and a small port behind the cloth on the front, so there's not much thump, but it is nice and clear, and only bottoms out if you play below E on a 5-string (I ran my Bongo 5 - which has a famously hot output - into it and it just about handled it without crapping out). It's got a nice midrange burp, so bridge-pickup fingerstyle sounds good, and it pops nicely if you slap or dig in with a pick. Over and above the hardware, it's the software that impresses the most. It has several dedicated bass amp models (from what I can tell, there's two GK models, an Ampeg, and an Eden) and, if you add effects, they work nicely and don't thin the sound out. Nice crisp, wide stereo reverbs, decent (if not very versatile) delays, good chorus, flanger and tremolo, and a chunky, buzzy, Darkglass-esque distortion. It comes with lots of fun playalongs for you to jam with (complete with on-screen tabs and chord charts for some of it), and the app is nicely integrated with Spotify and Apple Music (if you're running it on an Apple device like me) so it's easy to load up your playlists and play along. There's also the Smart Jam features that 'listen' to what you're playing and provide a backing track, but I haven't really played with that yet. It also functions well as a regular stereo Bluetooth speaker. You can tell it was primarily designed for guitar though, because the guitar tones are very, very good. I plugged in my Sterling JP 7-string, and it authentically chucked out everything from a smooth, valvey blues tone to a great full-on shreddy, djenty metal tone, with well-modelled dynamics. The low B on the 7-string came across thick and clear too. Overall, based on the few hours I've spent with it, it's a fun little box of tricks, with some decent, usable sounds in it, and it seems like it's going to be a great tool for neighbour-friendly practice. There's more to dig into with it yet though, especially the Smart Jam stuff, so I'll report back once I've messed with it some more. It'd be nice if the next iteration had a looper and possibly a built-in wireless system like the Boss Katana Air, but, for now, I think I'm happy.

Go on then... 🙂 I like the tube they sent to keep the leveling beam in too. The steel rule was a freebie.

Ah well, since we’re dreaming: six string, 33-30” multiscale 16mm spacing at bridge, 8mm spacing at nut Stu-Hamm-Urge style J/P/J pickup setup... or Roscoe Beck Sadowsky pre with VTC RMC piezo saddles Chambered Singlecut roasted ash body, roasted maple bolt on neck ebony board, no front inlays, side LEDs bridge stringable through body at an angle (a la my Yamaha BB435) to allow easy use of long scale strings Ultralite tuners total weight of 4 pounds 😉

FedEx came today, wo-hoo!

Been doing a few gigs, YES FINALLY, so haven’t been very active. That said, put a few hours in tonight. Routed the control cavity, neck pocket and pickup cavity. Had a bit of a template issue, I now remember why I stopped buying prefab templates, resulting a not so neat pickup cavity. Luckily I had already decided the bass needed a pick-guard so it is a non issue (just annoying). I hand drew the pick-guard rough shape to show where I am going. It will be a dragon’s blood red body, with black pick-guard and Zebrano control cavity cover (Tele style) to match the headstock caps.

I think it's much simpler than that, and have already posted so, but, to repeat... 'Is having a thorough formal music training a barrier to being inventive?' No. /topic

Wow - the Venom video is pure Spinal Tap And as for the Ancient video, every metal cliche is there, including the goat. Anyway, here's something fabulously groovy - it's the Beach Boys from 1963 Mike Love certainly has some unfortunate mannerisms (2nd from right) which make you wonder where his carers are. And their Mums come along for some groovy dancing at 1.40 ! Fab! You'll have to click on this as it can't be embedded. but it's worth it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2s4slliAtQU

£200 on FB if you're interested...

My Elwood shouldn’t be too long now. A couple more weeks to wait.

I did the Crimson guitars thing, making the pickguard matt by sandpaper. Looks great I think. In any case, Zebrano control cavity cover and pickguard (just need to make the P pickup holes and sand the sides)... CHECK! Think it will look pretty sweet.

