Custom Bass Builders

[Snake Aces]

I almost joined a local band as a bass player recently. In the end it was not the kind of band I was looking to play with at the moment. It seems to me that good bass players are even more rare here than they are in the U.S. So, there are a lot of opportunities to play bass around here. I have not played bass in a band for about 7 years now but you never know...

So, it got me thinking, I wouldn't mind owning an active bass again if I ever did decide to play bass for a group here. The easy answer for me would be to buy a Stingray if that day comes but I have always been intrigued by the idea of owning a Les Paul bass. The problem is I already have a great passive Warmoth J bass that I love. What I would like is a Les Paul shaped bass with a music man stingray styled humbucker in the bridge position and maybe a more traditional bass humbucker for the neck position (all with active electronics of course).

Does anybody know if any company out there builds LP custom basses? Warmoth used to but I missed that window before it closed. I am not a serious buyer or anything at this point but you never know what could happen if the wheels in my head get turning.

 

[jtougas]

Re: Custom Bass Builders

http://www.warmoth.com/Bass/Bodies/ShortScale/Body/SSBG4SingleCut/

Not close enough?

 

[Snake Aces]

Re: Custom Bass Builders

http://www.warmoth.com/Bass/Bodies/ShortScale/Body/SSBG4SingleCut/

Not close enough?

No, not what I'm looking for. I would like a carved top LP shape but with the wood options, pickups and electronics I would want.

 

[jtougas]

Re: Custom Bass Builders

I'm sure you can find some builder that'll do it, but it may be cheaper to buy one and mod it.

 

[ginormous]

Re: Custom Bass Builders

I googled "electric bass singlecut", and they all looked as if they started out LP shaped, got too close to the sun, and melted.

 

[Snake Aces]

Re: Custom Bass Builders

I googled "electric bass singlecut", and they all looked as if they started out LP shaped, got too close to the sun, and melted.

That's what I was afraid of. Figures.

 

[Snake Aces]

Re: Custom Bass Builders

I'm sure you can find some builder that'll do it, but it may be cheaper to buy one and mod it.

It might be, or it might be around the same price. Those Gibson Les Paul basses are not cheap and it's rare to find a decent used one.

I'd really like a solid swamp ash body with a wenge neck for a bass like this though so custom would have to be my first choice.

 

[jtougas]

Custom Bass Builders

Just swamp ash? No cap? Fretboard?

 

[Snake Aces]

Re: Custom Bass Builders

Just swamp ash? No cap? Fretboard?

Yeah, just swamp ash, no cap. I have a Warmoth carved top Regal on the way this way too. I love swamp ash.

I am intrigued by the idea of an all wenge bass neck. I have a wenge guitar neck with a ziricote fretboard and it's smooth. I would like to try one with a wenge fretboard on a bass.

 

[jtougas]

Re: Custom Bass Builders

Do you have any shop space available at all?

 

[Snake Aces]

Re: Custom Bass Builders

Do you have any shop space available at all?

No, I live in a tiny 640 square foot apartment with my girlfriend. Most of my tools are back in Minnesota too. Maybe someday I can have a garage shop again but it's probably going to be a while.

 

[jtougas]

Re: Custom Bass Builders

Probably best not to get wood shavings in dinner, yeah.

That rules out ordering a pre-routed blank from Warmoth...

 

[Snake Aces]

Re: Custom Bass Builders

Probably best not to get wood shavings in dinner, yeah.

That rules out ordering a pre-routed blank from Warmoth...

Indeed. My options are a bit limited at the moment. Not that it's the end of the world, I love Stingray basses anyway, but I've always wanted a nice carved top LP bass. Since I do not play bass very much anymore I do not see the point of owning 3 basses. It would be nice to combine what I like about the Stingray with the looks of a LP.

 

[jtougas]

Re: Custom Bass Builders

And Carvin doesn't have a single-cut, nor do they work in wenge, I think...

Hm.

Surely there're builders in Greece you can scout out... or some other country nearby.

 

[Snake Aces]

Re: Custom Bass Builders

And Carvin doesn't have a single-cut, nor do they work in wenge, I think...

