Project Basses

Somewhere on this Forum, I recently commented on double neck instruments; well I just finished making this for a friend (no really, I burnt his name into the headstock), it is, of course, based in the BC Rich guitars made famous by a well known mocumentary


it took the best part of a year to get this far, off and on; Mark is sorting out the electronics.
So, I decided to address both my need to make increasingly needlessly complex instruments, and my dislike of the Futura guitar series aesthetic by making a two headed monster.

It’s at a very early stage at the moment but my intention is to make a Bass Ten (Bass VI + IV) - 30" scale 6 string + 32" scale 4 string fretless with four splitable humbuckers. No tremolo.
The body is a pair of colliding flying-V’s. I had intended to keep four sharp corners but I literally had someone’s eye out, and had to round them off.
I have, however, hit the twin-neck neck-dive problem. To get it to balance on a strap, I only really get access to the first 16 frets. Pragmatically, I only play two basslines which get beyond fret 13, so should I care ?

6 Likes


5 coats

8 Likes

What’s the use of having a heretic if you don’t listen to them now and again?

I ordered new pickups today. Not Fralins, Novaks. Curtis was kind enough to give me a recommendation and so we’ll see how it is, which is a PB-CC in the bridge, and PB-V in the neck.

I really like Novak pickups. I have two with Fralins, and two with Novaks, and I am more pleased with the Novaks.

A heretic wannabe maybe?

5 Likes

Ooh very cool.

3 Likes

I took the lipstick pickups out of the Bass VI as Ithought they were a little quiet, and reinstalled the ‘vintage tone’ AlNiCo V single coils it came with, I remembered that I did like the sound.
Then I went one step further and put in some Wilkinson hi-Output Ceramic strat singles.
I can hear a difference, and they are plenty loud,.
I will need to try them with the ‘band’ on Saturday and see how they sound with guitar and drums- I think they will work.

3 Likes

I will add to my project bass, which is called the Wombat, to solve the A string issue it will have a 4 string retainer

Trying to put all I have learned into this bass

3 Likes

10 coats

14 Likes

Manufacturing your custom bass takes less long than ordering some basses from Thomann.

Very impressed! Also, I like the direction this project is going…

3 Likes

Fretboard is radiused at 16"

Fret markers added

9 Likes

That might be the prettiest fretboard that I’ve ever seen. That bass is really going to be something special.

5 Likes

Agreed. Can’t wait to see the finished product.

4 Likes

That looks killer.

3 Likes

I haven’t heard of palemoon ebony before but it looks cool. Not the simple instrument I envisioned but I’m happy.

It’s an interesting process as there were other fingerboard options and I got to pick the wood I liked and how it gets laid out. Here’s one that didn’t make the cut

3 Likes

Safety sandals :white_check_mark:

7 Likes

Frets

Together

13 Likes

fret levelling

7 Likes

Slight delay. My Novak pickups are in town, and I need to get them to the Luthier.

This is coming together pretty nicely

2 Likes

neck is coming along.

Other than that working on finish and waiting on the Novaks to get there.

12 Likes

Now just waiting on the Novaks


6 Likes

Is that a capybara?