PlungerModerno

That's gorgeous!

Oh my!

That's pretty! Reminds me of this: (but in blue!)

Cool bass - reminds me of this vid: [url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C_ZZJxof1R8"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C_ZZJxof1R8[/url] Before you replace anything - clean the electronics or have them cleaned. Your readings can be misleading with dirt in the way, and given that it gradually died it's a very likely candidate for the cause of yer issues.

It's true beauty will only come out with the carve, and later with the finish . . . But as it is it appears to have a lot of potential. I'm subbin'.

Looks like it's on the right track! It'll never be perfect - but I'm confident it'll rock again. And look better than it has in half a century!

This is moving in the right direction . . . The awesome direction! Enjoy the build, and all the best with the bass. I am subbin'!

Maybe something like DiMarzio Model J's? They're hum cancelling and not excessively expensive. Also if budget isn't too tight you could look at the nordstrand offerings, aguilar, or some of the custom pickup makers: I got a lovely set of custom Jazz pickups from [url="http://www.creamery-pickups.co.uk/"][u]the creamery[/u][/url] If you want to look at the more economic end of the spectrum: I've heard great things about the entwhistle offerings.

[quote name='Twincam' timestamp='1424181753' post='2693530'] That nut looks knackered!!! and that it was causing the open string buzz more than the angle. [/quote] It's actually not quite as ragged as it looks! OK maybe it is rough but it's working as it should with the two string trees - no rattles, buzzes or issues with tuning. How it came to be this way? Well instead of using appropriately small files (which I don't have yet) - as I was going to replace the nut anyway I just went at it with a small (but not small enough to do a neat job) rat tail file. Actually the nut action was very high when I started trying to set this bass up and make it go - when I lowered the nut slots (roughly due to the oversized file) to a little over 0.5 mm clearance at the first fret - when I tuned to pitch I heard a huge buzz on the A string. Gently placing a fingertip where the string goes over the nut I could feel it move vibrating in every direction. Part of this was me widening the nut slot - but as I lowered the nut slot I made the break angle more shallow. After cleaning up the nut with some sandpaper and the slots with a torch tip cleaner - I'm happy with the nut action. Still want to tilt the headstock back - at least to parallel with the fretboard, under string tension. That nut does need replacing ASAP. I'll have to grab a bone blank and a set fret files - it's not as if they'll only get used once!

+1 To the HowieBass suggestions! Oh - look along the string and see if you can see a backbow or forward bow (relief) in the fretboard. There are straight edges and gauges to do this precisely but just by sighting along the string from the headstock towards the bridge you should get a clear picture of how much or how little relief is there. I'd aim to get it dead straight or with a tiny bit of relief. [url="http://www.fender.com/en-IE/support/articles/bass-guitar-setup-guide/"]http://www.fender.com/en-IE/support/articles/bass-guitar-setup-guide/[/url] has more info on ballpark measures.

Nice. Very nice. Very nice indeed.

[quote name='Count Bassy' timestamp='1423590896' post='2686766'] Personally, as you've fitted a string tree and it works, I would leave the headstock well alone. [/quote] That's not bad advice. I may settle for switching out the plastic for a metal tree. I know a hidden neck kerf (at least on the back) could be a good cosmetic solution to the warp in the headstock - but that would put the joint under tension. I'd need to do a test joint with similar woods and put it under heavy stress to know it would hold up to strings and smacks. I'm pretty sure it's just wood glue in the previous repair - I'll have to re-examine it, and may just settle for a crack filler + partial refinish. All this is in the longer term.

[quote name='tall_martin' timestamp='1423591575' post='2686781'] Thank for the tips. It seems there is more of a dip in the middle than a bump at the end. Would raising the bridge have the same effect? I'll try that first with some bits of card or something. [/quote] It could - a shim under the saddle could allow for greater imperfections in the fingerboard. As a reversible tweak it'd be a good option to try anyway. It may be down to a compromise of string height / playability and dealing with too much buzz. If the buzzing issues persist . . . I'd start from scratch with a setup & fingerboard leveling. Quick question - I assume you've followed Manton Customs advice "[i]adjusting the truss rod to get it as flat as possible[/i]" and checking it with a straight edge - that way you can be sure the buzzing is coming from an unevenness in the fingerboard as opposed to a setup issue. If there is a slight dip in the middle of the fingerboard that runs over a good few frets - you may need to try getting the neck straighter before assessing high or low areas.

