Callumjord Posted November 4, 2015 Share Posted November 4, 2015 [color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]I have recently decided that I am in need of a P bass/P bass style bass guitar and while I was looking at some different options the thought never occurred to me that I could get a kit P bass and make my own and make it a project for next year (after I get my pedal bored finished)[/font][/color] [color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]Has anybody had any experience with kit built guitars? [/font][/color] [color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]I am mainly thinking about starting off with one from either amazon or ebay (warmoth would be too expensive once the P&P has been added) and upgrading all the components ie, bass pickups, pots, tuners, bridge etc.[/font][/color] [color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]I could imagine that there would be a lot of work required for the neck, levelling/filing frets etc but what other problems could I occur? [/font][/color] [color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]Cheers, [/font][/color] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6v6 Posted November 4, 2015 Share Posted November 4, 2015 The kits I've seen aren't great quality tbh - if you want a good playable bass I'd look at something like a squier P or a Yamaha BB, then mod that if needed. However if you primarily want a project, I'm sure one of the kits will provide some good entertainment, Thommann do a kit for £65 which has got to be worth a go I guess, although a fully built and finished Harley Benton bass is the exact same price, which is kinda hard to understand! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twigman Posted November 4, 2015 Share Posted November 4, 2015 Warmoth are far far better quality than the ebay kits Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mykesbass Posted November 4, 2015 Share Posted November 4, 2015 Sitting somewhere between Warmoth and the Ebay kits (pricewise at least) are Build Your Own Guitars [url="http://byoguitar.com"]http://byoguitar.com[/url] results of which can be seen in the for sale link below. Good price, and didn't get clobbered for a huge amount of import duty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Norris Posted November 4, 2015 Share Posted November 4, 2015 It depends what you want to do. You may be better off buying a reasonable quality donor bass as it will probably cost less than the individual components. Then refinish/upgrade as budget and inspiration allow. Or you could go the whole hog and find a guitar building course near you - although that will probably cost you more in the long run (e.g. just the wood for the Telecaster guitar I'm making cost me more than a brand new Squier Affinity Tele!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roman_sub Posted November 4, 2015 Share Posted November 4, 2015 I'd warn against buying very very cheap necks / bodies from unknown manufacturers - you may end up with issues that would make the whole project bass unusable / worthless in the longer term. I bought the cheapest fretless neck I could for a project and ended up giving it away as a freebie because the heel wasn't cut properly, fretlines were already cracked and I couldn't sell it on for any money. Warmoth is expensive but is a recognised name..... That all said, if you just want to mess around with a cheap kit, nothing wrong with that! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Callumjord Posted November 4, 2015 Author Share Posted November 4, 2015 [quote name='Mykesbass' timestamp='1446635095' post='2900941'] Sitting somewhere between Warmoth and the Ebay kits (pricewise at least) are Build Your Own Guitars [url="http://byoguitar.com"]http://byoguitar.com[/url] results of which can be seen in the for sale link below. Good price, and didn't get clobbered for a huge amount of import duty [/quote] Thats a fair price, I would love to go Warmoth but the price and P&P on top makes the price go through the roof. [quote name='Norris' timestamp='1446638737' post='2900985'] It depends what you want to do. You may be better off buying a reasonable quality donor bass as it will probably cost less than the individual components. Then refinish/upgrade as budget and inspiration allow. Or you could go the whole hog and find a guitar building course near you - although that will probably cost you more in the long run (e.g. just the wood for the Telecaster guitar I'm making cost me more than a brand new Squier Affinity Tele!) [/quote] An idea I had was to just use the body with the kit and maybe source a fender/warmoth neck. Although a donor bass could be a good shout. Although I am not really good with my hands so would rather pay for a cheap kit and botch it up then pay more for a donor bass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zero9 Posted November 4, 2015 Share Posted November 4, 2015 I'd recommend buying the parts from the for sale forum here on Basschat, as and when the bits come up at the right price. That's what I've done and I just need some pickups now. It may take longer, but is more fun Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyjr1515 Posted November 4, 2015 Share Posted November 4, 2015 OK - I'm going to wade in my my size 12's here... If you just want to assemble a bass, but want it to look the tops, Warmoth is the way to go, but very very expensive. BUT if you want to do more than that - if you want to also do the finishing as well, and are using it as a learning / source of satisfaction with a pretty good chance of a half decent end result, I would heartily recommend the kit ranges from [url="http://www.gear4music.com/Bass-Guitars/DIY-Basses"]Gear4music here[/url] At [b]less than £70 for EVERYTHING[/b], except the glue, stain and varnish, you really can't go far wrong. You will want to put some better strings on and, if it turns out nice build-wise, worth considering popping some better pickups and maybe hardware. I suspect the Thomann kits are just as good but don't have first hand on those. 