New Neck?

[andyonbass]

So, a bit of a dilemma!  You may have seen the ad for my ACG which is up for sale due to me suffering wrist issues, making long scale instruments too painful to play for any length of time.

I have recently been playing a loaned 32” scale Ibanez and found the smaller scale really encouraging in terms of playing comfort with the wrist condition.

I also have a Marusczyck Elwood long scale which has some cosmetic damage to the headstock, another great bass but unlikely to realise its potential sale value with the damage.

Now I could get it repaired which could cost a couple of hundred quid or take a hit and sell it as it is. I would then need to spend out on a medium  scale bass if I want to keep playing.

I had a thought that maybe getting a 32” neck built might be an option…

I don’t even know if it’s possible to attach a different scale neck to an existing instrument so I might be barking up the wrong tree or the cost might be prohibitive…It’s a really nice bass and would be great to be able to keep at least one (or part of) the basses that have kept me GAS free for a few years…

Any thoughts….?

[MoonBassAlpha]

I fitted a 30" neck on my 34' fretless.

I  had to move  the bridge back about 15mm only, due to a difference in neck designs , but it did mean the pickups were in slightly different relative positions, which I  haven't altogether learned to love yet, most noticeably the bridge pickup.

Edited January 9 by MoonBassAlpha

[BassBunny]

Same here Andy. I switched to medium scale when suffering some wrist issue and 32" scale was a game changer. If it's an Ibanez Mezzo you were loaned, I have one and it's my go to bass now.

I spoke to @Andyjr1515 of this parish about changing the neck of one bass I'll never sell to 32". He thought it was possible but I never got round to it before leaving the country. Might be worth dropping him a PM.

[bloke_zero]

The tonal shifts introduced by the change in scale (i.e where the pickups sit in relation to the bridge) would be significant enough to rule this out for me - small changes in PU location make suprisingly large changes in tone - if you move the bridge towards the neck the pickups will both get a bit thinner and twangier. Maybe not a huge amount, might make no difference to you, but it's quite a big experiment!

[Beedster]

Expensive and ultimately unsatisfactory experiment I suspect 😕

[MoonBassAlpha]

1 hour ago, bloke_zero said:

The tonal shifts introduced by the change in scale (i.e where the pickups sit in relation to the bridge) would be significant enough to rule this out for me - small changes in PU location make suprisingly large changes in tone - if you move the bridge towards the neck the pickups will both get a bit thinner and twangier. Maybe not a huge amount, might make no difference to you, but it's quite a big experiment!

My  bridge went the other way, and I  miss that very bridge-ey element blended in for fretless. It's just more mellow now