My thoughts exactly! I'm now desperately resisting the temptation to get things loaded up on a larger board, to make space for the tap tempo and Woody's new gizmo 😁

At the risk of sounding annoying, I honestly think the best thing to do is to transcribe/steal/learn some licks from guys you want to sound like. Even in the most ubiquitous funk tunes there will be some cool ideas for the taking (all those great Bernard Edwards lines in Chic/Sister Sledge). In terms of the vocabulary/theory, perhaps the rhythmic content is more significant than the melodic- it's really worth listening to and working syncopation and accents. When you mentioned 'taking the funk out', that's what I immediately thought of! In terms of chord/scales, there is a lot of pentatonic stuff, with or without 'blue notes' and use of the dorian mode (e.g. Good Times). I do reckon it's better to learn/copy/trascrirbe ideas first, then rationalise/theorise afterwards- that way you'll be able to learn how to use scales in a musical way.

The amp has just been packaged for return. Thomann were really good, they asked for some video's of what the amp was doing or wasn't. Saw the video's and have agreed to the return. They have also paid for the return postage.

Ah, that probably explains our greek teacher, Mr Dorian Mixolydian

At the SE Bass Bash a few years back we did a cab shootout and the Berg CN212 was the easy winner.

I am nicking this for my 5 string planned build.

Good to hear it’s back. Hopefully you get the other bits back & the thief gets a bad bout of COVID.

Like @Jabba_the_gut says on his recent build, a question is always what to do about fret-ends. I usually do what Jez has done - de-tang the frets, fill the tang slot and then round off the fret ends. So what does 'de-tang' mean? It means nipping or filing off the tang (the strip on the fretwire that hammers into the slot) at either end of the fret. You can see that here: And why would you want to do that? Well, over time, the fretboard can sometimes dry and shrink a tiny bit and the fret ends start feeling a bit sharp. But this is easy to fix with a small needle file and is a routine annual 'set-up' job for many guitars and basses. The advantage of nipping the ends of the tangs, as Jez has done, is that you don't get the tang corner itself ever exposed - because that is more tricky to fix...you basically have to sand them smooth but that can impact on the neck finish. You can put binding on the sides of the fretboard and that covers the fret slots and the tangs and the fret ends but sometimes changes the overall width. I am also always troubled on a neck by creating a demarcation line with veneer. Great fretboard wood; great neck wood; and then a strip (or strips) of veneer glued in between. Should be OK but always better if you don't have to do that. So on a few of my recent builds, I have experimented with a win-win-win method of binding. It's worked well and so I'll be using it on this. Basically I: detang the fret ends; fit the frets with the ends overhanging; round and finish the fret ends; add a binding with a feature strip; round off and and slim the binding. This is what I mean: So the frets are overhanging - to an exact measurement (easy to do - you just sand the whole fretted board edge on to get to sub-tenths accuracy); the fret ends are rounded; the binding is sanded to exact height and glued on; the binding is rounded off and slimmed a touch so it is around a mere 0.25mm proud of the fret. So the win-win-win is that you get a demarcation line for free, you get a lovely rounded edge to your fretboard and you don't get sharp fret ends even if the board dries over the years. Anyway, that's the theory, and it does seem to work I have one more thing I have to check/do before any of that but, in preparation, I have a binding that couldn't have matched the macassar better if I'd tried!: And the same binding will go on the body edges (it's the Rocklite Sundari product) The final thing that P and I have sorted is the headstock. Here the intention is, if at all possible, to keep the string runs straight and to get the whole thing to fit into a standard OM/OOO size guitar case. Happily, while I was drawing it all up, the tuners (Schaller M6 mini) arrived and so I could see if it was going to work. I think it will. And have room for a couple of swifts There's a few things to do and to check before I do any of this...but, anyway, that's the plan

I don't think I'd ever have a custom built. Although I think I know generally what makes up a bass that suits me, I know there's something about the sum of the parts and the way they work together that cannot be quantified or specified. I'm sure some of us have at some time had more than one example of what is 'the same model' bass but found they sound, play or feel slightly different. I'd much rather find the bass for me by trying lots that have already been built, and upon finding one that feels right, adjust and modify it as necessary. I'm 100% sure that if I specified a custom build that was on paper exactly the same as 'my bass', it would sound feel and play completely differently.

I'll see you and raise you:

A bit tricky to answer. They could be exactly the same or completely different. If you want exactly the same, then it is probably better to get a fender. If you want something fender like but you have specific requirements, that is when they are useful. Mine is sort of Jazz shaped, but with 5 strings and a string spacing of 16.5mm. Fender don't do that, neither do they do the light weight, wood or finish options that mine has. So yes, looks sort of fender like, not really like a fender.