'The Fretboard' forum ran a Summer Challenge last year to get a Gear4music kit and either just build it or pimp it up. There were around 30 entries - including a number of basses - and very, very few quality issues reported. Most people were well impressed with the quality of the timber and machining. I know I was. I did a 6 string, [b]which is now my main gigging guitar[/b], and has been since I finished it over a year ago!!!! Here it is (and yes - I well and truly pimped mine up): The quality of the machining on mine was unbelievable at that price point. There are better kits around - some are stunning quality - but bang for buck and for starters, this is the way I would go... Andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stevo Posted November 4, 2015 Share Posted November 4, 2015 (edited) TBH This is the way I want to go, I was a Luthier back in the dim and distant past, and made everything myself from wood blanks, so spraying a guitar up won't be too much of a problem. Regards the hardware (- or shoud I start another thread!) what's popular these days? I was used to making pickup blanks from figured maple and sending them to Kent Armstrong to wind/mould them for me.... I've see some great reviews and comments for Alun Entwhistle's Neo pickups... Schaller Machines? Badass bridge? you tell me! Edited November 4, 2015 by Stevo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Callumjord Posted November 4, 2015 Author Share Posted November 4, 2015 [quote name='Andyjr1515' timestamp='1446646278' post='2901080'] OK - I'm going to wade in my my size 12's here... If you just want to assemble a bass, but want it to look the tops, Warmoth is the way to go, but very very expensive. BUT if you want to do more than that - if you want to also do the finishing as well, and are using it as a learning / source of satisfaction with a pretty good chance of a half decent end result, I would heartily recommend the kit ranges from [url="http://www.gear4music.com/Bass-Guitars/DIY-Basses"]Gear4music here[/url] At [b]less than £70 for EVERYTHING[/b], except the glue, stain and varnish, you really can't go far wrong. You will want to put some better strings on and, if it turns out nice build-wise, worth considering popping some better pickups and maybe hardware. I suspect the Thomann kits are just as good but don't have first hand on those. 'The Fretboard' forum ran a Summer Challenge last year to get a Gear4music kit and either just build it or pimp it up. There were around 30 entries - including a number of basses - and very, very few quality issues reported. Most people were well impressed with the quality of the timber and machining. I know I was. I did a 6 string, [b]which is now my main gigging guitar[/b], and has been since I finished it over a year ago!!!! Here it is (and yes - I well and truly pimped mine up): The quality of the machining on mine was unbelievable at that price point. There are better kits around - some are stunning quality - but bang for buck and for starters, this is the way I would go... Andy [/quote] I'll have a look into the gear4music kits, ideally the bass will be used for gigs so I am wanting to put some time and money into it. I think I will go with a basic kit and work on it as appose to a warmoth as that way it will feel like there is more of "me" put into the bass. That guitar looks awesome btw Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wmsheep Posted November 4, 2015 Share Posted November 4, 2015 Hmmm, sounds like a competition for next year - at some random point in time the competition is announced and you have to buy your kit from Thomann, Gear4Music or BYOGuitar, and once received you have a certain amount of time to put it together. Results are then put to the public vote. Obviously there would be different classes for the different makers/models. Just a thought. oh, by the way, the Carvin BK4 kit I bought years ago is still in a state of "will be looked at again at some point in the future" (actually, just got the body to finish/start - just waiting for nice weather to lacquer) . 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petetexas Posted November 6, 2015 Share Posted November 6, 2015 Hi Guys , I have decided to "build " my own bass , I say " build " as really its an assembly , with a few vey critial holes , alignments etc . Nothwest Guitars manufacture excellent finished bodies ( gloss polyester £150 ) and necks ( satin polyester £110 ) both maple and rosewood fingerboard ALL MADE IN HOUSE . I have just purchased an Artic white Jazz Body ( gloss polyester ) and a vintage ( satin polyester ) one piece Maple Neck . By the time you purchase [u]all[/u] the hardware , pickups etc , it does come out at about £450 ! Expensive , but , something you make to your own requirements . Beware though , aligning neck to body , and drilling for mounting plate etc HAS TO BE DONE WITH CARE . Even drilling holes and mountng m/c heads has to be done with care , as a hole drilled through the headstock or fingerboard can be VERY expensive ! Assembly so far ...................