Anyone make a super light Jazz Bass?

[mayfly]

Gentlepeople,

The bass player in my band has developed a bad back.  She has trouble getting through a night and often by the third set she has to sit on the floor to relieve back pain.  She's a trooper, but that has got to be no fun.

Her main bass, a fender 62 Jazz re-issue, is not particularly heavy, but a few pounds here and there might make a big difference.

So - some questions:
1 - anyone make a super light Jazz Bass?  How did you do it and what weight did you achieve?  And most importantly, how did it sound?

2 - anyone lighten up an existing Jazz?  Besides hipshot tuners, how did you do it?

3 - any alternatives to standard straps out there that would transfer weight to the hips or something?

Yours in lightness,

Trevor

 

[JimBeed]

Ill have a better look into it later once i get uni work done, as i know of some strap places and im in the mood to search the web  :toothy10:,
but possibly get you and the others to pitch in for a dinky jazz replacement body? that might reduce weight, but depends if she wants to keep her bass as it is and not replace bodies.  :dontknow:

 

[Nando Vallart]

There is the new graphite rods instead of the iron rods... This shall help a little...

 

[jackthehack]

I did inadvertently, as I scored a super light swamp ash/flame koa Jbass body off of eBay. Not sure if it is a chambered body or not (this is another good option to jettison weight) but body weight was 3.2 lbs. Added a Brazilian rosewood/birdseye maple neck, regular black hw and a set of RG Muy Grande Jbass PUs; thing doesn't weigh any more than a lot of Strats (never weighed the whole thing but it's under 7 lbs.)  and sounds kick-ass: http://www.unofficialwarmoth.com/index.php?topic=4659.0

 

[drewfx]

My lightest bass is probably a Squier VM P-Bass TB mudbucker equipped "tele-bass" (modded to add a vintage-style SCPB PU, among other things). It's a basswood body (with an ash cap). The smaller tele headstock probably helps a little as well.

Depending on the sound she'd be looking for, I would say a hollowbody bass would be lightest, followed by a small body made out of light wood, possibly short scale. If it has to be a jazz, that reduces the options a bit...

If I were building a Warmoth, I'd say short scale or chambered Dinky-J body; basswood or lightweight ash; lightest possible neck/fb woods; tele headstock (if long scale); extralight tuners; graphite rods instead of steel; lightweight vintage-style bridge.

You also might have a look on talkbass.com, to see what people there say...

 

[TBurst Std]

3 - any alternatives to standard straps out there that would transfer weight to the hips or something?

Yours in lightness,

Trevor

I know someone who makes a waist belt that holds the guitar. I can not find her website right know, but I will look for her card when I get home.

here is a link to the patent

http://www.wikipatents.com/US-Patent-7009097/guitar-strap

 

[line6man]

If possible, go with a rear routed body, rather than a Jazz with a metal control plate, and be sure to use plastic knobs rather than metal.
A low-mass vintage bridge would also be preferable.

Random pointless thought, but I tried a Lace Aluma-J pickup recently, and though it sounded like utter crap, the pickup was extremely lightweight, because there isn't much wire on it.

 

[bagman67]

Cheaper approach is the Steve Albini method:  Use an extra long guitar strap and wrap it all the way around your waist like a karate gi belt - center against the belly, wrap the ends around  back to the front, and attach to the guitar.

See also:  http://www.electrical.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=40658

A heavy bass is still likely to cause some pain, but it will be on the hips and or lower back, but this might work for your bass player.  Of course, if she is a small person the proportions of the bass might make this approach unworkable unless she puts a straplock on the lower horn to get the neck up higher - also worth considering, albeit cosmetically offensive to some.

 

[mayfly]

I have a set of hipshots on order.  We'll try that first on the '62 re and see what happens.

Mr TBurst - very much interested in additional information on the hip strap.

 

[hannaugh]

I'm just tagging this thread so I can see future updates.  I have upper back problems sometimes, although usually more related to painting than playing.  I might have to go the waist strap route someday.  :-\

 

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

I've got a chambered body with the 3/8" Ultra Lights, and it still weighs in at just under 10 lbs.  Regardless of how light you make it, it will still be a bass and somewhat large and heavy. 

I'm not a Doctor, but can share my back pain story and bass playing.  When your back hurts, it just hurts and can be hard to isolate exactly what it is even though you can identify the area.  My lower back and left hip were hurting.  A coworker suggested it was my kidneys and needed to drink more water.  That was cheaper than a trip to the doctor, though it did nothing.  I went to the doctor thinking it was going to be something out of whack, a pulled muscle, or need to change sleeping positions.  It was none of those things, my back was weak.  No bad vertibrae or slipped disks. 

I know you've been Cornflower Blue-ing it a lot lately and maybe the playing standing up in a now busier EFarm schedule just requires conditioning for her back.  When I started playing guitar, I had plywood bodied Explorer knock off.  Very heavy and couldn't play standing up very long.  Eventually, just time playing it standing up everyday increased my back stamina.

Maybe a stool, one leg on the ground, one on the stool and the bass strap raised a little bit could ease the pressure on the back and keep her off the ground. 

 

[AprioriMark]

Well, I hate to say this, but don't go Warmoth if you want light weight.  USACG necks are lighter, as well as Fender ones if you can stand them.  Hipshot tuners for sure, Also look into the super light Asian bodies from Guitar fetish: http://www.guitarfetish.com/Bass-Bodies-and-Necks_c_293.html

I have 2 guitars made of this wood, and the finish chips easily, but they sound good.  50-60 bucks.

-Mark

 

[mayfly]

Well, I hate to say this, but don't go Warmoth if you want light weight.  USACG necks are lighter, as well as Fender ones if you can stand them.  Hipshot tuners for sure, Also look into the super light Asian bodies from Guitar fetish: http://www.guitarfetish.com/Bass-Bodies-and-Necks_c_293.html

I have 2 guitars made of this wood, and the finish chips easily, but they sound good.  50-60 bucks.

-Mark

Hmmmm - now that's a light and cheap body!

 

[TonyFlyingSquirrel]

Go for the hollow J bass.
It's much lighter than the standard, and plays with a lil more volume acoustically too.
There a "shop" bass @ Warmoth that we had when I worked there, I borrowed it & made some bass demo tracks a couple of years ago & it was easy on the shoulder with just the standard 2 inch wide nylon strap.

 

[AutoBat]

The Steinberger Spirit is 7.5 with the Synapse coming in at 7.6 pounds.

 

[bagman67]

Chambered or short-scale J or P?  dinky? These are ways of losing wood weight, especially if you pay W. to scour the racks for the lightest lumber possible.

 

[TBurst Std]

Mr TBurst - very much interested in additional information on the hip strap.

Trevor, I sent you a PM

Mark

 

[Nando Vallart]

Well, I hate to say this, but don't go Warmoth if you want light weight.  USACG necks are lighter, as well as Fender ones if you can stand them.  Hipshot tuners for sure, Also look into the super light Asian bodies from Guitar fetish: http://www.guitarfetish.com/Bass-Bodies-and-Necks_c_293.html

I have 2 guitars made of this wood, and the finish chips easily, but they sound good.  50-60 bucks.

-Mark

I believe the change from steel to graphite rods on neck may help a lot...In deed graphite is lighter than wood

 

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

The neck she's playing has neither, so would the graphite rods be lighter than a neck w/out them?