Wokkas IB-5

[wokkaboy]

Hi all,
I came back from holiday yesterday with a nice Pit Bull box at work, so first thing you have to do is a quick mock build and take some photos.
I'm stoked with the grain of these bodies, would be great if Pit Bull could release more models in ash !

Seems like there's going to be at least 3 forum members building an IB-5 this month !
I was planning to finish this in amaranthine wudtone but I had a middle of the night thought lastnight ama is too dark and would hide some of the lovely grain of the ash, so I will probably finish it in carmine gypsy or cherry flamenco, depending which I have more of.

So sanding tonight and hope to get 1st deep coat on Saturday. Will probably colour the headstock the same and may try a colourless neck should go well with a red body/headstock.

As DB and Gav says, you can never have too many projects on the go at once !
http://pitbullguitars.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/0a1rg-2013-07-11-09.57.50.jpg
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[Gavin1393]

Mine arrives today or Monday!!!!

[Gavin1393]

...and second the motion on the Ash!

[wokkaboy]

cool good stuff Gav, so does that make 4 x IB-5 current builds ?

Yes maybe we could convince Adam to ask the factory to trial an ashwood Strat kit ? I'd pay extra for that !

What colour have you got in mind for your IB-5 Gav ? would be good if we did different colours. Conch girl ?

[Brendan]

Man that Ash looks amazing! Make that 3 for more Ash bodies!! I'd be 1/2 tempted to go colourless (or even (gasps) Tru Oil!) for the body as well - just let it do the talking...

[Rohan]

Looks awesome. Will be following along with interest.

[keloooe]

Me up against FOUR IB-5's..... Holy $#!T this will be difficult to pull off!!! Might hold it back again....

[Brendan]

Pest,
You could do that, but given the bar rises month on month, I think it may also be worth rushing it into production!

[wokkaboy]

yes Pest, don't hold back as Brendan said the bar is being raised every month. What if the judge is a LP player and he hates bass guitars ? haha
I won't be entering the IB-5 till probably September, I hope to have the SGD ready for August GOTM.

[Gavin1393]

Pest, it's too easy for you if you enter this month....

All you gotta do is beat this!


/<\\/p>[/<\\/p>[]<\\/p>/]<\\/p>/Quote from Gavin1393 on July 11, 2013, 22:41

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:)

...and Wokka's entry!

Woks, planning on Dark Onyx at the mo...

[keloooe]

3 IB-5's, one LP, one Riccy, one SGD-12..... well, good luck to all!!!
Hopefully I only have to do 3-4 coats on the neck to get it to look right! She's wired up, so we are just waiting on that neck!

[wokkaboy]

good work Pest, have u tested the wiring ?
You still got 19 days to get it ready for August GOTM bro !

[keloooe]

I did, first impressions are I messed up the shielding... I'll wait until I rewire it before I double check the shielding, I still have to test the bridge pup though, I only recently wired in the new cap

[dingobass]

Nice work Gavmeister :)

[Gavin1393]

Thanks DB, Pest have you wired the output Jack correctly....tends to hum as if you stuffed the shielding if you havent!

[Analyst69]

Hey Keloooe

Did you earth to the shielding?

The main reason I ask is that I had terrible hum on a previous build. I had earthed to the bridge, but not to the shielding, when I earthed to the shielding, the hum went away and everything was sweet.

Don't exactly understand the electronic side of it all though, so was sort of guessing my way through (with some help from the interwebs) :)

[keloooe]

Gavin, yes, I know how to wire a Les Paul by heart!
Analyst, I'll see what grounding the shielding to the ground lug in the jack to see what happens

[robin]

Good luck with the build Wokka. These Ash bodies are just amazing aren't they?.

+1 for having Ash as an option. I too would pay extra for that.

rob

[adam]

Alright folks, we've heard the call and we've ordered some new kits in Ash. We'll have ST-1, TL-1 and EX-1 kits in Ash in late August. We'll see how these look before we order other models in ash.

[Gavin1393]

Drool.......GAS kicking in big time in South Geraldton!

[Gavin1393]

Drool.......GAS kicking in big time in South Geraldton!

[keloooe]

And in South-East Melbourne..... All my StratoPester depends on now is the cost....

[robin]

/<\\/p>[]<\\/p>/Quote from adam on July 13, 2013, 11:21
Alright folks, we've heard the call and we've ordered some new kits in Ash. We'll have ST-1, TL-1 and EX-1 kits in Ash in late August. We'll see how these look before we order other models in ash.

That's excellent Adam, I have 2 kits I've got to finish, but after that I'll definitely be interested in some Ash bodies.

rob

[wokkaboy]

excellent news Adam, this Ash wood looks amazing and I'm keen to experiment with some colours.
Here's first coat of the IB5, golden rod outside and clear middle both back and front, it's only been applied so hard to tell colour difference of clear and golden, but sure it will be more obvious tomoz

http://pitbullguitars.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/v74bw-2013-07-14-00.17.03.jpg
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[Bass Guy]

I see a sneaky doubleneck in Amaranthine there.... The bass is looking aweesome too!

