January 2000

The Dark and the Light

This awesome Coco Bolo top just might fool you. For hidden from the view of the audience is a gleaming Flame Maple backside. Both sides are bookmatched to center to gain the maximum view of the final laminate on each. Wayne ordered many special features on this latest addition to his Alembic collection.


Series II
bookmatch A wide expanse of Coco Bolo is made even more beautiful by expert care in the working of the wood. To fit the top in place, first we build the neck and attach the fingerboard the fingerboard. Next, the body without the top is glued into place. In a separate operation, Steve glued the Coco Bolo bookmatch together with the Maple accent laminate and prepared the gluing surface. Then he cut the notch for the fingboard in the top and glued it to the rest of the body.
The back is wall to wall Flame Maple. Even the backplates pick up the theme and are made from the same piece of wood as the back laminate. plate
point Here's a detail of what the point looks like when you bookmatch to center on both sides. This is also your first peek at another custom feature on this showpiece: ebony neck laminates.
Wayne ordered Ebony neck laminates instead of the usual Purpleheart. While Ebony is quite a bit heavier than Purpleheart, it also adds some very interesting sonic qualities. On sustained notes, you hear a dominant fundamental with an Ebony neck. Want to feel the earth move?
Also, look at the transition from the playing surface of the neck to the Flame Maple at either end. The bass is coated with many coats of clear polyester finish. After all the paint is applied, we rub the surface to either a high gloss finish with a buffing wheel or to a satin finish with a 2,000 grit wet sand paper. Or, in this case, both; the neck has a satin finish, which feels so smooth and so fast, while the body gleams with a high gloss finish. 		ebony neck
L.E.D.s The Series II bass comes with side L.E.D.s in red. These small lights glow softly to show you fret positions even in dimly lit playing situations. Plus, they look great when bound with tiny sterling silver circles, so you can see them even when the L.E.D.s are turned off.
This shows the pistol grip detail on the upper horn. Wayne had us recess the straplocks. Also, you can see there is no accent laminate under the Flame Maple back. The idea was to not go overboard with the number of laminates and keep the overall look of the bass elegant and simple. pistol grip
point

SPECIFICATIONS

  • 5-string Series II Bass
  • Coco Bolo top
  • Flame Maple back
  • no back Accent laminate
  • Standard Point body with Pistol Grip
  • Ebony neck laminates
  • Satin neck feel
  • Polished brass hardware
  • Continuous wood backplates
  • L.E.D.s bound in silver
  • no fingerboard inlays

Price available on request

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