Merry Christmas from the Bass Monkey Workshop.
It has been quiet for a few weeks as there have been lots of activity other then basses and music going on around us. The holiday season is a joyous time to reflect upon how truly fortunate we are to have our health, friends and family. My Papa used to say, “You are a millionaire and don’t know it, if you have your health”. I could not agree more.
We have had some wonderful musical moments this year and have made many new musical friends. Lonnie continues to amaze me with his persistence and craftsmanship. I am amazed by the people who contact us with great appreciation for our love of basses and their documentation of history and restoration. We both love what we do and glad there are folks out there that appreciate our efforts…no matter how small or insignificant we are in the big, wide world of the internet.
Our wishes for all that visit our blog or website; have a wonderful holiday filled with good friends and joyful music. We will do our best to keep you coming back with interesting stories and pictures from the Bass Monkey Workshop.
Merry Christmas to all!
Lonnie & Wendy
Friday, December 17, 2010
Sunday, November 14, 2010
Job well done...
The picks have been delivered with smiles all the way around.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MSlUux633Wg
Neal was surprised and delighted. He slipped them right on and began to play. I think he played all evening with out a pick flying off his fingers.
Perfect fit!
Now he has to find something new to bitch about because he can’t complain his fingerpicks fly off. I guess now it will be his thumb picks, capo or slide goes missing. The picks looked and played as good as anything professionally made. Lonnie was very satisfied and Neal was all smiles.
Job well done!!!
Now back to basses...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MSlUux633Wg
Neal was surprised and delighted. He slipped them right on and began to play. I think he played all evening with out a pick flying off his fingers.
Perfect fit!
Now he has to find something new to bitch about because he can’t complain his fingerpicks fly off. I guess now it will be his thumb picks, capo or slide goes missing. The picks looked and played as good as anything professionally made. Lonnie was very satisfied and Neal was all smiles.
Job well done!!!
Now back to basses...
Monday, November 8, 2010
The super sized picks are DONE!
The custom made, super size, Bass Monkey Dobro picks are finished!!!
Once again I am amazed by Lonnie’s skill (and persistence) on this project. I think he surprised himself too. I watched him form these picks from a flat piece of stainless steel into the final product is pretty darn cool. Lonnie knows metal just as well as he knows wood…maybe even better.
Sammy Shelor picks on left, Lonnie picks on the right
My rough translation for the creation of the picks is they came from flat stainless steel sheet stock, to being hand cut, shaped over and around several objects. Then he hand filed and polished them. There are several steps from the porous stainless steel to the highly polished finish.
Though I am not sure of every step, there was wet sanding, then dry crocus cloth, then buffing compound and a buffing wheel. These picks gleam they are so highly polished, I really can not tell a difference from his Sammy Shelor banjo picks. I know he is very excited to present them to our Dobro playing friend Neil. I hope Neil can adapt to these new picks, as Lonnie has put a lot of effort into making them custom just for him.
Once again it was nothing more then a personal challenge to see if Lonnie could not only make the picks, but make them look and feel as good as the finest made Sammy Shelor banjo picks. I expect to see two grown men trade a handshake and a hug on Thursday night when Lonnie presents the picks to Neil. I know it seems like a silly little thing…a set of super size custom Dobro picks for an experienced and seasoned player. Some how I think it will mean the world to Neil (and to Lonnie). Someone actually cared enough to hear his lamenting (for years Neil has said nothing fits his fingers) and do something to change it…ask nothing in return but satisfaction and a smile.
Pretty darn cool.
Once again I am amazed by Lonnie’s skill (and persistence) on this project. I think he surprised himself too. I watched him form these picks from a flat piece of stainless steel into the final product is pretty darn cool. Lonnie knows metal just as well as he knows wood…maybe even better.
Sammy Shelor picks on left, Lonnie picks on the right
My rough translation for the creation of the picks is they came from flat stainless steel sheet stock, to being hand cut, shaped over and around several objects. Then he hand filed and polished them. There are several steps from the porous stainless steel to the highly polished finish.
