henry norton

I've only recently broken of my 23 year affair with Leo Fender's basses, (with an Epiphone EB-0), and I'm now going all Gibson Here's a couple of new projects I'm working on ATM. The body on the left is my take on a non reverse Thunderbird but hopefully better balanced (even with a 35" scale) and the other one is a 31" scale based on the early EB-0 but with a longer top horn and more neck support. I've got to chip away at them in my spare time (from building Fender style necks ), but will hopefully have a couple of playable prototypes fairly soon.

Ahhh yes, that's pretty much the norm for an archtop instrument - it's designed so the fingerboard doesn't damp the vibrations on the top plate. Proceed sir....

[quote name='implo' post='748608' date='Feb 17 2010, 05:17 PM']Oh prices are good by norwegian standards. You didn't see EBs turning up below 10000NOK in 2008, but now prices are edging closer to 80k. If I could ask for a little more of your time, I wondered if you could expand on what issues I can possibly expect? Thanks for your help, Henry, it's much appreciated, and certainly the reason I'm here is to make sure people [i]do[/i] tell me otherwise...[/quote] My particular pre EB had a cracking problem with the lacquer and a neck that was difficult to adjust (apparently some 70's Rays had flat truss rods). That said, it sounded and played very well indeed. I traded it in for one of the first Stingray 5's, which sounded really good too and just expanded on the sound of the original. I personally don't thing the early Rays sound 'better' - it's very subjective and whatever Stingray you play, it'll still sound like a Stingray, the differences are relatively subtle. All bass players should own at least one Stingray in their lifetime - it's a bit like a rite of passage.

Neck Thru on a hollow? Presuming it's a set neck (glued in) there may be a neck angle deliberately set to take account of the arching. Or maybe the neck hasn't been glued in properly. Can you post a couple of pictures?

[quote name='implo' post='747623' date='Feb 16 2010, 08:00 PM']I'm not entirely sure, but I think it's a natural finish that's been painted over. I've asked the seller the same but not gotten a reply as of yet. That being the case, I would hope the body's a decent chunk of wood. 12000NOK is expensive, but the market here is totally dead for the moment. I've been looking for a Stingray since december and found only 3 so far, all of which were either too expensive or sold. The market for used basses here is infinitely smaller than the UK, more's the pity. This is also a shop-bought bass, so will have been set up properly. That alone is something which will cost me in excess of 100 quid if I were to buy the service. And yep, I've contacted people abroad, both in the UK and the US (a couple through basschat actually) but the shipping hassle and the charges I'll incur are definitely a deterrent. That said , I am keeping my options open for the moment, and the only reason this particular bass is tempting is entirely down to the age.[/quote] Yeah that's a fair point but it's a buyers market at the moment so prices should be pretty good. I know some people swear by old MusicMan basses - I've owned a pre EB Stingray - and it certainly had some quality issues you wouldn't find on any Ernie Ball Ray, so it's always going to be a bit of a gamble buying an older version. That said, if you want it RIGHT NOW and are prepared to do some work on it who am I to tell you otherwise? Good luck with it.

[quote name='Jerry_B' post='747508' date='Feb 16 2010, 06:41 PM']I guess you may not be able to see what the original colour was until you take it apart. There may be traces in the electronics wells. If you can't get it back to the original, then I'd agree with Beedster and go for stripping it back to the wood and go for a wax/oil finish.[/quote] Doesn't look too bad to me - but beware if you strip it back to bare wood it's more likely to be a boring looking Alder body rather than an interesting looking Ash. Also, if you do decide to give it an oil and wax finish it'll make it very very difficult to repaint it. 1300 sounds quite allot of money - especially for a refin. Have you checked out any others from around the world (with shipping etc.)?

Cherry's pretty good so far as my experience goes. It's a bit denser than alder or lime (basswood), but cuts nicely and has a medium to tight grain which finishes well. The main reason people don't use it much for guitars is probably because it's [i]not[/i] Alder, Maple or the wood of the moment, Swamp Ash. Once something becomes the norm it's often hard for conservative musicians to try alternatives. You should go for it, be different!

