The little rascal!

[Andyjr1515]

2 hours ago, scrumpymike said:

Just found the Eden necks online - look good.  I see why they're called 'paddle' necks - presumably that enables any type of head-stock design.

Yes. I've gone for one with no top dots so a couple of swifts at the 12th?

[scrumpymike]

1 hour ago, Andyjr1515 said:

Yes. I've gone for one with no top dots so a couple of swifts at the 12th?

Oh no - I hate unmarked fretboards 😕

[Andyjr1515]

6 minutes ago, scrumpymike said:

Oh no - I hate unmarked fretboards 😕

Not saying you can't have dots too...but, like in an M&S ad, they will not be any old (Eden) dots - these will be Andyjr1515 dots

[scrumpymike]

11 hours ago, Andyjr1515 said:

Not saying you can't have dots too...but, like in an M&S ad, they will not be any old (Eden) dots - these will be Andyjr1515 dots

Not saying I don't want swifts at the 12th either 😉

[Chienmortbb]

12 hours ago, scrumpymike said:

Oh no - I hate unmarked fretboards 😕

My Fender Aerodyne is now sulking and refusing to come to the Bash next year... perhaps if you endorse side dots it may change its mind?

[scrumpymike]

16 minutes ago, Chienmortbb said:

My Fender Aerodyne is now sulking and refusing to come to the Bash next year... perhaps if you endorse side dots it may change its mind?

OK, side dots are definitely in - can't have any no-shows at the bash ☺️

[Andyjr1515]

14 minutes ago, scrumpymike said:

OK, side dots are definitely in - can't have any no-shows at the bash ☺️

Actually, the neck I've ordered does already have side dots - on both sides!  So when you do that stuff, Mike, that we all enjoy at the bash where you wrap the bass round the back of your neck and keep playing, you'll even be able to see them then

Actually, that's a good reminder.  Don't forget to invite the chiropractor this time...it did take an awfully long time to extricate the bass last time...

[Andyjr1515]

Bit of waiting time until the neck arrives. 

What Mike and I will be arranging while we are waiting is him taking profiles of his favourite playing neck.  I do this for scratch-built necks as a matter of course but it is usually possible to do with bought necks too.  All basses have their own feel, but what it seeks to do is to achieve a comforting familiarity of playing experience.  

I'll send Mike some proper instructions but it is a simple process. 

Basically, you protect the neck with sellotape or low-grip masking tape at the 1st, 7th and 12th fret positions, then use a simple carpenters profile gauge (which will be in the post to Mike this afternoon ) to take the shape at the three points and the depth of neck at the 1st and 12th: 

 

Each profile is transferred onto a piece of A4 paper:

And then Mike just sends me the piece of paper:

 

I then check the depth of the neck and then cut a profile template and get the scrapers out and tweak the shape to match:

 

Right.  Better get the profile gauge in the post!

 

 

[Andyjr1515]

Beats me why Fender don't do this as a matter of course.  It makes SUCH a difference to the upper fret access, whether a Rascal bass or a Stratocaster electric.  It's not even that they can claim it affects the performance - they do fit a similar plate on some limited models.  Anyway, we've got it here now   :

The Fender plates are hard to come by, so this is one from Northwest Guitars - nice quality.  Holes were a teeny bit out, though, so I drilled out and plugged all three and started again.  

I will carve the neck heel to match.  And, talking of the neck, that's already gone from Eden to Los Angeles and Los Angeles to New York and New York to UK and has just landed at Heathrow!  If the UK mail gets fully into gear, hopefully it should be with me by the New Year

 

 

[SpondonBassed]

3 hours ago, Andyjr1515 said:

Beats me why Fender don't do this as a matter of course.  It makes SUCH a difference to the upper fret access, whether a Rascal bass or a Stratocaster electric.  It's not even that they can claim it affects the performance - they do fit a similar plate on some limited models.  Anyway, we've got it here now   :

The Fender plates are hard to come by, so this is one from Northwest Guitars - nice quality.  Holes were a teeny bit out, though, so I drilled out and plugged all three and started again.  

I will carve the neck heel to match.  And, talking of the neck, that's already gone from Eden to Los Angeles and Los Angeles to New York and New York to UK and has just landed at Heathrow!  If the UK mail gets fully into gear, hopefully it should be with me by the New Year

That's a frustrating thought.  How will you avoid the compulsion to carve the Christmas turkey into the shape of a bass guitar?

[Dosi Y'Anarchy]

Love this thread. Its especially close to my heart as im making a Rascal out of a Squier VI!

[Andyjr1515]

9 minutes ago, Dosi Y'Anarchy said:

Love this thread. Its especially close to my heart as im making a Rascal out of a Squier VI!

Thanks.  And yes - I'm following your thread closely too!  

[scrumpymike]

2 hours ago, Andyjr1515 said:

Thanks.  And yes - I'm following your thread closely too!  

