What weight should I choose for my bass body?

[aussietc]

Hi,
I'm looking into ordering two basses: one 32" jazz and one 34" Deluxe Jazz 5. Both will have wenge necks.
I noticed the weights in the showcase vary from 4 - 6 pounds. I have no idea how heavy the necks are and the hardwear all adds up to.
From your experience, what body weight would suit a wenge neck with Hipshot Ultralites for both the shortie and the Deluxe 5?
I guess this will only apply if buying from the showcase where the weights are listed.
How much extra does the chambering cost to order?
Thanks

 

[line6man]

It's probably not the best idea to have a chambered body with a heavy Wenge neck.

 

[aussietc]

Any idea on how light I can go? 4 lbs? 5 lbs?

 

[Jusatele]

I had a bass once, A warlock? I forgot who made those things,anyway it  was so off balanced  if you took your hands off the neck, the next thing you knew the headstock was pounding dents into the stag. Light bodies are no good

 

[reinhold]

I disagree, light bodies can be good if the shape is balanced and the strap buttons are placed well.  Weight plays and issue, but it's only part of the equation. 

 

[aussietc]

Anyone know what the typical weight range of a jazz neck would be?
How much a chambered option is?

 

[tfarny]

Wenge is about as heavy as marble, so keep that in mind. Also, the double truss rod construction of Warmoth adds to weight. On my bass, the body is 4.5 lb or so, I have a 34 inch wenge / ebony neck. Ultralight tuners certainly helped the neck dive, but to truly solve it I had to epoxy about 6 oz of lead into the back of the control cavity. Not hard really, just ended up with a heavier axe than I would have wanted.

So, for a wenge neck even with ultralights, I would not go with an ultra light body and more importantly I would get a shape with the front strap button near the 12th fret (Jazz, P, G4).

No, there are no chambered necks, and I doubt anyone knows how much the necks weigh, I'd guess 2 or 3 lb depending. The real question is will it neck dive, or not.

 

[aussietc]

Oops - chambered bodies that is.

 

[aussietc]

It's probably not the best idea to have a chambered body with a heavy Wenge neck.

What's the padauk like as a neck wood, sound and weight wise. I was thinking about padauk or purplehaert as an alternative.

 

[line6man]

It's probably not the best idea to have a chambered body with a heavy Wenge neck.

What's the padauk like as a neck wood, sound and weight wise. I was thinking about padauk or purplehaert as an alternative.

It's fine with ultralights, balances much better than my other bass with a Maple neck/full sized tuners.

 

[aussietc]

Here is a bass I built many years ago with a padouk body. Although it was small bodied and 32" scale it had some weight to it. great tone though! The neck was quite substantial too.

 

[BassmanAK]

Go light as possible...
Upper horn length matters more than body weight...
IMHO... From a Modulus player....  :icon_biggrin:

 

[aussietc]

Oops - chambered bodies that is.

Found the chambered jazz body option and prices online.Looks like it is only available for a four string though? Not a 5 jazz body or shortscale?  :dontknow:

But then, I noticed the weights are pretty much the same as solid bodies.  :icon_scratch:

 

[Jusatele]

here it is

Hair metal days, I plead hairspray

 

[bagman67]

Here is a bass I built many years ago with a padouk body. Although it was small bodied and 32" scale it had some weight to it. great tone though! The neck was quite substantial too.

I'll confess to having nothing to add to the discussion of body weight - but that's a bad-ass bass!  Nice job.

Bagman

 

[Wyliee]

Oops - chambered bodies that is.

Found the chambered jazz body option and prices online.Looks like it is only available for a four string though? Not a 5 jazz body or shortscale?  :dontknow:

But then, I noticed the weights are pretty much the same as solid bodies.  :icon_scratch:

Correct.  Chambered is only available on the 4 string J. 

Weight varies from wood species to wood species and even within the same species.  A heavy body blank can be chambered to reduce the overall weight.  (And still be heavier than an ultra light piece of wood from the same species.)