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Topics - Basvarken

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1
Bill's Shop: Projects, Mods & Repairs / Brooks Thinline Telebird
« on: March 09, 2024, 05:30:21 AM »
Another Brooks Thinline Telebird is ready to rock!
Made some pics this morning.
Now she's ready to be packed in and shipped to the US of A.









3
The Outpost Cafe / Bobby Tench RIP
« on: February 21, 2024, 06:53:22 AM »
Bobby Tench has passed away at age 79.
The list of artists he worked with is endless. (Jeff Beck, Humble Pie, Van Morrison, Freddie King, Streetcrawler, Hummingbird, et cetera)
Great singer (and guitarist).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vb5GagBpA5s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PhBoZ5vZGr4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zlAp7C4V-iU


In 1986 he recorded a version of Still In Love With You as a tribute to Philip Lynott who had just passed away.
Brian Robertson played guitar (and keyboard) on this single.
It 's bit of a mix between the original 1974 version (with Frankie Miller on guest vocal) and the legendary live version form Live & Dangerous.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=npGciatBZog


Today I learned that he was also a member of "The New Thin Lizzy" in 1991/1992. With original TL members Brian Robertson and Brian Downey.
They toured Ireland in 1992.
I had never heard of that line-up until today. And I thought I knew everything about Thin Lizzy ;-)




RIP Bobby Tench

4
Bill's Shop: Projects, Mods & Repairs / New chapter to the Brooks story
« on: February 09, 2024, 08:17:35 AM »
A new chapter will soon be added to the Brooks story.

An old college friend of my brother has a passion for woodworking. He has an impressive collection of chisels, planes and other tools. including an Austrian-made Hammer CNC mill.
He approached me for a unique collaboration. I would contribute my knowledge of (bass) guitar building and he would contribute his skills in creating the 3D files for the CNC machine.
And so it was that we started the Brooks Jufferschans Edition in mid-2023. A very accurate remake of the Fenderbird that Peter Cook built for John Entwistle.

A lot of drawing, measuring, calculations, test pieces and consultations in recent months. We selected wood together in the huge storage of the my local wood supplier.
But now the first real results of the milling work are there. And they look fantastic.






Next week I will pick up the parts and start putting together a bass guitar from these "kits".
Hopefully the starting signal for a beautiful (limited) edition of Brooks Bass Guitars!

6
Bill's Shop: Projects, Mods & Repairs / Brooks EB-TB-IV
« on: December 03, 2023, 01:07:13 PM »
The Brooks EB-TB-IV build is done!











- Neck through with mahogany body wings
- Nine ply mahogany/walnut neck
- Ebony faceplate on headstock
- Tobacco burst gloss transparent acrylic finish
- Rosewood fretboard
?- Jumbo frets
- 34" scale
- Handcut bone nut
- Three ply white-black-white pickguard
- Wide travel Thunderbird bridge plus tailstop
- Spokewheel trussrod
- Thunderbird style pickups nickel.
- Hipshot Ultralite tuners
- Output Pure Tone
- d'Addario EXL170BT Balanced Tension strings
- Strapnuts: Dunlop Straplok Nickel Dual Design
- Weight: 3.5 kg


7
The Outpost Cafe / RIP Shane MacGowan
« on: November 30, 2023, 06:27:40 AM »

8
Bill's Shop: Projects, Mods & Repairs / Brooks PB-2
« on: October 19, 2023, 05:45:26 AM »
Another new Brooks bass was born today!
As most of the Brooks bass guitars this a hybrid design.
The Brooks PB-2 combines the characteristics of a Gibson EB-2 and of a Fender Precision.

