I have a Hornady auto reloading machine with brass and all of the components powder and what not. Bought it a bounty before we found out that we were pregnant with my first 8 years ago. They are all still in the boxes. I was told that gunpowder residue are not good around infant. Now with a new born I still have to wait a few more years, lol.
Hopefully, I’d get back to shooting soon.
Hornady is a good machine. I have a Dillon 550 myself. Dillon is based here in nearby Scottsdale, so I can pop into their store whenever I need parts or supplies.
How am I liking it… that’s a good question @John_E .
Ergonomically it’s odd initially.
The design is a little unbalanced when playing seated but once I stand it feels just right.
It also feels lighter and smaller than it actually is somehow.
The neck is amazing, smooth, fast and very comfortable. Probably my favorite neck of all my guitars and basses. It also hasn’t budged a fraction of a mm despite our rapid change to cooler and more humid conditions.
The MEC active pickups (in their unorthodox positions) and active EQ combine to produce a really unique sound that I love. It doesn’t have the thump of a P, it’s more gnarly, like a Jazz bass with added testosterone. That might limit its usefulness for covers as far as replicating a particular sound goes. It’s nowhere near as versatile as the Dingwall but I really enjoy how it sounds!
Aesthetically, well most of you have probably figured out that I’m not particularly into traditional aesthetics but the Thumb just looks and feels right to me. Build quality is top notch and the materials choice is the icing on the cake. If the Masterbuilt is better constructed and finished than the Teambuilt then I really can’t imagine how that could be possible.
Bottom line, I can’t believe my luck in finding one in such mint condition and I almost feel guilty of a crime given the deal I scored. I love it!
@PamPurrs A hammer is always my preferred tool to fix a problem! 
As well as it should be. Of course, if you cant solve the problem you may need to get a bigger hammer. If that doesn’t work, then the problem’s definitely electrical.
you can fix everything with a hammer, some duct tape and some WD40.
And cable ties @terb . Don’t forget cable ties 
Oh yeah. Zip ties are the best for stopping a plastic bumper falling off a car. Also for making mobile joints in children’s Halloween costumes.
Or make shift restraints! 
Or attach your license plate to your spare tire after you lose your bumper in a mudhole wheeling your Jeep
That is a great film.
And like the others here who have them already, Al @Al1885 and @John_E , and whoever else who may or may not have gotten the Les Claypool Pachyderm Active Pick Up as of yet, but if you are on the fence, I think it is time to shit or get off the pot.
There was obviously a Long and well documented wait for the pick ups, where they kept telling John (IIRC), they will be here next week, to only tell him again next week that they would be here next week, and this went on for much longer than most anybody could tolerate.
You may also recall the first bass I posted in Bass Porn was the custom build that Al @Al1885 did WITH those Les Claypool Pachyderm pick ups, weeks to month before John, or anybody else were able to get them. Lucky Al has an inside source, so lucky him, right. 
Now as far as availability, and the shit or get off the pot, I say that because you should no longer have to wait any longer than 3 days, if not sooner to get them. And wen you get them, you get them with some extras, of your choice.
I found an e-bay seller who was selling the sets for $149 a set, with many different packages depending what you want to get along with your pick up set.
I told Al about this ad on Ebay, and wanted to see if he thought it was legit. He asked me to sen him the add.
Once he saw it, he said, YEAH, thats my friend. He runs an e-bay store (and reverb, an possibly his own website, I could tell you if I could find the stupid card, which is driving me nuts I can’t find it right now.)
So, the seller’s Ebay (and reverb) shop is
Don’t_ Tell_ The_ Wife_ Gitars_ii
This is the kit I got, well, because these are my favorite strings an string gauge, so to get a $20 set of strings along with the pick ups for cost is a pretty great deal.
I picked that package, because package Les Claypool pick ups along with a set of Ernie Ball EXTRA SLINKY Bass Strings (My new favorite gauge.), and I can never have enough of these strings, I have many basses to re-string with these, just cuz I love the so much, and they are so fun an feel so good to play.
I have even tried the same gauge of strings by SIT (Stay in Tune), which I always thought of as a budget string, and I love them equally to Ernie Ball Extra Slinky, so if you have not tried SIT strings, I would suggest firing the gauge you lie and giving them a shot. They are usually pretty cheap, which is why I figured they were budget strings, but I put them on my Ibanez SRX-400, and I just can’t stop playing it, so there is NOTHING wrong with those SIT strings,
Back to give a huge plug to the owner / operator of
Don’t_ Tell_ The_ Wife_ Gitars_ii
here are some other packages you can get for the same price.
There are more. You can get it with pretty much any set of EB strings (color pack / gauge) you wan, even I saw with Dunlop strings (which have tried, came free with something I ordered, and I liked those strings as well)
So, in the time that I put it in my cart, or watchlist and went and asked Albert about it, and he sake, yeah, buy from this guy, but the time that I got by, I had a message from the seller, offering mea 10% discount if I ordered within 24 hours.
