I've noticed over the time that I've been here that a lot of people at MX like to customise their basses and they like to do it themselves. The aim of this thread is to ask for help or post advice regarding customisation of your guitar.
You may, if you like, post and discuss your own customisation jobs explaining what you did and how you did it etc.
Some of you may know of my own customisation which has now been going on for over a year (Things seem to go wrong and then I can't do anything while I'm at uni.) Well, I finally finished the paint job and got a clear lacquer to use and guess what. It ate away at my paintwork
I'm off back to uni soon so I probably wont have time to repaint it again and find a lacquer.
Anyway.
I started off with an old P-bass someone gave me because the pickups weren't working. Not a great wuality bass but I saw it as my opportunity.
The Neck
I defretted the neck using a soldering iron to heat them up and
gently tapping them out with a screwdriver and a hammer. You will probably get one or two dings but when you fill the frets up you wont notice them so much.
You can buy wood filler from a DIY store or such. This usually involves mixing a wood resin based substance containing saw dust and a catalyst which makes it set quickly. Rub this into the gaps where the frets were and when the filler is set, sand it down so they are flush with the surface
I've actually painted the fret board. I wasn't too sure if this would be a good idea or not but it can always be sanded down if it doesn't work. The back of the neck and the head were also sanded and painted black.
The body
Firstly, I sanded this down until it was completely bare. Easy enough. Some people will recommend a product called
Nitro more or somethign like that. This is much better and easier as it burns off the lacquer and paint without harming the wood.
If you're sanding it I recommend you start with a low grade sandpaper about p140-180. This is for stripping paint and such.
I don't really like the P-bass shape so I actually reshaped the body using a coping saw. I cut the horns similar to the shape of an SG but the staggered look actually looks more interesting. I've also reduced the big ugly backside that P-basses have so it looks more slim.
I then used a file to shape the wood in a more detailed way. The coping saw leaves it bumpy.
After this, to smooth off the body before painting, I began sanding again, starting with a low grade around p180. Around the edges of the bass, you should clamp it upright in a workbench, lay the sandpaper over the edge and pull down on either side repeatedly. This will give a smoother more rounded ege on the bass for extra sex appeal. You need to work up to a very high grade of paper such as p600 and then use iron wool to get the smoothest possible finish.
I noticed a problem at this point in that I wanted a J-J pickup combination, however the bass was a P-J. I couldn't just fill the hole because the drilled hole leading to the electronics compartment would be filled. I used a couple of pieces of wood to section off a small gap around the hole and filled the rest of the pickup gap. I then placed on the pickup cover for my J pickup and drew around it. I used a router to cut out a hole to the shape of the J-pickup. Using a router is difficult though. A much easier way to do it is to use a scratchguard which is easily shaped (Unless you want a metal one) and cut a large hole in the wood.
Painting
make sure the surface is as smooth as possible, going over the surfaces with fine iron wool.
Remove any dust from the surfaces using a tack cloth. Be thorough, the dust can make a mess of your paint job.
The best and easiest way to paint IMO is to hang the bass in a garage or a shed. you can hang it through one of the holes for the neck to screw on.
Alternatively, you can screw a piece of wood into the neck holes and clamp that to a workbench.
Use a spray paint, it is difficult to evenly paint with a brush. spray only in light coats and allow time for those coats to dry before spraying another. I painted my bass using a black primer and then a black gloss spray. In between coats, always use a tack cloth to remove dust that may have attached during the time it's taken to dry.
I decided I wanted a personalised design on my bass. I printed a bass clef on my computer and then cut it out of card. I used items to hold down the card so it didn't fly up. I didn't want to use adhesives in case it pulled the black paint up. Paint onto the stencil in the same way you painted the rest of the bass and I did many coats to ensure that it was complete. I covered up the rest of the bass with bits of newspaper to prevent the white paint from getting everywhere.
My bass is now complete except for one stage. it needs to be lacquered. I've made two mistakes thus far. Firstly I used plastikote polyurethane varnish which someone had recommended to me. This aged the white design and left a poor and rough finish which peeled off. I then sanded down and redid the paint job. I used nitrocellulose lacquer which is used by professional luthiers. Make sure you didn't use acrylic paints if you're going to use nitrocellulose, it ate away at my paint job. You should always check the suitability before you use (My lacquer didn't have any guides on it so I wasn't to know).
A good lacquer will need time to set properly. Leave it a few days-1 week and do not touch it. You can spray new coats before it has set properly, it'll probably be sticky to the touch but if you spray too much on at once it will drip and make a mess.