Geek99 Posted November 21, 2023 Share Posted November 21, 2023 On 14/11/2023 at 18:46, andyaber said: Just came across this and it's a fascinating mystery story. Easily as interesting as the many big money builds that appear here. For a super smooth finish, I like to wipe over with an only just damp cloth and sand again immediately. Not everyone likes this but it is a tip from a woodwork teacher a thousand years ago and has worked for me. I’d say cloth with white spirit, very good for picking up hidden dust and shows imperfections 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geek99 Posted November 21, 2023 Share Posted November 21, 2023 20 minutes ago, Pea Turgh said: Got the neck sanded nicely to 320 grit. Received an order of Crimson Guitars stains and wipe on finish, so did the neck (just finish, no stain on that). There is surprisingly little in the way of instructional videos on the application of this stuff. Which is a shame, because it looks like I’ll have to sand it off again! I wiped it on with paper towel, then buffed it as per instructions. Damn stuff is streaky. Anyone have any hints & tips as to how to get a uniform finish with this stuff? Go up the grits with wet n dry? IME a wipe over with white spirit shows what a stain might do Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maude Posted November 21, 2023 Share Posted November 21, 2023 What are we calling streaky? Maybe it's not showing up in the pictures, or maybe I'm being daft, but all I can see is the different laminates of wood taking up the stain differently. If it is this then it's unavoidable as differing woods will absorb the stain differently, resulting in varying shades. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pea Turgh Posted November 22, 2023 Author Share Posted November 22, 2023 10 hours ago, Maude said: What are we calling streaky? Maybe it's not showing up in the pictures, or maybe I'm being daft, but all I can see is the different laminates of wood taking up the stain differently. If it is this then it's unavoidable as differing woods will absorb the stain differently, resulting in varying shades. The pictures aren’t great - the wood grain and laminates are beautiful, but the finish itself is streaky. I naively thought a wipe on finish would soak in evenly leaving a lovely flat surface. Doh. *Note to self - before doing anything, re-read advice already given by the kind people of the Basschat collective. Applying the finish with wire wool had already been suggested. The product states cure time is 2 weeks, so I will have a pop at flattening it off then. If no joy, strip and try again. I really want to do this thing justice, not just end up with another version of what it was when I picked it up! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pea Turgh Posted November 24, 2023 Author Share Posted November 24, 2023 (edited) Been a busy couple of weeks in work & family life, but had a couple of hours today, so got the body sanded to a good grade then experimented with the two stains I bought. On the website, the amber looked brown enough and the brown tooled too dark, so I ordered both just in case. However, they look exactly as you’d expect on my scrap of ply, so the 50/50 mix I was thinking necessary was not. Managed to stain the whole body without making any mistakes. It will need sanding back again as the water based stain will no doubt raise the grain. Assuming it’ll also need a second treatment to make coverage more even and the colour deeper. Might pop a layer of amber over that if the colour isn’t warm enough, but will experiment on my ply scrap to see before applying to the body. Couldn’t resist a mock-up then! I had pondered altering the pickguard shape, but will likely stick with the original. I had to make a template as the original plate had shrunk quite a bit. Also might wire it with volume only (I always play with the tone wide open). Looks alright, don’t it?! Edited November 24, 2023 by Pea Turgh 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyaber Posted November 24, 2023 Share Posted November 24, 2023 Looking good. But the last time I saw 2 knobs that close to each other was ....... oops no matter. 😉 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pea Turgh Posted November 24, 2023 Author Share Posted November 24, 2023 29 minutes ago, andyaber said: Looking good. But the last time I saw 2 knobs that close to each other was ....... oops no matter. 😉 They are a bit big. And I just chucked them on to get a sense of the final look. The scratchplate isn’t even marked out for cutting yet. When they arrived and I opened the package up , a friend said “oh are they for your cooker?” 🤦🏻♂️ 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tauzero Posted November 27, 2023 Share Posted November 27, 2023 On 24/11/2023 at 19:09, andyaber said: Looking good. But the last time I saw 2 knobs that close to each other was ....... oops no matter. 😉 House of Commons front bench? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chienmortbb Posted November 27, 2023 Share Posted November 27, 2023 1 hour ago, tauzero said: House of Commons front bench? No, the Government Front bench Active several knobs, with a couple stacked upon each other. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pea Turgh Posted December 17, 2023 Author Share Posted December 17, 2023 Getting close now… just need to cut the scratchplate and truss rod cover, fit the nut and solder the earth ground to the loom. The colour is a little patchy, but sort of emulates a well-worn violin 😂 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pete.young Posted December 17, 2023 Share Posted December 17, 2023 On 24/11/2023 at 19:09, andyaber said: Looking good. But the last time I saw 2 knobs that close to each other was ....... oops no matter. 😉 Ed Sheeran and Elton at Watford vs Ipswich Town? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tauzero Posted December 17, 2023 Share Posted December 17, 2023 That's looking very attractive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maude Posted December 17, 2023 Share Posted December 17, 2023 4 hours ago, Pea Turgh said: Getting close now… just need to cut the scratchplate and truss rod cover, fit the nut and solder the earth ground to the loom. The colour is a little patchy, but sort of emulates a well-worn violin 😂 I like the slightly mottled effect, it gives it character. Looking good 😎 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pea Turgh Posted December 20, 2023 Author Share Posted December 20, 2023 Scratchplate cut/drilled/fitted, found three quarters of a set of strings to make sound with. My wiring loom actually works - absolutely chuffed! Still to do - sort nut (doesn’t sit right and is too high), fit shim, cut & shape a new truss rod cover, route 5mm under the pickup - it sits too high and the strings bash it. Can’t understand how it was ever playable like it was for the past 50 years! Need a short scale set of flatwounds then. Love LaBella LTFs but can’t seem to find any at a reasonable cost. Anyone got any supplier recommendations? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pea Turgh Posted February 19 Author Share Posted February 19 Man this is taking ages! The bass has been sitting in a corner, daring me to finish it. Today, I pulled out the router to drop the pickup cavity by 5mm. I love routers! (that filled-in PU cavity was under the factory finish). 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pea Turgh Posted February 20 Author Share Posted February 20 Nearly done! The shim went in, then came out after it kicked the body end of the neck up too much. Pickup sits perfectly now. Electrics still work, and it sounds nice & thumpy! Still to do - cut a new truss rod cover, get a new nut (the one it came with had the strings bunched together a bit too much). The frets are not great, so might need to take it to my excellent local luthier to sort. Unsure whether I will change the tuners in the future, maybe just the collars, as they are so damned heavy in comparison to the rest of the bass. Also wondering if I should have kept the original bridge on. Will see how I feel a year down the line! BTW - the tuners don’t have the little holes for the string ends to hide in, if you were wondering why it has antenna. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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