Back from ze House of Pain ... (Dave Warning: Spalted Maple Content!!)

[Barklessdog]

Found the correct suit-



Uwe has always been a Fun Guy

[uwe]

Bit Bootsy Collins don't you think?

[Dave W]

Seriously, you need to wear more than a simple dust mask when working with this stuff.

[uwe]

But wenge wood must be even more detrimental to health. That would have been an alternative to the spalted maple top (I thought) but Mathias said he didn't like to work with it because it was "poisonous".

[Highlander]

The dust can cause an effect similar to poison-ivy, so I've heard... so eye/skin protection important if worked with - not so uncommon on instruments, you just need to be stringent with dust removal, so not for the amateur luthier...

[Dave W]

But wenge wood must be even more detrimental to health. That would have been an alternative to the spalted maple top (I thought) but Mathias said he didn't like to work with it because it was "poisonous".

Wenge isn't poisonous but it can cause severe sensitivity reactions if you're one of the unlucky ones who develop a sensitivity to it. And once you develop it, that's it, it will happen every time you use it.

Spalted woods release bacteria and spores that have been known to cause fatal reactions.

[Dr. Aquafresh]

Didn't remove the neck... well that to me says milling machine. Maybe I should try and figure out how your "Aryan Super Luthier" did it, seeing as how I have a Bridgeport at work and way too much free time.

Damnit!

I should have never gotten rid of that Epi Explorer.

[drbassman]

I spring to your defense, Uwe!  I love the wood and the bridge, so there you guys!  Form follows function when it comes to bridges, so the Supertone has a lot to recommend it!  Anyway, I love what you did with it Uwe.  Nice job!

BTW, the bass below kicks ass and the bridge is an integral part of the formula!  At least it isn't a Badass.  They never made it aesthetically on a Gibson body.  There, now I feel better.

[Highlander]

I agree with Bill re the T'bird, but a T'bird is all sexy curves...

An explorer is as masculine as a Thunderbird body is feminine - It's really down to the eye of the beholder... Uwe is very happy with this customisation, and, when viewed as a whole, she/he/it is a work of art...

Damnit!

I should have never gotten rid of that Epi Explorer.

Plenty more fish in the sea...

[Freuds_Cat]

Now that I've had time to recover from the shock, I think I like it but even though I recently put one of these bridges on a Pearl Export (Epi Genesis) and was very impressed with it as far as bridges go I have to agree with Ken. Its the angles of the Explorer that seem not to go with the roundness of the bridge.  I love the look of the spalt but wonder what it would look like with the pickgaurd on it?

[Highlander]

That would be such a waste... I've been toying with the idea of moding a guard for my PC, but it's not a Gibson, and I just feel it would be a waste, especially with the top fin... same here...

[Lightyear]

Wenge isn't poisonous but it can cause severe sensitivity reactions if you're one of the unlucky ones who develop a sensitivity to it. And once you develop it, that's it, it will happen every time you use it.

Spalted woods release bacteria and spores that have been known to cause fatal reactions.

Here's a nice chart that I like to use - there are more complete, and complicated, available but this one is easy to use and gets the jobs done.  Looks like Spalted Maple can cause something called HP.

http://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/wood-allergies-and-toxicity/#hp

I bought a sheet of cabinet grade plywood from Lowe's this week marketed as "Blondewood" made in Ecudor of all places.  It worked great but the dust really screwed with my breathing and allergies - nothing serious but mild coughing and sneezing.  God only know what it is made of But $39 for A1 plywood is a good price.

[Nocturnal]

That would be such a waste... I've been toying with the idea of moding a guard for my PC, but it's not a Gibson, and I just feel it would be a waste, especially with the top fin... same here...

I'd leave yours alone. You did a good job and it looks great as is. A pickguard would just get in the way.

[Barklessdog]

Wenge isn't poisonous but it can cause severe sensitivity reactions if you're one of the unlucky ones who develop a sensitivity to it. And once you develop it, that's it, it will happen every time you use it.

Spalted woods release bacteria and spores that have been known to cause fatal reactions.

Biological weapons, we should invade Uwes office at once!

We have a video from Uwe's office-

[uwe]

Why cover up expensive rotten wood with cheap sterile plastic?

That comment how an Explorer is male and a TBird feminine is interesting, I never saw it that way, but it is true. Ray Dietrich certainly had a look at Ted McCarthy's prior and commercially failed Modernistic Guitars when he - well into retirement from his auto design days -designed the TBirds and FBirds in the early sixties. And Ray Dietrich's auto designs were from another time, he wasn't a radical modernist at all, I see a lot of 30ies and 40ies in his auto design. So in a way the TBird/FBird was mellowing down   the angular jagged Explorer which was also a reverse design (Dietrich had nothing to do with the later Non Rev TBs and FBs).

TBirds certainly appeal to women, given how large a bass it is, a lot of chicks play it though it is an unlikely choice for their size. And I've alsways received compliments for my TBirds from women (both musician and non-musician) while the Explorer basses only ever generate enthusiasm from men.