MzI Posted April 28, 2004 Report Share Posted April 28, 2004 heres some thing i came up with in one of my classes today, i figured id b productive instead of fallin asleep as usual CLiCkY Here its only a prelim design im prolly gonna do some more to it when i get a chance prolly b a project for next yr or so MzI Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skibum5545 Posted April 28, 2004 Report Share Posted April 28, 2004 5A flame maple cap, black laminate, padauk body, MM hb pup, maple/purpleheart 5 piece lam bolt on neck, chrome hardware, side jack, angled headstock, tuners angled ala warwick, nice heavy bridge, flush mount straplocks... we can work with this!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MzI Posted April 28, 2004 Author Report Share Posted April 28, 2004 hahaha, as of right now my ideas are, flame maple cap, not sure bout the back of the body, neck thru, prolly 5 piece laminate mayb maple and black walnut, dark blue to purple to black burst a la drak style, gold hardware idk what else im a guitar guy, its gonna take me a while to figure things out good thing i got til next june to finish it, not this june the following one MzI Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skibum5545 Posted April 29, 2004 Report Share Posted April 29, 2004 burst sounds cool, but since the body cuts away on the curves, i was thinking concave curves on those contours would look cool if they cut down into another colorful body wood. A burst would be cool, but it wouldn't accent the contours in the same way, that's al Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MzI Posted April 29, 2004 Author Report Share Posted April 29, 2004 iwas thinkin mayb the top be the two color burst then the cuts be black, its all gonna b stained tho so the wood will show thru, i wouldnt paint it i only like single colors in paint, well see gotta see what the person who its for says MzI Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MzI Posted May 7, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 7, 2004 heres some more work i did on my design, i put it into autocad and printed it out full scale on the plotter but the body dont seem right, maybe cuz im a guitar guy and not used to the size of a bass, one thing the body isnt totatlly lined up to the neck so the bridge appears a lil outta place, any comments welcome click me MzI Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MKGBass Posted May 7, 2004 Report Share Posted May 7, 2004 what makes it look weird is that the lower body curve (the one that comes back up towards the body) doesnt curve back up enough. Because of this it both looks lopsided, and unpleasing. Make it bigger, and I think it will look pretty cool. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MzI Posted May 8, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 8, 2004 im kinda goin for the offset look with the lower end stretched out almost like a reverse explorer type look, i did some sketchin on the plan i printed out, ill take pics a lil bit later in the evenin and post em for everyone to see, it does look better with the larger body size,im thinkin i might make a cardboard cut out to get the feel of it while actually holding it MzI Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MzI Posted May 9, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 9, 2004 heres some more pics of my sketching, im not done with the headstock yet, it needs to be larger, tell me what ya think, it still looks like the neck is miles long, it looks ok in real person, overall its roughly the lenght of my gibson flying v body close up full MzI Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MKGBass Posted May 9, 2004 Report Share Posted May 9, 2004 ah yes, the furthest outline i do like very much. Looks much better with the sorta 'swung' bottom like that. The headstock i think should be fine. Order some mini's from Gotoh or Hipshot, I kinda dig that look. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MzI Posted May 22, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 22, 2004 my body design got approved the other night so im now workin on headstock designs, im thinkin something similiar to an ESP F body style headstock, i have it partially drawn out in cad, ill post them a lil later tonight tho when i get on my other computer, next step is to finish the body drawing and make a prototype so ill be posting more pics in the next couple days MzI Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeB Posted May 23, 2004 Report Share Posted May 23, 2004 looks kinda like Jeff's DC, the bottom horn at least... keep us informed as to whats going on with thes geetar! Mike PS lotsa pics, i like pics!