GregP

I sold off all my pedals once I got into computer-based recording. I don't gig live, and when I record I don't mic an amp (most recording is done at night), so the cleaner the signal the better. As an exception, I bought that Behringer GDI21 (A SansAmp GT2 ripoff) that I record through, as well, which is my only pedal that I currently own. I have a purple Boss flanger of some sort, but it's not mine so I didn't sell it off. Would have done, though. Greg

A table saw is fine for roughing your necks, I would imagine. I haven't done it myself, but it's been recommended to me by more experienced folks for my next build. Pick the right blade and you should be fine. Regarding the scarf, I did have ONE setback when I did my first-ever scarf joint in my life for my neck: - When you clamp stuff that's at an angle, there's a tendency for the pressure to want to 'squeeze' the wedge out. Making a good jig will eliminate this part of the equation. - However, I did NOT use a good jig. Consequently, the part of the neck from the joint to the heel, on the fretboard side, was about 0.5mm higher than from the joint to the 'nut' area. Not good. People couldn't even tell, but *I* could tell and I knew it wasn't going to make for a good fretboard glue-up. SO, I had to take a long, flat piece of MDF, put on some sandpaper with adhesive spray, and use good ol' elbow grease to level it all off. I worked the neck against the sandpaper rather than the sandpaper against the neck, because it somehow felt easier to keep the 'higher' surface consistently flat that way. Greg

I really like my Microplane rasp(s). Let us know how the "sandpaper" is! Greg

It's not an unreasonable bias, it's a completely REASONABLE response to a thread subtitled, "opinions/arguments?" If it hadn't been solicited, I wouldn't have bothered. It's not like I'd go into a thread of someone who wants to do a Jem replica and say, "I guess Jems are OK, but I'd lose the monkey grip." All in the context of the thread, dude. Greg

Yup. It's too late for him to be another Litch because he's already proven that he has what it takes to: a ) produce a finished product of no small quality b ) as psw mentioned, he HAS revisited past mistakes to fix them, and even if the machine head isn't one of them, at least he hasn't totally ignored the urge to improve past work Greg

You're allowed to have a signature, just keep it small and keep it text-only with no links. I bet that Paris is simply the hottest FAMOUS person to have stuck her hand up a cow's arse. Somewhere out there at some point in time has been a farmer's daughter that's hotter than hot could possibly be, that has had to stick her hand up a cow's butt. Or a mega-hot veterinarian. The bridge location is measured according to the saddles. Move the highest string (on a standard 5-string, the G) forward in its 'adjustability' as far as it'll go, and then measure the distance from the nut to this saddle. It should be equal to your scale length. So if you're doing a 34" scale bass, position your bridge so that the G string is 34" away from the nut, having already moved it forward (toward the nut) along its range of adjustment. Grimace is indeed the monster from McDonald's. He is NOT giving the finger, that's just an artifact of the size-reduction algorithm. Greg

Nah. You're a regular New York Doll.

Surf on over to http://www.handcraftinlay.com to check Craig's shizznit out. Greg

The actual procedure is no different, I wouldn't think. It's just that the hardware is still a bit more specialized and trickier to find; hence, possibly (I don't know for sure, not having built one myself) a bit more expensive. Not all drop tops are that expensive-- maybe you just need to pick a different kind of wood? Greg

Ideal.

Hey dude, It's no problem putting in humbuckers instead, but keep in mind that it's a completely different size and shape of rout. There are no 'rules' saying exactly where they need to go, either. If you were nutty enough to want such a thing, you could even just put a lonely single coil in the MIDDLE with NO bridge or neck pickups. (that's just an extreme example, not a suggestion. ) At the end of the day, as long as you measure it all up and plan out your humbucker routing, you can certainly drop 'buckers in there, instead. Greg

True enough, true enough. I wouldn't complain.

Simply awesome. Makes the average man want to start winding his own pickups! Greg

Right-- you measure along an imaginary line that's 90 degrees to the nut, as opposed to along the edge of the fretboard. The distance from the nut to the bridge's high E should be 24.75", along this imaginary line. As mentioned, the high E saddle (when moved all the way forward) should have its contact point at 24.75 ideally. The high E saddle being a little bit closer to the nut is fine (you can always move the saddle back) but you don't want it any further back than 24.75" Greg

24.5, really? Weird. 24.75 is the normal scale. To answer your question: there's no reason in the world that you couldn't use the 24.75" neck and just adjust the location of the bridge. It will work perfectly as long as you measure it all up properly. Greg

I had a wide neck blank, and I ended up having to clean it up a lot by hand after band-sawing it (using a homebrewed jig). Next time, I'm going to use a narrower piece and a table-saw jig to get a close-to-perfect cut instead. There's no reason a well-setup bandsaw and a jig shouldn't work out perfectly fine, either, but I don't have easy access to a bandsaw so I'm just going to do the tablesaw-and-ears thing next time. Greg

Paris Hilton no es buena. Good-looking work so far! I like the way the more 'standard-looking' P/J-style bass is coming along. With a bit of planning, you could surely get a more snug-fitting control cavity made, no? Keep it up, and keep coming around here! Always good to see new people.

I wouldn't say Wes is "totally trashing your rep". If anything, it gave you a chance to respond to what many of us were thinking. I was ALSO thinking, "yeah right, as if you'd do that on purpose" and you've now gotten the chance to publicly state that you did. If you DID, though, I think you're a nutbar. Having them evenly spaced really would have been better. Greg

I'd never heard of them before, either. Those titles sound awfully prog-rock wankery. Of course, I might just be jumping to that conclusion and revealing my bias against Dream Theatre. <chuckle> I DO think Petrucci is awesome, but I can't tolerate listening to the music for long. Greg

No way. I've always thought monkey grip is stupid, and it has nothing to do with any exposure to it or lack thereof. That said, of course it IS still just a personal opinion. I think they're wacker than... er... well, something that's really quite wack indeed. Greg

I'd just like to say... If you need more practice on CNC, I could help you out by supplying a plan.

I agree. When I say that I do some quick maths, I simply mean I have a peek and say, "Ayup... my headstock's about 'this big'... I need the joint to be... oh... at least around here <waving a finger and poking>" and that's about it. Greg

A good question. Surely 11 or 12 degrees would work fine, too! As for fret location, I'd personally rather just measure up how big my headstock's going to be, do some quick maths, and make the cut wherever those quick maths lead me, be it the 3rd, 4th, 5th fret, or whatever. Greg

Monkey grips are wack. Greg

Other people seem to think he's a bit of a crook when it comes to business dealings. Like refusing refunds or overcharging. I have no experience whatsoever with such things. What I don't like is that he passes tone voodoo off as proven scientific fact. And not only that, but he makes it sound like his "proven" tone recipes are the only way to go (well, or those of his personal friends). It's annoying when some of rhetoric is so easy to cut through as just that-- clever wording, but not necessarily 'fact'. I don't resent him. I might end up a customer of his one day unless other people start carrying the Speedloaders cheaper. But his superstitions and rants drive me nutty.