Plain Jane Bass

[Geo]

I started this one in August. Of course now it's April when I'm finally finishing it up. Why did I think I would have time to build a guitar during my last year of college? Why did I have to spill tru-oil all over my landlord's floor? How did I run out of fretwire when I got to the 22nd fret? Anyway...

This is a no-frills 4-string. Maple on maple neck, mahogany body, stacked P90 humbucker. Accents are bloodwood. Finish is tru-oil. Neck attaches with machine screws into brass inserts. The inserts are epoxied in because I didn't realize how large the thread on them was, and I don't have a tap, so I just drilled the holes out.

I'll get some better pictures soon. The lighting is really weird down there.

http://s134.photobucket.com/albums/q119/Ge...09-2010%20bass/

[Geo]

This one is done.

Body and pickup:

http://i134.photobucket.com/albums/q119/Ge...ss/100_1674.jpg

Headstock:

http://i134.photobucket.com/albums/q119/Ge...ss/100_1675.jpg

Body:

http://i134.photobucket.com/albums/q119/Ge...ss/100_1676.jpg

Neck:

http://i134.photobucket.com/albums/q119/Ge...ss/100_1677.jpg

Back:

http://i134.photobucket.com/albums/q119/Ge...ss/100_1678.jpg

The tone is punchy with a really fat low end. I'm really digging it. The only problem is that I'm still getting ungrounded bridge buzz, even though I have the bridge grounded. When I touch the bridge, it goes away. Touching the strings doesn't work! The strings are Elixir Nanowebs, so I'm wondering if the coating is preventing my fingers from being grounded.

[CPRuby]

I have heard before that some builders (I can't remember if its Sadowsky or Elrick. Probably both and many more) wont use coated strings because it doesn't ground the strings, so that is probably your problem.

But that's a very nice build! That neck looks like it'll play itself. The body is a little small so I'd be worried about neck dive, but I dig it.

[Geo]

Thanks! The body is actually fairly large and it balances just fine. Probably an optical illusion with the pictures.

I wish I had known that before I dropped $45 on those strings.

What's weird is that if I press the string down about 1/4", between the pickup and the bridge, I become grounded and the buzz goes away. So it must be stretching it and letting my skin touch a deeper part of the string that is grounded.