And so it begins. I bought a set of Fender strap locks over Xmas as the gold ones were under $9, figuring I would have a bass for them one day, and I do. Oiling the ebony finger board and putting on LaBellas, change the battery from the el cheapo it comes with, put on a strap, and we’re good to go.
I almost panicked at what looks like a scratch on the body in the picture; no worries only a cat hair from his inspection.
Been wanting a semi hollow body since I got a Gretsch guitar some months back.
She’s really smooth. One thing I don’t like about her is the back of the neck. The finish seems glossy and my hand doesn’t slide as easily as I’d like. That being said, she’s easy to play and very forgiving.
My Charvel, if you don’t fret close to the fret you get some fret buzz. Which is how it should be. This one, you fret anywhere in the fret and you get a clean note.
The fit and finish is superb, everything looks nice, everything is tight and fitted. No poky bits on the frets, running your hands up and down the sides of the neck, you don’t feel the frets. The neck is thin and comfortable. Again I like a satin neck and my only knock is the gloss finish. Which I may just address one of these days.
She booms though. Playing her even at moderate volume I hear things vibrate in the house. You can feel the body vibrate when you hit a note. How cool is that? What she’s really good at, is sitting in the pocket in a blues riff. I played a little John Lee Hooker and Muddy Waters and she just sang. She was great on Hound Dog. She has that woody, mellow vibe going for her.
She would probably do better with some brighter strings, but I don’t get along with the Ernie Balls she came with, and the LaBellas were free.
Anyone need a free set of LaBellas for short string? Check out the gear it forward thread.
It’s the back of the neck that’s glossy, I like satin finishes. The fingerboard is ebony, and I believe just stained. I use F-one oil on it, as it had that whitish haze on it ebony gets.
Anyway, we’ll see if I get used to it. It plays so easy it may not be a problem. Could just be in my head.
It could be my ear is out of practice. I have been playing the Charvel a lot lately, and with the Roto 77s it’s very strong with the high end. I need to break my ear in again to the flats.
Probably need to play it in the mix. That would help to.
Anyway it’s a new set of strings need to get some life out of them so they will stay awhile. I have a replacement set of strings on they way, Labella low tension flats, so not putting stainless steel rounds on by any means.
#1000 steel wool. A few light swipes with your palm cupped around the neck will work wonders to turn glossy to satin. If the neck still feels a bit tacky to your touch, repeat the process until it’s just right. Tried, true, and doesn’t harm a thing.
Yes, use for the BACK of the neck.
I like matte as well, and have refinished a number of glossy necks to matte, but leave the colored ones glossy. This stuff will make them slide nice and smooth.
I prefer the 3M pads (green and maroon) vs. steel wool.
Keeps any pesky filings steel wool can leave behind from finding their way to the pickups.
I generally use the maroon 3M pad to de-gloss but have also used the green gingerly to get a bit more off. The trick is to tape off what you don’t want matte, and go a little at a time and not remove all the finish down to the wood, just de-gloss it.
+1. Avoid steel wool like the plague when working with things near magnets (like pickups), unless you plan to replace them. Or tape them off. Too easy for filings to get everywhere and once on the magnets they are there for good.
