No more stage diving and hitting the cymbals with your bass. Problem solved :p.Quote:
I think this will work, but I may have to accept the dents.
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No more stage diving and hitting the cymbals with your bass. Problem solved :p.Quote:
I think this will work, but I may have to accept the dents.
I'm with you on that. I've always been a JB player, but after playing the Pitbull PB I'm a convert... but a lighter one. I think after my current build, I'll look to do a scratch P Bass (though I may consider buying some templates for it) and consider the wood choice carefully. I like reclaimed wood, however Paulownia (for example) is pretty sustainable and with a top and bottom of something else (I've still got some mahogany type wood left over), that might just work.Quote:
Originally Posted by fender3x
Don't know much about Paulownia other than this thread, so I'll look into it. (Edit - Not really available in the UK, however the idea is sound so I just need to find something else).
We have plantations here. When I was making my canoe the go to hull timber is Western Red Cedar. I discovered some places here that offered Paulownia strips. Looking into it the strength was similar to WRC but so much lighter. If Paulownia is hard to get, you could try Basswood. My Epi has a Radiata body and it's not much of a strain on the back or shoulders.Quote:
Originally Posted by Stuart D
It may be marketed under a different name. It can be called Kiri, empress wood, or alternate spellings of "paulownia."Quote:
Originally Posted by Stuart D
The body I am using from ebay was called "maple" but the weight (less than 1.3 kg) was impossibly light for maple...and it was cheap, so I gave it a go on the thinking that at $33 I was not losing much.
AUS is a big exporter, and I know there are plantations of it in Germany and Spain...not sure about the UK...
My Harley Benton JB body weighs in at 1.7kg. The body wood is supposed to be basswood, but the latest info on the Thomann site says they are now made from Rengas, which is a bit heavier than maple.
holy crap, that's a radical difference in weight from basswood. There's no way you could mistake one for the other!Quote:
Originally Posted by Simon Barden
I just took a look at the average weight of a cubic foot of paulownia (18lbs) and the average weight of a cubic foot of basswood (26lbs). So, on average, basswood should be 1.444 times heavier than paulownia. My paulownia body weighed 1.19 kg before finishing. Sure enough, 1.7 is just about 1.444 times heavier.
I had never heard of rengas, but I looked it up in the wood database. Probably just as well that you got the basswood version. It sounds like rengas is not only heavier than than maple, it has some toxicity issues...
https://www.wood-database.com/rengas/
I have never seen rengas (to my knowledge, but from the description the color should be different too.
Yes, it certainly looked a lt darker on the Wood Database site, but the Thomann pics haven’t changed. Looks far less suitable for a body wood. The kit comes pre-sealed, so unless you sand it back to stain it, you won’t be rouching the wood directly. By the time it’s dried and cut to shape, the sap issues should have disappeared, so it’s more a problem for the raw timber workers, and I doubt they’re issued proper safety equipment.
Not surprised that the pics haven't changed. In my searches for inexpensive bodies, I have found the same pics used with different companies, often claiming they are using different woods. The body I am using was not the one in the pic on ebay, in the description it was listed as "maple" although the pic and the weight given in the listing made it clear that it could not be maple--and when it arrived it was clearly paulownia.
I just made another such purchase. Claims to be maple, but the pic and the weight don't come close to maple. I can find a half a dozen "brands" that use the same pic--including Muslady which is a frequent flier on Amazon. I am also seeing a lot of sycamore bodies that are impossibly light. I am guessing that some or all of these are actually paulownia.
Caveat Emptor. Any purchase of an inexpensive item is a bit of a roll of the dice. The best defense I have been able to come up with is to try not to spend more than you are willing to lose on any single purchase.
The pics on the Wood database (and the description) make it out to be quite an attractive wood? I take it that's not the case?Quote:
Originally Posted by Simon Barden
My favourite from those kind of sellers is "Barrel Wood" WT_ is barrel wood?????????Quote:
Caveat Emptor. Any purchase of an inexpensive item is a bit of a roll of the dice. The best defense I have been able to come up with is to try not to spend more than you are willing to lose on any single purchase.
Or in the description under "Material" it says "wood".
