Next project help/advice

[Bass VI]

 Ok, I'm not bidding on this one.......
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=260216755996&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=016
but I am thinking of building it......... of course any project requires some research, so fellows Gib-freaks ( and I mean that in the best way ) a few questions.
Scale length 30.5 or 34ish?
Mahog body, maple neck, all mahog, something else?
Headstock, same as Grabber/G3?
Ripper pickups?
Ebony or rosewood fingerboard?
Anyone have a tracing of the body outline and pickguard?
I'll be happy to send the familiar self-stamped envelope for the last one. Of course any and all advice, cautions, insight will be welcome. And I've got to give Jules credit for the inspiration, check out GoGo7188 on his forum, the V bass screams ( well growls anyway ). As always thanks in advance.

S.

[Dave W]

Uwe and captcolour have these, I'm sure they know more than I do, but here's a start:

short scale, alder/maple according to the BlueBook, rosewood board, Ripper pickups, 21 frets.

You can see some decent pics in the Gallery of the Flying V site: http://www.flying-v.ch/

Uwe doesn't like the Ripper pickups in his. IIRC captcolour's has EMGs from a previous owner.

[Bass VI]

Thanks Dave,
I thought I was on the right track. I remember Uwes' comments on the pickups, I've got a set of Ripper (pup) covers and I thought I might have Seymour Duncan put hotter internals in them, proper look, better sound. I'm still in the planning stages, just getting ideas..........................

S.

[uwe]

I think you should stray away from the Gibson original as much as possible if you want a good bass!!! 

Don't make it short scale, the Flying V body needs all the authority it can have, so make it long scale. Don't use an alder body like the original, that sounds kind of lifeless and doesn't project a lot of mids.

Long scale, maple (or maho) neck, maple body and the most assertive pups you can find (TB Plus) to give the instrument a fighting chance to sound well.

I have four Flying V basses, here's a short description of all of them:

- Dean DOA: maho body and neck, long scale, 24 frets, set neck, passive EMG type pups with active circuit, sounds Thunderbirdish in neck only pup mode, but not quite as assertive or as full, could probably be a whole lot better if the pups weren't so anodyne

- Kramer XKB 10: Maple body, alu neck with maple inlays, bolt on, medium scale, after market fitted with active EMG pups, sounds mean and lean, not much wood tone though, E string has different sonic characteristic to the other strings no matter what set of strings you use, probably due to the medium scale

- Ibanez Rocket Roll: Maho body and neck, bolt on, long scale, mock mud- and minibucker in EB-3 type positions, sounds a bit like a very tame seventies EB-0L, would probably do better with original Gibson mud- and minibucker or even even the pups from an SG RI

- Gibson "V": alder body, maple neck, short scale, Ripper pups, this bass is really hopeless, the type of instrument you string with fresh strings and while you are tuning it up unplugged you already notice the sound isn't what it should be, there is not enough presence bite, the mids are too hollow, and the low frequencies are all over, but neither punchy nor of mudbucker brutishness, more like a cheap Ric copy in neck pup only mode


If this hasn't discouraged you I can still send you a tracing of the Gibson body!!!   

Uwe

[Dave W]

Uwe, I think Scott is planning a replica, which would mean short scale. Maybe with stealth electronics inside Ripper covers it would sound better. I'm guessing it would.

AFAIK the Gibson V bass has the same body as the guitar. The long scale V bass copies I've seen all have bigger bodies. Because the distance from the neck end to the crotch of the V is longer, the V wings have to be longer and wider to stay proportional. A couple of weeks ago I saw this long scale Stagg in a shop right next to an Epi V bass. It looked huge next to the Epi.

[MattK]

Uwe's description of his Gibson V sounds exactly like my old Explorer Bass. It was honestly the worst-sounding bass I've ever played. It did look really cool, though.

[uwe]

Well if you want a slavish copy ... then nothing else but alder body and maple neck (plus short scale) will do, even though that is hardly in line with the Flying V legacy as these were alway maho and/or korina guitars. The "V" bass was the odd duck because in the early eighties Gibson had (wrongly and regrettably) abandoned the recipe of maho basses. Even the Epi "V" did not copy the wood combination of the Gibson original, but went for (mock) maho body and neck (which is probably why it sounds better).

And Dave is right, the Flying V bass body is same size as the guitar, but it also "looks right" with a long scale neck because both the Dean and the Ibanez aren't any larger than the original "V" yet have long scale necks. IMHO, the long scale also looks better, the short scale Flying V looks kind of stubby and like a toy, the Dean and the Ibanez, though their bodies aren't any larger, look imposing.