Me too!

[Len_derby]

Well, I drove through Andy's village a couple of nights ago. There was a strange glow in the night sky and a low, insistent hum audible above the sound of my car. I thought it was Santa's Elves starting their shift. But no, it's another wonderous creation in the making!  I'd love to see this one for real before it goes to the lucky owner. 

[scrumpymike]

52 minutes ago, Len_derby said:

I'd love to see this one for real before it goes to the lucky owner. 

Me too!  Hang on a minute - I AM the lucky owner 😃

[Andyjr1515]

Well, after taking already 3 times as long as it took the neck to cross the whole of the US on multiple flights and then across the Atlantic to UK, there is just a hint now that it might make the last 150 miles before Christmas.  Then I am expecting 20% VAT, 15%ish Customs and, probably a £30 handling charge by Parcelforce for the privilege of them passing the payment across to HM Gov.  Well come Brexit, when presumably this will be the norm for buying stuff from Europe too, then brace yourselves folks!

But - it does mean that I can start the prep for finishing the body.  No point in actually starting the staining, etc, because the pocket and heel may yet need modifying, but I can get it to the stage where that is ready to be done.

One of the jobs is to fill those odd cutouts that are below the original Rascal bridge.  Trouble is, they are going to poke out in front of the new bridge.  I could use filler, but, with a stained finish that is going to show - and not in a good way.  So I'm going to add some walnut inserts:

 

I'll add a middle one too to turn the angled line into a 'feature':

 

I'll see you in a few hours

 

 

[Andyjr1515]

I started by drilling with a forstner bit to get the basic datum:

Then chiselled out the excess and squared the back end:

 

Then fitted the inserts.  The centre space where there wasn't a cutaway is a bit narrower than the four original cutaways.  Having said that, not the squarest or most even job but 70% of this is going to be covered by the bridge - and it's all going to be stained black with the rest of the body anyway

 

Then a quick block-plane and sand and this is basically how it will look, albeit everything trans-black:

 

I will now do the full sanding down to eliminate any dings and dints but can't do anything else until the super-slick UK customs and parcel machinery (literally) delivers the goods

 

 

 

 

[Andyjr1515]

The good news is that the neck has got to Nottingham!  The bad news is that I have now had to pay the customs, etc … but actually, at £28, that was better than I was expecting

So - in that I have to do further coats anyway, I've started looking at the black stain options and am in discussion with @scrumpymike whether he wants me to try a black/grey burst or just go with black.

The stain is working quite well - I'm using Chestnut Spirit Stain.  This is after a couple of coats.  It would have more and the finish will also further darken it but - for notoriously difficult black staining - it's an encouraging start:

 

One of the curiosities of black stain, particularly on Alder, is that the grain shows lighter than the surrounding wood - when using any other colour, the grain will always show darker than the surrounding wood.  And the old trick of sanding down and reapplying doesn't work when black is the actual stain.  This first coat shows what I mean:

The reasons become clear once you start thinking about it.  One for the family gatherings when the conversations go quiet over the Christmas period. 

 

 

Edited December 7, 2019 by Andyjr1515

[Andyjr1515]

And we have a neck!

Looks decent

And certainly it is the right length and the right number of frets

Quite a bit to do on it in terms of reshaping the profile, sorting the headstock shape etc, etc, but at least I can now also start to finalise the bridge and scratchplate shape and positioning too.

 

[TheGreek]

I quite like that...

[scrumpymike]

2 hours ago, Andyjr1515 said:

And we have a neck!

Looks decent

 

Good to know that the neck has been awarded the Andyjr seal of approval.  I know it's early days but I'm really liking the way things are shaping up 🙂  Did you have to alter the neck pocket?

[Andyjr1515]

5 minutes ago, scrumpymike said:

Good to know that the neck has been awarded the Andyjr seal of approval.  I know it's early days but I'm really liking the way things are shaping up 🙂  Did you have to alter the neck pocket?

I will have to a modicum - the neck is sitting on top at the moment because it is a touch wider than the pocket.  I'll have a peep tomorrow to see if it is best to tweak the neck or the pocket as I will, in any case, be carving the neck heel to blend in with the upper-fret access cutaway

 

Edited December 10, 2019 by Andyjr1515

[scrumpymike]

3 minutes ago, Andyjr1515 said:

I will have to a modicum - the neck is sitting on top at the moment because it is a touch wider than the pocket.  I'll have a peep tomorrow to see if it is best to tweak the neck or the pocket as I will, in any case, be carving the neck heel to blend in with the upper-fret access cutaway

 

Thanks Andy - I just love it when you talk dirty 😄

[Jimothey]

Oooohhhh there’s just something about a black bass with Maple/Maple neck that makes me feel a little bit funny inside!!!.........🤭

[Dosi Y'Anarchy]

Oh god, this thread is putting my dreams of a rascal build to shame. I've almost given up on mine.