LukeFRC

[quote name='SpondonBassed' timestamp='1504005454' post='3362039'] I never visit fiends willingly. Heeheehee. Did you see anything special from the festival while you were there though? [/quote] no - literally was visiting friends and the festival happened to be on. Would have enjoyed the end of [international] festival fireworks on Monday night but that wouldn't have worked with work on Tuesday!

[quote name='SpondonBassed' timestamp='1503609146' post='3359725'] Car crash chic. Where did you find that specimen? [/quote] I think I typed [i]worst bass guitar finish ever[/i] into google image search. [quote name='Mykesbass' timestamp='1503655629' post='3359970'] I'm sure Luke won't mind a little deviation! I agree with you, all that switching has had to be thought through. At least it can't be accused of being style over substance!! [/quote] deviate away. I went to Edinburgh this weekend so nothing's been done. Having been a resident for Edinburgh for many years I forgot the number one rule - avoid during august - actually that's unfair, if you are up for the festival it's amazing.... if you're up to do things like live or visit fiends having 5000 slowly meandering tourists between where you were and where you wanted to be is well annoying!

[quote name='alexclaber' timestamp='1503512219' post='3358860'] I don't recommend using high pass filters with Barefaced Gen 3 cabs except in two particular circumstances - acoustic/double bassists using variable ones to help with feedback and bassist with very powerful rackmount power amps which run flat to subsonic frequencies (most decent power amps have switchable highpass filters built in). I can understand wanting one with 3012LF based cabs because of how that driver is. I wouldn't say I'm ignoring everyone because obviously we'd like this amp to be the ideal amp for lots of bassists but the concept is solely mine, I know what I want and I hope I know what a lot of you want (even though you might not realise it). As Henry Ford said "If I'd asked people what they wanted, they'd have said 'faster horses'" A while back we did a poll about amps over on facebook and the variety of opinions on feature sets (and the strength of opinion on them) was remarkable. Just EQ choices alone could have left everyone arguing for days... Not making an amp would be madness - I spend almost as much time helping our customers with amp buying decisions as I do with cabs but we don't get to sell any of the amps! And I wouldn't want to sell someone else's amp unless I thought it was perfect and was exactly the amp I'd design for me. [/quote] There's a lot of love on HPF on bass amps over in some bits of talkbass - and the micro thumpinator is well regarded here. I think it's a way of taking the rumble out when playing live without cutting all the bottom end.

[quote name='Andyjr1515' timestamp='1503600463' post='3359624'] Love the patina [/quote] that's quality "roadworn" mojo there - some popular mass production factories charge more for that!

[size=8][b]taa daaa!!![/b][/size] [size=1]i joke of course[/size]

[quote name='Andyjr1515' timestamp='1503598891' post='3359602'] Can't wait to see the finished finish [/quote] me too!

[quote name='Andyjr1515' timestamp='1503388326' post='3357698'] That's my boy, that's my boy Hoisted by my own petard, then, I wait patiently with only a soft drumming of fingers on the table.... [/quote] When I've done other refinished I've used paint that takes ages to dry - it's chestnut's melamine lacquer this time and I'm a bit out of kilter by how quickly it dries - I could be going way faster! I've now got a completely flat surface of lacquer! with a bare minimum of tiny shiny spots - there are about 4 spots where i went through the finish to the wood so doing a quick restain and then will give it a couple more layers before the final sand back and polish....! The good thing is that the burst to black means that going though the finish at the edges looks like it was almost planned!

Looking good

[quote name='Andyjr1515' timestamp='1503039956' post='3355185'] Any pics yet? [/quote]actually learning from you about not putting any 'finishing' pictures up when in progress. Sanding sealer on, tried to work out the grain filler but it didn't seem to work so don't think that was too successful. also managed to run through a couple of places - on the back thankfully. Couple of layers of laquer on now - waiting a bit then will flat down and do more layers...

Looks great! Not tempted by a pearl pink?!

[quote name='Rick's Fine '52' timestamp='1502306305' post='3350613'] Loving this Luke, fantastic work, you must be chuffed so far! [/quote] fairly - I think the most exciting bit just happened though... So building up layers of stain starting blue grey and getting darker and adding more of the black.... so I just painted the edge black and then hopefully blended it in - the middle though lifted some of the deep black showing a more bluey black colour - if it dries as good as it looked wet I think I've managed a pretty cool burst effect!

