RLRSHOP

Thanks for the comments.

Originally none of the head stock was to be painted but it’s covering a carving mistake on the back. I had to use a little wood filler to smooth things out again. So I painted the front too. The edges are not painted and there is a thin line of paint around the edge so it really looks like some kind of veneer on both sides instead of just paint. I’ll post a picture of that when I get time.

I work slow but here is my bass after a weekend of sanding, polishing and assembly. This is my first solid color but then I have only built three quitars from scratch so far. I almost gave up on the finish until I read a tutorial on this forum about how to level, polish and buff out a finish. These pictures are not the best but I think it turned out good for my first attempt.

I still have to do the wiring, make a truss rod cover and work on the nut. This is only a hobby so it takes me a while to complete a project.

More pics.

Spraying on the sealer.

http://img429.imageshack.us/img429/2488/p1010216zt5.jpg

http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/3529/p1010215ck4.jpg

Front. The pickguard is glued on with a rear access panel so there are no screws in the pickguard.

http://img241.imageshack.us/img241/7481/p1010003nc4.jpg

Back

http://img241.imageshack.us/img241/8217/p1010005zc4.jpg

http://img161.imageshack.us/img161/2183/p1010007zi5.jpg

My shop is in the back 1/3 of the basement. You have to go through the "man room" to get to it. You know a couch, a couple of chairs, big screen tv, drums and all the guitar stuff.

I made sure the walls are sealed at the floor and ceiling, the door has weather stripping on it and I have small dust collector. But the one thing that has kept the next room the cleanest are my shop shoes. Actually there just a pair of slip on sandels that never leave the shop. That way I don't track any sawdust out the door.

I get comfortable when I work in there.

I didn't take any pictures of this until the other night but here's what I have done so far.

My Webpage Ok I tried a few times to post a pic and couldn't get it right, so here's a link.

- It's a 34" scale 5 string.

- Maple and red oak laminated neck with a maple finger board. LMI 2-way truss rod and two .20" x .25" carbon fiber rods.

- 24 frets and no inlays or fret markers on the face of the finger board, just black side dots.

- Body is American Sycamore. I have a lot of it around to use up. The body will be painted a parchment color, since the wood is nothing special to look at.

- Parchment/black/parchment pick guard with 45 degree bevel to show the line. I haven't decided on the shape yet but I think I'm going to glue it down so there will be no extra screws showing on the front. Help me out with the shape.

- All black hardware.

- Two Kent Armstrong soap bar pickups.

- Volume, blend and tone controls and maybe a couple on/on switches to coil tap each pickup. The knobs are just a little bigger diameter than the nut on the pots. They were salvaged from on old stereo preamp before I threw it out. I thought they would look good on this project.

- Black DR strings.

- The neck and finger board will be left natural finish or maybe a little amber tint.

More pics.

My Webpage

My Webpage

My Webpage

This is my first time posting pics and links on here so I hope I did it right. (I didn't!)

Your comments and suggestions are welcome. Help me out with the pick guard shape.

Looks good so far!

I hope that bandsaw blade never breaks or jumps the wheel. It's kind of hanging out there where it could do some damage.

Not for nothin', but any particular reason why you want a brass nut? I must have spent several hundred dollars installing brass nuts on 7 or 8 different basses during the height of their popularity, and there's not one that didn't end up with a bone nut re-installed on it. It's another good idea in theory that didn't work for me in practice - but that's just me.

This is my first bass build so if there are no advanatages to a brass nut, other than it costs more and I can say it's brass, then I'll quit looking.

What were some of the disadvantges of brass? Why were those 7 or 8 basses changed from brass to bone?

I have a 1/2 ton arbor press that I picked up real cheap. I just use my radius templates to layout the radius on a piece of hardwood, cut it, drill a hole in the top for a piece of 1/4" steel rod, glue it in and it's done. Cheap and easy to replace.

I'm working on a five string bass with a overall nut width of 1.75". I would like to use a brass nut but I don't really have the tools to make it myself. I can find 4 string versions online but haven't found a 5 yet.

Where should I look?

I'm new here so just sayin' hey everybody.