Mr Anthony Posted February 20, 2014 Share Posted February 20, 2014 (edited) Hi there! So I've been playing bass for some 6 years now, and I've only ever owned two basses. Still have them both, however since moving away for university last September, only one actually gets used sicne I couldn't, and didn't need to bring them both. So, with me I have my DeArmond Pilot Deluxe bass, which I absolutely love. It feels, plays and sounds great. It's much better now that I've replaced the strings after about two years (oops). However, I've been toying with the idea of owning a Precision bass for quite a while now. I knew that the next bass I own was going to be a Precision, so I figured, why not build one instead? I looked at those kit builds, but didn't really fancy it. And whilst it would probably be cheaper, and more beneficial to go down that route for my first attempt, I decided to dive right in and start sourcing indicidual parts instead. I recently saw Frank Turner in Nottingham, and the bass player for his band plays an absolutely beautiful '66 Precision, and it sounded absolutely incredible. I thought, hey, I could replicate his bass, but it's quite the custom job, and for my first attempt, I certainly don't think I'm up to it. So, I started looking for an easier alternative, and then I stumbled across this really nice '57 precision in white, with gold anodised pickguard, and I fell in love with it. But alas, I cannot afford. So I'm going attempt to replicate it myself, but with my own little twist. And by that I mean some none-Fender hardware. Nothing too special, but I think I'll end up with a pretty good end result. I've got the anodised pickguard, thumb rest and some strap locks coming in the post from Thomann. I went about sourcing some parts, and I have so far grabbed myself a Squier affinity body in blue from eBay, as well as electronics from KiOgon. They've both arrived today, and I'm certainly impressed. The body itself was advertised in much worse condition than it actually is, stating that it would need sanding right back to the wood and respraying. Personally, and I'd like some opinions please, I don't think it will be neccessary. Whilst I definitely want to respray it, I don't think removing the entire finish beforehand will need to be done. (Ignore the heart-skull, I'm an Alkaline Trio nut, and the flag that hangs over my bed reflected on the body, haha!). The front and back and pretty much perfect apart from the odd scratch, but there are a few chunks of paint missing here and there, as well as some cracks, as can be seen in the following photos. I'm not sure if you can make it out in the photos, but the missing paint isn't right down to the wood. There's another layer underneath the colour, so that's why I don't think the entire finish needs to be removed. Should I A) sand the current finish and respray it straight away, B ) Fill in the missing bits with some sort of filler and then sand and respray, or C) remove the finish entirely and start over? In terms of the rest of the project, I'm looking at the following hardware:[list] [*]Babicz FCH bridge [*]Seymour Duncan SPB-3 pickups [*]Tuners I'll need avice on! [*]Looking into Mighty Mite necks, but I'm not sure on that yet. I know I definitely want a maple fretboard though. [*]Need a neck plate, doesn't really matter what, surely? [*]Got control knobs, no need to worry about those, thanks KiOgon! [/list] But that's pretty much it for now. I'd really appreciate your thoughts and suggestions! Thanks for reading, - Anthony. Edited February 20, 2014 by Mr Anthony Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonnyboy Rotten Posted February 20, 2014 Share Posted February 20, 2014 Nice project! I am part way through a similar one although I used a Squier Affinity P as my starting point! With regards to your choices of hardware: Babciz bridge - looks amazing and will probably be brilliant but it was outside my budget so I opted for a second hand Schaller jobbie. Seymour Duncan SPB-3 - Can recommend them highly enough! They sound great! Tuners - I went for all-black hardware on mine so I got a set of Wilkinson ones which are great value and good quality - my only slight complaint is that they don't all quite fit on the Squier headstock so I had to grind one of the corners off the end tuner. But you will probably be fine with a Mighty Mite neck. Looking forward to seeing how this progresses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gjones Posted February 20, 2014 Share Posted February 20, 2014 There's some very interesting posts in 'build diaries' on basschat, about this very subject. I've built a few basses from scratch and it's pretty easy really. The difficult bit is the spraying of basses. You can go down the really professional, perfectionist road, using nitro paint like back in the 50s and 60s, and there's plenty of build diaries that go into minute detail about how that's done. Or alternatively you can go down the cheap and cheerful road and use something like Premium Molotow Graffiti paint, which myself and others have used, which is easy to apply, doesn't drip, looks pretty good and won't destroy your lungs if you breath it in (unlike nitro). I recommend checking out what others have done before you start buying paint etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Anthony Posted February 20, 2014 Author Share Posted February 20, 2014 Cheers guys! Jonny, I have actually seen some of your build before, completely forgot. Must get back up to speed! gjones, I've been trawling for a while now, don't want to do anything daft. There's a huge B&Q down the road from here, so I'll see what they've got in there. Thanks for the advice! I'm not likely to be getting any painting done until I get home for the easter break. If the uni catch me spraypainting in my room there will be hell to pay for! Had an update from Thomann, I'm now 60% of the way through the