Stub Mandrel

If you are happy to live with rolls of loft insulation in your living room, I think you should contact Channel 4 as they may want to make a documentary about you...

Weston Super Mare Fingle Bridge-Inn You can call me Weston Fingle for short...

What's that blue thing in the background?

Hmm, the last times I've played in a music shop... Once I took in my own bass because I wanted to try out some practice amps (and bought one). Once I wanted to try a used bass, and bought it (ok I'd decided to buy before I tried it...) Once I was invited to try a very expensive one for the fun of it and ended up leaving with a Squier... Twice (two different shops) I bought a pedal and was invited to try various things. Once I asked to try a guitar stating I was just curious about it. Then they told me the price and I accidentally bought it. Once I went in for a lead and they persuaded me to try an EUB, but I gave up after about two minutes. Once I bought a mandolin case and got invited to try a Hofner. Went in with my brother and his wife, he was buying her a guitar and we all got involved in various tryings out. Buying a tiny blackstar amp, just wanting something to see what it could do. Went in to kill some time, got into a conversation about lovely Masterbilt epihones and got invited to try despite saying way outside my budget. Thinking about it, a common thread is engaging with the staff rather than just saying 'can I try x'. A second one is I shouldn't try out things I'm not expecting to buy.,..

Oh dear:

For an interesting visit try Moto Music in Cardiff, many rare vintage guitars but not many basses... and lots of unusual bikes

I hate the silly square plate for the knobs. If they could use a shaped plate or fit them direct to the body they would look so much better.

The Jam, David Watts?

He's got one of those too.. although he shed a few to fund the SG Junior.

Absolutely! My brother recently picked a 1963 one up for £2,400 because the body had been professionally refinished (and the nitro crazed) to cover up a past bodge fitting a tremolo. Absolutely gorgeous to play and the descriptions of the P90 sound above are spot on. Saw him gig it with Stonehouse the night he got it. That's a Flea bass through an SVT on teh left.

Looks like plastic.

Yes. I hate being a tyre-kicker. I generally will only try instruments if I am making a reasonable purchase: strings, gig bag, pedal - not a pick! Or if invited - downside of this is that it can lead to 'unplanned expenditure'.

Should be easy to get it rewound. As long as the wire gauge and number of turns are the same, it will sound the same. BUT it's probably a break near where the wire enters the coil and it may be repairable without a rewind. My experiencing of my own SS bass an playing some of these 24" specials is that decent new SS strings should solve your floppiness issue.

If you can get 150 hours community service and a £350 fine for throwing a milkshake, what are the police going to do about all the people who lob pints of amber nectar at crowds? I demand action!

I get really wound up by screw holes. My 70s p-bass copy has two holes for a thumb rest under the e-string by the bridge. When I fitted a new scratchplate I decided to move the rest back to the proper (upper) position. Now I have two holes looking at me. I have two spare thumb rests. Should i fit a second. Oh no! Should I fit a bottom one as well?

Anyone her who has only been to post-2000 festivals really can't moan about toilets! This is a documentary about Glastonbury 1986... My best Festival memory is the Mutoid Waste Company's 'Carhenge' and Mad-Max-style lorry cutting a swathe through the crowds powered by a blue guy with a mohican on the back beating out a galley-rhythm on a pair of oildrums.

I know these things because I was in a band called Head in a Helix 🙂

I used to have an Arion one, many years ago (still have the cardboard box it was in! - Now full of fishing lures and I haven't fished for over 20 years!) Bought a TC Forcefield - it was inexpensive but as well as compressing it sprinkled fairy dust all over the sound of the Peavey I was playing through a cheap amp in the shop. The tone improvement isn't as marked with my own gear, but it still works as a sort of 'better knob'.

I enjoyed Reading in 83, stayed away from thr front and watched the Agincourt Bottle effect from a safe distance. Glastonbury mid 80s , not sure if I went once twice or three times. Remember a handful of bands... abiding memory is the loos Various minor festivals, all good but some weird. Went to Cropredy about 10 years in succession late 80s to mid 90s - best of the lot, and family friendly. Now sad enough to be considering Rockstock. Might try this which combines two of my interests! http://www.solarsphere.events/

The pearl one makes your bum look fat.

Och! I couldn't stand on concrete for four hours! You need a foam pad!

Helices 😝

Mirror, of course!

I always think how could Gibson design such a beautiful shape, and then make it look cheap and nasty by barely even rounding corners? It just looks like it's been cut out of plywood like an old Kay...