It should be. My HB JB kit was bought last year when it was sold with the body described as basswood, which seems very credible. The basswood used is not pretty (probably using a lower cosmetic grade of basswood to reduce costs), but it's fine for solid colours.
Now the kit wood is described as Rengas, which is a much heavier wood. I could see it being used as a fretboard material, but not for a body. But the Thomann photo still shows the original basswood kit. Being a lot darker, it would also be harder to stain, so you'd either have to like the reddy-brown look of the wood, stain it even darker, or else use a solid finish.
The Wood Database gives the average weight of Black Ash 545kg/m3 and White Ash as 675kg/m3 (the typical American Ash varieties, though swamp grown varieties of those are a fair bit lighter). Basswood averages at 415kg/m3. Rengas averages at 765kg/m3.
So my 1.7kg JB body would be over 3.1kg if made from Rengas (3.7lbs vs 6.8lbs). That's a huge increase. Add on the neck, hardware and strings and you end up with a very heavy bass. Using ash puts the weight up as well, but obviously not by so much. Fender generally have used swamp-grown ash wood, which makes it lighter, but even so, their ash bodies are considered reasonably heavy, and some of their non-swamp ash bodies from the 70s weigh a ton/tonne.
Oh that's easy. chances are "barrel wood" is oak.. could be American White Oak or French Oak. As for "wood" , that's what you use in a fire place.. Wood is for burning, timber is for building ;) .Quote:
Originally Posted by McCreed
Not so easy as you might think...Quote:
Originally Posted by Rabbit
"Polished Wood Type Electric Guitar Barrel DIY Electric Maple Guitar Barrel Body For Style Bass Guitar"
I have a feeling that in some dialects of Chinese the "guitar body" and "guitar barrel" may be written with the same characters.
Of course, a skeptic might also point out that at the advertised weight (1150g / 2.53lb) it can't be oak or maple.
I grew up in the Pacific Northwest of the US. Where I'm from, wood is a material, lumber is for building and "timber" is something you yell when the tree is about to fall. This time of year, you try not to burn anything at all.
"Andere Länder andere Sitten" as the German's say ;-)
Not guitar related but noticed the timber Paulownia, I have to comment.
I have just finished building a 17ft boat clad with strip planked Paulownia, remarkably pliable , light , strong. But soft. Had to fiberglass over the timber.
Good luck with the Guitar
Yup, paulownia is very soft. I won't use fiberglass because because my wife won't allow it in the house. I am using a water based finish that a lot of crafts people seem to be using in place of epoxy. Better than my first attempt, but good enough? Won't know until it finishes curing...
Not perfect, but the finish is as flat, shiny and hard as I am going to get it. So, I assembled it...
Attachment 41267
I already have the first tiny ding in it. Brite Tone is definitely harder than the first finish I put on, but it won't completely protect the bass from getting dented. That said, I do love the grain. It will, for sure, be my lightest bass. Completely assembled it came in at 6.5 lbs/3 kg. That's about like my poplar strat-ish guitar, and close to a kilo less than my swamp ash Fender P-bass. For those who thought there might be some neck-dive...you were right. It's not severe, and is about the same as my Fender. I think it helped to use the Hipshot ultralites and to make the headstock a bit smaller than a standard p-bass.
Since the pic, I have taken the strings, pickguard and pickup off so that I can install shielding and attach the bridge ground to the wiring harness. I am also gluing in a few strips of lamination where one of the pickguard screw holes was slightly over the route.
So there is a little more to do, including all the setup...but it is starting to look and feel like a bass ;-)
I wanted this bass to be a sort of lighter replacement for the p-bass I bought when I was 19 and the Epiphone Newport that I had from the time I was 13 until I sold it to buy the Precision. It feels like a bit of an tribute to those two basses.
Attachment 41268
Attachment 41269
I realize the neck is maple, but I am not unhappy with it. there is an eye in the back that has a cool chatoyance. The neck also reminds me of my ASAT bass, which has the best feeling neck of any bass I have ever put my hands on.
Attachment 41270
If the paulownia bass serves me half as well as any of these, it'll be a great addition to the family.