[wokkaboy]

change of plan. ditched the golden rod for amber, light sanded and gave a good base coat of amber, I reckon this ash evolves with lighter stain colours
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[robin]

Wokka, that looks beautiful.

I was in two minds with my build but opted for a darker finish. That wood is so beautiful I think it would take any colour. I think at this rate we will convert everybody into bass builders lol.

rob

[Gavin1393]

Thats gorgeous mate!!

[wokkaboy]

cheers fellas, yes I think amber should come up nicely after next coat, let the beautiful ash grain do the talking as DB says !

[dingobass]

Mmmmmm, that's looking a bit tasty there Woks... the BAS is en route as we speak

[wokkaboy]

got the second coat of amber on the body and headstock, and 2nd colourless coat on the neck. First time I've done a colourless neck and the grain is really starting to pop. Happy with the results so far, can't wait for the new ash guitar bodies to arrive !!
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[Gavin1393]

WooooooooooooH! That is looking mighty fine!

[wokkaboy]

cheers Gav, when are you starting your IB5 and what colour you got planned ?

[Gavin1393]

Busy sanding it at the moment....
Im thinking of doing a burst of sorts....possibly Dark Tease and Amber combo.....

[wokkaboy]

cool that should look great dark tease/amber burst, have you got to the stage of giving the body to the wife to sand ?

[Gavin1393]

Nah! Not yet....and she isnt as skilled as Miss Fiona so I have to do the whole thing!! :(

[keloooe]

Wow Woks, that is just great!!! I can't really explain it in words

[wokkaboy]

been a bit slack with this build diary, got 4th coat of amber on lastnight, colour slowly getting deeper. I just ordered a big bottle of tru oil after seeing Robins beautiful IB5 bass winner of August GOTM.
How many coats did you apply Robin of tru oil and do you apply it like wudtone - rag it on ?
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[robin]

/<\\/p>[/<\\/p>[/<\\/p>[/<\\/p>[]<\\/p>/]<\\/p>/]<\\/p>/]<\\/p>/Quote from wokkaboy on August 5, 2013, 12:28
been a bit slack with this build diary, got 4th coat of amber on lastnight, colour slowly getting deeper. I just ordered a big bottle of tru oil after seeing Robins beautiful IB5 bass winner of August GOTM.
How many coats did you apply Robin of tru oil and do you apply it like wudtone - rag it on?

Hey Warren, that is looking stunning mate. ;) Are there enough superlatives in the English language to describe just how beautiful these Ash bodies are?

I laid on 12 coats of TO on mine (err Bec's). But that was over a plain water based stain. Never tried it over Wudtone, which already has a satin finish.

And yes, I just ragged it on just like Wutone. I cut up some t-shirt material in to small 8cm squares.

If you haven't done it already, don't just rip the foil seal off the bottle, but poke a small hole in it. Once the rag is wet you will probably only use a few small drops on the rag to do an area of about 150mm square. For added shelf life store the bottle upside down.

The secret is not to be tempted to lay it on too thick. Try for the thinnest coat you can, then wipe off some more before it starts going tacky. You will have to apply more coats that way, but I find it gave me a better finish. The best advice I got from the interweb "you got to keep asking yourself, am I rubbing it on, or wiping it off?".

Just one thing mate, the experts tell you not to use TO over an oil based stain. Apparently TO contains Mineral Spirits (whatever they are) that can dissolve and lift an oil based stain. I know that Wudtone is not a stain as such, but it feels like an oil based finish. I've not used it over Wudtone so can't give you any advice unfortunately. So tread carefully.

I'm still learning how to use TO properly, and on my latest build I'm finding that after every 3 coats, I do a very and I do mean VERY light wet sand with 1200 grit paper and White Spirit as a lubricant. I barely apply any pressure to the pad and let the paper do the work. Be warned, It's very easy to go through a layer of TO and leave 'witness lines'.

I hope this has helped you a bit.

Cheers
rob

p.s. the Tru-Oil will Probably make the finish just the slightest shade darker.

[wokkaboy]

cheers thanks for the advice Robin, I might do a test with the tru oil over wudtone on a scrap piece of wood to see how it goes on and if it lifts the wudtone

Dingobass, any idea if there could be any issues applying tru oil over wudtone ?

[Gavin1393]

/<\\/p>[]<\\/p>/Quote from wokkaboy on August 5, 2013, 15:15
cheers thanks for the advice Robin, I might do a test with the tru oil over wudtone on a scrap piece of wood to see how it goes on and if it lifts the wudtone

Dingobass, any idea if there could be any issues applying tru oil over wudtone ?

Only response you are going to get from DB is time in the Sin-bin for using T/O Wokka!