I can tell you, the story gets better. How you ask, I had to ask myself, and it was a HUGE HEADSCRATCHER, but it got even better then this.
So, I had arranged to trade the bass on Saturday or Sunday, while still in the facility on Wednesday or Thursday, but I knew the guy, and I knew it wad a done deal, just it would play out which ever day worked out for Jesse (the guy I traded with) and I, because that on that day, Thursday, I was still unsure if I would be leaving the next day (Friday), or having to stay another day til Saturday.
So I said F it, and placed there for the order for the pickups and strings with the 10% discount at abut 7pm on Tursday night. His 3 day guaranteed delivery still had Saturday the 20th, eve though it was already 7pm in the evening on Thursday, so he could have easily changed it to Monday the 31st, being USPS, and they don’t deliver on Sunday, and had he done that, I still would’ve been fine with it.
for those of you still paying attention. the is there the heascratcher khappenel
It was the first ting I noticed as I walked around the corner to my front for, and I was thinking, "it couldn’t be’. “No Way’, 'What else did I order that Iforgot about” (I tried my hardest to not order anything while in there cuz I did not know exactly when I would be home and I didn’t want a collection of items for steal sitting at my front door.
I got to my front door at my house around 7pm that night and opened it up and was just so gad to be home.
then I noticed a USPS box on my patio.
NO fuking way. There’s zero way the is the Claypool pick ups yet, its just not possible to have them here, less the 24 hours after I bought the. I was guarantees 3 ay delivery
it was a USPB box taped up reallywill, with another USPS box inside it, and ot from the 2nd box, came these
So, I got into the door, put a couple things down. Had my one bass to open from the gig bag and sit it in its stand so at least 1/10th of the house looks correct. (I moved all my basses to my parents house the day before going for surgery. I didn’t know exactly howling I was going to be gone. It could be for 5 days, or 5 weeks or anywhere in between. There is not a ton of foot traffic walling by my front door, but there is enough, and there are friends of friends, and if they know I was gonna be gone for an extended period, they wouldn’t even have to come in and grab them all at the time like a burglary, they could casually come back forgone at a time and nobody would know the difference.
If they really wanted to be crass, they could have started taking the pedals on the board, my amps, heads, heck, even my Imac.
I have 20k insurance with a 250 deductible, but some of these are priceless to me, some are not made anymore, and although you can get them, they are few and far to one by for reasonable prices.
Anyway, yeah, I moved all buy basses, and almost have thermal back, including the one I am unveiling today’s promise before.
Before I do, I have one thing to add to the shameless plug for Don’t_Tell_the_ wife_ guitars!! (who has eBay store, reverb store and until I can find the card, I can’t verify, but possibly his own website)
I need go talk about these pick ups.
I figured site of talking about the 3 types f bass set ups, the passive only, active passive, Active pick ups passive controlled and active pick ups and active controlled (the lease common)
I figured I would let my friend at the ass channel do it for me. He both runs the dirfferenced down really quickly, but then goes into much greater depth with folks as EMG pick ups in case you want t now ore about active pick ups and why some conciser them far superior. I don’t have any active pick ups (until now), but am a fan of them and would happily get some more for other builds I do
Hope you enjoy the show.
If you do’t want to twatch it all, try to give it the first 4 minutes where he breaks down the 4 types of bass configurations, basically 4 combos between active and passive pre-aps and pick ups.
if you are more they, it is an excellentideo to watch.
Now that I gave you that incredibly long winded lesson to some, refresher to others, and complete rubbish to yet others, I would like to start out by saying
The Les Claypool Pachyderm pick ups are 100% Active pick ups
Oh, yeah, I promised poto’s of my new bass. I will give one or two here, so as to nt. keep you in suspense (not that anybody has been)
so here is a couple full body views. please se if you can see the differences between @John_E n’s and mine
pickups don’t fund as the differences, considering they will have the same pick ups soon enough
This photo, might be a dead give away
I am beat I will post the rest of them tomorrow,
Is that a 34 or a short scale @T_dub ?
Looks short but could be my eyes or the camera angle?
every bit of 34" 50’a pecision.
It is actually about 2 year before the Ventera.
They did a Road Work version first, and across many models of guitars and bass.
you can see the cigarette burn on the headstock, just under the E string tuning post.
I have seen these news along going for $6-700$
I am happy so think I walked away from this deal very much ahead, but if the trader uses his daily and loves it, and did not use this bass much, then we are both winners
normally I am not a fan or relic’d basses in general, but this one looks really well done. Lot like they jut beat it to shit l]with a happier and called t a day. I am not sure if it is replica of a famous musician, or a classic studio bass everyone wants to play more.
I
I wil did into the story of it more she time, after te set and the les cleypool pick ups go I fits.
Nice. Cheaper than a new wiper arm.
I did exactly the same repair on my wife’s BMW
Sounds like you’re well pleased with the bass @T_dub . Reckon you should be on to a winner there 
Thump, thump, thump @T_dub ! It’s a beaut, despite being red 
