Beatle Bass Birthday build. HB-4

I purchased the HB-4 on Christmas Day and it arrived on my birthday January 10th. I was concerned about damage from shipping but it appears to be ok. The fretboard had one mean looking gouge in the first fret, but after closer inspection, I see with a magnifying glass, it is just extra glue from the factory glued nut. I have ordered a bone nut to replace the crappy looking plastic one and am hoping it will work and look better. The neck has a pretty big gap on the top side where it attaches to the body, which would not be a problem if it was the bottom, because the pick guard would cover it. I have decided to use Oxford brand finishing products from Canada because they have good reviews and they sell a kit with almost everything I need to finish one guitar. I hope to pull off a sunburst with Honey brown on the outside and Nectarine for the center colors. I hope to get started with the build at the end of January as this is the estimated time I should have the supplies to start the process. Hopefully I can figure out how to post pictures by that time. I noticed the mini hum backer’s didn’t come with any pieces to mount them on the curved face of the body so I ordered some curved bottom rings from Ebay that I hope will work. Everything else looks like it was included in the kit. My pictures are too big to load so I have to figure out how to make them smaller. Thanks for any help in advance!

Test picture

Test picture 2

Hi Opie,
Good to see you got the pictures sorted.

I would email Pitbull and mention that the pickups did not have the surrounds with them. They are definitely shown in the diagrams on the website!

The neck gap may not be an issue. It is a glue in neck, so glue will fill some of it. By the time the neck has the final coats on the top section of the neck heel it will close the gap a bit more. When the neck is glued on, and if the gap is visible, some wood filler could be added and then coated with your finish material.

Thanks Trevor. I checked again and they are there, already attached to the humbackers. They are packed in wax and clear plastic to keep from scratching so I didn’t realize they were there. Do most people glue the neck after or before applying the finish? I was figuring to do it after but really don’t know what the best way is.

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Originally Posted by Opie

Do most people glue the neck after or before applying the finish? I was figuring to do it after but really don’t know what the best way is.

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I do not think it matters. I've done 2 set neck builds and glued them in after. My reason for this was that I can manage handling the neck and body (using a lolly-pop stick) separately to add the finish. But I do not have the room to hang a whole guitar and do not know how I could easily add finish to a whole guitar.

If you add the finish to the neck and body before gluing, make sure you do not add finish to all of the neck heel and neck pocket where the glue is needed (as the glue only binds well to wood surfaces). But make sure you add the finish to all the parts you see when the neck is in place (I hope this makes sense!).

Been too cold to paint but I have a little progress.

Not as simple as I thought

Looking good Opie!:)

Finally getting some clear on it. Should the saddle be finished or is lemon oil ok? It appears to be the same wood as the fretboard.

Looking good Opie. I did an HB4 bass some time ago and got some good tips from the forum. Might help you to take a look at mine. Good luck with the build.

Yeh, as far as I know the bridge is the same as the fretboard, which looks very much like indian rosewood. I think I used orange oil on mine. I also found intonating a bit of a pain and had to move the saddle for the E string in line with the saddle for the A string and have the whole bridge angled slightly. I think that may also depend on what strings you put on it. I was using tape wound strings.Gives it an upright bass vibe.

I’m finally getting close to seeing if my soldering is good. I’m going to polish the frets and then string it up and see if it works. How much longer than the machine head should I cut my strings so I end up with 2 to 2 1/2 wraps around the post? Thanks for your help to everybody!

Looking very nice!:)

Hi Opie. I just purchased one of these kits and am hoping to have it within the next couple weeks. The photos you posted look amazing! Great job! Are you pleased with how it turned out? Did you or are you planning on making any mods to it? You mentioned possibly replacing the nut. I’ve been considering changing out the tuners for something more fitting, and pickups for some Curtis Novak ones, but i want to at least hear how these sound first.