Was: From the ashes of disaster...now various projects

[Dom in Dorset]

Good morning,

If you haven't seen what I do before : I build basses and guit@rs from reclaimed wood, body , neck, the whole thing (apart from an occasional bit of binding) all reclaimed , mostly from old pianos.

A couple of weeks ago I was working on a bass neck for a Fenderbird that I have planned when I had one of those negative Midas touch days. I drilled the holes for the machine heads and then noticed that one of the holes was about 10mm from where it was supposed to be. Fuming I cut the headstock off and threw it on the fire so I didn't get constantly reminded of what a nerk I'd been.

I was planning on prizing off the fretboard to salve the truss rod when I remembered something...

A few years ago after carrying a heavy jazz bass in a hard case for miles through a crowded festival for a gig I build this:

It features a chambered body to keep the weight down, asymmetrical bottom end so that a single strap button let's it lean against an amp without falling sideways, a cutout so it can be played sitting without the need for a flippy out thing and an upper horn to improve ballance.

It was my main gigging bass for several years.

I have some ideas for further refinements, watch this space.

If anyone is interested I have also entered the Great Guitar Build Off , check out the Scavenger Music YouTube channel to follow my progress.

Edited October 25, 2022 by Dom in Dorset
It was sooo last season.

[Richard R]

That I like a lot!  The upper horn and cutout give it a slightly more aggressive look than the typical Steinberger copy, as well as being functional design.

[Newfoundfreedom]

Looks great. 

 

Following with interest. 

[Joe Nation]

Did you know the Chinese use the same word for crisis as they do for opportunity? Crisitunity!

[Dom in Dorset]

There could well have been a build diary for the original headless but I can't find it now , plus I've come a long way as a luthier since then.

[durhamboy]

You've got my interest. Following.

[durhamboy]

How's that cheap 'Overlord of Music' bridge held up over the years, especially given you used that bass as your main gigging bass?

I'm considering my first headless build but the price of Hipshot, AMG and the like, with exchange rates, duties and shipping making them around 500 of our Australian Dollars, has made me look for cheaper options. Nova are about half that and get good reviews, so at the moment they're where I'm leaning. I've avoided the cheaper options so far, but maybe they are worth considering, at least for a first, 'see if I like it', build...

[Rexel Matador]

3 minutes ago, durhamboy said:

How's that cheap 'Overlord of Music' bridge held up over the years, especially given you used that bass as your main gigging bass?

I'm considering my first headless build but the price of Hipshot, AMG and the like, with exchange rates, duties and shipping making them around 500 of our Australian Dollars, has made me look for cheaper options. Nova are about half that and get good reviews, so at the moment they're where I'm leaning. I've avoided the cheaper options so far, but maybe they are worth considering, at least for a first, 'see if I like it', build...

I've always wondered about those bridges too, so I'd also be keen to hear your thoughts. That bass looks great by the way - looking forward to seeing what this next one looks like!

[Dom in Dorset]

7 hours ago, Rexel Matador said:

I've always wondered about those bridges too, so I'd also be keen to hear your thoughts. That bass looks great by the way - looking forward to seeing what this next one looks like!

I bet you were just expecting "the bridge is fine/could do better" but as I'm a proper nerd who keeps records :

Between November 2015 and January 2019 I played 58 gigs on it and changed the strings 6 times. The bass would also have been used for all of the rehearsals and jam sessions etc during that period. 

There was only one slight issue during this time , one of the screws that helps grip the strings at the nut end stripped and had to be replaced.

The screw in question is probably surplus to requirements as the strings are also bent at 90 degrees and held with an Allen key nut. I found a replacement in my bits box and carried on, it doesn't match but it does the job. 

I will probably use Overlord again to keep the cost of what is still essentially a prototype down but I will look into alternatives.

[durhamboy]

Great information. I certainly wouldn't be expecting ABM machining tolerances from a unit costing less than a quarter of the price, but nice to know the bridge is functional and pretty durable.

 

I've just come across these individual bass bridge units, clearly Chinese made, but these days that doesn't necessarily mea, poor quality. They might be worth a try as the price is similar to what the "Overloard" bridges and similar, are listed for.

 

[Dom in Dorset]

I will definitely check those out, one thing I don't like about the overlord bridge is that it's branded THE OVERLORD OF MUSIC which seems a little over the top.

[SpondonBassed]

2 hours ago, Dom in Dorset said:

I will definitely check those out, one thing I don't like about the overlord bridge is that it's branded THE OVERLORD OF MUSIC which seems a little over the top.

 

@Bastav used a bridge like that and removed the cover plate replacing it with timber.  You can just about see it in his avatar

 

Have you got any images to replace the missing ones Bastav?

[kodiakblair]

On 15/04/2022 at 13:25, durhamboy said:

Great information. I certainly wouldn't be expecting ABM machining tolerances from a unit costing less than a quarter of the price, but nice to know the bridge is functional and pretty durable.

