Andyjr1515

I'll be doing my first wood cutting later today - forstner then router or chisel. I'm going to start here and then check the weight impact and the balance: The reason the top horn area is relatively small is because there is a cut-out at the back.

Hmmmm...put the second coat on after the recommended 16 hours and, although colour-coverage was great, it orange-peeled like crazy: I just tried another coat on the sample that was done days ago and, although just in isolated bits, that's done the same. Don't you just love these products that are incompatible with themselves As it's dried it's settled down a bit but no good as a base colour coat. I've got a few ideas in terms of using it and I'll also contact the maker's product support. It would be nice to use it because I think the colour is just right, but if it needs to be sanded off, so be it. Either way, it's probably Thursday before it will be hard enough to try some of the ideas out.

[quote name='Paul S' timestamp='1483980465' post='3211664'] Are you wiping or spraying, Andy? [/quote] New one for me - brushing! I've been doing some experiments since Ronseal changed their formulation for their varnish...it doesn't take thinners as well as it used to. As part of that, I have done a couple of varnish finishes with an artist's fan brush rather than micro-fibre wipe-on. I've got the spray version of this colour, but also picked up a tin and have tried that for this first coat (I can always sand it down and spray over if it doesn't work). So far, the finish is as good as wipe-on and, in some ways, better than spray as you don't get the 'dimples' - and if you remember, these types of coatings don't melt into previous layers like nitro would so buffing down to a dimple free smoothness isn't an option. You end up with contour lines as each coat cuts through and exposes the previous one. The testing time will be after a light sand, seeing what happens to the second coat. If it starts showing brushstrokes, etc, then for the final surface prior to the varnish coats, I might thin it and wipe-on as I would with varnish in my normal 'odd' style. In parallel, I'm seeing if I can rig a simple booth in my small garden shed to start trying spray more. But with this one, even though I'm using the fan brush rather than the microfibre cloth, I'm sticking with techniques I'm familiar with...

I've had a good look at the HB body and made a full size drawing, detailing all of the existing chambers and cutouts, both sides. On top of that I've rough-drawn the areas that could be considered for removal - bearing in mind that I need to leave room for a rebate to sit the covers firmly onto. Don't worry! These aren't the final routing areas...more looking at the art of the possible and practical: [list] [*]The area in front of the neck pickup is a useful one - I would go to neck pocket depth for the width of the neck/pickups, but could go quite deep below that [*]The area in the top horn doesn't actually do much funtionally, but there's not actually a huge amount of wood that could come out here because of the cover rebate, the 'belly' carve at the back and the radius at the edges of the horn. [*]The area above the bridge pickup and between the pickups could yield a useful amount of wood, but I want to start further forward to ensure that the balance is not affected. [/list] What I will do, apart from order a smaller rebate router cutter so I can maximise the size of the chamber vs the size of the aperture - around 3mm should be fine - is ponder a little more and then start with the first one on the list and see just how much weight it removes and what it does to the balance then decide on additional chambers as an iterative process. I'll probably start cutting wood back end of this week...

And the back - also taken from a respectable distance

Sanding sealed, grain filled, sanded down, cleaned down, masked and first coat on the top and sides on. I won't show a close up on this, the first coat, yet - it's a bit rough and uneven. I should be able to do the back this afternoon and get a second coat on tomorrow...

[quote name='scojack' timestamp='1483953581' post='3211292'] Thanks Mykesbass was keeping it for myself but thought it would be good for this bass . Andy I can't really say how many coats, it varies on the wood (I don't use grain filler) . Lets say lots (at least a dozen). Many thin coats is the way to go with this stuff, brush on and leave, don't be tempted to brush it too much. as each new layer melts into the last, thin coats will help stop drips and bubbles too. Oh I don't thin it either, just schlap it on as is. IanM [/quote] Great - thanks for the tips, Ian. I'll try it on the Piccolo bass that I'm trying as the next full build - I'll find an area in the shed I can rig up a temporary brushing table. The piccolo will be natural wood finish and if I can get half as good as this I'll be well pleased

Just had a look....the chambered Warmouths are 4lbs, the solids are generally around 5...still a lot less than this one, though...

