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I have a pair of cabs I need to courier to the other side of the country & looking online for quotes has just done my head in. So my question is aimed at members who ship gear regularly, how's best to go about it & who are the companies to avoid? Cheers

[quote name='Deedee' timestamp='1454014792' post='2965549'] That's it, my black beauty is off to Jon Shuker on Saturday. I'll post the pics when it's done 😉 [/quote] Awesome & you won't regret it.

[quote name='gelfin' timestamp='1453724478' post='2962083'] That's me in the corner. [URL=http://s970.photobucket.com/user/gelfin5959/media/REM%20Corner_zpsiubfwj2s.jpg.html][IMG]http://i970.photobucket.com/albums/ae181/gelfin5959/REM%20Corner_zpsiubfwj2s.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [/quote] Cheers, I now have a wet crotch from coffee spillage after laughing uncontrollably. Still I'm sure none of the other parents at my sons will notice the wet patch.

[quote name='dood' timestamp='1453674953' post='2961758'] I sometimes surprise myself. For years I was solidly onboard all the time, (and I mean ALL the time it was practically unhealthy) even before the famous FBI database incident of 2004 - BassWorld anyone? However, thanks to a huge amount of upheaval this year, I'd say I have been away for longer than I have been visiting. I don't think that I'll be on as much as when the forum (BW that is) had a mere 30 odd users, but I won't ever leave. It's a bit like the Hotel California. [/quote] My sentiments exactly. I'm not a prolific poster but I do enjoy reading a post or two & I trust the marketplace, not that I do much buying/selling these days. I can also remember Bass World & the old guard & it's been interesting to watch the community evolve into what it is now. Members come & members go, I'll be staying for a while.

http://musiciansway.com/blog/ http://thepracticeofpractice.com/ http://www.jazzadvice.com/ Lots of good advice on how to practice to maximise growth. I bought The Musicians Way book & have been using their method for a while now, making better progress than I ever did practicing haphazardly.

[quote name='Deedee' timestamp='1451733622' post='2942841'] Yeah, I had a white 2007 a couple of years back that went the same way. Yours now looks the same finish as the std Precision I recently had, black with a golden gloss neck. Gorgeous 😍. I may be dropping Mr Shucker a line......... [/quote] It suits the bass better I think, high gloss neck with the sparkle of the pearl blue. I have no idea why MM & so many other builders have stopped doing it as standard, cost cutting no doubt. Jon done an awesome job it is literally flawless & exactly how I asked for it to be. It's not cheap but if you plan on keeping the bass & like lacquered necks it's a worthy investment. I showed Jon a picture of a new classic ray & asked for the same finish/tint.

[quote name='Deedee' timestamp='1451351520' post='2939839'] Hats off to you, that neck now looks gorgeous. I might have to look into this on my black beauty :-) [/quote] Cheers mate, it sure is. I didn't really get on with the oiled/waxed finish & it was starting to look like a weathered fence.

https://youtu.be/r_V25Pe4i8g

[quote name='bassman7755' timestamp='1448878245' post='2918710'] I remember reading somewhere that the optimum study cycle for learning something is repeated cycles of 5 minutes study and 10-15 minutes break, with the "break" periods ideally being actively occupied by some activity that is as far removed from the study material as possible. I guess the trick would be to find 3 or 4 practice areas that are as diverse as possible and keep switching between them every 5 minutes. [/quote] Yep, that's pretty much how I do it. It seems to get into long term memory quicker than aimlessly repeating things, however it has to be very cognitive. Lots of information online about it if you search "spaced repetition" & "deliberate practice".

I can highly recommend Jon Shuker. He painted my Stingray neck & the finish is second to none.

The last two posts should serve as inspiration to us all :-)

I can recommend the cheap Dr Parts necks if you can find one. I think I bought mine from eBay, was unfinished all maple with dots & only needed minor fretwork. Was a very thick chunky profile very similar to my Ray. I had it on an old Yamaha & if I remember rightly it was about sixty quid.

