New Jazz bass build

[MagTheGrate]

This is my second build, but I'll call it my first "real" build. The first one was a $150 kit that I built just to get my feet wet.

It's a Warmoth swamp ash body, finished in Stewmac's ColorTone dyes. Black sanded back 4 times, then finished off in blue. I probably could have mixed the black darker and did less sanding back, but I was nervous about that. I really like how the ColorTone dyes allow you to "sneak up" on your desired color.

I'm really happy with how the color has turned out!

There's a Warmoth maple and ebony neck on the way, finished in satin nitro with mother of pearl dots. as well as:
Hipshot brass type A bridge in chrome
Hipshot Ultralite Tuners in chrome
Nordstrand Big J Blade Warm and Wooly pickups
Audere Pro JZ6D Preamp

I have a Warmoth black pearl pickguard for it that I'm really torn on whether I'll install it or not.

 

[Logrinn]

Exquisite! Love it! :icon_thumright:

 

[rgand]

That really shows off the grain and character of the wood. Very, very cool.

 

[Jebberz]

Very Nice.

What technique di you use to applu the dye?

 

[Cagey]

Nice job! I've always been partial to a medium to dark blue progressing into a very dark blue or black edge.

 

[BigSteve22]

Nice color!

 

[MagTheGrate]

Very Nice.

What technique di you use to applu the dye?

i used a folded up 6" square piece of an old tshirt to apply the dye in relatively thin coats. I sanded back with 220 grit sandpaper on a palm sander in between the 4 coats of black dye. I sanded into the edges for the burst by hand with a foam sanding block.

I mixed the Color Tone dye from StewMac at a rate of 1.5 teaspoons to 1/2 cup water. I mixed with water on purpose to raise the grain, knowing that it would be sanded off several times. I thought about mixing the blue with alcohol to not raise the grain further, but it ended up not being an issue.

I put on several, probably 6 or 7, coats of sanding sealer in a misguided attempt to fill the grain. It ended up filling it about half way and I decided that I didn't hate some of the grain texture showing through the clear cote more than I hated the idea of applying more sanding sealer. I probably should have used black dyed grain filler as a first step.

The gloss coat is Minwax rub-on polyurethane. I applied it with a folded bit of tshirt the same way as the dye.

edit: The gloss coat hasn't been added in that photo above. It did darken it some, but still looks fantastic imho. I'll have to get another picture.

 

[Jebberz]

Good,

Thanks a lot for the information, you just made a bass in a color I'd like, and using techniques I'd be able to use, and it is great looking. Cant wait to see it fully assembled.

 

[davegardner0]

WOW! That's one nice looking blue burst. Nice job! I really love how dyes applied directly to the wood look. Just curious, what sort of clear are you applying over the top?

:yourock:

 

[MagTheGrate]

WOW! That's one nice looking blue burst. Nice job! I really love how dyes applied directly to the wood look. Just curious, what sort of clear are you applying over the top?

:yourock:

Minwax rub on gloss polyurethane.

 

[MagTheGrate]

Finally finished this thing up. The Nordstrand pickups took a bit longer than expected. As I said above, the clear coat did darken up the finish a bit, but I'm still very pleased!

The neck is a Warmoth J Bass that they finished in a satin nitro. It has:
Audere Pro JZ6D preamp
Nordstrand Big J-Blade pickups
Hipshot Ultralite Tuners
Hipshot A style bridge
Hipshot 3 String Retainer
Hipshot O-ring knobs (I had to drill them out a bit to make them fit on the Audere)

All of the cavities are shielded with copper tape.

 

[rgand]

The darker color just shows off the wood even more. Nice job. Looks great.

 

[TonyFlyingSquirrel]

Snazzy like some blue suede shoes!

 

[Hendrix]

love that blue over black dry finish painting work, really nice  ccasion14:

 

[Jebberz]

Amazing... GOM stuff. I will definitely vote for you if you participate.

 

[Logrinn]

That looks great. Almost like marble.