Setup Advice

[Calvin Marks]

Thanks for the great advice. I really appreciate the great input. I myself am by no means a skilled craftsman...I have no woodworking knowledge or practical experience so naturally I'd prefer to get a professional to do this for me. I agree that a new bridge is ideal...I'm a bit nervous in regards to how I should go about asking for this from the maker...Basically he's going to have to shell out 500 bucks out of his own pocket to fix this.

[Ken Smith]

Originally Posted by Calvin Marks

Thanks for the great advice. I really appreciate the great input. I myself am by no means a skilled craftsman...I have no woodworking knowledge or practical experience so naturally I'd prefer to get a professional to do this for me. I agree that a new bridge is ideal...I'm a bit nervous in regards to how I should go about asking for this from the maker...Basically he's going to have to shell out 500 bucks out of his own pocket to fix this.

Not Shell out but rather 'shell back' because you paid for it already when you bought the Bass. Some type of warranty should be in place here and that is minimal.

I was selling a Bass recently in as-is condition in the $20k range and the potential buyer asked about warranty in case something else happens. It already needed a new bridge and fingerboard but the bass just came over from across the pond. I offered an additional $2k off the price, no questions asked to cover his warranty question. This is business, not 'shelling out'.

The buyer didn't buy the bass. It seems that buyers rarely speculate on an instrument even though the price deal is in their favor. The estimated value of this Bass was about $24k all done up. I just had the bass restored and adding all of the repair costs to the instrument from the as-is condition it comes out that the buyer had he bought the bass and had it fixed would have saved money doing so.

In your case paying the regular price I assume and not an 'as-is' price deserves some soft or warranty compensation. Being so fat away the maker should gladly offer or agree to pay another Luthier closer to you to get the problem fixed. Like him having a warranty center in your area. He can go back to work the minute after he writes the check and save his own valuable time for making and repairing the jobs he has on his schedule already. Paying out seems easier than working to me. Don't you agree?

Just to be clear, from the pictures you have posted of your Bass it looks beautiful and your have described the sound as fantastic so the bass is a winner. Now, it just has to play as good as it looks and sounds. Get THAT done now and collect later if possible but don't hold back from calling him to get what you've already paid him for, a playable bass.

Also, you were having some string-search problems for this bass as well. Having the bridge working correctly will make a huge difference in the performance of a string. Especially if the E is too low. Actually, how can you even begin to pass judgment on a string if the set-up is not right. This would be like trying out a car with a flat tire and judging the ride of the car.. right?

One think I have done in the past is this. I re-cut the top as necessary 'first' and also align that by raising the adjusters evenly. Then when it's just how I want it, I measure how thick the walnut decorative shim must be that I will glue to the non-threaded foot of the bridge. They say measure twice, cut once so this means you must know the amount of spacer needed to glue in place before you start that job.

Call the maker now and discuss this with him. Feel free to print this out (or copy and email it to him) and show him what I said. I am sure he will agree at least to some degree that he needs to help you resolve this at mainly his expense.

Also, if it were me, I would have preferred that the customer call me to discuss it before posting it on line. In the future, reserve that option for when the maker refuses to help and not before you even ask him.. ok?

[Calvin Marks]

Thank you for the top notch advice. It was very much appreciated.

Calvin

[Martin Sheridan]

I'm in agreement with Ken. If the maker knows that the bridge was wrong to begin with he should take care of the expense.
But, did you pressure him to turn it over too you before he was able to redo the bridge himself?

[Calvin Marks]

Originally Posted by Martin Sheridan

I'm in agreement with Ken. If the maker knows that the bridge was wrong to begin with he should take care of the expense.
But, did you pressure him to turn it over too you before he was able to redo the bridge himself?

No, definitely not.

[Arnold Schnitzer]

Don Gorman's a really good guy. I'm sure he'll do the right thing. $500 for a bridge???!!!???

[Calvin Marks]

Originally Posted by Arnold Schnitzer

Don Gorman's a really good guy. I'm sure he'll do the right thing. $500 for a bridge???!!!???

Oh, he's a top notch guy. In this case he said considering that there's a lot of thread left in the adjusters...He's paying someone to raise the bridge and then cut down on the G and D string side. Seems like a good idea.


500...That was just a guess. There's a bass store in Toronto where I had a bridge made for my old bass...They charged me 500 bucks...I know.