It's the bridge screws and pickup screws I've had problems with before. Neck screws too (threaded bolts are an option I like for the neck) - I think a lot a guitar stuff uses "oval head" or something - it's not super common in hardware stores. Pilot holes are a must. I say this as the main reason I'm doing my current build is the previous version went so wrong as cheap screws kept shearing and going wrong. It probably makes very little difference but I know it's there! Solder - if I were doing it every day lead free is healthier! Which is why the electronics industry use it. It's like welding with the current slightly too low - usable but not as easy as it should be. And that's a great bit of wood you've got - are you using hand drills on it? how hard is it to use the auger (sp?) bit in that clamp?

above photos taken at night in strip light, and probably still wet in most cases- so it's way more bluey than it looks...

[quote name='Andyjr1515' timestamp='1502038011' post='3348890'] It's looking good, Luke. I particularly like the 'reverse strat' jack arrangement. Looks very professional [/quote] thank you - it was the best bit so far - first bit that is kinda "finished" and pulling the backing off the sheet to expose the black anodisation was a very good feeling. And thanks Basstool too

[quote name='SpondonBassed' timestamp='1501182546' post='3343213'] Essential finishing supplies. I thought I'd treat myself to a new soldering iron too. It has LEDs that focus just beyond the tip of the iron. I am trying lead free solder for the first time. The man in Maplin recommended an inexpensive one and another one at double the price. The difference being the one percent silver content in the pricier one. He said that it wouldn't compromise a good joint using the cheap one but I went for the silver. With low levels of signal and the potential for induced interference I reckon the addition of silver gives it the conductive edge over the cheap one if only by a small amount. [attachment=250103:Ibby5.JPG] [/quote] It's been said before.... but the lead free stuff isn't any good IMO. I say this a a young-un who grew up using lead free solder - I was building an effect pedal and ran out and the local shop was this old electronics shop that had been there since the 50's - I think my roll of solder must have been too! It was a revelation! [quote name='SpondonBassed' timestamp='1501400219' post='3344392'] That's probably all the information I will share about costs here. Of course if anyone wants to ask how much I paid for something I've used in the build I will answer but after the initial purchase the cost of the build is largely a matter of choice. It would be pointless to include day to day details of how much I spend and I am not keeping tabs on that anyway. In the end I wont be able to say what was spent down to the last penny but I am not interested in pretending I can do accountancy. [/quote] I'm the same with my build - some things I've gone for more expensive options. My one 2p, as it was the main mistake I made on my last build... but take a load of the screws you got with your kit... and test a few in something. If the heads start to deform chuck them and get new, good ones from a hardware store - I've got a place near me where I can get individual screws - for a couple of quid nice stainless steel ones are a lot less likely to deform or strip the heads. Nice build though!

volume and kill switch!

oh I drilled the holes for the strap locks too big - that was the other thing. Plugged with glue and cocktail sticks so you'll never tell when its done. The bonus was I found I am two screws and two of the lock washers away from a set of Dunlop strap locks. The pink bass had Schaller strap ends and I switched the strap from my thumb bass. Of the two I don't get why anyone in their right minds would go for Schaller - without fail the nut comes loose every so often which means the whole thing will fail. Why they don't make the thread a bit longer and use a lock nut I don't know

tidied the workshop and put the tools away - then remembered that I forgot to make the cut for the control cavity cover... Sanded down through the grades for ages to 400 grit - easily marked wood this! This is it with a bit of white spirit on it. When this dried I wiped it down with water to raise the grain and then went to water the tomatoes.

So as Andyjr1515 pointed out to me... I got the wrong length thread on the switch. The treble pot is a bit short too but you try finding a large selection of 1m rev log pots! Anyway a bit of fitting with a spare bit of the aluminium, and it doesn't get in the way of the battery box (an old warwick one I had in my spares box with the rest of the guts of my Streamer) Put everything together and it looks kinda bass shaped! Today I was rushing a bit and a few things went wrong... I struggled to get the holes drilled for the pickup cavities and the bridge wire... and in doing it managed to mess up the edge of the bridge of wood between the pickups. I also managed to go all the way through when drilling for the pickup screw - so I've got a tiny hole in the back - should be easily solved. There was something else that went a bit squiffy but I can't remember what.

But what was the hole for? Well this bass has a load of the ideas I've seen and though were cool and added onto this.... and this is borrowed off Jens Ritter... (I couldn't face a barrel jack)

Whci hshould be just the right size for the cavity... I hope so- for some reason if I got it this size it was half the price of getting it 2mm longer...

Today started with shaping this bit of aluminium