G & 'ell of a bass

[Ou7shined]

So spurred on by the purchase of my 1980 vintage G&L L1000 earlier this year and my growing appreciation of the brand I started amassing G&L parts with the intention of building my own version...

Here's the ingredients for this build.

P bass body (likely a '78)
50th anniversary P neck
G&L "branded" SB-2 bridge (a very lucky find)
G&L SB-2 MFD split coil P pickup
G&L L1500 MFD humbucker pickup
G&L 1981 - L2000 control plate (extremely rare piece)
Schaller BML tuners (coincidentally as used on early G&L basses)

Here are a couple of mockups.

[attachment=63558:mockup_light_gold.jpg][attachment=63559:mockup_acute_P.jpg]

I even considered....

[attachment=63560:mockup_mad.jpg]



Work done so far...
The neck pocket had been mutilated by a previous owner when an old neck humbucker rout and pocket face had been filled back up.... with cataloy , so I have reconstructed the face and corrected the pocket width with maple veneers to a very exact fit with the 50th anniversary neck.

[attachment=63561:neck_pocket.jpg]

Also all screw holes preliminarily glued and plugged.

[eude]

Dude that's going to be one cool bass, going to be watching this one eagerly
I personally am not a huge fan of the P pickup being mounted askew like that, reckon the other layouts are a but nicer.

What are you thinking colour-wise or have you not got there yet?...

Eude

[BottomEndian]

I like the P-MM-P, partially because I want to know how the MM would sound in that position. Potential for boom and whump there, maybe?

[eude]

[quote name='BottomEndian' post='1018501' date='Nov 10 2010, 10:36 AM']I like the P-MM-P, partially because I want to know how the MM would sound in that position. Potential for boom and whump there, maybe?[/quote]

The RFB pickup in my ACG is roughly in that position, an inch or so in front of the usual MM location.
To my ear, it's a nice mix between a MM bite and P Bass heft

Eude

[Ou7shined]

[quote name='eude' post='1018495' date='Nov 10 2010, 10:34 AM']Dude that's going to be one cool bass, going to be watching this one eagerly
I personally am not a huge fan of the P pickup being mounted askew like that, reckon the other layouts are a but nicer.

What are you thinking colour-wise or have you not got there yet?...

Eude[/quote]
I know what you mean Eu, I'm in 2 minds about it myself but it doesn't look as weird in the flesh. I'm going to go off and research it, someone is bound to have done it before.

At the moment I'm planning on doing it the same gold that I'm doing Matt's Gibby in... but it is a feckin pain to get right. I saw Geezer Butler with a gold Lakland the other day which swayed me to put myself through the hassle again.
Daphne Blue is a simpler possibility and Black is another viable yet boring consideration.

[eude]

[quote name='Ou7shined' post='1018521' date='Nov 10 2010, 10:46 AM']I know what you mean Eu, I'm in 2 minds about it myself but it doesn't look as weird in the flesh. I'm going to go off and research it, someone is bound to have done it before.

At the moment I'm planning on doing it the same gold that I'm doing Matt's Gibby in... but it is a feckin pain to get right. I saw Geezer Butler with a gold Lakland the other day which swayed me to put myself through the hassle again.
Daphne Blue is a simpler possibility and Black is another viable yet boring consideration.[/quote]

Nice one Rich.
Reckon Gold is the way forward, Matt's Gibbie is looking absolutely amazing, and of course, you can rest happily in the knowledge that yours will be perfect having practiced on his

Eude

[Ou7shined]

[quote]I like the P-MM-P, partially because I want to know how the MM would sound in that position. Potential for boom and whump there, maybe?[/quote]
It's exactly the same position as the G&L L1000.



The inspiration for this build is to make my own Wunkay (L1000) with it\'s famed OMG setting but utilise the switch options available on the control plate with a bridge pup - similar to an L2000 but with a twist.