[quote name='Harryburke14' timestamp='1483894271' post='3210920'] The Pots are a Ki0gon loom so youd have to speak to him as to what they are. That being said the originals weren't bad, I just change pickups semi regularly and therefore wanted a no-faff solderless loom. [/quote] Ah...had forgotten it's a replacement loom, Harry. Good choice. The body routings are very clean and accurate, by the way. Just the two holes from the pickup chambers to the control chamber a bit untidy. The body alone, completely stripped down is 6lb 6oz. I think I'm right in saying a typical Warmouth body is 4lbs ish?

[quote name='HowieBass' timestamp='1483820051' post='3210438'] Going to have to follow this one too! [/quote] Thanks, HowieBass OK - while Nic's Mouradian-style is letting the grain fill cure, I set about attacking Harry's Harley Benton I am VERY impressed with this bass. Let us now dispense with the proviso of 'at this price point' - it's irrelevant. Metal control plate with good quality knobs reveals a clean and screw-connector-fitted loom and pots: And before you all jump on me, I KNOW there are two levels of CTS pots, but pretty certain these are CTS pots nonetheless: Tip for those who might want to take theirs to pieces and haven't done it before - don't lever out tuner bushes, pop a socket or similar as a drift and gently tap them out: And in the time it's taken Tottenham and Aston Villa to get going in their first half, we have one disassembled bass, ready for all the bits to be bagged safely : Thanks for looking, folks

...and while all that is drying and curing, I'm off to take Harry's Harley Benton to bits. Happy Days!

The mahogany parts of the body have been sanding sealed, lightly sanded and now the grain filler is curing. I've used Rustins - not great but not as bad as some of the others...they all tend to be either too soft and just sand out again, or too hard, leading you to end up sanding back to bare wood! The grain isn't as marked as some mahogany so it actually won't be such a big issue, but the smoother the better. No shots of that...it would be a bit like publishing a sneaked shot of a beautiful lady with her face-mask on (and without the cucumber) In the meantime, I've been trialling some paint, with offcuts from the body wood prepared in exactly the same way. I've seen a number of photos of Nic's sadly-gone Ric and the colour varies considerably across the photos, but with the addition of finish varnish which will tint it a teeny weeny bit, I think this is getting pretty close: The interesting thing is that this is a brushed-on...useful for a man without a spray booth...

[quote name='scojack' timestamp='1483835952' post='3210572'] Thanks guys. Yes Andy it's melamine, respirator in a well ventilated shed. I wouldn't use it indoors, that's why all my finishing is done in the good weather. Lovely and clear and polishes to a high shine ...just a lot of rubbing [/quote] Hmmm...might have to try again. I'm thinking of trying to clear a temporary area in the shed and rig up a shower curtain to do a bit of spraying so I could have a bash in there. Do you thin it? Also, approximately how many coats would it typically take? Obviously no probs if you'd rather not say. This and some of your previous ones are amongst the best gloss finishes I've seen...

What's the finish again, Ian? Was it Chestnut Melamine? If so, you certainly have worked how to get the best out of the product - it's top drawer stuff . I tried it on the last veneer job I did. I liked the way it went on but was staggered how strong the fumes were. In the end MrsAndyjr1515 suggested it wasn't perhaps the healthiest thing to be doing in the cellar, respirator or not

Got some paint trials tomorrow

You've convinced me, Ian! Lovely job

[quote name='Harryburke14' timestamp='1483810724' post='3210326'] Have some faith in yerself [/quote] I do....but this lot might not!

[quote name='Paul S' timestamp='1483808166' post='3210297'] Colour me, and my tad heavy Yamaha BB425, interested..... [/quote] Yes Me too...

OK - this is the part where those of a nervous disposition must look away. For an instrument that is already built, there are basically three ways of removing wood to remove weight. [list] [*]Slim it down from the back [*]Cut and cover chambers in the back: [/list] This is my Indie Les Paul. Beautiful and totally over the top. Full over the top spec. Still heavy after THIS, but now playable rather than (reinforced) wall hanger material [list] [*]Do the same but from the top. With Paul_S's Sterling, we kept it under the scratchplate - more limited weight reduction but doesn't require re-finishing: [/list] With Harry's, we are going to have to take much more wood out. So the option is: [list] [*]Route out large chambers where there is the depth to do so [*]Cover them as you would a wood control chamber cover [*]Sand it all down [*]Veneer over the top [/list] And this is the veneer we're going to try: and....please, those of a nervous disposition and those who hate real wood veneer being stained...it's going to have the Andyjr1515 fountain pen ink approach to end up this sort of color: For those who think the whole thing is a travesty, you'll just have to trust me... ...that if it all goes well, it will be stunning ...and if it all goes badly, I will have to buy Harry another Harley Benton (but happily for him, therefore without the gig dings!)

