Kiwi Posted June 19, 2008 Author Share Posted June 19, 2008 [quote name='SJA' post='216280' date='Jun 10 2008, 04:07 PM']a mini-bodied bass like the Status Streamliner or Zon Vinny would interest me. trouble is, I'd like a D-tuner on the E string, and AFAIK the only detunable headless bridges, by Steinberger and Hohner, are narrow-spaced- I'd prefer 19mm spacing.[/quote] Funnily enough, I've been digging about a bit since I last responded. Once the mechanism was designed, it would be possible to actually get something rapid prototyped via a number of potential manufacturing methods. But it might be costly as the prototypes would need to be reproduced a number of times to check the tolerances (ie. gaps between moving parts) are OK. I guess the cost and potential lack of demand might be why noone else has done it yet. But I'll add it to a list of things to investigate once I get my head around the basic 3d modelling/milling software. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kiwi Posted July 30, 2008 Author Share Posted July 30, 2008 Hmmm, because things are taking too long to organise with Jon, there may be a potential change of suppliers in the offing... ...stay tuned. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcgraham Posted July 30, 2008 Share Posted July 30, 2008 By suppliers do you mean with regards the parts? Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kiwi Posted July 30, 2008 Author Share Posted July 30, 2008 [quote name='mcgraham' post='251052' date='Jul 30 2008, 09:41 AM']By suppliers do you mean with regards the parts? Mark[/quote] Only the headless graphite necks and bodies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charic Posted July 30, 2008 Share Posted July 30, 2008 Personally I think you should connect the necks together to make one VERY long neck then a few bassists could play your bass at once Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kiwi Posted July 30, 2008 Author Share Posted July 30, 2008 [quote name='charic' post='251079' date='Jul 30 2008, 10:22 AM']Personally I think you should connect the necks together to make one VERY long neck then a few bassists could play your bass at once [/quote] thats genius that is! *makes note* Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kiwi Posted July 31, 2008 Author Share Posted July 31, 2008 OK, I have something rather exciting potentially happening on this because of such a positive response from the suppliers I've approached in the last couple of days. I'm going to be trialling some special pickups from a UK supplier instead of the Delanos. I'm hoping my personal fretted 5 string instrument will be ready in the next couple of months in order that I can test the prototype pickups when they're ready. I've also finally chosen a brand name, have registered the domain names, am in the process of trademarking the name and hopefully we will have 10 basses available for sale exclusively through Basschat in time for Christmas! I can't give out much more information at the moment as I'm having to review the pricing again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcgraham Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 Exciting stuff! I didn't realise the full extent of your plans. I wish you all the best with them and I look forward to seeing them come to fruition! You've certainly picked a top luthier to collaborate with. Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kiwi Posted July 31, 2008 Author Share Posted July 31, 2008 [quote name='mcgraham' post='252397' date='Jul 31 2008, 10:43 PM']Exciting stuff! I didn't realise the full extent of your plans. I wish you all the best with them and I look forward to seeing them come to fruition! You've certainly picked a top luthier to collaborate with.[/quote] Hi Mark, at the moment I'm not sure Jon will be making the prototype bodies. He just seems too busy at the moment, however I have approached someone else also known to Basschatters who I believe will offer the same level of quality as Jon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charic Posted August 1, 2008 Share Posted August 1, 2008 [quote name='Crazykiwi' post='251083' date='Jul 30 2008, 10:25 AM']thats genius that is! *makes note* [/quote] Damn! Is it too late to share the patent Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kiwi Posted September 22, 2008 Author Share Posted September 22, 2008 The prototype, custom pickups were delivered today and I'll be testing them this week in my Cutlass II. I've had some quite major issues trying to achieve a radiussed body shape. Mainly because the quality of finish is so poor from Jon's CNC machine, even with a ball headed cutter, that it looks like it will need more hand finishing than a more conventional slab bodied instrument. There are also issues about how to achieve the radiussed edges. Looks like the body shape will need to be wire framed in 3D Studio Max! I'll post a pic of the body shape later today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EBS_freak Posted September 22, 2008 Share Posted September 22, 2008 [quote name='Crazykiwi' post='289169' date='Sep 22 2008, 02:12 PM']The prototype, custom pickups were delivered today and I'll be testing them this week in my Cutlass II. I've had some quite major issues trying to achieve a radiussed body shape. Mainly because the quality of finish is so poor from Jon's CNC machine, even with a ball headed cutter, that it looks like it will need more hand finishing than a more conventional slab bodied instrument. There are also issues about how to achieve the radiussed edges. Looks like the body shape will need to be wire framed in 3D Studio Max! I'll post a pic of the body shape later today.[/quote] Hmm, there you go... I never knew Mr Shuker used a CNC - I thought his basses were all hand routed...? Can anybody confirm? Does Jon have them CNCed and then hand finished? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kiwi Posted September 22, 2008 Author Share Posted September 22, 2008 [quote name='EBS_freak' post='289218' date='Sep 22 2008, 03:11 PM']Hmm, there you go... I never knew Mr Shuker used a CNC - I thought his basses were all hand routed...? Can anybody confirm? Does Jon have them CNCed and then hand finished?[/quote] All of Jon's basses are made by hand. Trust me, in my dealings with him, he's almost obsessed by quality often at the expense of meeting deadlines as many of us will already know. The CNC machine was donated to him by a client for non bass-related projects that Jon churns out quickly just to keep the coffers topped up between instrument commissions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