[quote name='Beedster' post='746875' date='Feb 16 2010, 10:17 AM']That's if you're sure you want to knock 50% of the body's resale value. If you bought it from where I think you bought it (and at the price I think you paid), that should be a serious concern. C[/quote] +1 Most decent quality repro parts will fit just fine but if you want to start routing for pickups or drilling holes for new bridges & scratchplates you'd be better off finding a less valuable body. It looks really nice - I'd stick with chrome hardware & passive pickups.

The Schaller 3D bridge fits the existing holes and has the added advantage of being able to experiment with string spacings. So far as pickups go [size=7]DI MARZIO!!!!!!!![/size] Tuning machines are often worth replacing for lightness and tuning stability - Hipshot ultralite half inch cloverleaf just need one additional hole drilled and are a good way of lightening a neck heavy bass.

[quote name='nig' post='744572' date='Feb 14 2010, 10:46 AM']I would be more concerned about the body wood, a cheap bass could be ply, basswood, mdf or in the case of my trib l2k Im restoring swamp ash, which was a result. thats where alot of the tone comes from, ultimately the bridge is screwed into the body and decent bridge saddles are a must. IMO.[/quote] Now there's a whole new can of worms although all but the absolute cheapest instruments claim to be of 'solid hardwood' these days. Hopefully the days of plywood Malins is finally over. Don't tar basswood with the same brush as ply or MDF by the way, allot of very nice, very expensive guitars are made from it.

[quote name='chris_b' post='742981' date='Feb 12 2010, 01:24 PM']But it wasn't good enough when Leo Fender designed the Stingray or when he developed the G&L line. So in 2 out of 3 designs Leo [i]didn't[/i] choose a "bent piece of tin"![/quote] Fair point with the G&L but both the pre EB Ray and SR5 I've owned had bridges that were just a pressed steel baseplate with turned barrel saddles - just like the old Fender BBOT but a different shape.

Michael Manring uses 'em; [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aY4Ra2KOyas"]Enormous Room[/url] Love it or loathe it, you can't fault the tuning! Use a soft lead pencil to lube your nut by the way

[quote name='iconic' post='742844' date='Feb 12 2010, 10:52 AM']what do these better built bridges do for me, it seems fitting a Bad Ass bridge is a common fitment? ...I look at my Yammy RBX bridge and it's got a solid beefy quality looking casting, my VMJ has a bit of bent chromed sheet metal...one thing I do notice is that the yamaha has a good 'sound' unplugged, the VMJ isn't as good with a thinner & rattly 'sound'. ....not that I play unplugged of course, just an observation really from fiddling while talking to customers who ring when I'm practicing [/quote] The 'chunky bridge' thread has always been good for an argument on Basschat! There's every probability that your Yamaha has a fuller, richer acoustic sound anyway - the only way to know for sure is if you swap the bridges over whilst keeping everything else on the basses exactly the same. Lots of people seem to notice some difference when they fit a heavier bridge although there are also a fair few who can't tell the difference - either way you're unlikely to find the "incredible increase in volume & sustain" the bridge manufacturers proclaim

+1 for the Rotosound Tru Bass. Good sound, fat but low tension makes them very easy to play (IMO) and look dead cool in black with yellow silks, which makes them look more pro for some reason....

Don't most 21 fret Fender necks have the same heel as the 20 but with a fingerboard extension so they'll fit the same pocket? Totally irrelevant I know, but thought I should say....

You see it on Precisions from time to time - usually a Gibson EB-0 humbucker although I spose you could fit a tele bass pickup just to keep it 'in the family' so to speak. Yeah, dead cool and probably very versatile too.

You could always consider a bolt on neck bass and swap out the fretless for a fretted neck if you don't like it (although I'll guarantee you will ).

Good luck with it - I'll be tuning in for progress reports.

