BigJim Posted October 14, 2014 Share Posted October 14, 2014 I've just e-mailed John Shuker about going on on of his courses. I know what neck, pickups and eq I want but I don't know about body shapes yet! Specs so far: 5 string, Ash body (don't know about shape yet), Maple neck and Ebony board (same shape as my Carvin SB5000) with just side dots, 2-band EQ, volume, tone, treble bass controls, MM pickups in the bridge, P bass pickup in the mid position, white burst into grey on the outside finish, chrome hardware. That's all I've got at the moment! Answers on the back oh a postcard posted onto here please! BigJim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sean Posted October 14, 2014 Share Posted October 14, 2014 I've done a build course with Jon. Fabulous week, you'll really enjoy it. Looks like your spec is achievable however I'd check if that paint job can be done in the time taken; finishes are usually the limiting factor. Another thing I'd suggest is that you have a good idea (rough sketches) of headstock shape before you go. And be prepared for hours upon hours upon hours of sanding - it's like [i]wax on, wax off[/i] in the Karate Kid and it [u]will[/u] make you a better man. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigJim Posted October 14, 2014 Author Share Posted October 14, 2014 (edited) [quote name='Sean' timestamp='1413317440' post='2577144'] I've done a build course with Jon. Fabulous week, you'll really enjoy it. Looks like your spec is achievable however I'd check if that paint job can be done in the time taken; finishes are usually the limiting factor. Another thing I'd suggest is that you have a good idea (rough sketches) of headstock shape before you go. And be prepared for hours upon hours upon hours of sanding - it's like [i]wax on, wax off[/i] in the Karate Kid and it [u]will[/u] make you a better man. [/quote] Man, I love that Bocote board! I like that sand blasted finish... a white stain with that would look amazing! Liking the Windmill inspired board! I'm thinking more 3+2 a side for me! I'm digging the placement of the pickups as well! You're giving me wet dreams here!!!! So I'm stealing: Pickup placement, Sanded finish, Bocote fingerboard, Sculptured heal, Individual neck screws. The jury's still out on the body shape for me though! THanks for the ideas though mate ;-) It's got to be lightweight for me as my back isn't too great! Edited October 14, 2014 by BigJim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sean Posted October 15, 2014 Share Posted October 15, 2014 (edited) My bass is quite heavy so make sure Jon finds a nice light piece. It's northern ash, which is quite dense, swamp ash could be lighter. 22 frets was a mistake as access to the truss rod is difficult, Jon told me this at the time but I wanted 22. I can see me cutting it back in future. The frets are stainless jumbo fret wire, I like it but it's not for everyone so make sure you're happy with such big frets if he suggests them. They're also much harder to fit than nickel. I'd highly recommend the pickups. The Basslines MM is very Stingray, the P is a Seymour Duncan SPB-2, very hot and balances the MM well. Moving the high coil of the P toward the neck gives a very different character, this is most evident when playing disco octaves as the D and G sound much fatter. Edited October 15, 2014 by Sean Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dannybuoy Posted October 15, 2014 Share Posted October 15, 2014 (edited) The matte sanded effect on an ash body is my favourite finish. I've been wanting a Sandberg with the black ash finish for a while, but not liking the position of the MM pup. Hmm, maybe I should book a week off of work! I would go for a 5 string Pingray with wenge neck, ebony or purpleheart board, black hardware, Hipshot ultralite lollipop tuners, and an Audere pre if it was my project. Edited October 15, 2014 by dannybuoy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigJim Posted October 16, 2014 Author Share Posted October 16, 2014 So I've had some e-mail correspondence with mr Shuker and what a nice man to deal with he is! Here's the specs I've shot over to him: [color=#444444][font=Calibri, sans-serif][size=4] 5 string MM pickup[/size][/font][/color][color=#444444][font=Calibri, sans-serif][size=4] 