Looks great.Quote:
Originally Posted by fender3x
What does it sound like? Still got that 'Black Gold' pickup on it? Any good?
Always cut to the chase ;-) Yeah, so far so good. I shielded the cavity, soldered on the ground connection and put it all together tonight. I played just enough notes to test that the wiring was good. It is, and those few notes sounded good, although I have the stock PB strings on it right now. My initial reaction is that is sounded just like a p-bass should. But it's a little distracting not having the setup right. Now that I can see it all works, I'll put on a better set and do the setup. I'll have a better sense of the sound then.Quote:
Originally Posted by Simon Barden
In the meantime, I got a few pics. Garage lighting in the middle of the night, so not the best, but you the idea.
Attachment 41331Attachment 41332
Attachment 41334Attachment 41333
Attachment 41335
Final weight, 2.84 kg / 6.26 lbs
That came up nicely.
No issues with neck dive?
That looks great.
Sent from my Pixel 4 using Tapatalk
It looks good!Quote:
Originally Posted by McCreed
I wouldn't have thought neck dive would be an issue. That tends to be more with the body shapes that have no top horn like an explorer or t-bird.
Looks great. Love the colour and the headstock.
Yes, there is some neck dive.Quote:
Originally Posted by fender3x
It looks very good. I like the chunky bridge.
It has a bit of neck-dive, but I don't think it'll be an issue. I have a G&L ASAT that had the issue Rabbit mentions. Also have a '70's era precision that has bit of neck dive for the same reason that this bass has it...it has a fairly light body. This is different. If I use a "slippery strap" the drop would be pretty noticeable. If I use a suede-on-the-inside strap, you can tell that the neck is a bit heavy compared to the body, but it doesn't really drop. Having a bit more of a "sticky" strap" has worked with my other basses with this issue too, but the weight makes a huge difference. With the ASAT that weighs in at 4.5 kg, the sticky strap makes my shirt bunch up holding the neck in place, and I feel that plus the weight of the bass on my shoulder. at 2.9 kg, the my shirt doesn't really bunch up and the weight on my shoulder is a lot better. So this seems like more tolerable neck dive if that makes any sense. In any case, it's not severe.
Thanks for all the comments. I like the way the finish came out. At least right now before it starts to collect dents ;-)
More when I get it set up and really hear it.
Me too, and I think it was your suggestion to use a high mass bridge to compensate for the neck a bit. With the possible exception of the neck itself, the bridge was the single heaviest thing I have attached to the bass. Felt odd to use a heavy bridge on a bass I was trying to keep light, but I think it was the right thing to do. The Sung Il was one of the few bridges I have found that is high-mass, locking, top-loading or string through. It was also affordable at under $30 US. If you want to keep it light the Babicz or Hipshot would be better. If you want or don't mind the weight it's hard to beat these Korean bridges.Quote:
Originally Posted by Simon Barden
You could have fitted two for even better balance. ;)
You just have to play that one topless! :oQuote:
With the ASAT that weighs in at 4.5 kg, the sticky strap makes my shirt bunch up holding the neck in place...
After all, you do live in the "Sunshine State"
Somewhere online years ago, I saw a guy selling little sand bags that hook onto the bottom strap button!Quote:
You could have fitted two for even better balance.
May be effective, but just silly!
Me topless would be even less appealing than my playing.Quote:
Originally Posted by McCreed
Yeah there were a number of suggestions for how to get a little more weight into this. Also rejected: fishing weights and truck nuts. ;-)
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These pickups are great! For my tastes, I need to the strings to break in a bit. Once they do, I will try to find a way to get a decent recording of them. Basically it's a vintage style, hand wound pickup, but with 1/4" alnico magnets rather than standard ones. I got them for around $50. The price has now gone up to $60. Still hard to beat at that price.Quote:
Originally Posted by Simon Barden
Maybe a touch more of the highs than my Geezer Butlers, but just as much booty and warmth. I still think the EMGs were a bargain at almost twice the price. These are a steal. Shipping is free in the US. Not sure what it will take to get them to AUS or the UK. Not likely to be the bargain they are here, but maybe still decent for a quality hand wound pickup.