Dom in Dorset Posted January 25, 2010 Share Posted January 25, 2010 The necks tunred up today, they were from here: [url="http://stores.shop.ebay.co.uk/CH-GUITARS__W0QQ_armrsZ1"]http://stores.shop.ebay.co.uk/CH-GUITARS__W0QQ_armrsZ1[/url] they were £49 each, reading stuff on here about off the peg necks it seemed that necks from £50-£100 are prety much the same, good and bad stories about cheap and mid price necks. I chose this shop because they gave precise measurments ie width at the nut, 12th fret etc. the necks were ordered on friday, turned up saturday (while I was out). Both necks have a slightly raised 3rd fret, not a big problem , otherwise nicely made, quite delicate. The next step is to try some dummy bodies from mdf, ply etc, to get the ergonomics and ballance sorted. Yes , my photos are cr@p!, It's a cheap camera and I'm sh1t at photography + my hands start shaking as soon as i pick up a camera. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hillbilly deluxe Posted January 25, 2010 Share Posted January 25, 2010 Why 2 fretted necks ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dom in Dorset Posted January 25, 2010 Author Share Posted January 25, 2010 one neck will be de-fretted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hillbilly deluxe Posted January 25, 2010 Share Posted January 25, 2010 Thats what i guessed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dom in Dorset Posted March 14, 2010 Author Share Posted March 14, 2010 (edited) I've done a bit more: I've de-fretted one of the necks and put on a super glue coating. I put on four layers , cut it back and polished it with T cut. I'm going to base the body on a jazz bass, this is an idea of what I'm planning: Next step is to make a dummy body to experiment with control positions , neck spacing, strapping points etc Edited March 14, 2010 by Dom in Somerset Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henry norton Posted March 14, 2010 Share Posted March 14, 2010 Mental! The fretless neck looks really nice too - I hope you wore your mask when you did the glueing! Jazz style offset sounds good. It'll look less wide and blocky than a symmetrical body. Keep postin' Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
umph Posted March 14, 2010 Share Posted March 14, 2010 this is making me tempted to make a double neck guitar/bass jobbie. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dom in Dorset Posted March 15, 2010 Author Share Posted March 15, 2010 I did wear a mask but the fumes are so acrid that it made little difference. If I did it again I'd wear my gass mask , do it outside, use my workshop vacuum cleaner as an extractor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dom in Dorset Posted July 3, 2010 Author Share Posted July 3, 2010 Ok , I've been side tracked with gigs etcbut I'm back onto it again. I've settled on a boby shape, the starting point was a Peavy Zodiac (thanks to Flat Eric for the pattern) . I split it and moved the curves around a bit and the result is this (MDF pattern): I'm still playing with scratch plate shapes. the controls will be in a trench half covered by the scratch plate. this means that I don't have to worry too much about them getting in the way when i'm playing the lower neck. I've started on the actual body: It's made from cherry, partly because it looks nice, partly because I had some lying around. Concerned about weight I put it on the scales and it's 2.9kg, CH guitars' catalogue has Les Paul bodies that come in at 3kg , I'm confident of losing 1/2kg from contouring and routing. Next I've got to save up for pick ups and pots. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich Posted July 3, 2010 Share Posted July 3, 2010 I'd have been tempted to use a left-handed neck for the lower one, so the tuners didn't get too close to the headstock of the upper neck. Still, this is a fascinating (and very different) project and I'll be interested to see how it turns out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dom in Dorset Posted July 3, 2010 Author Share Posted July 3, 2010 I couldn't find a lefty neck for £50 at the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dom in Dorset Posted July 15, 2010 Author Share Posted July 15, 2010 (edited) I've routed out the neck pockets and refined the body a little (a lot more work on the body to come) Those are piezo bridges. Edited July 15, 2010 by Dom in Somerset Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Metalmoore Posted July 15, 2010 Share Posted July 15, 2010 Could we get a bigger picture please? How much you got left to do? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dom in Dorset Posted July 15, 2010 Author Share Posted July 15, 2010 (edited) Not sure why it came out so small, try this: What's left? final shaping and profiling of the body, routing for pickups, wiring, scratch plates, bolt the necks on, machines, strap buttons , get a cape , some dry ice and write a rock symphony in four movements. Edited July 15, 2010 by Dom in Somerset Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dom in Dorset Posted September 14, 2010 Author Share Posted September 14, 2010 I've contoured the body, sanded it and drowned it in linseed oil. i'm goingf to give it a final buff with bees wax before final assembly. the headstocks have been shaped and the necks stained. Next it's scratch plates and wires... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dom in Dorset Posted October 26, 2010 Author Share Posted October 26, 2010 It's done! I'm still getting to grips with how she plays and how the controls are used best, it's a weight off my proverbial shoulders to finish it - now a weight on my shoulders to play it. It's beer time now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RIM Basses Posted October 26, 2010 Share Posted October 26, 2010 nice work on the bass dom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stoker Posted November 4, 2010 Share Posted November 4, 2010 that looks well nice! how does it sound? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmshaw37 Posted November 4, 2010 Share Posted November 4, 2010 nice one bud! bet it weighs a tonne though! lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Truckstop Posted November 4, 2010 Share Posted November 4, 2010 That is the wick! Truckstop Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
7string Posted November 4, 2010 Share Posted November 4, 2010 Very cool. Great job Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dom in Dorset Posted November 5, 2010 Author Share Posted November 5, 2010 I've just got back from my first rehearsal with "The Beast" as she now seems to be known. In that band I was using a fretless acoustic, with only an active piezo pick up. It had a nice "double bass" sound but quite diffuse, you had to play loud to hear what I was doing and sometimes it could be a bit muddy. The twin neck has a much more focussed sound, and I love to jazz necks. How does it sound? the fretted side sounds like a regular P bass, it's got light strings on at the moment and it's quite twangy. The piezo bridge is subtle but add great slap tone. The fretless neck has a nice warm sound, the piezo adds some nice top end "mmmwwwwaaahh" and "board crack" I'm a happy bunny. Yes it's heavy, but I'm getting used to it, I'll try and weigh it tomorrow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dom in Dorset Posted November 5, 2010 Author Share Posted November 5, 2010 It weights 6.25Kg / 14lb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FlatEric Posted November 8, 2010 Share Posted November 8, 2010 Looks great and a lot lighter than I thought it would be. Top job! Just dug out a pic of his dad. [attachment=63386:Dad.jpg] You know what I mean. Cheers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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