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MzI Posted December 27, 2004 Author Report Share Posted December 27, 2004 how bout reviving an old thread, i actually started work on this guitar, instead of throwing like 10 or 12 links ill give ya just one CLick here custom design quilted mahogany body neck thru 5 piece neck, flamed maple purple heart fm ph fm ebody fretboard 24 frets 34 inch scale gold hardware duncan pbass pickup bone nut as for finish seethru black on the whole thing with 2 part poly clear coat itll be done within the next 2-3 weeks cuz i hafta go back to school soon i also have another guitar im workin on right now a neck thru strat but im not making a progress thread so ill show pics when its done MzI Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MzI Posted January 2, 2005 Author Report Share Posted January 2, 2005 More pics and an almost completed bass guitar, I just added 16 more pictures for your viewing pleasure Pictures here I made major progress the last 2 days, -the body wings are cut and routed and ready to be glued to the neck blank -Fretboard is ready to be glued - scarf joint is cut and im waiting for glue to dry before I attach the headstock and its veneer - made a couple more design decisions, while making the headstock attachment for the scarf joint, the pieces of maple have no figuring what so ever in them, eventho they are from the same board as the rest of the neck, o well, ive decided that the piece of purple heart thats sitting in at the headstock placement is gonna be a veneer for the front of the headstock because it looks just so damn cool, and no i really dont care bout having a purple guitar, it fits - the finish will be a see thru black dye job, with 2 part poly over the top, maybe i mentioned that before cant remember right now - im still waiting for the last of my parts to come in, gold bridge, gotoh mini tuners in gold, and some volume and tone pots of course i still hafta do fretwork and some more routing but that wont take too terribly long, parts hopefully will be in on tuesday and i think im gonna find some paua abalone to do a headstock inlay to match the fretboard inlays, if everything goes as planned painting will be done by next weekend and it can get dropped off to my local shop for a setup and to get the nut cut thats all for today enjoy the pictures MzI Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curtis P Posted January 2, 2005 Report Share Posted January 2, 2005 i dont like bass, but i would be proud to play that guitar Curtis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluespresence Posted January 2, 2005 Report Share Posted January 2, 2005 Nice looking design. I'd prefer a couple of HB's or an MM p'up instead of the P's personally. But....it's your bass so rock on!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MzI Posted January 2, 2005 Author Report Share Posted January 2, 2005 i actually have no clue as to the difference between a pbass pickup set vs humbuckers or whatever im a more bout the guitar then the bass, i just went with what looked cool vs what sounded good, i guess these pickups i got seymour duncan quarter pounders there supposed to be halfway decent as far as i know, well see how it sounds in a couple weeks MzI Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fryovanni Posted January 2, 2005 Report Share Posted January 2, 2005 Quarter Pounders sound great. You probably wont get the strong lows & growly mids that you would with a Jazz set or Music man. I put together a Seymour Dunc MM and 1/4lb. P on a bass I built last year and it had sounds so good. It offers me a huge range of options. Man that thing barks! MM & 1/4lb. I was curious about how you are going to work the neck and the heel. Do you prefer to glue wings to the neck block before you start the back of the neck or after you cut the back close to where you want it? Also do you prefer to attach the fret board before you ruff shape the back of the neck or after? Looks like it's going to be a sweet bass!!! Love the neck material!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MzI Posted January 2, 2005 Author Report Share Posted January 2, 2005 For the process of making my necks, I glue up the laminates, then plane em down and square all the faces, then I layout all my cuts with pencil lines. Once that is done, I route the channel for the truss rod, I find its alot easier when you can lay the neck blank down on a flat surface and not have to support it anywhere. once the truss rod channel is cut, i rough cut the profile of the neck on the bandsaw and get it extrememly close to the profile I want it at, thats also after the headstock has been glued on. next step is to start rough shaping the neck, i ususally use an orbital spindle sander to do this because it is quickest for me. Once the neck is rough shaped then I glue on the body wings. That allows me to get most of the shaping of the neck done and then I can go back and contour the heel easily and blend it into the body and neck. Mind you this is for neck thrus, Alll 3 necks i have built so far have been for neck thrus/ set thru necks, i cant stand bolt ons Ill be posting more pics in the next couple days of finishing up the wood working on this guitar including the neck shapping MzI Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fryovanni Posted January 2, 2005 Report Share Posted January 2, 2005 Mz1 -Sounds like a good method to me. I have never tried a spindle sander for shaping, but maybe I should. I use a spoke shave and scrapers most of the time. Some times I use a large round over router bit to ruff out the bulk of material then finish w/ scrapers. I look forward to progress pics. It's gonna be a fine looking bass! P.S. I had a thought about that Purple Heart Headstock veneer. Maybe some of that killer Flamed Maple striped in or Inlayed as a logo. I totally dig the way Purple Heart sets off the figured Maples. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
samoht Posted January 2, 2005 Report Share Posted January 2, 2005 (edited) i must admit that i wasn't much impressed by the first drawing of the bass.. but then i saw those pictures and i must say that is one COOL bass! keep up the good work dude. Edited January 2, 2005 by samoht Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erikbojerik Posted January 2, 2005 Report Share Posted January 2, 2005 I am digging it! One question on the headstock; why did you decide on a scarf joint? Was there not enough room on your stock to cut a tilt-back on the neck lams? You must be working on this all day every day to finish in the next 2 weeks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stiggz Posted January 2, 2005 Report Share Posted January 2, 2005 what about carbon (or steel) rods?? wont the neck feel sloppy (dont quite know the word to describe it)? body design is good though, keep up the good work Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GuitarMaestro Posted January 2, 2005 Report Share Posted January 2, 2005 Looks great. I did not like your drawings, but the final bass looks excellent. Might have been the sloppy quality of the drawings. The shape of the body is very cool. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MzI Posted January 2, 2005 Author Report Share Posted January 2, 2005 For my neck shaping I prefer the spindle sander because its quick and consistent, I can take a lot of wood of evenly very quickly, I can get the neck rough shaped in about 10 mins with it. After I glue the body wings on I finish the shapping with a spokeshave, rasps, and sandpaper, the only problem with this neck is, due to the flamed maple I cannot use the spokeshave because it tears out so easy so everything will be done sanding or with a rasp. For the headstock , I made a 15 degree scarf joint, I like not having a volute that gets in the way, also I only made the neck blank thick enough for it to match the body thickness, I didnt feel like wasting the extra wood to make the extra depth for a nonscarf joint, What im doing with it is, I cut my scarf joint and I glued up the same pattern of maple and purple heart and will glue that onto the scarf joint, once that is dried Ill route my truss rod channel and rough shape the neck, Next step will be to glue the fretboard on. On the face of the headstock, im going to slice a piece of the purple heart off with my bandsaw and apply it like a veneer, itll prolly be around 1/8" thick maybe thinner. For the logo I ordered a piece of green abalone veneer last night that should match the inlays and Ill apply that at the top of the headstock Why am I not using carbon rods or steel rods? Because they are not needed, the maple im using is eastern hard rock maple, its quite solid, and the purple heart laminates, they are alot harder then any maple, when I cut the scarf joint on the table saw, the table saw couldnt cut all the way thru the neck blank, the blade stopped in the middle of the cut and I had to turn the table saw off and then try and cut it again, if that isnt a sign as to the hardness of the wood im using then I dont know what is The original drawings I posted were these ones here Original drawing it was just a quick sketch I did during one of my 8am classes where I wasnt awake, the intent was to get the basic shape down, then I scanned the image into autocad and made everything work, Its the same process I use for when im desiging buildings for my architecture classes, start with a basic sketch even if its super sloppy and just keep refining till it works and what not. Im actually not working right now, beacuse I need a break before I go back to school, I worked 2 weeks and thats more then enough, I mainly spend all my time during the day building, so I should be done with this and the strat im working on in the next few days if my parts come in then I can focus on finishing for the rest of the week, I dont do my own set ups so that is one aspect I dont have to do, I would like to learn how to do it but not until summer when I dont have deadlines. More progress pics later tonight MzI Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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