BrunoBass Posted March 14, 2018 Share Posted March 14, 2018 (edited) For a very long time I’ve been thinking about putting together a low cost ‘parts’ Precision bass guitar for fun, and finally after much research I’ve made a start and bought the bits I need to get started. I have a couple of questions which I’m hoping someone can help me with. Please bear in mind that this is the first time I’ve done anything like this and I don’t really know what I’m doing. Firstly, pots. 500k or 250k (I’ve seen both types offered)? What’s preferable? Assuming my build is successful I’ll be using this bass in my rock covers band, so I’m looking for an aggressive, rocky sound. Presumably different types of pots have different outputs, tone etc? Secondly, the maple neck I’ve bought (which is an absolute beauty, unbelievable for less than £30) arrived with a beautiful satin finish, I assume poly rather than nitro. My original intention was to do a vintage amber tint before applying a decal and clear coat. However, I like the satin finish so much I might keep it, apply a decal and then satin clear coat to the front of the headstock only, to seal the decal. My Jazz Deluxe has a very similar satin finish on the neck. I’m fairly au fait with applying and polishing a gloss clear coat, but how about a satin clear coat - any ideas how to do this? Is polishing necessary or would that just turn it to gloss? I’ll add photos of my progress as I continue through the project. Thanks. Edited March 14, 2018 by PaulGibsonBass Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimothey Posted March 14, 2018 Share Posted March 14, 2018 I might be wrong I’m sure someone will correct me if I am but as I understand it the higher the resistance means more treble so they recommend 500k pots for humbuckers as they aren’t as trebly (I think that’s a word) as single coil which sound better with 250k pots As fat as the finish goes @Andyjr1515 or @Jabba_the_gut are the ones to speak to they can probably advise you a lot better than I could Goid luck with the build and post your progress!!.... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrunoBass Posted March 14, 2018 Author Share Posted March 14, 2018 8 minutes ago, Jimothey said: I might be wrong I’m sure someone will correct me if I am but as I understand it the higher the resistance means more treble so they recommend 500k pots for humbuckers as they aren’t as trebly (I think that’s a word) as single coil which sound better with 250k pots As fat as the finish goes @Andyjr1515 or @Jabba_the_gut are the ones to speak to they can probably advise you a lot better than I could Goid luck with the build and post your progress!!.... I will, thank you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrunoBass Posted March 14, 2018 Author Share Posted March 14, 2018 (edited) So first up is the neck. For my first project (because I have many ideas) I decided to assemble a bass from parts as opposed to actually building the body and neck myself from raw wood (although this is something I plan to do in the future). Anyway the first part arrived this week from China (although the speed with which it arrived suggests it’s a Chinese made item stocked in the UK), and I’m very, very impressed with it. The fretwork is beautiful, and the build quality is impressive especially considering that it cost less than £30 delivered (although I may well still get hit for import duty, if it did indeed come from China...) My plan is to try and do the whole build for £150 or thereabouts, although it doesn’t matter if it goes slightly over budget but my intention is to try and build a serviceable, giggable instrument for as little money as possible. Can’t wait to get building!! Edited March 14, 2018 by PaulGibsonBass Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyjr1515 Posted March 14, 2018 Share Posted March 14, 2018 2 hours ago, PaulGibsonBass said: Secondly, the maple neck I’ve bought (which is an absolute beauty, unbelievable for less than £30) arrived with a beautiful satin finish, I assume poly rather than nitro. My original intention was to do a vintage amber tint before applying a decal and clear coat. However, I like the satin finish so much I might keep it, apply a decal and then satin clear coat to the front of the headstock only, to seal the decal. My Jazz Deluxe has a very similar satin finish on the neck. I’m fairly au fait with applying and polishing a gloss clear coat, but how about a satin clear coat - any ideas how to do this? Is polishing necessary or would that just turn it to gloss? It needs testing to make sure it doesn't react with the decal (although I doubt that it will) but I would strongly recommend Osmo Polyx in Satin - you can get a small 125ml tin (in fact the 5ml sample size would probably do fine if it's just the headstock) from Wood Finishes