Stub Mandrel

The case of the cased in cases in-case cases.

I bought an Artcore. I had been thinking of spending £££ on a Gretsch and tried Ibanez out in a little shop in Ross on Wye. I asked the price and though the guy was joking at first! (N.B. little local shop had the same price as online sellers too!) I made a few changes - a Grestch pickup and a green 80s Di Marzio (mostly hidden in a brass cover), a set of Klusons off a Gibson my brother had replaced with better aftermarket ones 🤣 and a 335-style pickguard. In all honesty thee were mainly for looks/fun it was absolutely fine as supplied.

The venerable Snatch it Back play it regularly 😁

Me too, as well, also.

My basses cost me between £60 and £2k. I love them all 😍

That's a matter of opinion and I think a habit or automatic assumption based upon relative quality available about 10 years ago. Well, maybe because I only gig 30-40 times a year then I don't wear them out as quickly as you To be honest, I thought the same. I have a 25 year old Squier bass with all original hardware. The hardware on my 40th anniversary is very good. Thinking about it... my go to had become my Flea signature, as it is such a low stress instrument to play. But of late I'm increasingly turning to my Sire. I've recently realised I am playing my £70 Harley Benton kit P-bass with a £30 Squire neck because it's so nice to play and it sounds killer...

Is it good for metal?

Dean Markley bronze 11s or even 10s.

Don't rub it in 😪

A top of the range Sire will leave change in your pocket and a dmile on your face.

Body armour under your t-shirt.

It depends on many things. But I would say play lots of new and s/h basses in the 800-1500 cost range and see which one you love most. I have real range of basses... most significant skill is knowing when to put a bass back on the hanger. The only one I regret not buying was a lovely 60s WEM bass for 700... there are some incredible older non-fender bass deals out there.

Seems well designed to me. Left and right follow the sides and the bevel line. Top curve continues across the neck and reflects the bottom of the body. Bottom is the only line not related to the body and is different enough not to look misaligned. Much better than a Grabber or a Ric.

Are ramps still a thing? They seemed to be a passing fad a few years back.

The Uberhorn is nice but 2k...

Yes electrically identical but as HZ says there may be practical advantages.

Some of these are literally factory qc fails. In China nothing goes in the skip if someone is willing to buy it.

I appear to have gone twice in the 1980s. The bands were largely irrelevant, but I enjoyed the mediaval fair atmosphere. I don't actually remember much else...

Those look electrically identical.

Is it like Telecaster guitars? On the wonk by design? Look carefully... control plate not quite parallel to the bridge plate.

Not the prime consideration. I have a 5 string 35" bass that cost £200 and a 4 string 34" that cost £2000.

Sounds like Another Madchen Another Planet meets 2,4,6,8 Autobahn.

With Jerry Allson's mythic symbol on the skin too... 😉

Why doesn't DOGE start cutting US armed forces in Europe; they now have no function. Presumably the main driver vehind Trumps push for more European defence spending is US arms exports. If he can learn from history it's that lend-lease was very lucrative for the US.