Though I am not sure of every step, there was wet sanding, then dry crocus cloth, then buffing compound and a buffing wheel. These picks gleam they are so highly polished, I really can not tell a difference from his Sammy Shelor banjo picks. I know he is very excited to present them to our Dobro playing friend Neil. I hope Neil can adapt to these new picks, as Lonnie has put a lot of effort into making them custom just for him.
Once again it was nothing more then a personal challenge to see if Lonnie could not only make the picks, but make them look and feel as good as the finest made Sammy Shelor banjo picks. I expect to see two grown men trade a handshake and a hug on Thursday night when Lonnie presents the picks to Neil. I know it seems like a silly little thing…a set of super size custom Dobro picks for an experienced and seasoned player. Some how I think it will mean the world to Neil (and to Lonnie). Someone actually cared enough to hear his lamenting (for years Neil has said nothing fits his fingers) and do something to change it…ask nothing in return but satisfaction and a smile.
Pretty darn cool.
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Progress from last night until tonight...
The first pick is almost done. Lonnie needs to get some fine polishing cloth and finish detailing it.
The pick on the left is his Sammy Shelor banjo pick, the one on the right is his super size pick.
Hi never fails to amaze me. This was all done by hand, he does not have a machine shop or power tools…all by hand. He could not be more tickled with the results.
The one on the left is his super size pick.
We sure hope Neal has that million dollars he promised…or maybe just a million dollar smile of appreciation will be payment enough.
The pick on the left is his Sammy Shelor banjo pick, the one on the right is his super size pick.
Hi never fails to amaze me. This was all done by hand, he does not have a machine shop or power tools…all by hand. He could not be more tickled with the results.
The one on the left is his super size pick.
We sure hope Neal has that million dollars he promised…or maybe just a million dollar smile of appreciation will be payment enough.
Monday, November 1, 2010
Slight Detour…
What's going on in the workshop isn’t always about basses? Lonnie has taken a slight detour with an idea to fabricate some SUPER SIZE finger picks for a jam friend.
We have a regular Thursday night jam with the locals at the community center; one of the regular pickers is a Dobro player with HUGE hands and fingers like stumps. He is a great Dobro player but you can always count on him to have a finger pick fly off or drop during a good break. His fingers are so large for years (he is 72 years old) he stuck the largest finger picks he could find on the very tips of his fingers and then glues them on…yes…glues them to his finger tips. The finger picks barely go around his finger and they cut into his cuticles.
Well, Lonnie being a welder and fabricator for many years once told Neal…I’m going to make you a set of picks that fit your finger. Of course Neal looks at him in disbelieve and say “I’ll give you a million dollars if you can do it”. As I said before…don’t challenge Lonnie and say it can’t be done…because he will prove ya wrong. Last Monday after work he stop and got the flat stainless steel…certain grade, right thickness, blah, blah. He got them cut out and roughed enough for a test fit Thursday night. I think Neal was in disbelief and still doesn’t think Lonnie can deliver the goods. Tonight Lonnie is shaping the metal and smoothing the edges. He is going to make some fancy design in the band and the polish them up like a new shiny penny. We even have a little box with velvet lining to put them in for presentation…we are crazy…I know.
The best part is Lonnie knows he can do it and Neal will be left speechless…well maybe not speechless but at least we won’t have to watch him pick up his finger picks two or three times a night. Lonnie will get back to the bass soon; right now he is on a mission. He knows he should be working on the bass but he loves a new challenge…Bass Monkey custom size finger picks.
Stay tune for pictures of the final out come…it should be fun.
We have a regular Thursday night jam with the locals at the community center; one of the regular pickers is a Dobro player with HUGE hands and fingers like stumps. He is a great Dobro player but you can always count on him to have a finger pick fly off or drop during a good break. His fingers are so large for years (he is 72 years old) he stuck the largest finger picks he could find on the very tips of his fingers and then glues them on…yes…glues them to his finger tips. The finger picks barely go around his finger and they cut into his cuticles.
