JimBobTTD Posted January 16, 2018 Share Posted January 16, 2018 A few years ago, I fell hopelessly in love with @Tweedledum's 1974 Jazz. It took me some time to get started, but it is now underway. I prefer 5s to 4s (otherwise I would have bought it off him when he sold it) so I had to go about getting one using my preferred method - Warmoth. They are expensive but I find the necks amazingly comfortable. This is my third Warmoth...I already have fretless Jazz V and a Firecreek PJ5 with a Warmoth neck. Body Warmoth Jazz Deluxe 5, alder, top routed Neck Flame maple Dark rosewood fingerboard Binding & blocks Parts Nordstrand NJ5F set John East U-Retro Dlx Hipshot A bridge Hipshot Ultralite tuners Hipshot string guides Gotoh double battery box Warmoth tort scratchplate Due to CITES, this took ages to get done. The body, neck and a few parts were ordered in mid-July. Warmoth had finished the parts and received their CITES in September. At that point, I was able to apply for my CITES certificate. The parts were with me in late November. I chose the Nordstrands because I was so impressed with them in my PJ. Hipshot because I like their kit. East U-Retro because I have one at home and I want this bass to be active (not exactly period correct, I know, but neither is the B-string!). Photos to come later...I would imagine this will be complete in time for Easter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Owen Posted January 17, 2018 Share Posted January 17, 2018 No mention of colour and/or matching headstock. Poor show. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimothey Posted January 17, 2018 Share Posted January 17, 2018 Sounds like it’s going to be a lovely build tho.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimBobTTD Posted January 18, 2018 Author Share Posted January 18, 2018 Sorry, Owen with a small o. I am a bad person. Sunburst, slightly tinted lacquer on the neck. No relic work. I wanted this to look like a new version of Tweedledum’s 74 Jazz but with 60s appointments, so (my understanding of) 60s sunburst pattern, 60s bridge pickup position etc. And five string. And active. So not much like his 74 Jazz, then. But his bass is what made this build happen, though; I would otherwise have probably gone with a white Jazz without binding and blocks. In good news, the body has been painted and is ready. It looks lush. The neck is not ready yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Owen Posted January 18, 2018 Share Posted January 18, 2018 Yeah pretty shocking on my shouting at you about detail when I cannot even spell my name properly 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassTool Posted January 20, 2018 Share Posted January 20, 2018 On 1/17/2018 at 23:08, owen said: No mention of colour and/or matching headstock. Poor show. Agreed... On 1/18/2018 at 08:18, JimBobTTD said: Sorry, Owen with a small o. I am a bad person. In good news, the body has been painted and is ready. It looks lush. The neck is not ready yet. ....and then he teases us that it looks lush without any photographic evidence 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimBobTTD Posted January 20, 2018 Author Share Posted January 20, 2018 Point taken! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geek99 Posted January 20, 2018 Share Posted January 20, 2018 In the words of the fast show “I think I’ve just come” did you paint that ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimBobTTD Posted January 20, 2018 Author Share Posted January 20, 2018 2 hours ago, Geek99 said: In the words of the fast show “I think I’ve just come” did you paint that ? No, not me. Sorry...I should have mentioned. The painting has been done by Retro169 (Paul) in Newquay. Paul was recommended a while back and did the lacquer on my fretless neck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpondonBassed Posted January 21, 2018 Share Posted January 21, 2018 (Puts a BIG umbrella up.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimBobTTD Posted January 21, 2018 Author Share Posted January 21, 2018 A moment of panic has made me change my mind on the East preamp. I would have to drill two holes for the switches. This is not a big deal, but, should I want to go passive, I would need to buy another bell plate from Warmoth as, for some reason, neither the John East plate nor the Fender plate fits the cut in the Warmoth scratchplate (previous experience tells me). Anyway, I put the East up for sale here and it was sold in 25 minutes. So...I was looking at the East U-Pre, but John East tells me that it will not fit in the cavity on a Jazz. This is a shame; the new U-Pre has no extra switches but instead relies on push/pull pots and it would have been perfect. What I might do is do what I did on my other Jazz (now fretless): put a switch in the fourth hole for series/parallel. The only problem with this is that I know that this would mean that I would likely never change to anything else...V/V/T/switch on the other one was meant to be a stopgap until I worked out what kind of preamp I wanted in there. And I really want to have a preamp in this one! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimBobTTD Posted February 4, 2018 Author Share Posted February 4, 2018 Joy of joys! The neck and body are both finished and will soon be making their way to me. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimothey Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 That’s looking lovely!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pea Turgh Posted February 5, 2018 Share Posted February 5, 2018 That’s a lovely bit of flamed maple. I LOVE a flamed maple neck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimBobTTD Posted February 10, 2018 Author Share Posted February 10, 2018 The body and neck arrived yesterday and are incredibly lovely...far better than they appear in the photos above. The finish is thin yet the burst has incredible depth to it. I spent quite some time staring at it. I also put the neck on. This was perhaps silly of me. I had surgery on my right elbow a little over a week ago and I am not ready for this kind of arm movement. It is likely that this will be ready by Easter, even though I have all the parts. I cannot hold my drill in my right hand and I do not have the dexterity in my left to do this kind of work. I might be able to shield the cavities and put the bridge on but drilling holes for the strap buttons or soldering is out for a while. I broke down and ordered a John East J-Retro deluxe. Yes, the one with the plate which cannot be used. So, I shall remove the bits and put it on the Warmoth plate and drill holes. Yes...just what I wanted to avoid and the reason why I sold the U-Retro. Yes, I see the folly in this. I basically wasted a bundle of cash. Silly me! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyjr1515 Posted February 12, 2018 Share Posted February 12, 2018 That neck looks fantastic. I've always been a great admirer of Warmoth components and this reminds me why.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheGreek Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 Agree with the others...lovely neck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Owen Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 On 20/01/2018 at 22:34, JimBobTTD said: The painting has been done by Retro169 (Paul) in Newquay. Paul does lovely work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dolando Posted February 20, 2018 Share Posted February 20, 2018 Looks awesome! I want to do this with another Warmoth build but a sherwood green 5 string jazz. I have a deluxe jazz V from Warmoth, but find it a bit of a chunky neck. I'm wondering if the MIM jazz feels a little more slender....? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimBobTTD Posted February 21, 2018 Author Share Posted February 21, 2018 Aha...I rather like the neck. I chose a 1.75” width one though. Not too chunky at all for me. I measured my Ibanez and worked out that the Warmoth one was about the same size. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimBobTTD Posted April 3, 2018 Author Share Posted April 3, 2018 This is progressing very slowly. I have most of the parts on the bass now. Left to do: - Drill holes in the bell plate for the East preamp - Hook up the preamp - Fix the battery box (it is in, but not wired up). I shall need to decide whether to go for 9 or 18v - Set up I have flatwounds on it and I can play it as it is. The sound is very round, which bodes well. Pics etc when the bass is ready. Not long now! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dolando Posted April 19, 2018 Share Posted April 19, 2018 Any update on this? I have a similar plan for an Olympic white '62' style Jazz 5 string, so I would love to see some more photos of this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimBobTTD Posted April 21, 2018 Author Share Posted April 21, 2018 Not since the last post, no. Hooking up the preamp means drilling a couple of holes in the bell plate for the switches. No big deal, but this also means getting out my workbench (in the cellar, behind loads of stuff) and drilling holes...I cannot be lifting things just yet after my arm operation at the end of January, so it might all have to wait a few weeks longer until I can hold a drill! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimBobTTD Posted July 7, 2018 Author Share Posted July 7, 2018 Done. Much like with people, there is a but. I foolishly ordered the hole in the side for the socket at 19mm instead of 22mm, so I cannot use the passive tone on the East preamp. Any ideas how to enlarge this hole without ruining anything? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dolando Posted July 7, 2018 Share Posted July 7, 2018 Get some step drill bits and a 22mm Forsner bit. The step drill bit drills like a countersink and located inside the hole. Then you can drill until you get a 22mm step, then use the forsner bit to do the rest. The steps means the forsner bit won’t wonder. Step drill bits are very handy to have around. 3 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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