I'd try some "bark rubbing" tricks to try to find the low or high spots. With frets I've used felt tipped markers to show low areas of frets - while filing flat it can let you take the bare minimum material off. With fretless I'm less certain how it would work - without staining the wood. Perhaps a sheet of special paper - thin and uncreased like tissue paper - That plus painted / dusted straight edge could an accurate evenness detector make. By applying the paper smoothly to the fingerboard, and pencil "lead" or other ink etc. to the flat surface - it should give a pattern revealing high and low spots on the paper. That's just in my head though - there could be much easier and more accurate methods out there. Destructively planing or sanding flat is always an option if there's plenty of fingerboard to work with. Manton Customs is totally right. 400 grit is quite high to start with. If it's a big hump, start at around 120... but be careful. anything around 80 - 180 grit removes [u]a lot[/u] of material fast - depending on the material and pressure used. The lower grit you start with, the faster you go in general, but the more work is needed to take out sanding marks. You may need to go from 120 to 180 to 240 to 320 to 400 to 600 to 1,000 etc. rather than just 240 to 320 to 400 etc. if you start with 240 grit sandpaper. Try to assess the extent of the hump before you begin sanding. Oh and recheck often. EDIT: I just realized I repeated a lot of the previous comment. Whoops, my mistake. In any case good luck with the project and I hope you get what you want out of it.

Oh dear, it's gone pear shaped! Well it's had over 30 years to get to this state! It's my lovely Westone Concord 1 bass, and it's got some issues. It's an '83/'84 as far as I can tell . . . [url="http://westone.info/concord1bass.html"]http://westone.info/concord1bass.html[/url] And It even warns of neck warping! This is it under string tension (D'Addario XL nickels, 95 - 40 balanced tension - very slick on a 32" scale!) That's about a . . . um? 5 (ish) degree break angle on the A string. It buzzes on the open notes . But I fixed it (horribly I might add - but it's up and running with: A homemade plastic string tree. - As you can see it's not exactly matching! In any case drilling into the headstock was a little drastic - but it's already taken plenty hits: So I'm not a madman carving into a rare instrument in pristine condition. At least it's been glued back together - but I think I can do better - breaking the join, re gluing and then re drilling the pilot hole for the tuner screw. In any case there's two issues - the dodgy crack repair, and the deflection . . . which I should mention, doesn't lessen with the strings slack: My plan is to: A - redo the crack repair. B - Explore options to fix the headstock angle - I'm guessing a kerf type slice on either the bottom or top could work e.g.

[quote name='KiOgon' timestamp='1423520665' post='2685976'] A mm or two! you'll probably need .010" or .015" that's all & it'll be fine Edit: A piece of card - business card type is usually about right! [/quote] Depends on the amount of adjustment you need! I ended up putting about a 2 mm thick shim in my Ibanez neck pocket to get the action down from sky high! (It already had a mm thick shim in it at that!). The general rule is - If you want 2mm adjustment at the bridge - you'll need less than 2 mm of shim. About 2mm of shim gave me about a 4 or 5 mm adjustment at the bridge - but it's a 24 fret neck. a 20 fret neck will be slightly different.

Cool project. I'd have waited on picking a pickguard colour till I had the status neck & paint picked - but If you've thought it through as the above post indicates - you're on to a winner. The tuner peg colour thing was a joke!

That's nice... what gauge & type of B string are you using? I'm guessing it's a 125 or more!

As long as there's plenty of thread in the neck - you should be fine. A mm or two shouldn't weaken the joint (assuming you've got 10 mm + of screw in the neck).

Cool bass - I like the embedded bridge idea - high mass without the expense of a good trem system.

+1 Looks dogy - the surely the relicing was an amateur attempt. I think it could be ok - but not at the asking price - or even half the asking price. £250 - £300 if it sounds, plays and balances well. - but it could be worth more or less depending on who's willing to pay for it.

To answer your question, jtotheltotheo, [center][i]"Is there a production short scale bass out there that can hold coming down a step without horrendous buzz?"[/i][/center] Yes - with the right string selection, a good setup, and suitable technique - you should be able to get several steps down without lots of buzz on the majority of short scale basses - at least the 30" and ups!. Probably won't get as low action as a longer scale - but it should work. As long as you turn the volume up and play lightly - you should be able to play in drop D or D standard - with most medium or heavy gauge strings (e.g. 45 or 50 for the G) - which doesn't feel as tight on a short scale anyway. That's my 2c.

As I see it - either the body, the bridge plate or both aren't completely flat - or something is getting in the way - the screws, etc. Can you get it to sit flat without it being screwed tightly on? (loosen strings, loosen screws partly so they keep the bridge centred but don't hold it flat to the body). If it won't sit flat then, I'd grab a straight edge (or a cheap ruler that's straight, or anything with straight edge) and carefully check the body area (including ground wire), as well as the bridge plate.

Is the volume pot connected to the circuit? it may be snapped off at the wires . . . rather than the wiper in the pot being broken. If the potentiometer is wired in, firmly screwed onto the pickguard, and still turns without stopping - time for a new pot . Unlike a vintage or high quality pot, it's not really worth getting repaired / serviced. As for mods - does the bass produce sound - and does it have grounding issues, hum etc. I'd try to take care of any issues I could before beginning modding. If it hasn't been shielded with copper, aluminium, or shielding paint, I'd start there. Oh - and have fun, and good luck. Experimenting with an instrument is fun. I found Dave's world of fun stuff over on youtube a fun way to see how someone can approach some of the most common electric instrument "gooches" and what to do. If you have a few you can check it out here: [url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T2BKTfJLVwA"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T2BKTfJLVwA[/url]