Karl Derrick

I don't use Lemon Oil myself. Linseed oil I find best for Rosewood boards. Apply generously with a clean rag then wipe all of it off immediately, the wood will take up what it needs. You shouldn't feel any oil on the fretboard afterwards. Karl

Does anyone have any current contact information then? Cheers, Karl

I'm trying to contact Mike Haney, The Guitar Doctor. We were in touch in the past, but none of the old emails seem to work. He's a US based luthier and is well known for being the best Kubicki bass repair bloke. Has anyone here been in touch recently? Many thanks, Karl

It's a work o fart

I'm very lukewarm on it. It doesn't have any flow as a design. Just looks like he covered it in Superglue and dipped it in the brass bits barrel. I've got a Steampunk bass in the works myself. Based on a Hofner Violin bass, because it's already 'Edwardian' looking... The main priority should be retaining it as a playing instrument or, as Pete Young said, it's a piece of hanging art. Karl

It's a problem with thin material and heavy instruments, which is why I double up the leather thickness and stitch it together at the button holes on my bass straps. Karl

Thanks you guys. I may build more, but they take a lot of time.... I can also 'Rat' an existing bass or guitar. Karl

Here's a pic showing the four very different pieces the body is made from, and the quality of the cracking on the leather. I think I'll try and make a strap from the cracked leather. Perhaps a panel in the middle of a strap rather than the whole thing..... Karl [attachment=205833:Iso.jpg]

Thanks it was fun to do. Karl

Thanks. There's a surprising amount of labour in ageing and weathering absolutely every part. Spent half a day on the control plate Karl

Hmmm.... don't know how to do sound clips. The oak is dense but not too heavy. It's musical, clean and resonant. Woody, articulate. It's not 'crunchy' screaming zingy, but clear and warmly bright. As I say, my scale says she weighs about 9 Pounds. Karl

As you can gather from my avatar, I'm a leather worker (among other things). I discovered the leather I used for the pickguard when looking for ancient looking stuff for a film prop. This leather has a stiff cracked surface, but is actually flexible. The cracked surface is stable and bits don't fall off. Karl [attachment=205747:rat07.jpg][attachment=205748:rat04.jpg]

Guitar Wars!

It was an interesting project, fun to work on. I used a lot of the techinques I learned working in the film industry. I guess I should make a knackered, relic strap to go with it Karl

Ebonizing is an old traditional technique for making wood dark. You make an iron/acetic acid solution and it bonds with the Tannin in the wood, causing it to grey and darken. Works well on Oak, as it has a lot of Tannin. It makes new wood look aged and weathered. The pickups are new. The covers have been removed and cut down and inverted to support the pickup from underneath and leave it fully adjustable for height. I cloth-taped the windings to protect them, then artworked the pickups to make them look old. No real rust Karl

This is a 'Rat Jazz' bass I just finished. I wanted to see how far I could go with the relicing thing. Pretty far it seems Admittedly it's a real statement, and won't be to everyone's taste. I really like the concept of 'Rat Rod' cars and wanted to apply the same idea to a Jazz bass. The body is Oak. The neck is one piece Maple, Fender licensed. Pickups are Fender USA AVRI 75, the bridge is Fender too. The scratchplate is leather. Weighs about 9 Pounds. I wanted to get the feeling that this had been built in someone's barn. The body's features were there in the wood, I just enhanced them. The Oak is ebonized and sealed with Melamine lacquer. It's strung with Roundwounds and is woody, bright and clean. The action is Fender factory Spec but can go either way easily. The trussrod is smooth. Karl [attachment=205725:rat beautysmall.jpg][attachment=205726:ratbacksmall.jpg][attachment=205727:rat04.jpg][attachment=205728:rat06.jpg][attachment=205729:rat09.jpg][attachment=205730:rat13.jpg][attachment=205731:rat12.jpg][attachment=205732:ratbeauty2small.jpg][attachment=205733:ratdetailsmall.jpg]

Dave Wilson does all my finishing and refinishing. Outstanding craftsman, great to deal with. [url="https://email.1and1.co.uk/appsuite/#"][email protected][/url] Karl

Fair Summary. Karl

Now, I'm not 'qualified' to offer a technical opinion, or to comment on the design or components. But I do use both daily, interchangeably, and I can hear no differences between the two. I have multiples of both. Both are excellent and I continue to buy more Edifiers to give away to friends. Great headphones. Karl

Build one to your own spec. Plenty of good parts out there...

They really are very good. Didn't know about the Head-Fi review, but it seems our suspicions are correct then, they are in fact the same product. Karl

Sorry if this is old news. A while ago I bought a pair of Phil Jones H-850 headphones. I was and am really happy with them. Excellent sound and the most comfortable headphones I've owned. Earlier this year I stumbled across Edifier H850 headphones accidentally. They were a great deal cheaper than the Phil Jones, but look identical down to the detachable cable and the packaging, so I bought a pair to compare. If there are any differences other than the Phil Jones logo screenprinted on the earcups, I can't find them. So, I lent them both to a sound engineer mate. He took them to his studio and he can't find any differences either. He assures me they are the very same, right down to the individual components. I guess we know where Phil Jones gets them made The Edifier H850s are available for just £33 from Amazon. They can be had elsewhere even cheaper. Thought you guys might like to know....... Karl