josh3184 Posted September 22, 2008 Share Posted September 22, 2008 MAKE A LEFTY! that is all... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kiwi Posted September 22, 2008 Author Share Posted September 22, 2008 [quote name='josh3184' post='289354' date='Sep 22 2008, 05:50 PM']MAKE A LEFTY! that is all...[/quote] I'm left handed but I can play right handed. Seriously though, I'd never dismiss that for the future but if I was to offer a left handed option with a radiussed body on 10 instruments, it would double the fabrication costs. The reality is that I'll probably be lucky to sell 10 instruments a year so mass production isn't likely to be feasible. If I could sell 10 left handed instruments, that would put a completely different spin on things though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldGit Posted September 22, 2008 Share Posted September 22, 2008 [quote name='Crazykiwi' post='251083' date='Jul 30 2008, 10:25 AM']thats genius that is! *makes note* [/quote] How about an Otway bass? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kiwi Posted September 22, 2008 Author Share Posted September 22, 2008 I'm sure the demand will be overwhelming Well, here we go. [attachment=13796:supergroove.jpg] This is the body shape I've been working with, I know it looks a bit flat but it will hopefully be radiussed in a Spector/Warwick stylee. The idea being that it at least looks inviting to pick up and play. I used Jons headless 6 shape and modified it for radiussing and balance. The pickup routs are based on measurements taken from my Celinder P-bass and from my Musicman Stingray. I know they look like $$ but thats just how its going to end up if I want convincing P and MM sounds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Horse Murphy Posted September 22, 2008 Share Posted September 22, 2008 [quote name='EBS_freak' post='289218' date='Sep 22 2008, 03:11 PM']Hmm, there you go... I never knew Mr Shuker used a CNC - I thought his basses were all hand routed...? Can anybody confirm? Does Jon have them CNCed and then hand finished?[/quote] FUnnily enough I asked Jon the same thing. He said he only uses the CNC machine for neck inlays like the block markers on my P Bass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david_l_perry Posted September 22, 2008 Share Posted September 22, 2008 Going to look a lot like a Q4/Q5 with that body shape.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kiwi Posted September 22, 2008 Author Share Posted September 22, 2008 [quote name='david_l_perry' post='289499' date='Sep 22 2008, 09:41 PM']Going to look a lot like a Q4/Q5 with that body shape.... [/quote] Yeah there are be some similarities for sure, I did actually worry a bit about the similarities and ended up doing another shape but that ended up looking like a Carl Thompson. There seem to be a whole load of body shapes that are along the similar lines. So I'm more or less resigned to the fact that an ergonomic shape is almost certain to evoke other designs in one way or another. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bigwan Posted September 23, 2008 Share Posted September 23, 2008 (edited) A few questions Steve. What string spacing will these have at the bridge on the 5 string? Any rough pricing yet? Edited September 23, 2008 by Bigwan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kiwi Posted September 23, 2008 Author Share Posted September 23, 2008 [quote name='Bigwan' post='289666' date='Sep 23 2008, 08:44 AM']A few questions Steve. What string spacing will these have at the bridge on the 5 string? Any rough pricing yet?[/quote] The string spacing will be approximately the same as a Stingray 4/5. This is because we had to assume a spacing for the pickup pole pieces and, given we opted for chunky MM style humbuckers, it was just most convenient option for the time being. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yorks5stringer Posted October 2, 2008 Share Posted October 2, 2008 (edited) [quote name='Old Horse Murphy' post='289447' date='Sep 22 2008, 08:04 PM']FUnnily enough I asked Jon the same thing. He said he only uses the CNC machine for neck inlays like the block markers on my P Bass.[/quote] I can confirm this from building my own bass with him: he thought I was going for dots, I wanted blocks so he quickly cnc'd the block gaps onto a new fretboard and I cut and glued the inlays. Check out post 6# on [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=27964"]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=27964[/url] Edited October 2, 2008 by yorks5stringer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Born 2B Mild Posted October 2, 2008 Share Posted October 2, 2008 [quote name='yorks5stringer' post='297385' date='Oct 2 2008, 11:06 AM']I can confirm this from building my own bass with him: he thought I was going for dots, I wanted blocks so he quickly cnc'd the block gaps onto a new fretboard and I cut and glued the inlays. Check out post 6# on [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=27964"]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=27964[/url][/quote] Another block lover. I have recently realised that I have a huge weakness for block pearl inlays. They are like the eyes of a beautiful woman, to me! I hope Kiwi's new builds don't have blocks, or I'll have to pawn my CD collection and buy one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yorks5stringer Posted October 3, 2008 Share Posted October 3, 2008 SSSHHH, don't tell anyone but it's actually plastic! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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