[wokkaboy]

Hey Gav,
yes DB emailed me his opinion of tru oil, so I may be joining you, AJ and bass guy in the corner !
I was looking for a quick and easy way to get a glossy finish but will use the long curing/thin coats of extra top gloss wudtone. I may not finish it for September Gav so you may be able to enter your IB5 !

[Gavin1393]

/<\\/p>[]<\\/p>/Quote from wokkaboy on August 5, 2013, 16:32
Hey Gav,
yes DB emailed me his opinion of tru oil, so I may be joining you, AJ and bass guy in the corner !
I was looking for a quick and easy way to get a glossy finish but will use the long curing/thin coats of extra top gloss wudtone. I may not finish it for September Gav so you may be able to enter your IB5 !

...If I ever get out of the corner I can finish it. Bass Guy is still playing the 'Queen' riff, and AJ is slowly turning blue....

When yours is done(about 4 or 5 thin top coats 48 hours apart, bring it round to the man cave, we can put it on the buffer. It'll come up like glass!

[wokkaboy]

ok cheers Gav, great idea, I'll take you up on that offer !

[Gavin1393]

My pleasure! :)

[dingobass]

Just make sure that Gav has got a good grip on the IB ;)

[keloooe]

Hmmm... if only I lived in Perth then I could get Gav to buff up the LP a tad bit, but the satin finsh is still ok :P :D

[Gavin1393]

/<\\/p>[]<\\/p>/Quote from dingobass on August 5, 2013, 19:14
Just make sure that Gav has got a good grip on the IB ;)

As long as Wokka enters his in a different month to mine it should be safe......otherwise those famous words spoken by many a dentist; "oops" comes to mind.

[wokkaboy]

have you had an axe ripped out of your hands Gav with the buffer ?

[Brendan]

You were there when it happened Woks - saw him nearly drop an acoustic...

[wokkaboy]

oh thats right Brendan, thanks for reminding me !

[Gavin1393]

/<\\/p>[]<\\/p>/Quote from wokkaboy on August 5, 2013, 20:02
have you had an axe ripped out of your hands Gav with the buffer ?

My beautiful Dairy Blonde Tele got ripped from my hands in much the same way as the Telenapper would have done......slammed into the floor and dented the horn. Lucky I was able to get it sorted with a steam iron, wet rag and copious amount of water!

[wokkaboy]

Got the 5th base coat on lastnight, didn't take any photos as it looks much the same, plan to apply 1 more base coat and skip highlights and straight onto extra gloss coats so I have plenty of curing time, then plan a trip last weekend of August to Gav's man cave to buff it up to get hopefully a glass look. Might put a few cushions on the floor near your buffer Gav in case it feels like 'chucking' the body, its an aggressive buffer !
Will post pics after the 6th base coat Thursday night.

[Gavin1393]

Cushions? Not a bad idea...Brendan's rubber mats would be useless against this buffer!

[wokkaboy]

got 6th base coat of amber on, happy with the depth of colour, so tomorrow night will apply 1st top gloss coat, planning long curing periods to try get a glossy look, then a trip to Gav's man cave late August to buffer it up !!
http://pitbullguitars.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/u2kt4-2013-08-08-20.06.20.jpg
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[Gavin1393]

Mate! Two bass guitars winning GOTM in a row coming right up!

[robin]

That's looking beautiful Warren. I hope you get to keep yours. ;)

rob

[Brendan]

Ohh come on Woks, the drool is hurting my PC. Love it!

[wokkaboy]

cheers for the positive comments fellas
Robin, I will be keeping this baby very close to me, this one is mine !

[dingobass]

I will be lurking in the shadows ready to leap out un expectantly to nap this one....... Beware! The BAS is on the loose :)

[Tim]

Thats looking really sweet Wokka.
Are you going to truoil or buff the wudtone gloss?

[wokkaboy]

Hey Tim going to buff the wudtone gloss end of the month.
Got second gloss coat on after 3.5 day wait. Looks better in the flesh
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[stan]

Wokka, this is looking amazing, great work.

[robin]

Wow Warren, isn't it just a pure joy to work on when it looks that good?

rob

[keloooe]

Woks, that is beautiful!

[gavinturner]

Stunning Wokka. These amber/tease Wudtone, um.. tones, keep looking awesome on these basses. Gonna have to get this kit in my queue! Really looking forward to seeing it buffed.

Cheers,
Gavin.

[wokkaboy]

got 3rd top gloss coat on, hard to see the slight improvements in photos but it is getting glossier, and happy how colourless nexk is getting shinier and the grain is starting to really pop.
Yes Robin these ash bodies are a pleasure to work with.
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[wokkaboy]

whoops double post, sure DB the bass will be padlocked after buffing it up at Gavs !

[Brendan]

Gee Woks, what can I say...

[dingobass]

Woks, everyone worries about Adam coming to acquire their Telecaster builds... If I was you. I would be VERY worried about DB coming around to acquire this Bass..

[wokkaboy]

got 4th top gloss coat on, light steel wool. looking forward to seeing it buffed up at Gav's man cave !
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