Karl Thompson Posted May 5, 2005 Report Share Posted May 5, 2005 My third instrument, a 5-string bass, is complete pics: http://www.ticon.net/~thompsons4/thor/index.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GregP Posted May 5, 2005 Report Share Posted May 5, 2005 Holy sh** that's a great-looking bass. Howz she play? Those EMG HZs doing it justice? Nice-looking axe like that I'd expect to see Bartolinis or something (though I confess, I still haven't actually HEARD Barts, they just seem to be on top-notch instruments). Unbelievable. Whenever I get around to making a bass, I hope it turns out as well as that. Greg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted May 5, 2005 Report Share Posted May 5, 2005 My third instrument, a 5-string bass, is complete pics: http://www.ticon.net/~thompsons4/thor/index.html ← Hi, Yeah, great looking work. I wonder why everyone's basses have to look the same though? Question: why do you handsaw to thickness? Why not use a thicknesser? Looks like you have a pretty well-stocked workshop? Excellent idea using those scraps as cauls! I've been wondering about how to go about that... Oh yeah, and I'm looking at how you did that Thor inlay...impressive! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erikbojerik Posted May 5, 2005 Report Share Posted May 5, 2005 Very nice job, well done! Cool carve along the body edges & horns, and I really like the wood binding on the fingerboard. What did you use for the finish? What's going on in the pickup routs, underneath the pups? Is that some kind of liner? Shielding? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toddler68 Posted May 5, 2005 Report Share Posted May 5, 2005 Outstanding! Do the pickup holes have binding on them? It's a really nice detail. The bound fretboard is also a nice touch. Great build, man. You should be proud. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robmarch Posted May 5, 2005 Report Share Posted May 5, 2005 looks really nice, very classy. I've been thinking about building a bass for a future project, and if it turned out that nice, I'd be very happy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guitman32 Posted May 5, 2005 Report Share Posted May 5, 2005 Very nice bass! I especially like all the control recesses. Did you do it all the recessing by hand? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sexybeast Posted May 5, 2005 Report Share Posted May 5, 2005 WOW! Nice work. I like the headstock and the way you set the tuner pegs into it particularly. Also a big fan of the knob indentations. Overall a very dignified looking instrument with fine craftsmanship. I'll bet it growls too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mledbetter Posted May 5, 2005 Report Share Posted May 5, 2005 Is your name really Karl Thompson? That's awesome.. You might have to change it if you want to build basses for a living. lol. Great looking instrument. Very elegant. Get you some active pups in there though A buddy of mine has converted all his vintage stuff over to EMG sets and swears by them. Got the pre-wired harness and the pups for his j bass. They do sound really good. But on the other hand, if you like the sound, that's all that matters - and you don't have to worry about changing batteries! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karl Thompson Posted May 5, 2005 Author Report Share Posted May 5, 2005 Thanks a lot guys! I am pretty happy with the way this bass plays, I have not fret buzz and the action is pretty low. I wanted to get it a bit lower but I guess building perfect necks and doing perfect fretwork comes only with experience. I would definately say, however, That this instrument is at least ten times better than the last one I built. As far as the sound of the bass, I could not ask for anything more. It is a bartolini preamp and it sounds just fabulous. Already I have had some people tell me that after hearing my bass they had to go... have some time to themselves. Idch- the handsawing was just to finish up the tablesaw resawing process. When resawing like this on a tablesaw it is safer to leave a little bit of wood between the pieces and handsaw that extra. regardless, I don't have a thickness sander Yes, the pickup cavities are bound with a .020" strip of black plastic and a .040"(?) strip of maple. I couldn't get the maple to bend around the corners of the cavity, so I used seperate pieces for each side and blended them together in the corners. The finish is a polymerized tung oil finish, each coat was hand-rubbed and buffed. The blemishes in the finish are from 2 mistakes: the first is that I accidentaly got a couple spots of sheilding paint on the face of the guitar while painting the pickup cavities. I had to sand those areas down, so they do not have as many coats of finish as the rest of the instrument. The other mistake I made was that the last coat of oil was not applied evenly. The last coat is a VERY thin coat and it is difficult to tell which areas have been finished and which areas haven't. So some areas ended up not getting that last coat The recessing for the knobs was done with a router, then the holes were rounded over by hand. Thanks very much for all the feedback guys! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
feylya Posted May 5, 2005 Report Share Posted May 5, 2005 That is gorgeous. Seriously, very very nice work. I'd love to have half the talent (and workshop) you have Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karl Thompson Posted May 6, 2005 Author Report Share Posted May 6, 2005 thanks! Kudos to my parents for the shop... they are woodworkers in their spare time, my mom built our kitchen cabinets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pibrocher Posted May 6, 2005 Report Share Posted May 6, 2005 My dad is the reason i started building guitars. After seeing his wood-shop sit in non-use for like 2 years it dawned on me one day that i should be down there building axes! That bass looks great. Alot of good looking basses coming along here at PG of late. Makes me feel good about my curent project. I like the tuner assembly particularly. Love the long pegs. I especially like the way you shaped the transition at the headstock. I've seen a few like that recently. Is that done for any reason other then asthetics? Its to reinforce the headstock on account of the extra string? Great work especially if that is your first. Were there any mishaps along the way? Keep em coming... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karl Thompson Posted May 6, 2005 Author Report Share Posted May 6, 2005 Yes, The volute on the back of the headstock/neck is to reinforce to reinforce the head. This is a pretty common feature on guitars and basses alike. mishaps... oh yes they were there. for instance when drilling the fretboard binding for the side dots, I drilled a hole at the eighth fret instead of the ninth. a bit unfortunate. Also after putting the first coat of finish on, I dropped the instrument which left a dent on the tail side. overall though there were much fewer mistakes than the last one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stalefish Posted May 9, 2005 Report Share Posted May 9, 2005 That's a beautiful guitar, man.. Keep 'em coming!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.