New Bass Build

[Jason Hilliard]

Started a new Bass build ! This is my first bolt on neck , I usually only make neck thru body instruments . Specs on body are , Poplar body , semi hollow , Poplar Burl top , Peruvian Walnut binding , 1.5" thick contoured body , passive electronics , my own pickup , Rosewood pickup cover and matching Rosewood volume and tone knobs . The neck specs are 34" scale , 4 string , medium frets , Rosewood fretboard , matching Poplar Burl headstock , Peruvian Walnut binding , Hipshot ultra light tuning machines , two way adjustable truss rod . The back of this Bass will be painted either white or black not sure which one yet and I'll be spraying a urethane finish as well .

[Ted Calver]

That's a pretty sweet looking piece of burl, Jason. What's in your tool arsenal to get that smooth looking shape, CNC, hand held power tools?

[Jason Hilliard]

To contour the body I used a Stanley 6" plane . To cut the shape I used a hand held scroll saw , Poplar is pretty soft so it went pretty fast . I came back with a series of sanding blocks to get the edges flat . I used a long block with some 100 grit to get the too flat and then I came back with 220 grit on a DA sander to get the sanding scratches out . Once the scratch marks were gone I applied two coats of epoxy scuffing between coats . The epoxy gives me the opportunity to level the surface even more . Today I'm gluing the Peruvian Walnut Binding on and it's proving to be a pain in the butt ! I'll be fine , I'm just going to have to work for it .

[george wilson]

I hope that horn doesn't break off. You left it very thin at the root with the hollowing out of the body. I really see no need to carry the hollowing too extreme. Poplar is not very strong. Neither is the burl .

[Jason Hilliard]

Shouldn't be a problem but thanks for the concern . How extreme you go with the hollowing depends on what your after and in this case I'm trying to make it as lite as possible . Your right about it being soft wood though , I love the way Poplar sounds .

[george wilson]

If I were doing this,I'd rout a 1/4" groove diagonally between the cavity and the outside of the body at the base of the horn. Make it 3/4" deep,and firmly glue in a strip of wood.This will strengthen the weak,thin end grain area that is there.

Of course,if the horn breaks off,the bass will definitely be lighter!!

[Julie Moriarty]

Looks like a great build. That burl is very interesting! Are you going with maple on the neck?