Andyjr1515

See who?

Trouble is, modding the neck will make it sound different (not necessarily worse, but definitely different) and it will feel different... ...and as @fretmeister says above, this will be just a set up issue - easily fixed and something you would want to learn in any case if you were considering changing the neck So I agree with the others, best to: -set up your present bass which will mean you keep the stuff you like and get rid of the stuff you are not happy about - buy another bass for no better reason that you can never have too many basses

My bad. I scan read it and thought it was the drill that had broken based on the photo!! Yes - there are some timbers that are very resistant to letting the screws cut their threads. Wenge, ebony, even some types of rock maple. I try to find good quality screws (easier said than done...how do you know?), I put soap on the threads and do the 'two twists forward, one twist back'. But sometimes they still snap

Ouch! What drills are you using? I would recommend some decent quality Forstners. Are you using a pillar drill or hand drill?

I've been awakened from my slumber by @Jabba_the_gut. Yes - of course I'll be there. I'll try to sort the payment stuff tomorrow Hmmm...is that the time? Better nod off again, then.......zzzzzzzzzz

That neck is the absolute dog's whatsits! Can't see a dark patch even when you tell me where it is supposed to be

Looks good! And funnily enough, ref mashing up the pickup screw holes when originally fitting the pickups, I was going to ask whether there was enough depth to pop a hardwood block under there and screw into that - but you clearly beat me to it and popped one in there in any case! Looking forward to the next one. With that result, can't believe you haven't now fully got the bug

Well, as always with me I am probably may be wrong - but isn't it that the bridge earthing might be causing this effect? How I always understood it was: - that when touching the strings or bridge any potential current present at the strings or bridge basically grounds through your body - but if your bridge is already fully grounded, then there is no potential current because that potential is always being fully dissipated through the bridge to the earth of your jack - On the other hand, if your earthing of the bridge is weak then, when you touch the bridge or strings, that potential earths through you - stopping the mains buzz. **I am aware that the grounding of the bridge is not primarily a shielding action - it is very much a safety step to stop fatality in the event that a short somewhere renders the strings and anything metallic touching them becoming electrically live. But I think the above logic holds good even accepting that?

Sounds pretty good from here! And it looks utterly splendid. I'd missed the thread previously - stunning.

I would have said that is very marketable. The headstock and decals is a pro-job and, to a buyer, that is often what they look at first. I stand by what @Richard R quotes me as posting - it's splendid and beautiful job.

Stunning and awe-inspiring in equal measure.

I was going to suggest a curved fine Microplane rasp blade from their Snap-In range...but it looks like they've pulled out of the carpentry market altogether!!! That said, they are very active in the (probably more expensive lucrative) cooking utensil martket - and it's almost certainly the same blades...

I confess that every build I do ends up as 'one of my favourite builds' ...but, I loved the way this one came out in the end. For anyone bored enough to read through, here was the build/mod thread:

Absolutely flippin' gorgeous!

Goodness... Well - I 'spose no harm in asking

I'm delighted to see that doing what it was built for, @Kateplaysbass - playing Truly made my day

Yes - as @itu points out above, a CITES exemption came through at the end of 2019 in terms of most commonly used species of rosewood used in guitars, including parts and accessories. Also, there are plenty of dark wood alternatives that most luthiers can use. $400 for a neck made by the guy who designed it - grab it. It generally costs me well over $200 just for the wood! Oh - and two truss rods won't sort a 'naturally twisted' neck. The only thing worth trying would be planing the joining face flat and straight - but, as you can imagine, that has it's own challenges and consequences And the third option - £1000 to make a neck??? Really??? Did he/she have a royal 'By Appointment to...' crest?

Good news - good customer service all round. Nice to see

You should be covered if it was new. This is GAK's Warranty Statement off their website: "Warranty We want our customers to buy from us in confidence that their purchase is covered under warranty should anything go wrong. Some manufacturers may offer extended warranty periods if you choose to register the goods, so we always recommend checking the manufacturer’s website. All new items are covered by the manufacturer’s minimum 1-year warranty Second-Hand, B-stock and Ex-Display items have a 3-month warranty"

Nearly a year is less than a year and so it may well be still under warranty. And if it is still under warranty then it's definitely a warranty job - there is no 'misuse/abuse/lack of maintenance' that can cause that that wouldn't show signs of misuse elsewhere. If it is out of warranty and they start talking silly repair costs, shout - in terms of stabilising it rather than going for the 'invisible repair', there is a relatively simple and easy fix I can talk through with you that you would be able to do yourself. But only resort to that if a warranty claim is a complete no-no and they offer no other acceptable fix.

No harm at all in just creeping up on the target weight. Looking good from here!

7mm will certainly help - probably lose 0.8lbs if I have my calcs correct. One thing you could maybe consider is taking more thickness out of the middle area at the back - a bit like Warwick do with their Thumbs. I've done that on many (most) of my own builds over the past 4-5 years - it has the advantage of taking weight out without vastly reducing the depth of the chambers - this kind of thing: It doesn't have to be as deep as this to still make a big, big difference. This one was the 34" Jazz bass I built for @Len_derby where we were aiming for 'as light as we could get'. From memory it ended at around 6.5lbs

With all the AI shenanigan's going on, there is no guarantee that this is correct, but according to that great cloud in the sky "The difference between lacquer and varnish is the type of finish used. Lacquers are thin, fast-drying finishes, while varnishes are thick, slower drying finishes." But maybe the actual facts have been lost in English/Russian/Chinese/Many other World Languages translation...

Fear not - other than a couple of scenarios, then the truss rod adjustment is rarely the difference between not being able to play a bass and being able to playing it OK. But a properly set-up truss rod - all other things being equal - will generally make a bass play better and easier. And checking it is easy: - Remember that what we are after, ideally, is that the neck is very-nearly-almost straight. - The big no-no is a back-bow, where the fretboard basically has a hump in the middle...this can lead to buzzing frets. - And the easiest way to check that you don't have a back bow is to make sure you have a teeny bit of forward bow-and-arrow bow. So to check: - (you may need a capo or a friend here) Hold down the top string at the 1st fret and the 14th fret both at the same time. - While still holding those down, tap the string onto the fret nearest the middle (usually, around 5th or 6th fret) - Is there a perceptible gap between the string and fret (ie it 'taps') or is the string hard against that middle fret? If the string is hard against that middle fret, then the trussrod needs loosening. For most basses, that means turning the adjuster anti-clockwise. The general rule is turn it 1/8 turn, recheck and if still hard against the fret, then loosen it another 1/8th. If there still no tangible gap when you tap the string after a 1/4 turn it is usually wise to ask (and asking here is fine). But if, on the first check, there is a tangible gap, then it is about how big that gap is from the bottom of the string to the top of the fret. Don't worry about feeler gauges, etc., near enough is good enough. - if it is about the thickness of a business card or less, it is fine. - if the gap is much greater than the thickness of a business card, then the string tension is bowing the neck a touch too much and, for an ideal set-up, the truss rod needs tightening a touch to reduce that gap. On most basses that means turning the adjuster clockwise. It can be quite stiff to turn and so, if the gap on your bass is excessive, I would suggest you report back here and we can give you some more detailed guidance.

I'm sure once upon a time there was a difference (I think I remember that all lacquers were types of varnish but not all varnishes were lacquer), but in common parlance the terms are pretty interchangeable