Something Bass-ic and good for the back ;-)

[fender3x]

I was thinking about this recently because as much as I love my Frankenjazz, I don't love it's weight--which at just around 9lbs is not horrible.

I realized that PBG doesn't have any basses routed for P+J pickups...so I'd start there.

Then offer it with a J-style neck (rather than the P-style that all the 4 strings come with now).

...and to make it perfect...

Offer it with a chambered body.

Much lighter weight. Sadowsky seems to think they sound better too.

I would build one of these in a heartbeat.

[dave.king1]

Nice idea but I think with a 34" scale & 4 elephant ears without extending the upper horn quite a bit there would be some pretty serious neck dive.

Do agree though that solid body guitars can become a burden as we become more sensible ( get older )

[Simon Barden]

Hipshot Lite tuners would help to cure the neck balance problem, though you're not going to get those supplied with a kit. Designing the headstock for Schaller/Yamaha style Y-tuners would allow the headstock to be a bit smaller and therefore less weight at the point where wight reduction is most advantageous.

My two Les Pauls weigh in at around 10lbs, so I'm not sure that 9lbs for a bass is something to really moan about. ;)

[wazkelly]

You can't complain about Bass weight until regularly gigging with a Ric 4001 or 4003. Twin truss rods seem to be a large contributing factor to their overall weight plus the larger oversized body weighs a chunk too.

I was a lot skinnier back when playing one of them 3 - 4 nights a week on small stages with more than a dozen par 64 light cans hanging so close you almost felt like a chook being roasted in an oven. Didn't take long for fatigue to set in and that is when you longed for a small 30" scale thing like an SG Bass to carry on with.

[Brendan]

I realized that PBG doesn't have any basses routed for P+J pickups...so I'd start there.


YB-4 has a PJ configuration.

https://www.pitbullguitars.com/shop/guitars/pit-bull-guitars-ib-4-electric-bass-guitar-kit/

Being basswood, I think it'd be pretty light as well.

Not trying to knock the idea - I think there's room for more than one P/J bass (and one can not have too many basses).

[Simon Barden]

Us foreigners only get the Blackwood fingerboard option on that. I really don't like the stuff.

[geddyfan]

You can't complain about Bass weight until regularly gigging with a Ric 4001 or 4003. Twin truss rods seem to be a large contributing factor to their overall weight plus the larger oversized body weighs a chunk too.

I was a lot skinnier back when playing one of them 3 - 4 nights a week on small stages with more than a dozen par 64 light cans hanging so close you almost felt like a chook being roasted in an oven. Didn't take long for fatigue to set in and that is when you longed for a small 30" scale thing like an SG Bass to carry on with.

As someone who started out playing a Peavey T-series bass (a T-45), I laugh at complaints about "bass weight." I say, the heavier the better...the Gedenbacker, with all the extra pickups, etc. weighs just over 9 pounds, and she seems light as a feather to me.

28244

The Peavey T-45...a MAN'S bass... :)

[fender3x]

I like Simon's idea of adding small tuners and reducing headstock size.

When I got my first real p-bass I loved the heft of it. I was a teenager, I worked out about 3hrs a day. I thought that nothing could be better than strapping on a solid body bass and standing in front of a wall of Sunn heads and 2x15 cabs like John Entwistle. I believed that John and I would live forever.

I admire anyone who can wear a Peavey T-40 all night. I don't think there's ever been a heavier bass made if wood. Manly for sure. Those Ric's too.

But I am sure there are other old dogs like me out there who know we don't look as macho when we can't stand up straight.



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[Simon Barden]

I know that there are a lot of people out there with bad backs who can't wear a heavy guitar or bass for long. It's not fun, I know. My mate Max had to sell off all his beloved Ibanez Jems and RGs as he just couldn't take the strain any more and has swapped to the much lighter S series (of which he now has around 14). It helps that he is good mates with the Ibanez UK sales manager so all his new acquisitions come at trade prices.

[king casey]

I was having a chat with a chap the other day, mentioned a great guitarist who could no longer perform due to a bad back.

I suggested he used a chair...like BB King in his later years.

That was ruled out because he was a 'metal' performer.

cheers, Mark.

[fender3x]

Weight was not the reason I built an ESB-4, but weight is probably the best thing about it. I think the center block may be basswood. For sure it's light. My back liked it a lot.

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