It’s back from the dead! The TB Mega Thread.

[Tigerbass]

Sooooo,...I have an interview with Darrin Huff tomorrow to go to work for him. I'm well aware of his history and FWIW he has never done me any wrong. He's actually come out to see Mecha Shiva play several times. While I'm excited and really want to help him out,...I'm trying to keep it a little grounded. At the very least he has tools that I need access to for what I want to start doing and I think some of the skills I'll be developing will come in handy for him,...so if there is no money in it right away at least there will be some incentive to work for him. I think I'll mainly be installing hardware and electronics and dimensioning wood,...maybe milling bridges and winding pickups.

We are friends via facebook and I think he witnessed my ambition and my dedication to research for getting Effects Junkie off the ground (which is still a ways off); so out of the blue he asked me if I'd be interested in building basses and guitars,...FUCK YEAH I'M INTERESTED IN THAT SHIT,...beats the living hell out of working for amateur restaurant owners who don't know what the fuck they are doing even if there is little to no money to start out with.

I guess I mainly want to blab. While I'm not naive; I think this partnership will be mutually beneficial for the both of us. I would never blab this on TB though. I just think that most of the guys on TB would just wanna jump down my throat while taking the opportunity to slag on Darrin. Those that are waiting on basses or refunds are well within their right to be frustrated,...but I'd hate to get discouraged by a few people who want to act tough on the interwebz. At the very least I feel like I can help him get caught up and implement his new business model and help to reestablish his reputation.

He is a good guy and an awesome luthier. I don't think he ever intended to ruin his cred,...he just got in over his head. I think if I can stick with him,...have faith (as I wish some of his customers would do),...understand that for his basses he is the boss and it's his way (that's why you hire a greenhorn isn't it?) then I'll be rewarded in the future.

So with cautious optimism I'm going to met him for coffee and see what he has in mind,...could be back to work as early as next month.

Good for you bro, that sounds like a killer opportunity for you to learn some shit! Hope it works out for you and helps take you to that next level. Best of luck

[Eric!]

SO. BADASS. WANT.
Can I come intern in the summer? :P

[jumbo_steelie]

I finally found out where all the cool kids on TB hang out.....

[DuoSonicII]

I need to get it tuned up and the tranny (a manual,...one of only 200 manual wagons ever sold in the US) is a little wore out but other than that,...it runs like top

A manual Accord wagon?! Damn dude, that kicks ass. MANUALS 4 LYFE. Too bad Honda doesn't make anything like that anymore; Honda's second to only Subie in my book. I am hooked on the AWD - makes midwestern winters tolerable.

I'm going to drive it till the wheels fall off,...then buy a Subaru.

If I had a choice between the Current WRX STi and the Evo 10,...I'd get the Evo hands down.

I tend to agree based on what I've seen and read, though the Evo is pretty much the only decent thing Mitsu makes anymore. However, if I was gonna drop that kind of cash on a car, I'd probably just buy an Audi.

[Eric!]

I finally found out where all the cool kids on TB hang out.....

Like I said, we (the cool kids) are glad to have ya aboard!

[behndy]

best wishes on that homie! that's not sarcastic at all. i know text based shit the tone can come across wrong. SERIOUSLY hope it's as awesome as it sounds like it might be.

good luck!

[warwick.hoy]

Thanks guys,....

No sarcastic tone taken,...behnders,...I know you're a good man.

It's perfectly understandable if Darrin has scared off any potential customers,....I wish he could afford to give your buddy his refund,...and I think in time he will be able to and FWIW,...your bro seems to be taking it in stride. Getting people their basses or their refunds is going to take a lot of work and it's going to take making his business successful (especially if people want their deposits back) so if that means I don't make any money while I'm apprenticing; then I can be patient,...as long as I can find time to work on my shit or I get some incentive out of it (like a sweet fretless),...it will be all good.

The interview is in a few so,...thanks for the good vibes.

I've seen his prototype so if I can secure his permission I'll post a pic.

[Jwar]

So you're going to hook us all up with awesome discounts now right???


Good luck man!


Oh yea and FUCK TB!

[warwick.hoy]

oh,...I guess it attached anyway. The prototype is the one on the left. He is over doing the CT style scroll basses.

Discounts are,....???? I don't even how lucrative this will be for me.

[nad]

@ jumbo_steelie

My WRX was paid off, but it started falling apart prematurely. I wanted to go 150k in that car but it started sucking on my wallet at only 87k, so I said "fuckit" and went back to payments.

Yikes. What went wrong with it? Mine's an '07, paid off with 42K so far. Last one was an '03, had about the same mileage when I traded it in - didn't keep it long enough to see how it would really hold up.

WAGONS > EVERYTHING

I am really wishing that I had went for a wagon, or maybe for a Forester XT. 27-year-old me was still worried about looking cool or something, 31-year-old me wants a ride that can haul ass AND haul a big-ass bass rig simultaneously.