Specifications:
- Hollow Maple body with maple centre piece
- Flamed Maple with mahogany veneer neck. Glued in
- Colour: Cherryburst
- Ebony fretboard. Mother Of Pearl inlays
- Jumbo frets
- 34" scale
- Handcut buffalo nut
- Guyker two point bridge and tailstop
- Spokewheel double action trussrod
- Seymour Duncan SPB-3 Quarter Pound pickup
- Hipshot Ultralite tuners
- Controls: Volume - Tone
- Rotosound Swing Bass RS66LDN strings
- Weight 3.7 kg











9
Bill's Shop: Projects, Mods & Repairs / Brooks Nachtkrapp - Night Raven
« on: October 11, 2023, 06:17:30 AM »
A new bass was born today.
Ladies and gentlemen, I give you:
The Brooks Nachtkrapp Airborne (Chris Laut Signature)

Chris Laut is the lead singer/ bass player in German rockband Ohrenfeindt. Chris commissioned me to build this hybrid of a Non Reverse and a Reverse Thunderbird. With a personal touch to accentuate his former career as an airborne commando for the German forces. The burgundy colour symbolises the baret and the gold plated badge is the emblem you get if you have done more than 50 parachute jumps.
The camo pickguard symbolises the uniform of course.

Specifications:
- Neck through with mahogany body wings
- Nine ply mahogany/walnut neck
- Ebony faceplate on headstock
- Burgundy finish
- Rosewood fretboard
- Jumbo frets
- 34" scale
- Handcut bone nut
- Three ply white-black-white pickguard With Camo print
- Wide travel Thunderbird bridge plus tailstop
- Spokewheel trussrod
- Gibson reissue Thunderbird pickup.
- Hipshot Ultralite tuners
- CTS pots
- Sprague capacitor
- Rotosound RB 50 strings
- German Paratrooper badge on upper horn
- Weight 3.8 kg


















---------------



A few months ago I made a sketch of an idea I had for a new bass build. A hybrid of a Non Reverse Thunderbird and a Reverse Thunderbird. The shape of the Non Reverse and the nine-ply neck-through plus raised faceplate of the Reverse.



Since I'm from Europe, I was looking for a European counterpart of the American Thunderbird, for the name.
I came up with Nachtkrapp, which translates as Night Raven.
This mythological creature lives in the night and steals little children from their beds. It carries them in his bone chest to its lair where the children are devoured...




Chris Laut saw my sketch and contacted me with the idea to build this bass for him, with a more personal twist.
We shared some ideas. Initially Chris wanted me to finish the bass in camo-print. But I suggested to make the pickguard in camo-print and have the bass finished in the more classy looking burgundy.
Chris asked me to replace the Brooks flame emblem on the upper horn with the gold plated Airborne badge which by coincidence had roughly the same outline and the Thunderbird logo (and the Brooks flame embem).



Chris always wields a Thunderbird on stage (named Bride or Babe).
He is also an airborne paratrooper for the German army.


10
Gibson Basses / Thunderbird humbucker EY Guitars vs Gibson
« on: October 05, 2023, 12:18:01 PM »
I'm building a neck through Non Reverse Thunderbird style bass.



And it's ready to be wired.
Initially I had planned to put the EY Guitars sixties repro Thundrebird humbucker in.
But during the build processGibson made their sixties Thunderbird humbucker available for the market. So I bought one with the help of our very own Mark Hills.

I have both the Gibson and the EY pickup here.
I have tried both in the new bass!
And I recorded them. Recording A is one pickup, Recording B is the other.
Each recording has a part played with finger and a part played with a pick.

Recording A: https://www.brooksbassguitars.com/uploads/1/3/3/7/13376708/test_ey_vs_gibson_-_a.mp3


and


Recording B: https://www.brooksbassguitars.com/uploads/1/3/3/7/13376708/test_ey_vs_gibson_-_b.mp3


I'm curious to hear what you guys prefer. And can you guess which is which?

11
The Outpost Cafe / R.I.P. Bernie Marsden
« on: August 25, 2023, 08:10:04 AM »
Just saw Neil Murray post this on facebook:

Quote
Sadly I have to pass on the dreadful news that my friend and colleague since 1974, Bernie Marsden, has passed away. So many great times with him, musically and personally. A great loss. RIP Bernie.

Rest In Peace Bernie Marsden.