Edited November 10, 2010 by Ou7shined

[Ou7shined]

[quote name='eude' post='1018524' date='Nov 10 2010, 10:48 AM']Nice one Rich.
Reckon Gold is the way forward, Matt's Gibbie is looking absolutely amazing, and of course, you can rest happily in the knowledge that yours will be perfect having practiced on his

Eude[/quote]
Shhhh

I actually have a mockup in gold too.

[attachment=63568:mockup_gold.jpg]

[BottomEndian]

[quote name='Ou7shined' post='1018532' date='Nov 10 2010, 10:53 AM']It's exactly the same position as the G&L L1000.[/quote]
Ah, I'm with you now. My G&L familiarity is pretty limited, what with them being relatively thinly distributed in the UK.

[7string]

Looks like it's going to be a blingy bass

[Buzz]

Cataloy to fill up a pup pocket?! Did you remove it and replace it with actual wood?

[Ou7shined]

[quote name='Buzz' post='1019456' date='Nov 10 2010, 10:32 PM']Cataloy to fill up a pup pocket?! Did you remove it and replace it with actual wood?[/quote]
I don't see the point at this stage. It's as hard as any wood can ever be.... it may even add a quality to the tone.
If it reacts badly with the nitro paint then I'll whip it out for sure.

[Ou7shined]

[steve-soar]

[quote name='Ou7shined' post='1033448' date='Nov 23 2010, 12:54 AM'][/quote]Nice one MATE!!!
I haven't gassed for another bass for quite a while, until I stumbled upon this thread.

[eude]

Very nice dude, when do you reckon you'll have this done by?

Eude

[Ou7shined]

[quote name='steve-soar' post='1033521' date='Nov 23 2010, 08:58 AM']Nice one MATE!!!
I haven't gassed for another bass for quite a while, until I stumbled upon this thread.

[/quote]
My apologies. Mods please remove.

[EdwardHimself]

[quote name='Ou7shined' post='1033573' date='Nov 23 2010, 09:41 AM']My apologies. Mods please remove. [/quote]

Too late now, the damage is clearly done...

[Ou7shined]

[quote name='eude' post='1033523' date='Nov 23 2010, 09:03 AM']Very nice dude, when do you reckon you'll have this done by?

Eude[/quote]
I'm hoping to have it completed and all the wrinkles ironed out for Moffat. Sounds like a reasonable timescale but I have paying customers ahead of me in the queue. I've just spent the last couple of weeks building a (surf green ) workshop in my garden so I can step up operations.... and keep my crap out of the house.

Edited November 23, 2010 by Ou7shined

[neepheid]

[quote name='Ou7shined' post='1033580' date='Nov 23 2010, 09:47 AM']I'm hoping to have it completed and all the wrinkles ironed out for Moffat.[/quote]

Rough translation - up all night the night before the bash

[Ou7shined]

[quote name='neepheid' post='1033584' date='Nov 23 2010, 09:49 AM']Rough translation - up all night the night before the bash [/quote]
You know me far too well Matt.

[BottomEndian]

[quote name='Ou7shined' post='1033448' date='Nov 23 2010, 12:54 AM'][/quote]
Very cool. I'd love to see a circuit diagram.

[Ou7shined]

[quote name='BottomEndian' post='1033599' date='Nov 23 2010, 10:06 AM']Very cool. I'd love to see a circuit diagram.[/quote]
Me too. It's all just in my head right now.

Although there will be yards of wire I don't think it will all that complicated.

The humbucker leg on it's own will be identical to the G&L L-1000 circuit - including the OMG (bass boost/filtered semi parallel) setting which is a bit of pickup wizardry that has become a bit of a lost secret that Leo came up with early on in the beginning of G&L but which after the buy-out BBE has strangely not been implemented in any other production bass. More fool them.
The split P wiring is simple enough.
I'm not too comfortable at having a straight "both" setting on the pup selector so I'll suck it and see but I might bung a resistor on it to give a more tuned tone ie. full on bridge with 80% neck or whatever.

[Ou7shined]

Pickguards! Talk to me.


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And no the red is just how I went today... I don't personally like red basses.

[EdwardHimself]

I like 4 the best.

[Truckstop]

4 is pretty wick, yeah.

Truckstop