My First Fretless

gareth · Post by **gareth** » Fri Aug 10, 2012 1:36 am

And it only took me 38 years of playing to get here.

Let's just say it's a new challenge

cjj · Post by **cjj** » Fri Aug 10, 2012 1:37 am

Dang that's nice! Congrats!

rickenbrother · Post by **rickenbrother** » Fri Aug 10, 2012 2:12 am

Sweet! I like it! Congrats!

ilan · Post by **ilan** » Fri Aug 10, 2012 3:25 am

OMG she's awesome! Is that a refin?

doctorwho · Post by **doctorwho** » Fri Aug 10, 2012 4:45 am

cjj wrote:Dang that's nice! Congrats!

+1!

ram · Post by **ram** » Fri Aug 10, 2012 9:03 am

Congratulations Gareth! That is one schweeeeet looking bass!!

jps · Post by **jps** » Fri Aug 10, 2012 9:34 am

Congrats, Gareth!

Now, let's hear how you play it.

bartyclue · Post by **bartyclue** » Fri Aug 10, 2012 10:12 am

Beautiful... so did Paul W refin this? I also have a fretless rickenbacker... never knew how lousy a bass player I was until I tried to play a set using nothing but a fretless bass.

woodyng · Post by **woodyng** » Fri Aug 10, 2012 10:54 am

Beautiful bass,and i am in much the same situation,having just taken up FL playing last year. I got a starter FL bass to get my feet wet,but now that i am getting into it,i would love to have a FL RIC, especially a 4004 model. (if such were only made,alas..)

gareth · Post by **gareth** » Fri Aug 10, 2012 11:49 am

It is indeed a Paul W refin and setup. It was a damaged hulk that I got locally as just a body and jackplate. The truss rods were snapped off and locked in, and the fretboard had separated down to the third fret. I stripped it and got the binding off, then made a set of new stainless truss rods for it.

Paul did the hard stuff after that.

It's a lot of fun to play, but it ain't easy

cassius987 · Post by **cassius987** » Fri Aug 10, 2012 12:11 pm

This looks like a really nice bass.

My advice about fretless is just to force yourself to play it instead of a fretted bass for awhile until it becomes second nature. After a few months like that I actually got where I found fretless easier to play, because there is no risk of fretting improperly. Ironic that I actually have to look at the fingerboard more if I'm playing fretted in some cases because of this.

That said jumping from one fretless to a totally different one can sometimes be hard unless you watch your left hand at first. By playing the same one a lot you learn roughly where your hand is on the neck by feel and how much to stretch your fingers etc., with your ear doing the QC testing along the way. It's really a subconscious process that just comes with time.

FWIW, I find singing and playing a lot easier with a fretless too, which has been really rewarding for me.

coolingitdown · Post by **coolingitdown** » Fri Aug 10, 2012 2:04 pm

Wow! That's a beautiful bass! Congrats!

I'm jealous. A fretless Rick is definitely next on my RAS list.

8mileshigher · Post by **8mileshigher** » Fri Aug 10, 2012 2:52 pm

That finish is stunning ! !

rickenbrother · Post by **rickenbrother** » Fri Aug 10, 2012 4:21 pm

gareth wrote:It is indeed a Paul W refin

The finish is so nice, I figured it had to be Paul W's work.

wints · Post by **wints** » Fri Aug 10, 2012 5:01 pm

Very nice looking bass, and I'm not usually a fan of BT.

Now, get practicing!

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