delivery, wahay! Should be able to at least get the electronics mounted by early next week at the latest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hamfist Posted February 20, 2014 Share Posted February 20, 2014 [quote name='Mr Anthony' timestamp='1392917006' post='2374186'] There's a huge B&Q down the road from here, so I'll see what they've got in there. [/quote] DO not be tempted to buy anything at B&Q. All their spray paint is relatively rubbish. Get some of the Molotov stuff online is my advice. It's cheap and seems to work well. I have tried B&Q paints and they are all far too soft when dry and scratch very easily. I have managed to get a great and hardwearing finish with PLastikote Super .... http://basschat.co.uk/topic/217916-westone-thunder-re-finish-goodness/page__p__2221132__hl__paint__fromsearch__1#entry2221132 This green bass has been used well now for several months and the finish is proving to be very tough. However, I did a different bass with Plastikote super satin black and it never got hard enough even after several weeks drying. I think if I do another I will try Molotov premium paint Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Anthony Posted February 20, 2014 Author Share Posted February 20, 2014 (edited) I actually had a wander down there this evening and there wasn't actually anything that really stood out to me. Thanks for letting me know, I'll look into it. That pistachio bass looks great by the way! Edit: just looked up plastikote, and you can buy in B&Q. So avoid home brands, and try that you reckon? I ony want a glossy white, which they do, and it's not expensive at all. Actually picked the can up and read the info on it earlier. Only recognised it from the label, not that name! Haha! Edited February 20, 2014 by Mr Anthony Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hamfist Posted February 21, 2014 Share Posted February 21, 2014 [quote name='Mr Anthony' timestamp='1392934825' post='2374559'] I actually had a wander down there this evening and there wasn't actually anything that really stood out to me. Thanks for letting me know, I'll look into it. That pistachio bass looks great by the way! Edit: just looked up plastikote, and you can buy in B&Q. So avoid home brands, and try that you reckon? I ony want a glossy white, which they do, and it's not expensive at all. Actually picked the can up and read the info on it earlier. Only recognised it from the label, not that name! Haha! [/quote] If you go the Plastikote route go with the "Super" range only is my advice. I haven't used their cheaper stuff but internet wisdom is that it is, unsurprisingly, not as good. My only failure with the Plastikote Super was my very first attempt at a refin so it was probably my own fault. I have a couple of cans of satin black still in the cupboard. I think I'm going to refin my P bitsa with it sometime soon .... can't beat a black P & maple neck IMO ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Anthony Posted February 21, 2014 Author Share Posted February 21, 2014 (edited) Thanks for the advice! There are going to be a good few weeks before I can paint anyway, so I'll keep weighing up my options and go from there. Edit: Found myself a Mighty Mite precision neck on eBay, in this country which is an advantage. Also have a Babicz bridge, Quarter Poinders and a couple other small pieces of hardware on the way. So, that only leaves tuners and strings. I might nip home one weekend and put it together, hopefully before Easter so I can test run it at some gigs! Ooh, this is all very exciting! Edited February 21, 2014 by Mr Anthony Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Anthony Posted February 24, 2014 Author Share Posted February 24, 2014 As well as having a new bass day, I collected these from the post room today. My Seymour Duncans have been signed for, but not given to me yet, so I don't know where they are. Hopefully I can collect those tomorrow. The neck is on the way, as well as the other hardware coming from Thomann. I can start putting this thing together soon! Cheers! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonnyboy Rotten Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 ooooo shiney! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Anthony Posted February 27, 2014 Author Share Posted February 27, 2014 Most shiney indeed! Took another delivery yesterday, and I now have all the parts apart from the neck and tuners. Isn't this exciting! Here's a very basic mock up without faffing with all the wires. I'll admit, I'm starting to like the colour... So for now I just want to get it put together, set up and working, and I'll worry about the paint at a later stage. I'm hopefully getting home this weekend, so if I get the neck delivered in time I'll take it with me and try and get the holes drilled. Which reminds me, the pickguard doesn't match up, pretty much anywhere. I was well aware the pickguard has 10 holes, not 13, which is fine. I just didn't think all of the holes would be as off as they are. So, once I've got the neck in place I'll mark new holes for the pickguard, plug the old ones and drill new ones. Then I can start putting it all together. Hooray! Cheers! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonnyboy Rotten Posted February 27, 2014 Share Posted February 27, 2014 How can I be jealous when I am doing the exact same thing!? Baffles me but it might be something to do with the Babicz bridge you got. I think they are the trickest looking bridges out there! What colour tuners are you having, gold or chrome (or black just to mix it up?) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Anthony Posted February 27, 2014 Author Share Posted February 27, 2014 (edited) Don't worry, I know exactly what you mean! The bridge looks great, and has a fairly decent weight to it too. As for the tuners, I'm after something in chrome. That way they'll match the bridge, control knobs and the strap locks. So, umm... Yeah. This happened. Got a note from the post room saying I had a parcel to sign for, and behold, it's the neck! It is brand new, but it's had a Fender logo applied to it, which I don't really mind. It's a perfect fit, well, maybe half a millimetre off. But once it's bolted in place, that won't be a problem. I've read about some people get Might Mite necks and the frets needing filing, but they absolutely fine on this one. And from what I can tell, it's a really comfortable neck too. Not as wide or thick as my Thunderbird, but wider than the Jazz style neck on my DeArmond. Also, as far as I can tell it's all one piece too. I was expecting another piece of maple applied to the top, but maybe that's just me. Anyway, it looks great and it feels great. I'll be taking it home this weekend and getting everything bolted together. Exciting! I think I'll be taking all of the pieces I have so far back with me, that way (hopefully) I can come back with a pretty much finished bass. It'll just be easier when I have access to proper tools, rather than a couple of allen keys, and a cheap screwdriver set from Wilko. Ha! Anyway, enjoy! I know I am Edited February 27, 2014 by Mr Anthony Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Anthony Posted March 1, 2014 Author Share Posted March 1, 2014 So, I've done it! It's built. Apart from tuners, but they're on the way and I should be able to fit them whilst back at uni. Can't get you any pictures right now, so I'll have a proper update posted some tike on Monday. Cheers guys! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hamfist Posted March 2, 2014 Share Posted March 2, 2014 Cool. I'm liking the blue very much, but not sure about the gold scratchplate. How about a black one instead ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grangur Posted March 2, 2014 Share Posted March 2, 2014 (edited) .. or cold-white pearlised one Edited March 2, 2014 by Grangur Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Anthony Posted March 3, 2014 Author Share Posted March 3, 2014 Thank you both for the suggestions, but the reason I went for gold is becasue I want to paint the body white, so it looks like the '57 that I saw. And, since I can't afford it, I'm replicating it. So, that is the plan - paint it white. I've had the whole weekend to contemplate it, and I have made up my mind that I want to paint it white. However! Since that's a few weeks away yet, here's an update as to what I actually did this weekend. I've put the bass together, apart from tuners and strings which are now on the way. Got some Wilkinson tuners and a set of Ernie Ball regular slinky strings to try out which I'm looking forward to. It didn't take half as much time to pput together as I had expected, and thankfully, we actually do have a drill press at home. It's a bit old and battered and has never, ever been used, so I was a little skeptical, but it did the job just fine and I'm very pleased. I just had nightmare images of ruining the neck, which would not have been good at all. But, it's on now and it's holding very well indeed. I decided (rather foolishly) that the first job would be to fit the bridge, which turned out to be a little nightmare in itself. The Babicz is great, I really like it. It looks incredible and should really help the sound of the instrument (or so I'm told), but fitting it was just stupid. Partly because of a mistake on my part, and partly becasue the screws that are included are ever so brittle so out of the six you're given I've managed to strip the heads of three of them. They're in now, and with a much large screwdriver I can get them in and out, but I was really expecting them to just go stright in. Turns out that the holes in my body just weren't wide enough for the screws to go in smoothly. So I had to drill the holes out with a wider bit, and then the screws went in easier, whilst still biting into the wood nicely. I don't know if you can make out the damage to the screws in those photos, the camera on my iPhone isn't all it's cracked up to be unfortunately. It was pointless fitting the bridge anyway without have the electronics in since I needed to put the ground wire in, so I only had to remove it later anyway. Oops! Anyway, the next job on my list was to plug up all of the old pickguard holes, which was the last thing I did on the Friday night as I had to wait for the wood glue to dry. I got some toothpicks, which were pretty thick actually, placed as many of them in the hold as I could and then glued them in place. I cut them off the next morning, and used a craft knife to get them level. Not really bothering to protect the finish since it's going anyway. Having flattened the toothpicks, I had to get the neck mounted before I could mark holes for the neck pickguard holes otherwise it would have lined up. As I mentioned, mounting the neck was probably the scariest part. I enlisted the help of my dad here as he took a small drill bit, and marked the holes in the heel of the neck going through the body. We then went out to the drill press, and whilst I held the neck steady he drilled out the holes for the screws using the press. Okay, this was a bad idea. I know that now. Whilst the holes are straight, one of them was off ever so slightly, so that when lined up with the body, only half the hole was showing. I tightened the screws on the other three holes first, and then screwed in the last on, [i]praying[/i] it would still go in without causing any problems, and fortunately, it went in just fine and the neck is as strong and as sturdy as any I've ever held. Sorry I didn't take any pictures of the process, but it'd probably have you all cringing as much as I was during. As you can see, the top right isn't quite sitting in the plate, but it's in, and it's holding. So that's all that matters. The next job, line up the pickguard, mark the new holes, drill them out (again using a