Is building a bass from scratch worth it?

[Damonjames]

Hi all would love to hear your thoughts on this. I would really love a fernandes gravity 5 deluxe but are in short supply second hand, so started thinking about building something from bits myself. Thinking of a jazz bass v with emg/bartolini preamp but have done a quick search and it's not going to be cheap! Would like to hear your thoughts if you have done this yourself, and would you do it again or just by off the shelf??

[Rumple]

If you can find exactly what you want or close to it with a couple of mods then it's probably more cost effective to buy a factory bass, plus it would be easier to sell on if you decide you don't want it any more. For me having a bass built or put together from bits is about getting something I just can't buy from the major manufacturers.

I've started collecting bit's for a Jazz Bass 5, to save money I bought a cheap 5 string neck from ebay which I'll have re-profiled to my liking.

You could get a Squier 5 string Jazz and pimp that with the pick-ups and pre you like?

[nugget]

There is nothing like playing a bass you made yourself !

Its not a cheap way of getting a bass though, just the hardware alone can match the price of a good 2nd hand bass.

[Damonjames]

[quote name='nugget' timestamp='1378392778' post='2199607']
There is nothing like playing a bass you made yourself !

Its not a cheap way of getting a bass though, just the hardware alone can match the price of a good 2nd hand bass.
[/quote]

That's what I'm beginning to realise. I think the best way is buy second hand bits but that means waiting until they come up.
Pimping a squier is no good as I want a rear routed setup.

[Rumple]

[quote name='nugget' timestamp='1378392778' post='2199607']
There is nothing like playing a bass you made yourself !

Its not a cheap way of getting a bass though, just the hardware alone can match the price of a good 2nd hand bass.
[/quote]

You should know

[nugget]

Buy a cheap ebay neck and make the body. Making body isnt too hard if you've got a router and time and you cant go too far wrong with it if you take your time. From what I've heard some of the cheap necks on ebay are actually quite good.

If that works out good then you can always try making a neck but in the mean time you've got a working bass

Or buy a squire, cut 5mm off the top, stick on a fancy wood, shape it, route out the back and hey presto you've got a bling bass for not a lot of cash and thats easier than making a body. If cutting 5mm (or whatever) of the top is too much for you to do get someone else to do that (1hr job) and sticking a new top on is easy

[Rumple]

[quote name='Damonjames' timestamp='1378393127' post='2199609']

Pimping a squier is no good as I want a rear routed setup.
[/quote]

I think they do or did do a Squier 5 that is rear mounted but the rest of it may not have suited your needs.

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/bass/squier-deluxe-jazz-bass-active-v-5-string-electric-bass-guitar

[CHRISDABASS]

Building your own is far more rewarding and if you take your time it will be exactly what you want

[Jabba_the_gut]

Building your own bass is rewarding but can also be frustrating at first!! I've only built a few but I learn something each time I try something different.

Nugget is quite right too - the parts can get expensive and decent wood isn't cheap. But there is real satisfaction in playing something you built yourself. Decent parts do turn up from time to time and you can save a fair chunk that way but you just have to be patient.

I’d always say give it a go from my experience but I’ve kind of caught the building bug......

[Jabba_the_gut]

I should also say that I'm enjoying playing my 4 string made with some wood from the recycle section on here, some MIM jazz pickups, cheapy bridge, £5 Schaller tuners and old Trace Elliot strings more than I am the 5 string I made with all premium parts (badass bridge Audere pre-amp, Nordstrand pickups, Hipshot tuners, swamp ash body etc.).......

[CHRISDABASS]

I have a good set of brand new fender style tuners available for sale for £25 if your insterested?

Cheers
Chris
07974317284

[6v6]

As others have said, it really depends on what you want to accomplish. If you want something unique and/or specific, and are prepared to put enough time and money in to the project to get the desired outcome, a project can be a fun and satisfying thing.

But if the objective is cost, then IMO it's definitely not worth it, you're much, much better off getting one of the many great new or used cheap instruments available now.

[Mikey R]

I agree with the above - in terms of cost, no way. You will also need to invest in a whole load of tools, you might make a few mistakes and have to do a bit of rework with fresh materials, etc.

However, I think the BOM cost of the bass in my avatar was around £80 all in, with pickups, bridge and tuners from ebay. Im not telling how much I spent on tools whilst building it

Edited September 11, 2013 by Mikey R

[JPJ]

It really depends on what you are trying to achieve.

It is possible, with a lot of patience, investigation, research and in no small part, skill, to make a bass that will rival the best output of the Ritters, Overwaters, Shukers et al and at this end of the scale, you will save a small fortune over the purchase price mainly because you will not 'cost' your own time (labour) in making the bass into the equation. The biggest challenge will always be finishing the bass as achieving a pro level finish with rattle cans is difficult if not damned near impossible.

At the other end of the scale, you can buy all the parts you need ready finished and bolt together a respectable bass, but in truth it will be no better than a good Squier bass and probably cost you a lot more due to the manufacturers and distributers adding mark-up to each component rather than the bass as a whole. That said, I recently put together a 'road worn' fretless P bass project which has turned out to be a belter, at least as good as anything Fender have produced in the last 30 years, for a fraction of the Fender price simply by using secondhand components (body, neck etc) procured from this very forum.


There is no feeling quite like gigging your own handiwork especially if it receives compliments from the audience. The more basses you build the better you become as you hone your craft.

[henry norton]

+1 to all the above but one particular issue with the F[color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif][size=4]ernandes Gravity 5 Deluxe is that it's a relatively unique shaped thru neck bass, so when it comes to building up a bitsa bass using parts from the internet you might find you'll be waiting a long time to for a used thru necked bass in need of pickups, hardware etc. to come up, or you'll end up compromising with a bolt on neck or maybe having to do allot of work on the body to fill in big humbucker holes to put your Bart J's in. Do the maths first though - it's not a hugely expensive bass and you may well find you spend more on wood and parts than you would on a decent used one.[/size][/font][/color]