[quote name='Rumple' timestamp='1483807495' post='3210290'] I'm along for the ride [/quote] Happy New Year, Rumple!

Hi With Nic's Mouradian style just entering the 'coat and wait a few hours to dry' stage, and Pete's (our old-gits-band's bassist) piccolo short scale still in the 'how the hell am I going to do that!!!' stage, I've gone a bit back to my roots. I started the building lark, like many of us, as an evolution of modding first the electrics and hardware, then moving on to pimping up the looks or playability of entry-level guitars and basses. In all the years I've been playing guitars and basses, I've never seen so much range at so much affordability at, generally, such good quality. Take Harryburke14's HB bass. He loves the way it plays; he loves the sound. But it looks nice but a bit plain. And it weighs: Yes - 10lb 11oz!!!! And yes - I know we all know of basses and guitars that are up to 13lb and that there are those who love heavy basses. And fair enough, but I think most of us start getting a bit uncomfortable beyond 8 1/2 lb if we are playing or practising for long. Here it is, and it's beautiful. For the money it cost Harry, it's mind-boggling: This complete bass cost the same as the unfinished neck wood cost me for Nic's Mouradian. So it must be rubbish... Well, actually, far from it. The neck - and I've used a few and I've built a few - feels silky smooth and is nice in the hand. Frets look OK, fretboard looks well finished. The fit of the neck is as good as most Fenders I've personally worked on and a lot better than some: Yes - a bit of sawdust from the scratchplate fixing screws - but only one is going to need a cocktail stick. It plays nicely. It sounds pretty good. Yes - a set of Seymour Duncans would sound even better, but it really isn't bad. Here is the surprise, given the weight and price-point. I was pretty sure it was going to be a photo-image of the grain and underneath ply (albeit Ash ply). But no. It's solid Ash: Three-piece body, but well matched and executed: Lightening by removing wood is all about the sheer volume of wood you can take out. Off comes the scratchplate to see if there are already voids in there (such as the entry level favourite of a swimming pool rout to allow different models out of just alternative scratchplate (P/J etc). Nope - just as you would hope to find it: So as a bass, it has my tick of approval. As a basis for modification, ti also very much has my tick of approval...the plans for which I'll post shortly I'm really looking forward to this one

[quote name='MoonBassAlpha' timestamp='1483795403' post='3210167'] Am I the only one on here who thinks it would be a real shame to cover all that nice wood up? Especially the nice neck through and cover detail on the back [/quote] No you're not. And I'm not. On the back, the only things that are going to be cream are the two mahogany wings. The complete neck, including the through-body section, will be left visible and the matching cover too Does that make you feel better?

Actually, it all seemed to come together quickly. I use the sanding sealer not only to seal it but also to see if I've missed any sanding dints or lumps...but I think we can say that finishing has commenced!

The cover will be held on with neodymium magnets. From personal experience, I find it helps to have a thumb-hole! The plan is to get this sanding sealed by the end of tomorrow latest. Lots of little tidy up jobs, mainly involving sanding. However, I managed a reasonably neat chiselled rebate to drop the Model One away from the low-set strings: I've also slimmed the neck a bit - the bridge is quite a narrow spread - and tried to get the neck profile as close to Nic's favourite bass as possible. I find the easiest way to fine tune a neck is to use a scraper and hold the bass like a back-to-front cello! I do the final shaping based on feel. I think this one is going to be quite close, but I regularly do the final tweaks with a bass fully strung up because then you really CAN feel what it's like! So all being well, tomorrow final sand and sanding seal, then the finishing process starts

[quote name='Harryburke14' timestamp='1483551450' post='3208180'] Its what we in the industry call clickbaiting. [/quote] [quote name='White Cloud' timestamp='1483554008' post='3208218'] Love the truss rod cover...great idea well executed. [/quote] Thanks! Again, the inspiration was very much Nic's. But then I suppose I had that little flurry of creative thinking too : What's the phrase - hide it or flaunt it!