smaller bit that the screw), and then screw the guard in place. This was nice and simple to do, and it's lined up quite nicely actually! Here we go, not a bad job if I say so myself. Yes, there is a missing screw. There is no wood at all under that hole, so I've just glued on in with Loctite, otherwise it'd look daft! So after all of that difficult jobs were out of the way, all I had to do was take the bridge off, get the ground wire in place, screw in the pickups and wire them up. This involved no solder whatsoever, thank you KiOgon! I gave everything a quick polish, left my Dunlop 65 at uni, so Pledge was the only thing on hand but it worked fine. After that, attached all the parts of the bridge back together, the Babicz is quite fiddly, and for those of us with larger hands it's a little bit awkward since it isn't very magnetic! I then screwed the pickguard back down, which wasn't without it's difficulties, because the pickup casings didn't fit through the holes. They were lined up, but too tight. So I had to file away some of the aluminium, which was not pleasant, and then they went through much easier. Now it's all together, and as far as I can tell there pickups are working because they make a thud noise when I tap them. Plugged in of course. Anyway, here is the finished (for now) product! The blue is nice, but not with the gold. So the blue will go, the main thing for now is just to complete the build and get it working. But, that's probably it for a couple of weeks since I'll not be able to attach the tuners without drilling holes for them, meaning I need to go home again, which will likely be at the Easter break now. So enjoy! Thanks for looking! - Anthony. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theyellowcar Posted March 3, 2014 Share Posted March 3, 2014 It's looking good Anthony! When you re-finish it are you going for a solid white, or a nitro type finish with a bit of grain showing through? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hamfist Posted March 3, 2014 Share Posted March 3, 2014 Nice work sir. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Anthony Posted March 4, 2014 Author Share Posted March 4, 2014 Cheers guys! Glad you like it. I'm really quite grateful for the 5 years of compulsory design & technology I had to do at school, two of them were straight electronics, but there was still a good handful of woodwork and basic tool use. They don't do that in schools anymore, or at least not in the one I went to. And it's a shame, because without what I learned from those lessons, (and my dad's help), there's no way I would have been able to put this together. Anyway, in terms of finish, I'll be going for a solid white, the wood underneath doesnt seem particularly pleasing, and I know it's in at least two or three pieces as you can see joins which just don't match in the neck pocket. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Anthony Posted March 9, 2014 Author Share Posted March 9, 2014 I now have the final parts for this bass! Hooray! Got the tuners and strings earlier this week, sadly I can't mount them here mainly because the ferrules are too big for the holes, so I'll need to sand or file them out a little for them to go in. It's not that they're just tight, because I can't even push them in with my thumb and I don't particularly fancy splitting the headstock. So I'll sort them in the next week or so. The strings are a first for me, but I can't imagine that I'll have any difficulty getting on with them. I'll have a functioning bass soon, I'm sure of it! Cheers! - Anthony. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Freddy Le Cragg Posted March 10, 2014 Share Posted March 10, 2014 That gold on blue works in my eyes... I like it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul_5 Posted March 10, 2014 Share Posted March 10, 2014 Looking good that. SPB-3 would be my weapon of choice too! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bonnp Posted March 10, 2014 Share Posted March 10, 2014 looking good, i just did this myself first time, few mistakes that resulted in a chip by the head stock and some bloody super glue stuck on the back but pleased with results. Kiogon built me a wiring loom that is superb, no background noise or humming what so ever. all advice about gear was from bass chat which was brill. MIM black p bass body might mite neck fitted straight in dimarzio dp122 pups kiogon wiring loom 500k pots old school mirror pick guard from ebay excellent quality roto swing 66 110 strings machine heads from shop, horrible with crappy screws i had to replace really pleased with sound i get which is punchy, aggressive, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Anthony Posted March 11, 2014 Author Share Posted March 11, 2014 Don't get me wrong, I do like the blue. I just can't see myself getting along with it forever. Not unless I swapped out the pickguard, which would be a lot easier than painting I guess. But, I definitely want to try my hand at a refinish, plus it'll keep me occupied over Easter. All I'm really doing is putting together my ideal looking, and sounding bass. Would I prefer a genuine Fender? Probably, yes. But a genuine fender with the same hardware I'm using would definitely cost more in the end I reckon. I'm really happy with the SPB-3, from the reviews I've read, and the demos I've seen it sounds great. I've held my other bass next to itto test if it actually picks up the strings, and it does. But since I can't really properly test it yet, I'm yet to find out if I actually like it. Fortunately, I've got gigs lined up for the next month or so, so I'll be able to properly roadtest the bass overall, and with a bit of luck, I'm onto a winner here.0 I jsut really hope I can get the bloody machine heads fitted soon so I can test this thing, haha! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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