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MPUbicki build thread
- Thread starter MPU
- Start date
I share a shop with my brother next town over, so it’s just stolen weekend time for me, and only winters. Glacial progress. Pretty booked up all summer on weekends, when I remember I live on Cape Cod, where it’s all about the boats.
..but you're supposed to spend all winter working on them so the sun and salt can destroy them again the next summer, and the cycle goes on. So working on guitars is just stealing time you should be working on boats, innit?
I made the string clamps today. I used my drill press as a lathe and mill and turned four of these from 10mm brass rod. I’m going to drill the mounting holes to the neck, epoxy the clamps in them and then drill and tap holes for two set screws per clamp from the side of the neck.
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Yes. That is what a Cape Cod Man Must Do. Spend MONTHS every spring pouring sweat and gold into a boat.... and then dipping it in what amounts to a powerful acid for an amount of time less than the time required to prepare for the dipping. And then scrape any evil life forms that have attached themselves to the hull, and drain all the toxic fluids off, etc. As my family has done for Generations before me. This year, when my son and I pulled the mooring ball, there was what looked like a bright orange alien brain attached to the chain, swarming with some kind of marine insect, like a scene from a horror movie. Good Times! I just wanna inhale some sawdust.
I guess my vague recollection of how I thought Kubicki tuners worked ( I was shown one at the store that did my mandolin refret in the 1980's, but way more money that my "somewhat interested in bass broke student self could even consider at the time) must be incorrect. Perhaps I should try building what I thought they worked like.
There are wheels, turned by the tuner knobs, which can tension or loosen the strings. The wheels are shaped somewhat like a gear so that they can be tightened (by one's thumb/finger) to capture the slack quickly, while installing strings. There are also quick release levers that allow the tensioning wheels (gears) to turn free so that the string can slip out: Great design. P.K. was a sharp guy.
There's a video of a full bridge disassemnbly/revuild here:
Watched the whole video, amazing bit of engineering on that bridge. He's right about the balance too, it's the first thing I check when I pick up a bass, and the Ex Factor was just about perfect, I loathe a neck diver. I remember agonizing over the choice between the Ex Factor and the Steinberger XP-2, I really liked the drop-d function, but just couldn't swing the cash for the Factor. Shoulda bought it on layaway! I still think the original Steinberger design bridge was superior in many ways, a very simple design, but it did limit you to double ball end strings. I never had any luck with the headstock clamping systems that required on a grub screw to hold the cut string end, the string almost always broke or separated from the core winding eventually. Curious to see how this build works out balance-wise, the individual bridge tuners are presumably a lot lighter than that big hunk of gears.
There’s a lot of room for lead pellets in the body
Headstock end pretty much done. I need to buy a new M4 bottom thread tap so I can thread the set screw threads all the way. I may be able to test assemble the bass tomorrow.
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Nice, neat work, Marko! You're getting good with those brass inserts.
Thanks Bruce! Wish I had a small lathe and mill. I wouldn’t have to misuse my drill press and cross feed table. But with this limited space I have at home garage I have to use what fits there.
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She’s alive! Well, at least acoustically. Tuners are just as light to turn as any screw type (Steinberger, Hohner,ABM, ETS, Nova) tuners I’ve used. My string clamps with two set screws are holding fine. Nuts were a bit high and the neck needs a bit of shimming for lower action but based on a little quick playing this one feels just like a bass. Now it’s time for filling small dings, spraying filler base coat, sanding and then it’s ready for paint. Neck will have more wipes of Tru oil during the finishing of the body.
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