Andyjr1515

I think this is what you might call Work In Progress But why is that middle switch not fixed in place? Ah...there's a bit of a story to that. What happens when you don't know your own strength? Well, to fix toggle switches like this, I use a socket without a handle. Because of how they are made, you can't tighten them up in the same way as you can potentiometers. And so I'm careful. But clearly not so nearly careful as I thought An email has gone to Martin at SimS confessing my sins and to order a replacement In the meantime, even with the inability to switch the options on that middle pickup, I could plug it in to make sure I'd got the basic wiring right. And it is VERY promising

Looking great

Test it at the back of the heel where it isn't going to show, but I think you will find that you will probably need to stain it or add stain to the Tru-oil for the kind of colour you describe. The Tru-oil (and any other oil) will darken the wood but won't change the basic colour tone.

NOW what's he doing?????? Well, starting with the reason - two phrases sum it up: - one of the 'not essential but if it could be done' requests from @Jus Lukin was that it would be nice if it could stand against a bass speaker without the need for a guitar stand - one of the things on my 'what I would do differently if I built another one of these' is to make the body a cm or so longer at the tail and deepen the cutout for the tuner knobs Because 'it's a little bit tight' With the bottom E fully intonated (ie the furthest back of the tuner cylinders) it was clear on a hard floor, but the tuner was touching the ground on a carpet. So I needed some slightly longer strap buttons. Now there maybe some somewhere...but I couldn't find any. But with a teeny bit of ingenuity...and a much bigger hacksaw blade...and longer fixing screws in the post - hey presto, strap button extensions! : And the acid test. Hard floor almost vertical: Clear! Carpet at a more normal 'leaning against the speaker' angle: Well clear. Phew!

I think the tests you've done that I'd missed confirm that one isn't needed @Maude For acoustics, anything you add or take away changes the sound. For a DB, as with a violin, the soundpost is integral to the design of the sound box. For a standard X brace design, it isn't. That might make a tangible difference or be negilible, but there will be a difference. But, for non-academic perusal only, if I was putting one in to stop the top collapsing, I would put it where that danger exists, which is under the bridge. But don't lose any sleep over it because I might well be completely wrong on every aspect of the above

Ah...missed that. Sounds sound

You've made a good job of getting that off. One other thing that is worth looking at, by the way, if I remember my applied maths well enough, in terms of vectors. I am assuming that the down force on the bridge increases with the increased break angle over the bridge from the string angle which will, presumably change the forces that the string tension will apply to it. The top looks more substantial than an average acoustic guitar top so may well be fine, but it might be worth some judicial check on how thick and rigid that top is. If there is any doubt, you might want to consider a 'sound post' dowel each side of the bridge inserted through the f-holes?

That is indeed different.

Oh....that's probably worth stealing different!

And the chambers are copper-foiled. I have to join the panels with a teeny wipe of solder ('conductive glue' isn't to be trusted) and then check the earth continuity. The bridge earth will be soldered inside the cutaway to the small patch of copper that will make great electrical contact with the bridge while maintaining a good, firm contact between the bridge and body. The apparently random tabs are positioned so that at least one is going to be firmly against the conductive layer on the bottom of the scratch plate assembly. I'm hoping that the black UNF hardware (custom order because of the sizes and thread, hence the leadtime) will be with me by the end of this week because I don't think it is that long now before it's time to start getting some strings on, trying it out and setting it up!

Yes - good tip about bending the wires out of the connectors. I'll see how I fare with the rest of the mass. Luckily they are pretty fine wires but twelve Andyjr1515-quality solder joints per loom wouldn't be pretty - however much shrink tube I used Mind you, not as bad as Schaller's 'thick unbendable shroud and cable coming straight out of the back of a non-standard pot' that features in the top-level Flagship EQ/piezo-mag mixer. Clearly no one at Schaller (and usually I am a BIG fan of Schaller) had actually tried to fit one into any conventional instrument... Not their finest moment...

Yesterday was all about working out the pickup heights to put spacers for the adjustment screws to bite into and then shielding the bottoms of the pickup chambers. With all shielding, a simple ohmmeter check for electrical continuity is pretty essential, and for the sticky backed copper, running a trace of solder to bridge each panel join is also a must - you can't rely on 'conductive glue' : All of this took most of the day yesterday, but by the end, all three pickups are fitted and have the required adjustment range: You can see why I'm not certain that magnets will keep the hatch down...and remember, none of the other stuff if in place here yet. Oh...and remember that these connectors go in vertically at the very top of the switches: So, while I ponder on that particular houdini challenge, I'll buy myself some thinking time by spending a few hours on a much less mentally taxing task of adding the copper shielding to @Fishman 's Wal - assuming I haven't used up all of my foil

Bummer about the band! But that looks really nice...

