Double Bass Hillbilly's guide to setting your own soundpost

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Spanky123

Jul 22, 2010
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#1
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Around here in these hills, we ain't got no high-falutin' luthier to set our soundposts for us. You gotta ride down to Salt Creek and git yourself a meat skewer from the general store. Tie a piece of string onto the post because you're likely to drop it a lot. Lay the bass down on the bed. It's best to do it in the afternoon when the sun is high with a lot of natural light to see through the f-hole. Mark the longest end of the post with a pen so you know to get it positioned straight. Slip the post through the small hole and prong that sucker from the side with the meat skewer. Spend the next hour or so dropping it twenty or thirty times as you try to get it in the right spot. Settle for good enough and open another jug. Time for the hoedown.
 
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#3
Spanky123 said:
View attachment 1010229
Around here in these hills, we ain't got no high-falutin' luthier to set our soundposts for us. You gotta ride down to Salt Creek and git yourself a meat skewer from the general store. Tie a piece of string onto the post because you're likely to drop it a lot. Lay the bass down on the bed. It's best to do it in the afternoon when the sun is high with a lot of natural light to see through the f-hole. Mark the longest end of the post with a pen so you know to get it positioned straight. Slip the post through the small hole and prong that sucker from the side with the meat skewer. Spend the next hour or so dropping it twenty or thirty times as you try to get it in the right spot. Settle for good enough and open another jug. Time for the hoedown.
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Actually, your "meat skewer" is too short; I use a weiner roast fork. And instead of a ribbon around the soundpost I glue a small metal washer to the post and use a magnetic fetch from an auto-supply store to fish out the post when it drops. Works!
 
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#4
Or you could just tie a two-foot length of thread around the post like people have been doing for who knows how long. It still works.

I set posts with my fingers and the business end of a French bow, but I really should get one of those Dr. Octopus-looking bolt retrievers. They work great.
 
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#5
I used the sharpened end of a length of coat hanger wire to skewer the post, a really long shoelace, and I thread a set of white Christmas lights into the opposite f-hole. Was taught this (well, not the Christmas lights) by a luthier that has the correct soundpost tool but still prefers the coat hanger wire.
 
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#6
GretschWretch said:
Actually, your "meat skewer" is too short; I use a weiner roast fork. And instead of a ribbon around the soundpost I glue a small metal washer to the post and use a magnetic fetch from an auto-supply store to fish out the post when it drops. Works!
Click to expand...
I wonder if the metal washer helps the tone? maybe it give a little sustain.
 
#12
I'm with Povl on this, at least with one of them. It's true, we are now arguing about something so minute that it is likely not to disturb the hoedown in them there hills, but I don't see the point. You juggle the bass a bit, and I'd be surprised if I don't have the thing in less than 30 seconds, with my fingers or just dropping out. Or use a stick with a bit of sticky tape, that works too.
 
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