Custom Walnut Boomer

New to the world in 2014 is this Custom Walnut Boomer. My initial thought when designing this model would be that it was an ideal option for those who crave sustain and clear articulation simultaneously. However, the request for certain modifications to this particular model have proven to give even more range and power to this already great model.

Here's a quick review from the owner: "First let me say that the whole process of  building this bass with Nick was excellent. I chose the Boomer body design, and from there it was deciding on what woods, hardware and electronics to use. 

To sum it up, I got everything that I requested.  I did not have to change or compromise on anything.   I knew that from the combination of all the components that the sound would be really good, but it exceeded my expectations.  This bass sings. The action and playability are excellent.

I’m looking forward to another bass build with Nick.  This time something off the wall! "

All the great standards are here: Hipshot Hardware, Mahogany Body with a Walnut Top, 34" scale and the soft C profile on the neck. Some of the upgrades that really make this bass really special are the solid quartersawn Wenge neck with a Ebony Fretboard, the Coil Tapped Seymour Duncan Musicman pickup, a Hipshot D-Tuner and the super solid, super beefy Hipshot Brass A Style Bridge. This bass was ordered with a custom reverse headstock with 1+3 Tuners for easy, unfettered access to the D-Tuner. My favorite feature is the Coil Tapped Musicman pickup, it has been strategically placed right up against the bridge for optimum tonal range. Most people would say one of two things to that; "Wouldn't cramming it next to the bridge cut the volume?" or "Bridge pickups get way too nasally that close to the bridge." While these concerns are definitely valid in most cases, this configuration defies those rules. With such a hot pickup, it manages to retain full volume capabilities with its height closer to the strings. Also, by seating it right next to the bridge, the tonal characteristics are much more dramatic when switching from the back coil to full humbucker to front coil.

On the aesthetic side of this build, I was given the opportunity to take some creative liberties with wood composition and matching covers. I have recently embarked on the venture of bringing psychedelia to woodworking. I love the incredible grain patterns that appear in roto-cut plywood.

The new owner of this bass was curious to see what I would come up with so I suggested that we incorporate this element into the binding, inlay, backplate and headstock plate. We're both pretty happy with how it turned out!  (PS - My shop isn't always this dirty!)

Sparkler Guitar

This is a guitar I built for my good friend Calea in exchange for my website. This guitar is made from hundreds of tiny pieces of maple. It has a 25.5 scale length, 24 Frets, Maple neck and fretboard, Maple Cap with an Alder Body. It is outfitted with 3 lipstick pickups wired with a 6 way rotary switch and Master Volume and Tone. Tuneomatic Bridge, Gotoh Tuners, Aluminum Nut. It looks unfinished, but I finished it with a hand rubbed Shellac finish to retain the whiteness of the Maple. This is one of my favorite guitars I've built so far, I'm super happy it's going to live with one of my best friends. If you haven't already, you can see the great work Calea does at www.holcombguitars.com

Walnut Glider Guitar

About 6 months ago, my upstairs neighbor, Brandi, approached me about building a custom guitar for her husband for their wedding anniversary  Vipul (her husband) had come down for a BBQ and had seen some guitars I was working on at the time. Unbeknownst to him, Brandi had already asked me to start thinking of ideas for the guitar she had ordered. He saw an older Glider Bass made of Walnut Wenge and Maple, and his interest in that was enough to give me an idea for an effective guitar translation. 

Vipul is a surfer so it was an obvious choice to emulate the linear laminated stripes of laminated wood surf boards. (Surfboard by Paul Jensen http://www.hollowsurfboards.com )

This Guitar is a 24 fret 25.5" scale with a tuneomatic bridge and floating tailpiece. The pickups are Seymour Duncan 57' Classics with chrome pickup rings for that added visual snap. The fretboard has a 14" radius. The electronics are a basic 1 volume, 1 tone, 3 way switch. The fretboard is curly Maple with Wenge inlays. The nut is graphite and the tuners are Gotohs. 

Glider Double Neck Bass

This Double Neck bass was quite an undertaking for me. Jost Eckhardt approached me about building him a double neck that featured small objects that would be worked into the body. I have always liked the look of small shadow boxes as frames so I suggested that we embed the objects in small rectangular cavities. Jost supplied me with a series of objects to work with. What we got was a very handsome mutant.

The body is Honduran mahogany with a series of shallow rectangles routed into the surface to hold the various objects. The top neck is a 30" short scale fretted bass with an ebony fretboard and a maple neck. This neck is outfitted with the standard J&MM pickup arrangement seen on standard Gliders.

The Bottom neck is Mahogany with a rosewood fretboard and a 34" fretless scale. The pickups are Fender Jazz Humbuckers. These pickups are fantastic for fretless bass. They have plenty of capacity for lowend but they are surprizingly clear and sensitive. 

Jost writes : "I love playing that bass. It's a stunning piece of art and it plays very nicely. The fretless neck plays and sounds almost like an upright. I may move to lower strings for this one - B, E, A, D. The fretted neck being short allows me doing chords and tapping and plays well with all my pedals. Thank you Nick for building it. Reminds me, "it" needs a name..." 

I'm rooting for "Handsome Mutant"

Bass Builder Guide

Just made a HUGE push to get an advertisement done for a new magazine called Bass Builder Guide. Click on the image to see a full size version of the ad. Bass Builder Guide is a magazine featuring Boutique Bass Builders and their work. You'll be able to find it in locations like Atlanta Bass Gallery, the Bass Emporium and many others.

Tabber Guitar

A couple weeks ago, Robert Sanchez from Music Everywhere approached me about helping him creating a "Tabber Guitar" You can read more details about the project here:

http://gizmodo.com/5884767/tabber-will-teach-shredding-essentials-with-a-light+up-fretboard

Yellowheart and Wenge 8 String in Progress

I've been steadily working on an 8 string bass for myself in between other projects. The through-neck has presented some unique difficulties paired with how I've been laminating all the pieces. I've approached the process fairly intuitively because of this. The geometric pattern top has to be attached separately from the through neck and the ash wings that are being glued on in these pictures.

The cutaway arm has a wenge and yellowheart piece laminated on to extend the patten of the top into the rest of the body. I chose that particular part of the guitar because of its visual and physical prominence. The headstock as pictured will have a cap put on it that matches the body's top.