5 string bass build (it's gonna be HUGE in Japan!)

[a2k]

13 hours ago, Norris said:

Unfinished project of the month? That's all I'm likely to enter! 

Fabulous bass btw - I don't think I've commented on your build thread yet, but it's providing lots of inspiration for my next build (if I ever get there!) ... which will be a bass, being a bass player and all that

Thanks! I enjoy following along with your project - it's amazing how much seeing others work through this speeds up learning. I look forward to seeing your bass. I plan on building a guitar at some point soon (because I want a guitar - ideally something PRS inspired so i gotta get my build chops up), but the next project is going to be another bass. 

[Prostheta]

There's a few ways of going about a PRS-ish build. Obviously the carve is a big factor in that, and probably the most intensive bit of the process. Unlike a Gibson, the heels are more forgiving. You still need to know how to dial in the optimal neck angle though. That's probably the most important trick aside from the large aesthetic load.

[SIMpleONe89]

Wow this is an amazing bass for your first project. Definitely very inspirational! I intend to build a neck through bass in the near future and this really helped! 

[Prostheta]

That's always great to hear, and totally what ProjectGuitar.com is about....the more we share of our work at all levels from beginner to professional, the more we all learn on how to move forward from wherever we are right now, you know? Tell us more about your build as it comes to you and I'm sure it'll turn out just as sweetly. 

[a2k]

7 minutes ago, SIMpleONe89 said:

Wow this is an amazing bass for your first project. Definitely very inspirational! I intend to build a neck through bass in the near future and this really helped! 

Thanks! I think I documented almost every step (and almost every mistake) so hopefully it shows a good picture of the process. Let me know if you have any questions  (because, you know, after doing this once I'm totally an expert ). I look forward to seeing your build!

Edited April 21, 2016 by a2k
I'm still learning how speak Engrish good.

[Prostheta]

One definite advantage I have found about vocalising and documenting is that you quantify your work. It really helps rattle out where you might be unsure on a decision or where your mind sits on something. If all thoughts are internalised, you end up mentally fence-sitting until you either commit to doing the work or turning the idea over continuously.

Other people have therapy for that kind of thing.

[a2k]

I kept a notebook in Evernote with a checklist I worked through. I would move items from the big checklist into a smaller "this week" checklist, and then make sure I had all of the measurements/drawings/plans written down before I walked into the shop. Still, I can't tell you how many nights over the past 6 months that I've lain in bed turning over ideas and overthinking little details. 

Parts are starting to arrive for project #2. I'm excited for the project and to get back in the shop. Build thread still to come...

[SIMpleONe89]

32 minutes ago, a2k said:

I kept a notebook in Evernote with a checklist I worked through. I would move items from the big checklist into a smaller "this week" checklist, and then make sure I had all of the measurements/drawings/plans written down before I walked into the shop. Still, I can't tell you how many nights over the past 6 months that I've lain in bed turning over ideas and overthinking little details. 

Parts are starting to arrive for project #2. I'm excited for the project and to get back in the shop. Build thread still to come...

Wow I wish I could be as organised as you! Looking forward to your next project!

[a2k]

11 minutes ago, SIMpleONe89 said:

Wow I wish I could be as organised as you! Looking forward to your next project!

I'm going to print out your comment and send it to my mom with a note that says "See, you had nothing to worry about!" 

[a2k]

The instruments we make tell a story. The materials we use, the designs we come up with, the music we imagine our new instrument playing, and even the reason we decided to make the instrument are all elements of the story. I think this is one of the big differences between mass-produced instruments and hand-crafted custom instruments. The first are made for a market, the second are made to tell a story.

Reading each of the different build threads going on here with so many different ideas coming to life tells us something about the builder. Even if we aren’t aware of it, the decisions we make in our build are driven by who we are and the story we are trying to tell. I think @mattharris75’s beautiful April 2016 GOTM winner illustrates this well – it’s a fantastic instrument on it’s own, but when you know the story behind, you understand the instrument in a whole new way.

When I started making this bass, I didn’t know what story I was telling. I just knew I wanted to build a 5 string bass for myself. I wanted a versatile bass that could produce many different sounds for many different styles of music. I wanted to feature some nice natural materials – pretty, but not precious. And I wanted to pull in some elements of the world I’m seeing here in Japan (without, hopefully, being cheezy).

The story of this bass is my story – it’s a snapshot of me right now. It’s autobiographical. Some things are completely obvious – made in Japan by an American, the koi inlay, etc. But the core is a subtler view driven by both the kind of player I want to be and where I’m at in my life. This bass is diverse, flexible, adaptable – all things I strive to be. It’s not that I don’t know who I am, but who I am is someone who wants to be many things.

I played my first gig with the new bass last weekend. The gig was with a blues band literally on the banks of Mt. Fuji. I think that first gig – rocking out to one of the great American music forms while the sun set behind Japan’s most recognized icon - is a fitting end to this build thread. My wife reminded me during some of the more challenging parts of this build that “it’s not done until I say it’s done”. Finishing a build isn’t just checking off the last item in a checklist. It’s not even playing the first gig with an instrument. An instrument is finished when story the instrument tells is complete.  And I’m happy to say that this build is complete.

Here's a photo I snapped a few minute before we started playing:

Now with that out of the way, there are a few other loose ends to wrap up about this build.

First, I’m really happy with how the bass plays and am having a ton of fun making music with it. My G&L feels like a dog compared to it. That said, there are a few rough spots that I continually see. I don’t think anybody else will ever notice them, but they I can’t help but see them. Oh well…

Those of you that followed closely may remember that I talked some talk about a mystery solution to resolve tear out. The plan was to create and inlay a traditional landscape scene (silhouette of Fuji and Torii gate) over the area of the tear out. I started it but never put it in place. It both ended up feeling too “precious” and amateur for what I wanted. But it did inspire the koi, which has ended up being the most distinctive and eye catching feature of the bass. So we can give the tear-out credit for leading me to the koi inlay. I saw a PRS Dragon for sale in Tokyo yesterday for $29,000 – it was certainly beautiful and clearly the dragon inlay (and not some playability or tone) is what makes it ‘special’.

I was surprised to find leveling and finishing the frets to be one of the most rewarding steps in the process. It was certainly tedious, but there was something magic about seeing it all come together with just some very tiny adjustments. I sprung for a nice leveling beam and there’s definitely something inherently satisfying about using a quality purpose-built tool to complete a task.

Finally, thank you all who have followed along, liked a post, made a comment, and answered a question in this thread. And a special thanks to @Prostheta, @curtisa and @ScottR for the continual feedback, insight, and support.  This website is awesome.

Now, on to build #2!

Here's a blurry shot of the bass's debut performance at the Fuji Roadhouse, and once of it resting after the gig.

 

 

Edited May 13, 2016 by a2k
Fixed some spacing

[Norris]

I think you win the Update of the Month award!

What a fantastic experience. I'm really pleased for you and very much inspired to try to build a bass that is at least half as good as yours!

[Prostheta]

Agreed. In many ways I almost feel like this should be published as an article of sorts. It genuinely speaks of - and to - a lot of very true points for guitar-building enthusiasts. Inspiring, humble, honest and a dream achieved. That's what it's all about.