Direct here Just wipe it on with a soft lint-free cloth or soft brush, let it dry and then give it a second coat. That's all that it will need 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyjr1515 Posted March 14, 2018 Share Posted March 14, 2018 Just now, Andyjr1515 said: It needs testing to make sure it doesn't react with the decal (although I doubt that it will) but I would strongly recommend Osmo Polyx in Satin - you can get a small 125ml tin (in fact the 5ml sample size would probably do fine if it's just the headstock) from Wood Finishes Direct here Just wipe it on with a soft lint-free cloth or soft brush, let it dry and then give it a second coat. That's all that it will need By the way, they do an amber tinted version too... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Norris Posted March 15, 2018 Share Posted March 15, 2018 If you're after an aggressive, rocky sound then chances are you'll have the volume and tone turned up full. In effect you'll be shorting out the resistance, so it wouldn't make a huge difference which value pots you use. It's only when you back off the knobs that there would be a difference. A passive P bass would usually have 250k pots. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrunoBass Posted March 15, 2018 Author Share Posted March 15, 2018 (edited) Thank you @Andyjr1515 and @Norris. How great is it that I can come on Basschat and get free advice from people who know what they’re talking about. Edited March 15, 2018 by PaulGibsonBass Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrunoBass Posted March 15, 2018 Author Share Posted March 15, 2018 Here’s the body, purchased from a UK eBay seller for £31 plus delivery. It’s pretty good, nicely finished and routed. It’s paulownia by the way and very porous from the feel of it, so clearly grain filler is required before I do anything else. All in all, I’m pleased with it. But... it’s very, very light. Which is a good thing, especially with my dodgy shoulder, but it’s lightness is setting off various alarm bells in my head regarding it’s strength. I know people build instruments from paulownia all the time, but it does concern me slightly that it will be able to handle string tension. I have visions of tuning it up and the bridge screws pulling out of the body... BC member Discreet has just built a Jazz with a paulownia body successfully (possibly from the same eBay seller?) and chatting with him has allayed my fears somewhat. So, I’m off to buy some grain filler while I think about which finish I’m going to apply... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrunoBass Posted March 15, 2018 Author Share Posted March 15, 2018 Jazz bass neck, meet Precision Bass body! Decent fit, but there’s just enough space (less than millimetre) that the neck won’t support the body. I’m thinking of gluing in a little piece of veneer to the inside of the pocket side to tighten the fit up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrunoBass Posted March 15, 2018 Author Share Posted March 15, 2018 It looks lovely with no finish or hardware, shame it can’t stay like that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimothey Posted March 15, 2018 Share Posted March 15, 2018 Looks nice!! I really like the paulownia bodies they are cheap and light and sometimes have a nice grain pattern I’ve just done a Jazz with a paulownia body aswell, I didn’t grain fill it as such I just used thinned down poly and before it was dry I sanded it and it makes a slurry that you wipe off and it seals the grain (a tip given by andyjr1515) what finish you thinking of doing?..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrunoBass Posted March 15, 2018 Author Share Posted March 15, 2018 Not sure yet, I really like the look at the Matt Freeman Signature that Squier had out a few years ago; vintage Olympic White with black ‘plate and amber tinted maple neck. Pete Farndon had a similar one which I always though looked cool... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrunoBass Posted March 15, 2018 Author Share Posted March 15, 2018 ...but I’m a sucker for orange basses so I’m also thinking orange sparkle or flat Capri orange, I think it might look better with a rosewood ‘board but it’s something I’m thinking about, maybe with a pearloid scratchplate. Decisions... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimothey Posted March 15, 2018 Share Posted March 15, 2018 The first Orange bass looks nice but so does the Olympic White!!!..... But either one would be good looking bass!!!...