First Build -- PB kit

[fender3x]

This has been interesting to read, and there has been a lot of good advice.

One thing that I would suggest is showing pics of the body to Adam. The cost of return is high, but he may give you a discount on something to offset the poor quality of the body. One thing I would suggest if you purchase one in the future is to ask Adam to take a look at what they send you before you get it. This won't catch everything, but would probably have caught whatever is going on with the horn.

Australians can send their kits back for free, I think, so the "check" is not as necessary, but he's been willing to do it for kits that go overseas. From hard experience I can tell you that the US kit suppliers and even high end suppliers like Warmoth will make you eat return shipping, and they typically will not go to the trouble of checking what they send before it goes in the mail.

Couple of thoughts about the finish. I think what Simon says about basswood is mostly true, but YMMV. This is a basswood back on an ES style bass:



I liked it so well that I just sanded lightly and clearcoated. I have also seen basswood with almost no figuring.

I also have a Fender Coronado with an Antigua finish. I have read that it was probably intended to be a "wildwood" top and back, but on some the glue used to attach binding stained the wood so that they could not finish clear. for that reason they developed the weird solid color burst. Ever since I have wondered how many solid color Fenders (and others) started off with clear. Not sure about this, but I can say with certainty that you can find a failed stain attempt under one of my builds ;-) I also have one successful stain as well where I had already picked out the solid color for if I botched the stain job.

On your build, it would be interesting to see what the "flaw" will look like if you do stain it. The conventional wisdom is that it's a flaw, and the conventional wisdom is usually right. If it sucks you can always paint a solid color.

On the other hand, I have a PB neck with an eye in it (not a birds eye). This would generally be considered a flaw, albeit one that does not affect the stability of the wood. I finished it clear anyway. I was pleasantly surprised by the chatoyancy it developed. It actually looks really cool.

[PB4ME]

This has been interesting to read, and there has been a lot of good advice.

One thing that I would suggest is showing pics of the body to Adam. The cost of return is high, but he may give you a discount on something to offset the poor quality of the body. One thing I would suggest if you purchase one in the future is to ask Adam to take a look at what they send you before you get it. This won't catch everything, but would probably have caught whatever is going on with the horn.

Australians can send their kits back for free, I think, so the "check" is not as necessary, but he's been willing to do it for kits that go overseas. From hard experience I can tell you that the US kit suppliers and even high end suppliers like Warmoth will make you eat return shipping, and they typically will not go to the trouble of checking what they send before it goes in the mail.

Couple of thoughts about the finish. I think what Simon says about basswood is mostly true, but YMMV. This is a basswood back on an ES style bass:



I liked it so well that I just sanded lightly and clearcoated. I have also seen basswood with almost no figuring.

I also have a Fender Coronado with an Antigua finish. I have read that it was probably intended to be a "wildwood" top and back, but on some the glue used to attach binding stained the wood so that they could not finish clear. for that reason they developed the weird solid color burst. Ever since I have wondered how many solid color Fenders (and others) started off with clear. Not sure about this, but I can say with certainty that you can find a failed stain attempt under one of my builds ;-) I also have one successful stain as well where I had already picked out the solid color for if I botched the stain job.

On your build, it would be interesting to see what the "flaw" will look like if you do stain it. The conventional wisdom is that it's a flaw, and the conventional wisdom is usually right. If it sucks you can always paint a solid color.

On the other hand, I have a PB neck with an eye in it (not a birds eye). This would generally be considered a flaw, albeit one that does not affect the stability of the wood. I finished it clear anyway. I was pleasantly surprised by the chatoyancy it developed. It actually looks really cool.

Fender3X, You have hit on something that I had not considered. I can always attempt the sunburst and see how it turns out. If I don't like it, I can always paint over it, hopefully. I say hopefully as I am just starting to look at the various products that are available these days and there might be some step needed in order to transition from a botched stain job to a primer/paint job. I would assume a sand/seal/prime paint should do the trick. Again, my expectations are realistic , at least I hope so. I know this won't be a masterpiece by no stretch of the imagination. I have seen a few guitars where a clear finish appeals to me, but the wood has to "fit" that look IMHO. Everyone's taste is different. If this was my 4th or 5th build I am sure I would have much higher expectations on this project, but might also be looking at a higher quality kit at that point ( if there are any). I do hope it makes noise and is at least not embarrassing to show someone and admit I made it. (or assembled it to be politically correct). The embarrassment should come after they hear my playing! LOL. What was the ole saying about lipstick on a pig!

[PB4ME]

Fender3X,
I just took a good look at that body and noticed it is 1-piece. Sweet! I'll trade ya 4 for 1! I think you made a good choice on that finish.

[fender3x]

Fender3X,
I just took a good look at that body and noticed it is 1-piece. Sweet! I'll trade ya 4 for 1! I think you made a good choice on that finish.

Ha! It's a finished bass now. But it's not on the market ;-)

Here in Florida, my local Ace Hardware or True Value Hardware seems to have the best selection on stainless steel screws. I just get a small box of any that I need. For specialty screws (like for a bolt on neck). If they don't have it, Amazon usually does. Just make sure you get stainless steel. This is particularly important, in my experience anyway, for screws that go into maple, because it's so hard. Those are the ones most prone to breaking... Neck screws and tuning machine screws particularly. With the rest the stainless is more to avoid rust in the Miami humidity.

[Simon Barden]

Yes, the outer skin on the basswood ply used by the factories for a lot of the hollow and semi-hollow kits is almost always a very nicely figured single piece of basswood. Unfortunately you don't get quite the same uniform quality of wood on the solid bodied kits. Sometimes you get lucky, and sometimes it's very plain or a selection of very dissimilar patterns.

[Simon Barden]

If your local hardware store doesn’t have a decent selection of suitable screws, then online suppliers of guitar hardware will carry suitable stock. Allparts and WD Music will certainly have them as should StewMac (Stewart MacDonald) and Guitarfetish. But there will undoubtedly be other guitar stores carrying suitable guitar-specific sized screws.

[PB4ME]

If your local hardware store doesn’t have a decent selection of suitable screws, then online suppliers of guitar hardware will carry suitable stock. Allparts and WD Music will certainly have them as should StewMac (Stewart MacDonald) and Guitarfetish. But there will undoubtedly be other guitar stores carrying suitable guitar-specific sized screws.

Thanks Simon, I know that sounded like a somewhat dumb question to most but I picked up a couple of vendors I did not know about!

[fender3x]

Thanks Simon, I know that sounded like a somewhat dumb question to most but I picked up a couple of vendors I did not know about!

Not dumb at all. If it weren't so easy to get crappy screws I wouldn't have thrown away so many of them ;-) Most of the screws that come even with decent hardware are crap.

[PB4ME]

Not dumb at all. If it weren't so easy to get crappy screws I wouldn't have thrown away so many of them ;-) Most of the screws that come even with decent hardware are crap.

Have you tried soap or wax on the threads first? Nothing more frustrating that breaking a screw off in something, rounding out the head, or having stainless nus & bolts seize up on you. Good thing they're going into wood! Who made the kit of the body you posted?

[Simon Barden]

Yes, we recommend waxing the threads first before screwing in, and drilling the right sized pilot holes whenever we can. But sometimes people do their screws before posting on here and checking, so then we get ‘how do I remove a broken screw’ post. A lot of people don’t realise how much harder maple is to screw into than say pine, which may have been their only previous woodworking experience.