Re: Bass neck

[Bluegr...@aol.com]

Anyone tried shaving down a thick neck on an upright bass?
My old '39 Kay has a lovely neck, but I also have a second bass (early
80's Czech) that has a much thicker neck, and I'd like to shave it down to the
size of my Kay. Any suggestions? Thanks; Tom McCreight</HTML>

[Missy Raines]

Hi Tom,
I would get the input of a great bass luthier that you trust. I
totally understand the desire for the smaller neck, my first concern
would be affecting the overall strength of the instrument with a scaled
down neck. It might not be an issue, but if it's a full size solid
Czech, it might be something to consider about not getting the neck too
small.... just a thought and, again, I don't know- (so that's my
disclaimer!)
I know that even on my old Kay, with its lovely teeny neck, - my
steel strings increase the pressure on the whole body which is a bit
compromised any way because it's old and very thin.
Good luck! Missy

--
Thanks!
Missy

Missy Raines and The New Hip
Find us in the Hiposphere:
www.missyraines.com
http://www.facebook.com/missyrainesandthenewhip
http://twitter.com/thenewhip
http://www.youtube.com/missyrainesmusic

Learn with Missy
Academy of Bluegrass School of Bass
www.missyrainesbass.com

[Dave Dillman]

Shaving the sides a bit shouldn't be a problem. Taking down the
thickness of the neck could lose stiffness and increase the relief of
the neck. I have inlaid steel bars in bass necks (mostly when I had to
reinforce a weak splice in the neck).
If the Czech is a valuable bass best to consult a bass luthier in your area.

[kathyboyd]

I purchased a bass that came with a "D" neck and being a little gal I needed it shaved down to a "C" neck.  I took it to a well-respected and trusted bass luthier and he did a fabulous job.  That was eight years ago and I haven't had a single problem with it. 

I suppose my advice would be if you have any questions about your own abilities - leave it to the experts.  It didn't leave my pockets all that much lighter and was well worth it. 

Kathy Boyd

---

From: Bluegr...@aol.com
Sent: Saturday, May 11, 2013 2:26 AM
To: bassfi...@googlegroups.com
Subject: [bassfiddle-L] Re: Bass neck

Anyone tried shaving down a thick neck on an upright bass?
My old '39 Kay has a lovely neck, but I also have a second bass (early
80's Czech) that has a much thicker neck, and I'd like to shave it down to the
size of my Kay. Any suggestions? Thanks; Tom McCreight</HTML>

--
--
======================================================
post to the list--send email to bassfi...@googlegroups.com
unsubscribe--send email to bassfiddle-L...@googlegroups.com
more options--http://groups.google.com/group/bassfiddle-L?hl=en?hl=en
======================================================
---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "bassfiddle-L" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to bassfiddle-L...@googlegroups.com.
For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.

[Tom Staselavage]

Good advise, Missy. Unless you feel confident in working with wood its better to get some advise. I've done several and you have to consider how much wood the neck can do without. I had an old King, low sr # like number 174, it had a neck like a baseball bat - really. The neck was made of maple and the fingerboard was ebony so you could take as much as you wanted to off of it. I've played some of the Czech basses and there are some with heavy necks and the newer ones have more comfortable necks and I don't know what kind of wood it is.

Hope it works out for you.

Tom Staselavage

--
--
======================================================
post to the list--send email to bassfi...@googlegroups.com

unsubscribe--send email to bassfiddle-L+unsub...@googlegroups.com

more options--http://groups.google.com/group/bassfiddle-L?hl=en?hl=en
======================================================
---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "bassfiddle-L" group.

To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to bassfiddle-L+unsub...@googlegroups.com.