Skully's wife's P Bass: Restoration and Love Story

[skullservant]

Think I'm also going to add a switch so that the signal from both pickups can go to the bottom jack if I ever don't want to run it through two amps. Alsoooo might just order a black pickguard because I'm really digging this black on black theme with the alumatones

[skullservant]

Got a notice this morning that the tuners have been delivered, so I will grab those up tonight and drill/install them.

I'm a little conflicted as to how I'm going to string the bass, I was thinking of stringing it regularly and then figuring out how to get the octave strings to bend to the two new tuners, but then I started looking around at different 8 string octave headstocks and found these suggestions.

I need a new string tree already (which I found out when I picked up the bass, I forgot I used the old one on something else)

So now I'm a little confused as to what I want to do. I could have the G string's octave similar to the darker stained headstock. I'm just affraid that octave strings would somehow not clear the regular bass strings, unless I used 1 of the new tuners for the regular bass string and one for the octave, then used the original G string tuner for the D octave string

[AxAxSxS]

YAY!

Glad they made it there safe and sound. And doubly glad they went to a good home and will get used in such a rad project.

[skullservant]

I'm SO stoked on them dude, so much clarity. I'm starting to think I might have to replace ALL of my pickups in everything with alumitones. Thanks again duder!!!!!

[AxAxSxS]

My pleasure and yeah the clarity is what I love about those. They are in all 3 of my 12's now. I dont know which I like petter, the p90 riffians or the deathbuckers. I have the p and j in my 4 string kramer and that sounds awesome as well!

[skullservant]

I've got a Aluma J in my Jazz, and man does it blow the stock bridge pickup out of the water. I really need to save up and get a matching bridge pickup cause the difference is amazing!

[contraterrene]

....Alsoooo might just order a black pickguard because I'm really digging this black on black theme with the alumatones

gold glitter.

[skullservant]

GOLD GLITTER!!! STAY STRONG!!!

So the nut and tuners came today. Got really excited and dove in pretty quickly and probably too quickly. Got the old nut lifted and made sure the new nut fit (which it did, and it's awesome and well made). A LITTLE nervous about where I drilled and put the tuners.

It'll be tuned E on the regular E tuner, A on the regular A tuner, D's octave on the D tuner, D on the G tuner, G's octave on the higher new tuner, G on the lower of the new tuners. I just hope that the D string doesn't end up hitting the G octave tuning peg, but I guess if it does oh well. I still need to order a new string tree.

[AxAxSxS]

cool man! Looks like the nuts on there already too? How'd it turn out? dude is fast!

[skullservant]

Yeah, got the nut last night too! I just gotta get some superglue to fasten it in for good, but man it turned out awesomely!! Thanks for the recommendation!!

[skullservant]

Got the brass nut superglued in last night, and strung up the G string the way I'm thinking of doing it for real when the new strings come. There is hardly any angle between the nut and the tuner though, so I'm debating some sort of string tree, I guess it would be used for the G octave as well:



Annnnd the action. I didn't fool around with the saddle height last night, this was just a quick picture of the nut height:



That's all for last night. Was my wife's birthday so I wanted to spend time with her instead!

[skullservant]

So now the question is which string tree/retainer to get.

Had originally thought of the traditional P/J bass retainer, the circular one

But then I saw this guy:



Looks like it wouldn't take up as much space, I could use it for the G + G octave. Not sure if I really would need one for the D + D octave.

But then I was also thinking I could get one of these, and it could put tension on all of the strings:



I just have a horrible feeling I would somehow screw the second one up since there is no minimum height on the bar. BUT it would easily allow me to put tension on ALL of the strings.

Thoughts?

[skullservant]

Ended up getting the second string tree, the bar. I feel like it'll be the easiest in the long run

[AxAxSxS]

Probably a good way to go

[skullservant]

Yeah I think so too dude. Then I won't have to worry about having 3 string trees or something stupid when I can just have this bar.

Also, I was able to take the brass nut out last night, gonna sand it down a bit to get the action a little lower.
I believe the new bridge should be here today!