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Permalink Reply by Ben on May 28, 2009 at 11:36am

Hey man,
I'm planning a new take on a washtub bass but haven't ventured into CBBs as of yet although I know that some people have. Most build with a truss rod I believe. However, you may want to think about doing a short scale bass (34" is pretty standard and short is about 30" I believe). This would cut down on string tension. I think if I do one it will be a 2 stringer. To cut down even more on the tension. There's plenty that a bassist can do with 2. Just my thoughts.

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Permalink Reply by Doc Oakroot on May 28, 2009 at 12:58pm

The fourth CBG in this pic is a bass (although the picture cuts off the headstock). It uses weed whacker line for strings and a piezo pickup. Tuned E-A-D same as the bottom three of a standard bass.

I just had it out at a blues jam last night and it was very successful.

BTW, the real master of weed whacker line CB basses is Wichita Sam.

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Permalink Reply by Wichita Sam on June 22, 2009 at 6:54pm

Doc,

Thanks for the kind words... my mastery consists of some dumb luck and the willingness to spend to dang much money to get "commercial" gauge weedwacker line. beyound "standard" tuning there's a guy in Hawaii making "SlackKey Walking Basses" with nylon line. They're three stringers and he tunes them "open G" G-B-D His website http://www.konaweb.com/walkingbass/index.shtml has a lot of info.

I tend toward three strings tuned "standard" (either E-A-D... or A-D-G).

Good luck, if you get hung up in your build, give me a call...

the best,

Wichita Sam

Doc Oakroot said:

The fourth CBG in this pic is a bass (although the picture cuts off the headstock). It uses weed whacker line for strings and a piezo pickup. Tuned E-A-D same as the bottom three of a standard bass.

I just had it out at a blues jam last night and it was very successful.

BTW, the real master of weed whacker line CB basses is Wichita Sam.

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Permalink Reply by Wichita Sam on June 23, 2009 at 3:44am

dang it Ted,

Doesn't are CBBasses, they're gosh darn works of art... they belong in some museum... Seriously, again you prove that you are the master of the craft... Hey, are you in that new shop? How about some pics?

the best,

Sam


Ted Crocker said:

I've made a few basses

,

Don't know if that helps, but you can certainly do a CBB and ask if you have any questions

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Permalink Reply by Tyler Higdon on June 23, 2009 at 4:22am

My CBB was my third build. I built it without a truss rod using light baritone guitar strings. It has a 34 in. scale and both magnetic and piezo pickups. It is fretless. The neck is built out of 1 X 2 oak with a 1/4" fretboard. It has a very nice mellow sound. I plan to build a bass booster for it to compensate for the light sound. It is a four string tuned just like a standard bass.

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Permalink Reply by Wichita Sam on June 23, 2009 at 6:01am

Tyler,

How's it tuned? Low "A" maybe? Looks good,

the best,

Sam

Tyler Higdon said:

My CBB was my third build. I built it without a truss rod using light baritone guitar strings. It has a 34 in. scale and both magnetic and piezo pickups. It is fretless. The neck is built out of 1 X 2 oak with a 1/4" fretboard. It has a very nice mellow sound. I plan to build a bass booster for it to compensate for the light sound. It is a four string tuned just like a standard bass.

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Permalink Reply by Jack Dudley on June 23, 2009 at 2:47pm

Hey Jkevn.. I build all of my own basses. I would be more than happy to help you with anything that I can. Check out my page.

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Permalink Reply by Tyler Higdon on June 23, 2009 at 4:29pm

It is tuned EADG just like a standard bass. It was a bit of a stretch to get the 34" scale length out of the strings.

Wichita Sam said:

Tyler,

How's it tuned? Low "A" maybe? Looks good,

the best,

Sam

Tyler Higdon said:

My CBB was my third build. I built it without a truss rod using light baritone guitar strings. It has a 34 in. scale and both magnetic and piezo pickups. It is fretless. The neck is built out of 1 X 2 oak with a 1/4" fretboard. It has a very nice mellow sound. I plan to build a bass booster for it to compensate for the light sound. It is a four string tuned just like a standard bass.

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Permalink Reply by Wichita Sam on June 24, 2009 at 2:38am

Tyler,

What is the diameters of those light baritone strings? Is that low E real sloppy? Maybe you're onto something that I'd like to try...

thanks,

Wichita Sam

Tyler Higdon said:

It is tuned EADG just like a standard bass. It was a bit of a stretch to get the 34" scale length out of the strings.

Wichita Sam said:

Tyler,

How's it tuned? Low "A" maybe? Looks good,

the best,

Sam

Tyler Higdon said:

My CBB was my third build. I built it without a truss rod using light baritone guitar strings. It has a 34 in. scale and both magnetic and piezo pickups. It is fretless. The neck is built out of 1 X 2 oak with a 1/4" fretboard. It has a very nice mellow sound. I plan to build a bass booster for it to compensate for the light sound. It is a four string tuned just like a standard bass.

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Permalink Reply by Tyler Higdon on June 24, 2009 at 3:54am

Wichita Sam,

I used the 0.062, 0.046, 0.036, and 0.026 strings out of the set. All four are wound strings. I originally intended to use the heaviest baritone strings I could find. I ordered a set of D'Addario medium baritone strings from the local music store, and after waiting two months for them the light strings showed up so I used them. I would recommend using the medium set. Baritone guitar strings can be tuned down to B on a regular (24.5") scale guitar. By extending the scale to 34" you can achieve an F at the same tension. I just down tuned it a half step to get the E. The string tension is less than that of my Fender P-Bass Lyte Deluxe, but I would not say that it is sloppy.

Tyler

Wichita Sam said:

Tyler,

What is the diameters of those light baritone strings? Is that low E real sloppy? Maybe you're onto something that I'd like to try...

thanks,

Wichita Sam

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