Hm.

Surely there're builders in Greece you can scout out... or some other country nearby.

Yeah, I actually know a great bass luthier here. I should run this idea by him and see what he thinks. I was hoping to find a company like Warmoth out there doing it to keep costs down but I'm afraid that won't be an option.

 

[jtougas]

Re: Custom Bass Builders

I think the most expensive part of getting something built there will be a cheap source of American swamp ash... Wenge should actually be cheaper...

 

[Snake Aces]

Re: Custom Bass Builders

I think the most expensive part of getting something built there will be a cheap source of American swamp ash... Wenge should actually be cheaper...

Yeah, it's true. Last time I talked to him about building a Les Paul for me using swamp ash he cringed. He said he can get hard ash but not swamp ash very easily. Wenge is pretty easy to find here for sure.

 

[jtougas]

Re: Custom Bass Builders

Talk to him, see if there are any european species with similar characteristics...

 

[BlueTalon]

Re: Custom Bass Builders

Two things, easiest first.

1. I love my wenge fretboard! On my Warmoth jazz, I have a wenge fretboard on a bubinga neck. I bought it as somewhat of an experiment from the Warmoth showcase, and I have loved it from the moment I first played it.

2. Have you ever played a Les Paul bass? If you have, and you know what you are getting into, then carry on and good luck. But if you have never played one, and are just enamored with the looks and idea of owning one, please allow me to tap the brakes a bit.

A few years ago I was in a band in which the guitar player had a Les Paul bass. I used it a couple times at practice -- the first time, I left my bass at home because he said I could use his bass, the other time because of a problem with my bass. It was marginally OK to play while I was sitting down, but those things define neck-dive, much worse than Thunderbirds. It was virtually impossible to play while standing up.

If I read your opening post correctly, you are considering getting a Les Paul bass for the purpose of playing with it in a band. If you have not had experience playing a Les Paul bass, PLEASE make the effort to spend some time on one before buying one to play in a band situation.

Now, this is just my opinion based on limited experience. I know people have played Hoffners successfully in bands, and Les Pauls are similar in their (lack of) ergonomics, so I know it's not impossible. But if you don't already know what to expect from one, you could be setting yourself up for quite a headache. So please, just know what you're getting into, that's all I'm saying.

 

[Snake Aces]

Re: Custom Bass Builders

Two things, easiest first.

1. I love my wenge fretboard! On my Warmoth jazz, I have a wenge fretboard on a bubinga neck. I bought it as somewhat of an experiment from the Warmoth showcase, and I have loved it from the moment I first played it.

2. Have you ever played a Les Paul bass? If you have, and you know what you are getting into, then carry on and good luck. But if you have never played one, and are just enamored with the looks and idea of owning one, please allow me to tap the brakes a bit.

A few years ago I was in a band in which the guitar player had a Les Paul bass. I used it a couple times at practice -- the first time, I left my bass at home because he said I could use his bass, the other time because of a problem with my bass. It was marginally OK to play while I was sitting down, but those things define neck-dive, much worse than Thunderbirds. It was virtually impossible to play while standing up.

If I read your opening post correctly, you are considering getting a Les Paul bass for the purpose of playing with it in a band. If you have not had experience playing a Les Paul bass, PLEASE make the effort to spend some time on one before buying one to play in a band situation.

Now, this is just my opinion based on limited experience. I know people have played Hoffners successfully in bands, and Les Pauls are similar in their (lack of) ergonomics, so I know it's not impossible. But if you don't already know what to expect from one, you could be setting yourself up for quite a headache. So please, just know what you're getting into, that's all I'm saying.

I've played a few LP basses back in the day. I'm aware of their neck dive issues. I have a swamp ash Warmoth J bass now that has a bubinga neck with a ziricote fretboard. My J bass has the worst neck dive I have ever experienced but that bass has more sustain than any bass I've ever owned as well. I can deal with neck dive and am pretty used to it. Of course, the modern Gibson Les Paul basses are chambered which doesn't help, I would want mine built as a solid body.

Anyway, I have played them and they are not too bad to me.