5 string P pickup[/size][/font][/color][color=#444444][font=Calibri, sans-serif][size=4] Bridge[/size][/font][/color][color=#444444][font=Calibri, sans-serif][size=4] Nut[/size][/font][/color][color=#444444][font=Calibri, sans-serif][size=4] Tuners[/size][/font][/color][color=#444444][font=Calibri, sans-serif][size=4] 2 band EQ (must have passive option as well whether it's a pull out knob or mini switch)[/size][/font][/color][color=#444444][font=Calibri, sans-serif][size=4] Swamp Ash body[/size][/font][/color][color=#444444][font=Calibri, sans-serif][size=4] Maple neck[/size][/font][/color][color=#444444][font=Calibri, sans-serif][size=4] Bocote board ( Thanks Sean)[/size][/font][/color][color=#444444][font=Calibri, sans-serif][size=4] 35" scale length[/size][/font][/color][color=#444444][font=Calibri, sans-serif][size=4] [font="Arial"][size="1"]neck[/size][/font] [font="Arial"][size="1"]tung-oiled maple with classic style headstock, two high-strength carbon-fiber reinforcing rods and fully-adjustable dual action truss rod[/size][/font] [font="Arial"][size="1"]fingerboard[/size][/font] [font="Arial"][size="1"]rosewood, 14" radius[/size][/font] [font="Arial"][size="1"]neck width[/size][/font] [font="Arial"][size="1"]1.76" wide @ nut, 3.0" wide @ 22nd fret; .79" thick @ 1st fret[/size][/font] [font="Arial"][size="1"]frets[/size][/font] [font="Arial"][size="1"]22 medium-jumbo nickel silver frets, .103 wide X .048 tall[/size][/font] [/size][/font][/color] Taken from Carvin website (my favourite bass is my Carvin) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sean Posted October 18, 2014 Share Posted October 18, 2014 That spec looks cool. There's a few bits of bocote there, I wanted the facing pice from mine to make a guitar but it's lost. I saw Jon on Thursday, he was very busy doing some parquetry for a top, it looked a bit over complicated to my tastes but you can't deny the attention to detail and skill involved. Good luck with the build. We expect to see daily updates. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigJim Posted October 19, 2014 Author Share Posted October 19, 2014 I think I've decided on a Roscoe Beck style body... If I could only get my hands on one to do some drawings and play around with fret access!!!! All it needs is for Jon to get back to me on the specs and we're good to go and book the course!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EBS_freak Posted October 19, 2014 Share Posted October 19, 2014 check your fb wall. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigJim Posted October 20, 2014 Author Share Posted October 20, 2014 Got it thanks mate Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigJim Posted October 26, 2014 Author Share Posted October 26, 2014 I haven't heard from Jon and have been trying to contact him, just making sure he's ok! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigJim Posted October 27, 2014 Author Share Posted October 27, 2014 Just had an e-mail from Jon, we're finalising the build specs... More to follow when we can agree on things. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigJim Posted November 5, 2014 Author Share Posted November 5, 2014 (edited) So after a while deliberating and booking more gigs, I've barely got a block of 5 days where I can go and do the course :-( But what I am doing is - With a local luthier, he's going to be coaching me so we've finalised the details: Swamp Ash Body 5 piece birdseye, mahogany neck (maple,mahog,maple,mahog,maple) Birdseye maple board Flamed Mahogany top Carvin Bridge Carvin Tuners Carvin MM5 and P5 pickups Carvin 5 band eq (the same as on the SB and JB ranges) Also, I'm going to be putting a ramp made of the same top wood between the pickups. Side dots only but are copper wrapped in aluminium The body on the back is going to be sand blasted then oiled with the grain filled and the top is just oiled. Body wise... I drew round a picture of a Roscoe Beck! Picture to follow to see what people think! Edited November 5, 2014 by BigJim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigJim Posted November 5, 2014 Author Share Posted November 5, 2014 Here's the picture Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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