Well, Lonnie being a welder and fabricator for many years once told Neal…I’m going to make you a set of picks that fit your finger. Of course Neal looks at him in disbelieve and say “I’ll give you a million dollars if you can do it”. As I said before…don’t challenge Lonnie and say it can’t be done…because he will prove ya wrong. Last Monday after work he stop and got the flat stainless steel…certain grade, right thickness, blah, blah. He got them cut out and roughed enough for a test fit Thursday night. I think Neal was in disbelief and still doesn’t think Lonnie can deliver the goods. Tonight Lonnie is shaping the metal and smoothing the edges. He is going to make some fancy design in the band and the polish them up like a new shiny penny. We even have a little box with velvet lining to put them in for presentation…we are crazy…I know.
The best part is Lonnie knows he can do it and Neal will be left speechless…well maybe not speechless but at least we won’t have to watch him pick up his finger picks two or three times a night. Lonnie will get back to the bass soon; right now he is on a mission. He knows he should be working on the bass but he loves a new challenge…Bass Monkey custom size finger picks.
Stay tune for pictures of the final out come…it should be fun.
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Gorgeous rosewood...
Work on the bass has slowed a bit with so much outside work to be done this time of year. The new rosewood end pin had been fit and the original rosewood fingerboard has been dressed.
Once Lonnie finished the fingerboard and oiled it up the wood is gorgeous and really stands out against the blonde bass. The rosewood fingerboard and rosewood end pin really look great together. It was the right call to wait for the rosewood end pin to arrive. Well keep at it.
Monday, October 4, 2010
The next bass is...
No updates on Big Daddy. I played him Friday night after a week of not playing gut strings. Amazingly he felt just fine with the Thomastik mittels. So I think it is me moving from one extreme (guts) to the other extreme (steel medium tension). The bass has such great volume we hate to mess around with it. It is me, not the bass that needs to adjust.
We are moving onto the next project. A 1945-46 Epiphone B-5 number 811. This is a VERY clean bass that needs a new end pin and set up. Lonnie will touch up any edge delamination, but over all this is another nice clean bass from the west coast. It was owned by a bluegrass player who adorned it with a rattle snake “rattler” on the inside of the bass. The folk lore I heard behind the rattler is the Irish immigrants used to put a rattle snake rattler in their fiddle case when they made their voyage across the ocean. It supposedly kept the rats on the ship from chewing the wooden instruments. I also heard Bill Monroe was to have put a rattler in his mandolin to make it sound better. I don’t know the real reason but we will let the rattler inside the bass…it gives it good Mo-Jo!!!
Lonnie was just getting started on this bass last week and he asked that I pick out the end pin for it. I chose the house standard a ULSA ebony end pin with the big removable tip…NOPE…that did not work for Lonnie’s taste. All the trim on this bass is reddish rosewood so he asked that I special order a rosewood end pin. I did and boy tell-ya…it was the right call. The rosewood end pin is a beautiful reddish gold color and will look great on this bass. We are off to a good start even if we needed to wait a week for just the right end pin to arrive.
Lonnie’s famous words…if you are going do it…do it right!
Stay tuned.
We are moving onto the next project. A 1945-46 Epiphone B-5 number 811. This is a VERY clean bass that needs a new end pin and set up. Lonnie will touch up any edge delamination, but over all this is another nice clean bass from the west coast. It was owned by a bluegrass player who adorned it with a rattle snake “rattler” on the inside of the bass. The folk lore I heard behind the rattler is the Irish immigrants used to put a rattle snake rattler in their fiddle case when they made their voyage across the ocean. It supposedly kept the rats on the ship from chewing the wooden instruments. I also heard Bill Monroe was to have put a rattler in his mandolin to make it sound better. I don’t know the real reason but we will let the rattler inside the bass…it gives it good Mo-Jo!!!
Lonnie was just getting started on this bass last week and he asked that I pick out the end pin for it. I chose the house standard a ULSA ebony end pin with the big removable tip…NOPE…that did not work for Lonnie’s taste. All the trim on this bass is reddish rosewood so he asked that I special order a rosewood end pin. I did and boy tell-ya…it was the right call. The rosewood end pin is a beautiful reddish gold color and will look great on this bass. We are off to a good start even if we needed to wait a week for just the right end pin to arrive.
Lonnie’s famous words…if you are going do it…do it right!
Stay tuned.
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