Phil - My days of being driven by the lure of the £ are over - I have retired so I can now reveal my, previously hidden, open hearted and gregarious persona. 🤩

I've been using Newtone strings recently for my Jazz bass and Acoustic guitar - I order them direct from the Newtone website. For La Bella strings Bassdirect prices always seem to be much cheaper than anywhere else (the same may apply for other brands too). Otherwise I go to Strings Direct. SD prices aren't always the best but their customer service is always fantastic.

- 19 mm string spacing at the bridge - 36" scale, fretted/fretless = 2 instruments - no front dots, they are useless - a single pickup will do, another is an optional extra - no controls, they can be in the pedal board - lightweight, chambered/hollow - dark top and fretboard - local timber, oil finish - black HW - 5 strings (BEADG) - 40 - 125, ss rw I think I am ready, where's the gig?

I know it's not funny but that really made me laugh I was very lucky in that an addict walking past asked me what had happened to my door. I explained I'd had a few guitars nicked. He said he'd ask around, and then half an hour later lead me to a house with 8 of the 10 guitars in it in exchange for £50. I still miss my Aria Pro II hollow body 335 alike though

Both of my Lulls.

I bought this yesterday from the gentleman known here as @lowregisterhead and I've only tried it briefly before purchase (to confirm it was as epic as the YT videos suggest) and for about half an hour last night (until Mrs Axe complained about the windows rattling). I'm therefore very much in the honeymoon period! Although there are more knobs than I'm used to dealing with, it didn't take long for me to get familiar with their operation: Character switch - too much bass boost for this to be useful to me, so I'm unlikely to be using this function. There is plenty of range on the Gain control. The Comp/Limit feature goes from just limiting peaks, right up to a pronounced sustain. My gigging amps have tended to have valve preamps with passive tone stacks, so the active Filter section is a bit of a departure for me. I quite often need to cut bass when using my BF Super Twin, but (at least in my living room) this control sounds right at about noon. I boosted some Mids at 200Hz for my favoured sweet spot. The Treble control is really effective in bringing out the clank of a Precision. At first I thought it might be adding noise, but I discovered this was coming from the bass (with hands off strings) rather than the amp. The Bright control doesn't do much for me. It is focused on 10kHz, whereas the Super Twin doesn't reproduce much above 4kHz, plus I use flats. It might be different with roundwounds. The facility to make quick comparisons between flat and EQ'd sounds using the Filter switch is handy. The Comp/Limit circuit comes after the Filter section, so with some Comp engaged, boosting the Bass can change the tonal balance without massively changing the volume, and still lets the fundamentals come through when playing up the dusty end. I set it so that it controls the transients on the one song where I (reluctantly) have to slap (Ashes to Ashes), evens out the harder attack when picking with a plectrum, but otherwise leaves my signal alone. I like it. Drive is great for adding in some 'fur', in fact at settings below noon it is not a million miles from how my Ampeg PF-50T (sold to fund this purchase) used to sound when pushed. I see it is switchable, but it does bring in a significant volume boost, so I don't know how useful that would be in a live context. I might investigate foot-switching, but I'll probably just set and forget - I am not a mid-gig amp-knob-twiddler. (If anyone knows what goes on in the RM-4 footswitch, please let me know - I expect there is just an LED and current-limiting resistor on each switch.) As I understand it, this model has the filters from the HD350 (which people seem to prefer) with the extra features of the HD360 (e.g. light-up push-switches). Although it's possible to pick up an HD350 for quite a bit less, I much prefer the look of this version's front panel, and it has a strong 'Rolls Royce' feel about it. The amp really brought out the difference between the basses I played through it, rand somehow seemed to increase the range of their passive tone controls. This may seem like an odd thing to say, but the thing I liked best about the TC Classic 450 I once owned was the ability to dial in some subtle compression and drive for a vintage-y sound, and then leave it. This amp does that too, but in a much classier package. It has also save me having to put together a pedalboard. Roll on the first post-lockdown band rehearsal. You're going to want pics, so here are a couple of photos from Dave's ad:

It's amazing how awful some amazing bass tones can sound when isolated. Works perfectly in the mix, sounds like ar$e on it's own.

There is always THOR!

Love a Kramer!!

Great news you finally have it returned to its rightful home. Finally a success story to cheer us all up a bit. Dave

Not rock or prog, but one of the best keyboardists out there - here with microtonal Dave Fiucyznski on guitar, Hiromi Uehara:

I had no idea that you had such a low opinion of me Phil! 😞