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Norris Posted March 15, 2018 Share Posted March 15, 2018 Chances are your neck is a tight enough fit. If you're going to add paint or lacquer that will close up the space. As long as it's within about half a mm you're fine. If you grain fill, do it a couple of times. You WILL miss bits on your first pass, or it may sink very slightly. It's a key stage to getting a good finish, and trying to build up any remaining pores with paint/lacquer gets time consuming and expensive. It looks a lovely body for the money Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geek99 Posted March 15, 2018 Share Posted March 15, 2018 32 minutes ago, Norris said: Chances are your neck is a tight enough fit. If you're going to add paint or lacquer that will close up the space. As long as it's within about half a mm you're fine. If you grain fill, do it a couple of times. You WILL miss bits on your first pass, or it may sink very slightly. It's a key stage to getting a good finish, and trying to build up any remaining pores with paint/lacquer gets time consuming and expensive. It looks a lovely body for the money I’ve got one in my car from the same supplier @Norris if you want a look Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrunoBass Posted March 15, 2018 Author Share Posted March 15, 2018 3 hours ago, Jimothey said: The first Orange bass looks nice but so does the Olympic White!!!..... But either one would be good looking bass!!!...... Yeah I think I’m heading towards the white, probably a bit less lurid! You didn’t have any issues with your paulownia body? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrunoBass Posted March 15, 2018 Author Share Posted March 15, 2018 3 hours ago, Norris said: Chances are your neck is a tight enough fit. If you're going to add paint or lacquer that will close up the space. As long as it's within about half a mm you're fine. If you grain fill, do it a couple of times. You WILL miss bits on your first pass, or it may sink very slightly. It's a key stage to getting a good finish, and trying to build up any remaining pores with paint/lacquer gets time consuming and expensive. It looks a lovely body for the money Thank you. I’ve seen some recommendations for using sanding sealer before grain filling - do you think that’s necesssry? It is indeed a great body, but I’m super impressed with the neck, the fret work is excellent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discreet Posted March 15, 2018 Share Posted March 15, 2018 (edited) As far as electrics are concerned, the easiest way is to buy a pre-wired kit from KiOgon of this parish. You don't even need to be able to use a soldering iron. I can, but I find it a lot easier to simply drop in a Kiogon kit. Then you can forget about it - safe in the knowledge that it will do its thing perfectly for the rest of time. Wait, that white/black/maple looks kind of familiar... Edited March 15, 2018 by discreet 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimothey Posted March 16, 2018 Share Posted March 16, 2018 (edited) 3 hours ago, PaulGibsonBass said: Yeah I think I’m heading towards the white, probably a bit less lurid! You didn’t have any issues with your paulownia body? No it was really nice to sand and finish I kept mine Natural so it was literally seal the body then 5/6 coats of thinned down poly Flatten and polish Edited March 16, 2018 by Jimothey Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Norris Posted March 16, 2018 Share Posted March 16, 2018 9 hours ago, PaulGibsonBass said: Thank you. I’ve seen some recommendations for using sanding sealer before grain filling - do you think that’s necesssry? It is indeed a great body, but I’m super impressed with the neck, the fret work is excellent. I've only used lacquer so far, and then I used sanding sealer after grain filling and dyeing. I think you'd grain fill and then use primer if you're painting it 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrunoBass Posted March 16, 2018 Author Share Posted March 16, 2018 7 hours ago, Jimothey said: No it was really nice to sand and finish I kept mine Natural so it was literally seal the body then 5/6 coats of thinned down poly Flatten and polish Looks fantastic. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimothey Posted March 16, 2018 Share Posted March 16, 2018 (edited) I didn’t think out turned out bad for £90 all in....... Now I’ve just got to learn to play it better!! Edited March 16, 2018 by Jimothey 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrunoBass Posted March 16, 2018 Author Share Posted March 16, 2018 The bridge (high mass type from Warman) and neck plate arrived this morning. Off I went to find some grain filler only to be met with blank looks at all of the potential stockists... shame, as I have a couple of spare hours later when I was planning to fill the grain. Oh well, no hurry. I've ordered a tin of Rustin's from Amazon which should arrive in the next few days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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