This is a beautiful build, Jez

Hi Yes - it doesn't look like it is structurally unsound so I think it is eminently fixable. There a number of ways of tackling, but personally I would get a tube of thin superglue (not the gel type and not Gorilla - Gorilla thin cyano is still too thick - more like thin Bostik superglue you can get in Homebase, etc.. Any cyano will do but it needs to be that kind of thinness.) and use it to stop the two cracks creeping any further I would then squirt it liberally either side of where the crack starts. Capillary action will 'suck' the glue deep into the crack and this should stop the crack getting longer. It will suck in quite a lot so I would go for a medium size tube rather than the smaller one. Having stabilised the crack I would then fill with whatever is your preferred filler so that it doesn't show through the final paint finish.

Looks great!

The control chamber is now copper shielded: And I've worked out the heights of the pickups to work out where - and what height - to put the fixing screw blocks. Once I've installed those, I can copper foil the bottoms of those chambers too. I won't need to do the sides as the carbon cases are also earthed through the looms. All of the copper will be electrically connected with a wipe of solder across any joins between the different pieces within and across the multiple chambers and earthed to the same point as the SimS switches.

The SimS switches are the SimS switches...they have the printed circuits on for the pickup options and the clever volume compensation so they are what they are. But the temporary knobs are black But actually, I will be checking with @Jus Lukin whether he wants the nuts and washers in black (same with the nut and washer for the inset jack plate) - the sticks will be chrome whatever. When I say 'clever volume compensation' , seen on @TheGreek 's Silk Bass then what SimS have achieved is actually very clever. In electric guitar circles, multiple coil switchings are common, but most suffer from a common challenge - that when you switch from a 'humbucker' to a 'split (single) coil' option, there is a major volume drop. With these pickups, there is almost no volume change whatsoever between the three options. You can hear Nick demonstrating this on @TheGreek 's bass in the Basschat video at the beginning of this thread. These are the printed circuits attached to the chrome switches (you can see why, at least for the stalks, that they will have to be what they have to be @BassTool ) : This, by the way, is the neatest this will get - there are three 12-wire looms and the standard wires to fit in here yet! It's why the hatch may well need to be fitted with screws rather than magnets... This is how the whole thing is starting to look (presently with chrome nuts and washers for the micro switches): Now all the controls holes are there, I'll start sorting the shielding. The end is in sight!

Lovely

Actually...maybe an opportunity? I'm thinking the three pieces back staggered to get you 2/3 towards the new angle?

This does have to be one of the most innovatively exciting threads to date....

We're going for an oval jackplate, set into the body. It's 6 of one and half a dozen whether this is best done before or after the main finishing. For gloss, I tend to do any holes and cuts after because these kinds of features can tangibly change how well the coats go on the way I do it. If I was doing a spray finish, I would do it before. It never ceases to amaze my just how big a hole you have to drill to fit a standard jack plug! 20mm is pretty much the minimum and even then you often have to taper it to allow the tip contact the required movement: And these jack plates don't have a lot of leeway: A carpenters mallet and two or three different radius curved chisels around the periphery and I can start paring away the wood with a standard chisel. The criss-cross formed by the chisels is useful because it prevents chippings getting too large and deep: And happily, no slips. In the morning, I'll tidy up the edges with some fine emery and finish off with a quick sealing wipe of tru-oil:

Nice for you to offer, @NickA (I just LOVE this forum ) but it's OK - I'm fine with copper foil. I use it on all of my builds. Ref the pickup holes I agree - generally I don't shield those and on guitars it is often a case that you absolutely don't because it can perceptibly change the tone if you do...but Martin SimS says that it is worth doing on these and so it's probably best to follow the advice. I'll be doing copper screening tomorrow - I'll let you know if I have to eat my hat (which wouldn't be the first time ).

This was the switch and pot layout I agreed with @Jus Lukin when I was working out the size of the control chamber. We have some options for the tone, volume and jack, but this is basically where the switches will go. And this really was a 'measure 14 times, drill once' jobee! Especially as the SimS switches are offset! The twenty six more times measuring got me here: Tight! Pots and jack positions next and then it will be the chamber shielding

Thanks, Mick The first time I tried this to get an 'old look' on a full refurb was your very own Silk Bass And I still think your choice of Orange was inspirational! Even though, at the time, I did say "ORANGE???????????"