My other hobby. Now completed. Custom Bass!

Orion

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Here is a custom bass guitar that I have been working off and on for nearly 2 years. The neck and hardware were purchased from Warmoth.com and the body and the construction is what I did. The reason why I bought a neck from Warmoth [rather than doing it myself] was because they have one of the best necks you can buy, and I didn't want to mess with making one because it's a science all it's own.

Anyway, I hope you like the pics!

fbe1b282.jpg


fbe1b805.jpg
 

flashlightlens

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Nice work! I worked in the engineering department for Morley for about two and a half years and dabbled as a luthier for a while. A handful of NAMM shows, a move, and a job change later, I just kind of left it all behind. In fact, I don't think I've touched my bass for about 5 years.
 

tsg68

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Very nice, I was a finisher for PRS guitars for a few years, back in the late ' 80's. I stained and painted alot of guitars seeing as the quota back then was about 26 guitars a day per step so I actually sprayed about twice that rate or more. Lots of well known customers too, Ted Nugent, Jimmy Page, Brian Setzer, Carlos Santana, Brad Whitford and more I can't recall offhand, the customs were the most fun. Fun job, till they got a facist for a production consultant. I sold my last PRS about 8 or 9 years ago (for about 4 times what I paid for it and the guy was still happy to be paying that price) complete custom finish job on it by myself. I don't play anymore either, though some of my buddies try to coax me into playing with them all the time. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

TSG /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
 

Kiessling

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wow !
looks great. how's the sound?
being a bass player myself I really can appreciate what you did.
bernhard (MusicMan Stingray5)
 

Orion

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Thanks guys! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

kiessling, I was fortunate to find a Deap tone 5 string Music Man Bartolini as well as Bartolini preamp, with volumn, bass, mid, and trebble pots. Everyone says that it sounds excellent. It's a fretless, so it's harder to play than my other bass, a Peavey Accelorator 5 string. But the sound is great, and has a really fat low end, with a nice 'growly' high end.

The body was a PAIN IN THE BUTT!!!! I won't do another one from scratch again. There were several time that, during routing, the router jumped and messed something up, and I was close a few times to chuck the whole thing in the trash. Fortunately, and with God's help, I was able to it all finished. The next time I build my own, I will get ALL of the parts from Warmoth.com and save myself a lot of blood, sweat, and tears. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/banghead.gif

Anyway, I'm glad it's done, looks nice, and sounds awesome. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thumbsup.gif
 

Brotherscrim

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that's a real beaut'

I've been a bass player (a very, very lazy one) for just over 10 yrs now. Something like that would make for a nice companion to my Washburn acoustic/electric.
 

The_LED_Museum

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I don't even know who made the bass axe I used to have. But I plugged it into a Fender vacume tube amp, and it really sounded good. It had a fretless neck, so all those years I spent playing a violin paid off.

Patrick R. in Juneau ended up with the guitar in the mid-1980s just before I moved to Seattle, so at least it didn't end up in a garbage can.

Your axe looks really nice, congratulations! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
 

Saaby

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I don't play but my Dad, Sister, and best friend are all Bass players. Looks nice!
 

MenaceSQL

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Nice bass you made there. I had a Custom Shop Fender Strat based on the March '54 Strat with a very similar finish to yours. Mine was suppose to be a flamed maple top but it ended up more looking like a quilted maple top. It was still a beauty and was quickly snatched up by a Fender collecter when I put it up for sale. There was no use for me in keeping the beauty at the time since I couldn't get music to come out at the other end so I had to give it a better home. That was then but now I'm a bit better at playing. I can actually play some Petrucci stuff too now. One day I hope to actually get lessons or schooling to better me with my playing. Can't wait till the 30th of this month because that's when the Dream Theater/Queensryche tour is coming here at Atlanta and it'll be my first time being at a concert. Can't wait to see DT and Mr Petrucci himself. Yeehaw!!! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/buttrock.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/buttrock.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/buttrock.gif
 

dano

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...Never seen DT? Jeez, 'yer in for a serious jaw-dropping treat! Don't forget to be on time for Fates Warning, another super bad-arse band...QR...well...I think it's time for them to call it a career...

--dan
 

Kiessling

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cool. seems that there are quite a few bass players on cpf!
but only one with THIS beauty ... although I admit that it being fretless frightens me, I am not really gifted for the art of fretless play, fingers won't do what I want them to ...
/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
bernhard
 

jtice

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That is EXCELLENT WORK !!! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/buttrock.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/buttrock.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/buttrock.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/buttrock.gif
I thought about making a body for my first old fender, but never did. The wood is very pretty.
Heres the only real wood working I've ever done. Made the board, and peices. Peices are weighted with lead in the bases. I plan on making one ALOT bigger some day. And the chess board be a big coffee table, the pieces will be the size of 22oz. can of beer. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
[image]trotto.zmoz.com/images/chess.jpg[/image]
 

Orion

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kiessling, actually, you are smart to be frightened of a fretless bass. When a person [such as myself] has been playing a fretted bass since they started, you don't realize how much more precise you really have to be when you pick up a fretless bass. I would read the chord charts for a song [with my fretted bass] and never have to look where my fingers need to go, but I can't do that with the fretless bass. I have to be exactly at the 'sweet spot' or I'm either sharp or flat, and it has been difficult. I have played it for the past two Sundays at church, and I have come to the conclusion that it will take a long time to master it. But that's okay, I'm still glad I made a fretless rather than another fretted.
 

Kiessling

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/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
and now you have every reason to force yourself in the fretless direction, it would be a real sin to let this beauty end up unused in a corner collecting dust. btw, that is where my cheap Yamaha fretless atrocity is facing it's bitter end in oblivion ...
bernhard
 

Orion

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hehehehe /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/yellowlaugh.gif Your poor Yamaha!!

Yeah, I plan on playing it a lot, not only because I need to practice practice practice, but also because it turned out the way it did. So, this bass won't be a CDC (corner dust collector). /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
 
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