I actually prefer his singing over what Coverdale has been doing to (t)his song for the last 20 years or so...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9Pst1uwoJg

12
Bill's Shop: Projects, Mods & Repairs / Oooweee it's an UV!
« on: July 21, 2023, 05:52:44 AM »
Drumroll...

... a new Brooks bass was born today!
The Brooks UV (aka Thundervee).

Built for our very own Uwe.

- Neck through with Korina body wings
- Nine ply Korina/mahogany neck
- Ebony faceplate on headstock
- Red Mahogany stain. Gloss transparent acrylic finish
- Rosewood fretboard
- 24 Jumbo frets
- 34" scale
- Handcut Buffalo horn nut
- Three ply black-white-black pickguard
- Wide travel Thunderbird bridge- String through body ferrules
- Hipshot Ultralite nickel plated tuners
- Hipshot Bass Extender for the E-string
- Spokewheel double action trussrod
- 2 x Sixties repro Thunderbird pickups nickel. 9.2 K Ohm
- Di Marzio EP111 toggle switch
- 2 x Volume pot CTS 500 kOhms lineair
- 1 x Tone pot CTS 500 kOhms logarithmic
- 47 nF capacitor
- Rotosound RB45. Nickel on steel roundwound 45-105

#brooksbassguitars #thundervee #flyingvbass #brooksuv














13
The Bass Zone / RIP Mo Foster
« on: July 03, 2023, 07:37:55 AM »
On Facebook I saw Neil Murrray post that Mo Foster has passed away.

Can't find an official news page yet.
But it's sad news nonetheless.

So many great albums he played on.
Awesome (fretless) bass melodies.

Thank you Mr. Foster.




14
Drrrrumroll....
Please welcome the Brooks EXB-MS-10.
A custom made multi-scale 10-string bass.

This is easily the most ambitious build I've done to this date.
Simply because there is no reference. As far as I know there is no other in the world.
I had to invent the wheel myself in some parts ;-)

But now it's ready. Thanx to my talented sister Pauline who made the bass plates for the bridges. Thanx to Lord Of The Strings who helped assemble a string set. And thanx to Sjoerd Smeenk who took care of the electronics part.
And a big thank you to Mark Schiele for his patience! he had to wait more than a year for this bass to be completed.

- Mahogany Khaya body
- Laminated Mahogany Khaya set neck. Glued in
- Candy Apple Red finish
- Checkerboard binding
- Ebony fretboard
?- Pearloid position markers
- Jumbo nickel silver frets
- 35-32" scale
- Buffalo horn nut ?
- Custom Brooks bass bridge set. Gold plated
   Bridge base plates by www.paulinevandenbroek.nl
- Two double action trussrods
- One carbon reinforcement strip in the neck
?- Lace Alumitone Bass Bar pickup combination
- Pure Tone output. Gold plated
- Volume and tone knob. Gold plated
- Rotary pickup selector switch. Gold plated chickenhead
- Gotoh GB 350 lightweight bass tuners. Gold plated
- Gotoh CXB-01 carbon guitar tuners. Black
- Custom set d'Addario strings
- Weight: 4.25 kg

Check https://www.brooksbassguitars.com/brooks-exb-ms-10.html for pics of the entire build process.










#brooksbassguitars #multiscalebass #tenstringbass #fannedfrets



15
Gibson Basses / Thunderbird II 2023
« on: March 21, 2023, 09:33:14 AM »
David Kiswiney shared these pics with me.
Gibson's master builder Jim De Cola built this beautiful Thunderbird II for him.

The neck is not a nine ply laminate. But three piece mahogany.
The machine heads are Hipshot Ultra-lites.
The pickup is DeCola's reissue of the historic 60's T-Bird Pickup. He made the bridge a little hotter than the neck pickup, so they would balance better. David Kiswiney's bass has the hotter bridge position pickup.
It also has the Rex Brown Active boost via a push/pull switch on the tone control.
At the request of David the lower strap button was placed off-center, for better balance

Gibson should be taking these into production! They'd have a real winner in their hands.











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