Power steering pump started fucking up around 80k and became an ongoing problem, alternator died on me in fucking Indio at 87k so I spent an entire day at Marcelo's in Coachella watching bad Mexican TV getting it replaced, radiator blew up at 91k on my way to work but at least I made it there that morning. I don't think those are common problems, and not a big deal if the car had over 100k, but it didn't, so I ditched it and bought the Mazda. Engine and tranny were always great to me, and I'm now over my Subaru hate, so I'd totally own another WRX someday.

It's funny about the wagon thing, I've actually always found sedans to be the dorkmobiles that everyone says that wagons/minivans are. I hate sedans, so fucking pointless. You don't get the cool factor of a coupe, but never enough space to haul anything worthwhile in it. BUT... I love the fact that nobody likes wagons. I used to get people ogling over the WRX all the time, but every single person would say "it's rad, wow oh cool... no offense but I'd get the sedan." None taken, that's one more reason I bought the wagon in the first place.

Sooooo,...I have an interview with Darrin Huff tomorrow to go to work for him. I'm well aware of his history and FWIW he has never done me any wrong. He's actually come out to see Mecha Shiva play several times. While I'm excited and really want to help him out,...I'm trying to keep it a little grounded. At the very least he has tools that I need access to for what I want to start doing and I think some of the skills I'll be developing will come in handy for him,...so if there is no money in it right away at least there will be some incentive to work for him. I think I'll mainly be installing hardware and electronics and dimensioning wood,...maybe milling bridges and winding pickups.

We are friends via facebook and I think he witnessed my ambition and my dedication to research for getting Effects Junkie off the ground (which is still a ways off); so out of the blue he asked me if I'd be interested in building basses and guitars,...FUCK YEAH I'M INTERESTED IN THAT SHIT,...beats the living hell out of working for amateur restaurant owners who don't know what the fuck they are doing even if there is little to no money to start out with.

I guess I mainly want to blab. While I'm not naive; I think this partnership will be mutually beneficial for the both of us. I would never blab this on TB though. I just think that most of the guys on TB would just wanna jump down my throat while taking the opportunity to slag on Darrin. Those that are waiting on basses or refunds are well within their right to be frustrated,...but I'd hate to get discouraged by a few people who want to act tough on the interwebz. At the very least I feel like I can help him get caught up and implement his new business model and help to reestablish his reputation.

He is a good guy and an awesome luthier. I don't think he ever intended to ruin his cred,...he just got in over his head. I think if I can stick with him,...have faith (as I wish some of his customers would do),...understand that for his basses he is the boss and it's his way (that's why you hire a greenhorn isn't it?) then I'll be rewarded in the future.

So with cautious optimism I'm going to met him for coffee and see what he has in mind,...could be back to work as early as next month.

Darrin's work is well respected by well respected luthiers. If his customer service issues can be cleared up with additional help, magic things could happen...!

[Eric!]

Rainbow bass for me? FINALLY

[warwick.hoy]

So we talked at length today and it looks like I'm pretty much going to be an apprentice in exchange for shop time or an instrument. With pay dependant on making his business successful. He wants to do production of ten or more basses a month and he wants to do as much of the work in house as possible,..including winding his own pickups,...milling and powdercoating his own bridges,...etc etc. He is burnt out on doing the CT style basses,...but I think he is willing to a few a year to his specs and put them on the market. He is done with custom orders,...taking deposits and burdening people with long wait times

After talking with Darrin my cautiousness has turned into excitement about this prospect. He seems like he would be a demanding person to work for but I think he needs people that understand that it's his company,...his name on the headstock and that they need to be on the same page as him and do things his way. I can respect that and trust me,...I've worked in hostile environments. I know how to put up or shut up. I know that once I prove myself he will be willing to listen to my input to help with effeciency.

His goal is to get his backlog up to date,...which I think will go a long way to restore his reputation. I think he wants to expand to amps and effects as well so that will be beneficial to me as this is where my heart is. This will be mutually beneficial for us and I think will have the potential to turn into a good business partnership. Prospects are looking good and I'm stoked to get out of the food service industry and do something that I actually love for a change.

On thing for you older guys,...how do you determine what you time is worth? He wants me to come up with a rate so we can document hours and put that towards shoptime/an instrument. I don't want to come off as greedy,...but I don't want to undercut myself either.

[Gozu]

how much is you rent/mortgage and bills? cover that, food and gas monthly and you pretty much got how i charge for mine....

[warwick.hoy]

Well the wife's job covers our rent/bills but doesn't leave much left over. I'll definitely figure gas into it. I do want to provide so discretionary income as a thank you to the wife for hanging tough with me.

[nad]

For what it's worth, nobody makes good money in the music industry. It's all about the love and making due as best you can. But it is sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo god damn worth it. I don't hate myself anymore, what a fucking concept!



There is a saying in the luthier's world: "How do you make a living building instruments? Get a rich wife."