Rather than building a faithful copy of a crap Gibson model, I would build a Flying V as if Gibson had done everything right in the first place and that means maho body (at least, possibly also the neck) and long scale plus fiery pups.

My Epi Explorer is living proof how much a bass can benefit from a better wood and scale choice: Whereas my Gibson Explorers from the eighties with their maho bodies and medium scale maple necks sound lame and lifeless, the Epi with its all-out (mock) korina body and (maho) long scale neck sounds neck sounds full. The difference is already clearly audible even unplugged and the Epi sounds way better plugged with the TB Plus pups I put on than the eighties Gibson Explorers with their cheap Grabber pups.

[Bass VI]

Thank you all for the advice and opinions,

"Rather than building a faithful copy of a crap Gibson model, I would build a Flying V as if Gibson had done everything right in the first place and that means maho body (at least, possibly also the neck) and long scale plus fiery pups."

You mean I presume, something along the lines of my Ripper/G3 which has a name now " The AnnaTomik " ( in honor of my erstwhile fiance' ) it ( the AT ) has an alder body/maple neck and "improved" electronics. I have it in mind to do something similar here, the only thing I'm unsure of is the scale lenghth. I definately prefer long scale basses, but am not opposed to the little guys, maybe I should tape a cardboard V body to my Newport ( behind closed doors of course ) and see how it feels. The longer V body might put the neck out far enough to work with my rather long upper limbs. This of course doesn't offset the tone advantages of the long scale.

Speaking of tone, the general consensus has to be that..........

" Gibson "V": alder body, maple neck, short scale, Ripper pups, this bass is really hopeless, the type of instrument you string with fresh strings and while you are tuning it up unplugged you already notice the sound isn't what it should be, there is not enough presence bite, the mids are too hollow, and the low frequencies are all over, but neither punchy nor of mudbucker brutishness, more like a cheap Ric copy in neck pup only mode"

............................and...........................

"Uwe's description of his Gibson V sounds exactly like my old Explorer Bass. It was honestly the worst-sounding bass I've ever played. It did look really cool, though."

Has anyone listened to the GoGo7188 tune posted on Jules forum, that appears to be a V-Bass and IMHO it sound great, of course it could be any number of things, it's definately got some kind of overdrive/distortion going on.
Anyway this is still in the planning stages, I suppose I don't need a tracing if the body is the same size as the guitar, would that imply ( other than pup and control placement ) that the pickguard is the same also? For some strange reason I have a Flying V pickguard around here somewhere    Also that headstock, am I correct that it's Grabber/G3 size?
Thanks again, I'll keep everyone posted...........................

S.

[eb2]

I liked the idea of the V bass, but never dug the cosmetics or the features.  If they were to do this so late in the game, I would have wanted a 34" scale.  And the big pickguard, and all - eh.  Its like the 67 V guitars - lotsa plastic.

If I were to go to the trouble, I would build a Flying V as if Gibson had done everything right in the first place when there was a first place - build a 1958 Flying V.  Make it korina, put an EB neck on it, plastic covered mudbucker, stud bridge, banjo pegs, vol, tone, choke.  Since they did make a few Explorers, thats how they would have done it up.  I have always figured I would score one of the Epi Vs and go nuts one of these days anyway.  Maybe after I make my 30" mudbucker Tbird. 

[Dave W]

...Maybe after I make my 30" mudbucker Tbird. 

Would that be called a Hummingbird?

[Bass VI]

Would that be called a Hummingbird?

[Rhythm N. Bliss]

I just scored a white lefty Epi V. I luvvit! Just put a JPJ triquetra sticker on it.
I play it as I sit at my desk & it fits nicely into the arm of my chair.
It'll be interesting to see what this 82 Gibson Kalamazoo goes for.

Good luck with your project, m8!

[Barklessdog]

Now this is a flying V bass thats worthy!!!!!




[/quote]

[uwe]

They just look more elegant in long scale:

[Bass VI]

Now this is a flying V bass thats worthy!!!!!

Don't give me any more ideas!!

They just look more elegant in long scale:

I am leaning towards: long scale, mahog/mahog or perhaps mahog/maple, maple/maple anyone? I have a set of Ripper pickup covers (NOS) perhaps with stealthy hotter internals?
Uwe!! I could transplant the internals of a TP plus into a Ripper case!! BLACK PLASTIC to BLACK PLASTIC surely even you would approve sorry just checked....won't fit!
Lastly, has anyone confirmed (Uwe) that the V bass headstock is the same as the Grabber/G3? Likewise the pickguard appears to be the same ( outline that is ) as the guitar version....
Thanks All for the input,

S.