Be careful!!! Fender did produce fretless maple necks for a while in the 70s (there were some ultra rare Music Man's done the same way too) but they were finished with a very thick, heavy coat of polyester lacquer to stop string wear. Also I've only ever seen them on Precisions - never Jazz basses. Warmoth can probably make you a blank, fretless maple neck but any finish they put on it ($85 or so), won't be tough enough on its own. I epoxy coated my maple fretless and it's wearing really well but it's not something you can get straight off the shelf. [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=68623&pid=730980&st=20&#entry730980"]fretless maple neck build[/url] If you're happy to put in some legwork (or some handywork) a maple fretless plays like no other (and looks dead cool too )

[quote name='Hector' post='730709' date='Jan 31 2010, 05:02 PM']So, I had pretty much the most upsetting experience of my life last night. Was playing with a swing band for a black tie ball out of town, and the ball's organisers offered to take my bass over with their keyboard and amps. "Sure" I thought, "What could possibly go wrong?". BIG. MISTAKE. Opened my case up to take out my bass for sound check only to find that the fingerboard was no longer attached to the rest of the bass! Maybe I'm silly, but I held my head up high and played through the soundcheck/gig on a borrowed electric bass and when the first opportunity came, retired to a quiet room on my own and wept. I mean, I got that bass when I was 18 and have been through all sorts of gigs over the years. I completely babied her, she was the most important thing I own Has anyone had an experience like this before? Is it an easy sort of damage to fix, and will my bass ever feel like she used to?[/quote] You do mean the fingerboard and not the entire neck don't you? If so, fingerboards are routinely replaced on DBs so it shouldn't be a problem for a decent luthier - it might end up playing better than before!

I started on Jazz basses but found the body a bit bulky and the neck a bit thin (just like my ideal woman ) I've played a P (with a J at the bridge) for about the last 20 years now but I still think the Jazz is a better looking bass. They definitely make you look more of a muso.... Maybe every Fender player needs to have one of each

[quote name='xesusxesus' post='731260' date='Feb 1 2010, 02:02 AM']what do you think? [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Bass-Guitar-Gibson-Thunderbird-w-Hard-case_W0QQitemZ320478517330QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_Musical_Instruments_Guitars_CV?hash=item4a9e021852"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Bass-Guitar-Gibson-T...=item4a9e021852[/url][/quote] Looks like a DiMarzio model 1 in the neck postiton. It does look a quite well used so I wouldn't go straight for it - take your time like retroman says, it's a buyers market. Have you been round the shops and tried a few out yet?

[quote name='4 Strings' post='730880' date='Jan 31 2010, 07:10 PM']This is a wonderful project, the neck look beautiful. You made it sound so easy! Is it wider than the usual Precision at the nut or is it just the way it looks without frets? It will be interesting to see how the surface survives round wounds over a period.[/quote] Thanks for the comments 4 Strings - it's a standard '57 Precision width but without the frets and dots it does make it stand out a bit more. Regards the finish I'm playing it allot and keeping an eye on the surface yet there's not a mark thus far. One good thing about epoxy is it's relatively straightforward to refinish (not as poisonous as polyester and no thinning the neck down dressing the board), so when the time comes it should be relatively quick and easy. I'll keep everyone posted anyway.

Limited sound???? One second hand pickup and a varitone later I've got a bass for all occasions.

[quote name='Happy Jack' post='730138' date='Jan 30 2010, 10:56 PM']Looks really nice. Have you put dots along the edge of the board? And what does it actually sound like now it's finished and had a chance to settle?[/quote] Thanks! It's been left plain for the time being as I'm trying to 'listen' a bit more and 'look' a bit less for my intonation, as I got a bit lazy with my last marked fretless. The sound is very punchy and clear with rotosound stainless rounds - you can even get a passable slap sound out of it - but it's not harsh and clanky like some phenolic boards can sound, there's still a woody warmth to it. I've left the board surface with a slight satin sheen which makes it smoother and faster feeling than my glossy fretted neck. It would feel supersonic with a Jazz neck profile