( sorry about the quality of pics , dodgy phone camera ! ) [url="http://s1298.photobucket.com/user/petetexas/media/20151106_172426_zps3fxpbtdi.jpg.html"][/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mykesbass Posted November 6, 2015 Share Posted November 6, 2015 [quote name='petetexas' timestamp='1446831328' post='2902791'] Hi Guys , I have decided to "build " my own bass , I say " build " as really its an assembly , with a few vey critial holes , alignments etc . Nothwest Guitars manufacture excellent finished bodies ( gloss polyester £150 ) and necks ( satin polyester £110 ) both maple and rosewood fingerboard ALL MADE IN HOUSE . I have just purchased an Artic white Jazz Body ( gloss polyester ) and a vintage ( satin polyester ) one piece Maple Neck . By the time you purchase [u]all[/u] the hardware , pickups etc , it does come out at about £450 ! Expensive , but , something you make to your own requirements . Beware though , aligning neck to body , and drilling for mounting plate etc HAS TO BE DONE WITH CARE . Even drilling holes and mountng m/c heads has to be done with care , as a hole drilled through the headstock or fingerboard can be VERY expensive ! Assembly so far ...................( sorry about the quality of pics , dodgy phone camera ! ) [/quote] I found drilling through the finish to be the most difficult - even using masking tape and a new drill bit I got quite a lot of flaking. Hopefully your finish will be a little more forgiving. Nice work so far! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petetexas Posted November 6, 2015 Share Posted November 6, 2015 Hi Mykesbass, I always use a bradle to firstly mark the center where the hole is to be , then use a hand drill ( about 40 years old - given to me by my late dad ) and take it VERY VERY slow . I always go back after drilling and slightly countersink the top of the hole . Will get the bridge lined up and fitted in position tomorrow - if the screws turn up ! Pete Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Callumjord Posted November 7, 2015 Author Share Posted November 7, 2015 [quote name='petetexas' timestamp='1446831328' post='2902791'] Hi Guys , I have decided to "build " my own bass , I say " build " as really its an assembly , with a few vey critial holes , alignments etc . Nothwest Guitars manufacture excellent finished bodies ( gloss polyester £150 ) and necks ( satin polyester £110 ) both maple and rosewood fingerboard ALL MADE IN HOUSE . I have just purchased an Artic white Jazz Body ( gloss polyester ) and a vintage ( satin polyester ) one piece Maple Neck . By the time you purchase [u]all[/u] the hardware , pickups etc , it does come out at about £450 ! Expensive , but , something you make to your own requirements . Beware though , aligning neck to body , and drilling for mounting plate etc HAS TO BE DONE WITH CARE . Even drilling holes and mountng m/c heads has to be done with care , as a hole drilled through the headstock or fingerboard can be VERY expensive ! Assembly so far ...................( sorry about the quality of pics , dodgy phone camera ! ) [url="http://s1298.photobucket.com/user/petetexas/media/20151106_172426_zps3fxpbtdi.jpg.html"][/url] [/quote] Yea I worked out the cost of all the extra components and I was roughly round the £450 mark, that's why I am wanting to get it right and not muck it up Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stevo Posted November 7, 2015 Share Posted November 7, 2015 Anyone seen [url="http://www.guitarbuild.co.uk/"]http://www.guitarbuild.co.uk/[/url] ? At least the customisable options are there and you can design a 2 piece swamp ash J body, fully routed and shaped so you can do away with the pickguard and show off the wood... £160. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petetexas Posted November 8, 2015 Share Posted November 8, 2015 They look good , I decided to go for a colour ( Artic White my fav ) because I have a Lakland Spalted Maple top ( to which I have fitted Nordstrand pups and Glockenklang pre amp ) for a while , but missed the Jazz sound ! Anyhow , here is a pic of the Jazzer next to the Lakland . Jazzer has had the neck aligned / fitted ( had to shim it to get a good action ) and the bridge ( Gotoh ) , with the nut cut and pups added using an old set of strings . Just waiting for the control plate to arrive - have got the CTS pots . Switchcraft Socket and Sprague capacitor already . [URL=http://s1298.photobucket.com/user/petetexas/media/SDC11836_zpsaajz2ifz.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1298.photobucket.com/albums/ag59/petetexas/SDC11836_zpsaajz2ifz.jpg[/IMG][/URL] The strings / bridge look out of line to the pups , but they are not - its just a slight angle of the picture . Pete Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Callumjord Posted November 8, 2015 Author Share Posted November 8, 2015 [quote name='Stevo' timestamp='1446912972' post='2903467'] Anyone seen [url="http://www.guitarbuild.co.uk/"]http://www.guitarbuild.co.uk/[/url] ? At least the customisable options are there and you can design a 2 piece swamp ash J body, fully routed and shaped so you can do away with the pickguard and show off the wood... £160. [/quote] Never heard of that website before, just had a look around and signed up. They have some great prices. Hopefully the product will be good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyjr1515 Posted November 8, 2015 Share Posted November 8, 2015 Guitarbuild are very good quality components in my view. Just finished a tele build using one of their bodies and it was tip top... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DorsetBlue Posted November 9, 2015 Share Posted November 9, 2015 [quote name='Andyjr1515' timestamp='1447022955' post='2904278'] Guitarbuild are very good quality components in my view. Just finished a tele build using one of their bodies and it was tip top... [/quote] Just building a Hank Marvin'ish Strat based on a Guitarbuild body. Custom routed to match a G&L neck, very impressed with the quality. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petetexas Posted November 12, 2015 Share Posted November 12, 2015 (edited) Still awaiting delivery ( should be this morning ) of the correct control plate ( I ordered the wrong 3 hole instead of 4 hole ) , but wired it up for last nights rehearsal ........................................what a sound and feel ...................be it that the bass weighs in at just under 12 pounds , did not notice the weight at all ! Loads of comments about it from the band ( even the drummer ! ) I have even put a F%"%ER logo on the hedstock , and laq over it . It looks the part. Will get new pics up when the correct plate is installed . Have REALLY enjoyed the "assembly" , and gettting all the parts together . Pete Edited November 12, 2015 by petetexas Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petetexas Posted November 12, 2015 Share Posted November 12, 2015 (edited) Plate not turned up yet ...............BOOOOOOOOOOOOOO ! Pete Edited November 13, 2015 by petetexas Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petetexas Posted November 15, 2015 Share Posted November 15, 2015 (edited) Well, Here she is ..........done two gigs with her , and I am VERY pleased with the result . Nice C shape neck profile ( I have large hands , so feels great ) , a little heavy ( just under 12 pounds ) but did not feel it during gigs , sustain is brilliant . Body and neck from Northwest Guitars , scratchplate , bridge etc from bits lying around and some parts purchased on ebay . Had to do some "tweaking " to get neck at correct angle to body to get a decent action ( put a shim in neck pocket ) even decided to put waterslide Fender Logo on headstock , and gave it 5/6 light coats of satin Laq to seal it . Really enjoyed the whole project .........I would say about £450 in all . I know you can get a secondhand Mex Jazz for about that , but its not half as much fun ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! [url="http://s1298.photobucket.com/user/petetexas/media/SDC11850_zpsym8725xh.jpg.html"][/url] [url="http://s1298.photobucket.com/user/petetexas/media/SDC11849_zpscwkgpcfy.jpg.html"][/url] [url="http://s1298.photobucket.com/user/petetexas/media/SDC11844_zpsau1sy5bw.jpg.html"][/url] [url="http://s1298.photobucket.com/user/petetexas/media/SDC11847_zps4zskhizl.jpg.html"][/url] [url="http://s1298.photobucket.com/user/petetexas/media/SDC11841_zpsbfgaep9q.jpg.html"][/url] [url="http://s1298.photobucket.com/user/petetexas/media/SDC11840_zps52vzv5or.jpg.html"][/url] Pete Edited November 16, 2015 by petetexas Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Callumjord Posted November 17, 2015 Author Share Posted November 17, 2015 [quote name='petetexas' timestamp='1447599727' post='2908779'] Well, Here she is ..........done two gigs with her , and I am VERY pleased with the result . Nice C shape neck profile ( I have large hands , so feels great ) , a little heavy ( just under 12 pounds ) but did not feel it during gigs , sustain is brilliant . Body and neck from Northwest Guitars , scratchplate , bridge etc from bits lying around and some parts purchased on ebay . Had to do some "tweaking " to get neck at correct angle to body to get a decent action ( put a shim in neck pocket ) even decided to put waterslide Fender Logo on headstock , and gave it 5/6 light coats of satin Laq to seal it . Really enjoyed the whole project .........I would say about £450 in all . I know you can get a secondhand Mex Jazz for about that , but its not half as much fun ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! [url="http://s1298.photobucket.com/user/petetexas/media/SDC11850_zpsym8725xh.jpg.html"][/url] [url="http://s1298.photobucket.com/user/petetexas/media/SDC11849_zpscwkgpcfy.jpg.html"][/url] [url="http://s1298.photobucket.com/user/petetexas/media/SDC11844_zpsau1sy5bw.jpg.html"][/url] [url="http://s1298.photobucket.com/user/petetexas/media/SDC11847_zps4zskhizl.jpg.html"][/url] [url="http://s1298.photobucket.com/user/petetexas/media/SDC11841_zpsbfgaep9q.jpg.html"][/url] [url="http://s1298.photobucket.com/user/petetexas/media/SDC11840_zps52vzv5or.jpg.html"][/url] Pete [/quote] That looks excellent! What pickups did you use? You install a preamp as well? £450 is brilliant price. At least you have something that you can say that you have built with your bare hands. I'm just starting to spec out my p bass, thinking metallic pink body with all black hardware, just trying to decide if I should go with a all maple neck or spend a bit of money and get a wenge warmouth neck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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