I'll echo what's been said already, the way you practice is the biggest factor of progress IMO. I can only speak for myself but I wasted a decade practising without any direction. Since discovering "deliberate practice" I have improved massively, practice for me now is bloody hard work but progress is happening & I always know what to practice because I have long term & short term goals mapped out & broken down into chunks of activities to get me there. You have to be uber honest with yourself & say you were sh*t if you were sh*t in order to highlight areas of improvement then work on them slowly until you crack it. I'm sure if your honest with yourself there's something you can't do that you can work on therefore highlighting that actually, your playing hasn't gone as far as it can go.

[quote name='Bobby K' timestamp='1446290391' post='2898350'] Threesome anybody....? :-) My 1984 BB2000 and 1981 BB2000 fretless. Basses for life! [/quote] There's nothing more satisfying than a Natural Bb.

I had the same issue when I first bought my 34" scale Yamaha Bb. I tried a few different string manufacturers & gauges & finally settled on D'Addario with a 135 B. I have limited experience with 5's but it now feels & plays great & the difference in tone is minimal. In short I guess you just have to find the right strings for it.

[quote name='Nicko' timestamp='1445603149' post='2892743'] naturally talented and don't make mistakes? [/quote] There are good examples of people who we think were naturally talented who made there fair share of mistakes on their way to Mastery.

In the book he makes a connection with the 10000 hour theory & the relationship that has with age. Apparently at birth we are primed to learn (don't think we can argue with that) & Myelin production is at its greatest during our childhood, teens & into our early twenties. I can see how this is relevant & I'd imagine anyone who started playing later in life or anyone who's tried to learn a second language past 30 could probably relate.

For the most part it's anecdotal & he goes on to say research is still in the early stages but the boffins are getting excited about it as historically white matter has been largely overlooked. In my opinion it's a credible argument based on the evidence he provides but like yourself I'd like more proof. It's an interesting read/theory if your into that sort of thing.

I've been reading Daniel Coyle's book The Talent Code this week & thought I'd share my thoughts with "you orrible lot". It's basically a theory of how we weren't actually just born to be great masters of our discipline ( be it music, art, sport on anything else ) but instead natural talent is only a small part of it & true greatness comes from hours of continuous failure in the practice room. Basically the more we make mistakes & correct them through "deliberate practice" the more Myelin our brains produce to link pathways & insulate them giving us better access to skill. Apparently "skill is insulation that wraps neural circuits & grows according to certain signals", this is a quote that's backed up scientifically in the book & the authors main argument against natural born skill. The author visits various talent hotbeds throughout the world to find out why the turn out so many exceptionally talented people in their respective fields & in my opinion his finding make perfect sense. If your into the theory behind "deliberate practice" then this book is worth a read & if you were planning on giving up because you didn't jump out the woom playing "hit me with your rhythm stick" then don't, there's hope for you yet.

I had the same a few months back. Tracking said delivered & it indeed was but to a street of the same name a few miles away. The occupants said they hadn't received it so the royal mail writ it off. Unfortunately for me the replacement came along with eight quid duty & eight quid handling fee for royal mail. I understand charges are a chance you take but I was a bit miffed with royal mail after the first one cleared customs & they delivered it to the wrong house. Live & learn I guess.

[quote name='Grand Wazoo' timestamp='1445295675' post='2890447'] So I'm in New York for a week, aside from doing the tourist thing, between here, Boston and Washington D.C. I've got a couple of days where I'd like to check the local bass related stores. Funny enough my hotel is in Times Square and round the corner I found Manny's or what's left of it, an empty shell of a store, looks like it has been closed down for a few years, tramps are sleeping outside the main shutter and there's piles of old building material all around. So where is worth checking? I've hired a Grand Cherokee for the week so I could drive anywhere, the annoying american speaking sat nav is handy when you haven't got a clue where you are going this even tells me where i can and cannot park, and from what time to what time. pretty smart Wish we had that system in London too. Thanks for your suggestions this is just outside my hotel [url="https://flic.kr/p/yZcMNX"][/url] [url="https://flic.kr/p/yZcMNX"]New York / Times Square[/url] by [url="https://www.flickr.com/photos/fcamardo_night_time_photography/"]Francesco Camardo[/url], on Flickr [/quote] I'm interested too, going at Christmas time & also staying in Times Square. Are you planning on bringing anything back GW?