I’m considering converting my small 24" travel bass to headless.
But how?
I want it to be good and cheap - Chinese components are not out of the question.
The reason: just because 
Does anyone have any ideas? Specific parts I’d need?
This is the victim:
???
Something I would research is the effect of break angle on headless basses, because they don’t have any. Just a straight neck. I don’t know if it makes any difference or not.
Also for the headless end you need to get the right type of, and I don’t know what their called so I will call it a terminator. You need the right kind. Some clamp the strings, some use a ball and you would need double ball strings, just make sure you get the right one.
A concern I have is if the headstock can support the terminators. I know my headless basses, the headless part of the neck is considerably beefier and thicker than an average headstock. It may be for a reason.
Great input, @Wombat-metal !
What does that mean?
This would be my current choice - but that can change of course:
The string lock nut looks quite good:
Two screws to hold the string gives me confidence. Just need to understand if a .125 E String will fit.
It’s just a locking nut.
They don’t all lock, though that’s common these days. Some accept the string end with a ball, like a bridge, and then the tuner also has a ball and thus double balled strings.
A normal bass has the headstock angle backwards to create a break angle of the strings on a nut. Headless basses don’t have this, they are completely straight. I imagine it has no effect on this problem, but pointing out a difference
Ah, ok … that should not be an issue. What’s happening behind the bridge is not relevant, as long as the locking nut locks properly…
He’s not describing what happens behind the bridge. He’s describing what happens beyond the nut.
I’d also add that I’ve had my headless bass almost a year now and it only has a single locking nut and that has never slipped.
Another thing to consider is that most headless basses have a cutaway at bottom for the tuners. Unless you’re going to cut a bit away from the body yours are going to stick out from the bottom of the body and potentially increase the scale length of the base which in turn might throw out all of the frets. EG. 12th fret will no longer be the midpoint of the string. I don’t know much about this modding stuff but I’d imagine you need to retain the same scale length that the fretboard is set up for.
Cool - so I don’t need to invent new phony reasons to visit my punky-funky luthier - he can route that!
The installation instructions say this:
If you’re bass has no bridge holes for individual saddles yet, you can follow these steps to install:
Note the cutaway is not for the saddle itself but just so you can get your fingers around the tuning knobs. But your tame luthier is bound to know about all that.
Hahaha! Yeah, he is one of the best luthiers in Germany … and has a love/hate relationship with my modding ideas … so I am looking forward to the look on his face when I present my new idea
Let us know just before you present this idea to him. If we never hear from you again, we know this was a step too far and he killed you. 
Last time I was there I found lots of casings for bullets in front of his shop (no joke). Ok, it was after new year’s eve, but still…
At least I will have died for a good cause
Well checkout Rivera. They are near enough to you and reasonably priced.
You’ll need the tuner at the bridge and some kind of locking mechanism at the top. Here’s what I have on my 23” scale.
Noteing that it’s by far the smoothest bridge tuning system I’ve ever use, by far.
I know I’m taking the radical stand on the issue but Why?
This would destroy the balance of that bass, not to mention that to make the super short scale bass sounds good you’d need a set of strings that specifically made for it, in this case Dogal is the only company producing such strings in both rounds and flats and they are not cheap. However what you get is a set of strings that sounds exactly like a full size bass. It’s extraordinary!
Don’t become the Why Thai - it’s hard enough to be the Whying Dutchman
The answer is: because!
My Harley Bentons are modded to death, nothing can be impoved anymore.
So that leaves the travel bass as a victim of my demonic endeavours. It already sounds great, really. But I would like to make it even smaller.
I learned from the French revolution that making things headless solves stuff
One thing: any new solution must give me freedom to use any string (length) I like by cutting them to size.
And that is what the Guyker solution (above) provides…
Indeed! Though while the French National Assembly had a great solution for oligarchy, I would take Al’s point that it is maybe not the best solution for a bass
I believe the French Revolution gave us Napoleon too
And he gave us the Napoleonic Code, so equality before the law! Not everything was bad…
That’s what we call “Taking one for the team”. 