I was playing my headless 51 slab this morning, body is torrefied obeche so weighs next to nothing 🙂

 

Headless + the robust Overlord countered any potential neck dive. Wasn't too keen on the grub screw locking nut, swapped it for a ball end type.

Of course now I'm limited to double ball end strings but tuning is stable 👍 Will happily use Overlord again should I build another headless.

 

 

Wee tip if using these bridges. 

 

You'll sometimes hear folk complain the knurled tuning knobs are hard to turn. 9 from 10 those folk are using their fingers , unaware the knob has a 4mm hex socket at the end 😄

 

Reckon the Guyker will also do the trick , I like their tuners. Can't tell from that photo if they have thrust bearings like this one. If not get some, they make a huge difference 👍

 

[Rich]

26 minutes ago, kodiakblair said:

I was playing my headless 51 slab this morning, 

 

 

 

 

WANT! Oh my god, that's my perfect ska bass ❤

 

Edited April 18, 2022 by Rich

[Dom in Dorset]

I've changed the thread title because things have changed.

I'm still going to make the headless, I've got the hardware for it and hope to make a start in the next few weeks.

In the meantime I've started another bass, probably a p shape with Jazz pickups. I play in a slightly silly country rock trio and have taken to waring double denim on stage and so I'd like a bass to match. 

This will be fairly standard but with a top made from resin encased denim. 

From the top: the body , this will eventually be covered in denim. 

Mahogany neck blank.

Oak, walnut and mahogany fretboards, not sure which one I'll go for as yet.

All of the wood is from old pianos.

The body blank from the back. It's got nice rosewood veneer, this but won't be covered.

Body blank from the side showing the two layers, both poplar. At the moment it's about 35mm thick , the denim/resin with be 5/6mm thick.

I'm working full time elsewhere now (don't worry it's doing something similar for someone else) so I don't have as much time for this now but I'm getting a few hours a week .

There's also a flying v guitar that I'll be building in parallel.

[Richard R]

Hopefully you don't play with your bass hung down by your crotch. Otherwise, with the bass camouflaged in denim against your jeans, people may be unsure what your fingers are doing.

A small risk, but nonetheless one that should be considered.

[Dom in Dorset]

3 hours ago, Richard R said:

Hopefully you don't play with your bass hung down by your crotch. Otherwise, with the bass camouflaged in denim against your jeans, people may be unsure what your fingers are doing.

A small risk, but nonetheless one that should be considered.

I play with a pick but that's probably going to look worse😀

[Dom in Dorset]

I've been kept out of the workshop for a while though some of my absence was due to fun stuff like gigging etc.

I found time to move the denim bass on a bit further.

I'm trying cherry wood for the fretboard, it's not reclaimed but I've kept it for years because it might come in handy one day! It should look good against the denim finish.

The neck blank is 100 year old mahogany from an old piano.

The bamboo peg is to stop the board moving when its clamped to the neck. There is a similar one hidden in the nut slot 

Clamped.

Now I have to agonize over which pair of jeans I'm going to cut up.

[Dom in Dorset]

I managed to move things on a bit this morning. I got the neck trimmed, routed for binding and headstock face. I'm planning on a matching denim headstock but still working out exactly how to go about it.

Headstock clamped into my semi disposable jig that I use to rout it to final thickness and cut the scoop where the fretboard ends 

I used a round cutter to make the scoop before switching to a flat one for the face.

Headstock ready for it's denim covering.

The neck trimmed and routed for binding.

I'm also working on a flying V/ telecaster hybrid guitar.  I love the look of the V but prefer the sound and feel of the tele. This will have telecaster pickups and a bolt on neck but an angled V style headstock.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited February 25, 2023 by Dom in Dorset

[Si600]

On 19/02/2023 at 12:55, Dom in Dorset said:

Now I have to agonize over which pair of jeans I'm going to cut up.

Get the cheapest pair you can find from a charity shop?

[Dom in Dorset]

9 minutes ago, Si600 said:

Get the cheapest pair you can find from a charity shop?

That might well be the solution, I may even ask if they have something too tatty to sell.

 

[Dom in Dorset]

I'm juggling three projects at the moment, two guitars and a bass. Today I did some work on the "Double Denim" bass. I glued an old pair of jeans (deemed too tatty for the charity shop to sell, except to me) onto the body and headstock using pva .

I then put a double layer of masking tape around the edge and checked that it was level...

Then I poured the resin. It's darker than I thought but who knows what it will look like on the finished bass 

Now we wait....

Edited April 10, 2023 by Dom in Dorset
It was a black stain upon my otherwise spotless soul.

[Owen]

Very cool indeed. 

[Waddo Soqable]

A very novel idea! 👍

[Hellzero]

Is it for a Bowie fan?