| Author | Message | ||
| edwin
Intermediate Member Username: edwin Post Number: 170 Registered: 5-2002 |
I really like my Series I, but I have always preferred the look of an omega cut to the point, which I find awkward. Is it possible to remove the point and carve an omega? Just curious, Edwin | ||
| lbpesq
Senior Member Username: lbpesq Post Number: 1625 Registered: 7-2004 |
Edwin: I suspect that, for the right price, Alembic can successfully perform the transsexual operation on your bass, certainly a lot easier than going from omega to point! Bill, tgo | ||
| mica
Moderator Username: mica Post Number: 3595 Registered: 6-2000 |
Carving an Omega from a Point also requires refinishing. That's big bucks. but certainly possible. Be aware that the Point is actually stronger than the Omega tips by a good measure. The Point is all endgrain, while the Omega tips are held on by a small glue joint. | ||
| edwin
Intermediate Member Username: edwin Post Number: 172 Registered: 5-2002 |
Given that the finish on my bass is an incredible mess, maybe this is the way to go if and when I refinish it. I would love to have an oil finish on it anway. I am not a fan of the thick finish that's on there (that has a tendency to come off in flakes). Not going to happen right away, but maybe in the future! Thanks, Mica! Edwin | ||
| crgaston
Advanced Member Username: crgaston Post Number: 292 Registered: 11-2005 |
How is the strength of the old '70's omega cuts? From the pics I've seen, it looks like there isn't a glue joint-it's all in the body. Could y'all still do one like that? Also, if this were to be done to an oil/wax finished instrument, would it necessitate a total refinish, or could it be replaced at the cut area only? Would there be a problem with the freshly-cut wood not matching the wood that had been exposed for some length of time? Thanks, Charles | ||
| mica
Moderator Username: mica Post Number: 3613 Registered: 6-2000 |
The finish that's on your bass is a polyurethane paint, Edwin. We stopped liking it too and converted to all polyester by 1980. If it's coming off in flakes, it must be badly crackled. I agree that if you're refinishing anyway, that will be the best time to do the recarve. Charles, we can carve the Omega to include the neck or not. If you look at the shape over time, you'll find the older ones were not standardized at all. The main problem with the Omega for strength is that compared to the Point, it just can't hold a candle to the endgrain on the Point. The Point might get a little chewed up, but I've not seen one fracture, as I have with both neck included and neck not included Omega carvings. They are just inherently more delicate. You would still need to refinish with an oil finish with few exceptions, unless you liked the way the color change looked. As you suspected, freshly sanded surfaces look different (usually lighter in color) than ones that have been exposed to time. | ||
| bigredbass
Senior Member Username: bigredbass Post Number: 1063 Registered: 9-2002 |
To me, the Omega is the ultimate 'how-in-the-hell-did-they-do-THAT?' feature . . . BUT, you will learn to be VERY careful and to NEVER put one in a gig bag! J o e y | ||
| dfung60
Advanced Member Username: dfung60 Post Number: 206 Registered: 5-2002 |
The "glued" parts of the omega that Mica mentioned are the inner part of the open end of the omega. When they assemble a through-body instrument, you start with the neck/body center section which are long single pieces of wood (maple+purpleheart or ebony) that run from the nut to the end. If you have a point, the pointed part is that same piece of wood. If you have an omega, then there's a cutout at that end of the instrument. The circular cut completely removes a region of the center section. Most of the inside perimeter of the omega is the body wings which shows of the laminate sandwich. The "tips" of the omega are left over from the center section, so those little areas are held on only by the glue joint down there. Making an instrument is sort of a series of steps where the cost of screwing up keeps getting higher and higher as you go along (since any screw up down the line may lead to the instrument being scrapped, hence losing all the work up to that point). Making a through-body instrument is already hard because there's always the danger that a body operation may screw up the neck or vice versa. The omega cut is getting up into the high difficulty area because it's not done until the instrument is fairly far along in production - the neck and body wings have been joined, etc. If you slip or crack the top or back, there's no turning back (I guess you'll be looking at a bigger omega!). I have the first "stinger omega" which was the result of drawings back and forth between Alembic and I, years ago. I liked the heart omega and the point, and this created a sort of mix of the two (the stinger comes out to where a point would be). You really have to be confident when you're doing this, since the slightest error will destroy it. As hard as that might be, the hardest thing to do must be the LED side marker routing. My understanding is that this is the last step done before finishing, which means construction on the instrument is largely completed, and the slightest error here really is death. They have to shoot a narrow parallel-sided route down the side of the neck which is constantly changing in terms of size and curvature. If you slip and screw up during inlaying, then you change the inlay to cover up the error. If you slip on the side of the neck, good luck trying to hide it. If building a bolt-on assembly line bass is like flying an airplane, building a through body is like flying upside down. Cutting the omega is like flying under the Golden Gate Bridge. By the time you're at stinger omegas and LED side markers you're flying under the Golden Gate bridge upside down at the speed of sound! David Fung | ||
| edwin
Intermediate Member Username: edwin Post Number: 186 Registered: 5-2002 |
Well, I started this thread, so I may as well update. Right now my bass (http://alembic.com/club/messages/411/4748.html?1119048182) is back at the shop awaiting refinishing and an omega cut.It goes without saying that visiting was a lot of fun and Mica was extremely gracious with her time and attention. She even hooked my wife up with a bunch of wood samples to smell (she is a perfumer and currently has a feature in Oprah Magazine, if I might be indulged in a moment of pride!). I also got to see how the side LEDs go into a neck. The bottom of the fingerboard is routed out and a series of resistors and LEDs are mounted inside these routs in the bottom. I am a little curious if all that space in the fingerboard causes a sound change, but my feeling is that it probably doesn't given how thick the fingerboards are. While it's not as hairy as what is described above, it's definitely a delicate procedure that requires a lot of precision. My guess is that their computer controlled router that does the fret slots probably does it, but Mica can probably give us the final word on that. It is a tempting thing to add to the rebirth of my bass as I discover more issues with this as I get older and play on darkened stages. Edwin | ||
| jseitang
Intermediate Member Username: jseitang Post Number: 178 Registered: 6-2002 |
interesting edwin... i've been considering getting side leds for my bass as well, at some point. do they have route out any part of the body as well to fit the power source? or is it just the fingerboard ? any info on this would be very helpful thanks jimmy | ||
| dfung60
Advanced Member Username: dfung60 Post Number: 210 Registered: 5-2002 |
On a Series II bass, the LEDs are powered from the external power supply. They don't light up when you plug in with the 1/4" jack. This must be why they inlay a silver dot marker with a hole in it for the LED to shine through these days - on the old basses, when the LEDs aren't lit, you basically can't see anything on the edge of the neck! I seem to remember reading here that non-Series basses have an extra battery compartment with four 9V batteries in there for the LEDs. David Fung | ||
| lbpesq
Senior Member Username: lbpesq Post Number: 1754 Registered: 7-2004 |
Four 9V batteries - that's how it works on the Further. Bill, tgo | ||
| jseitang
Intermediate Member Username: jseitang Post Number: 179 Registered: 6-2002 |
cool.. so since my bass hass series II electronics, they wont have to dont anything to the body cavities that are there already? sweet. nice cause i love my body the way it is without any alterations. |
