Stabilized buckeye can make for a wild looking bass.
Special note: There is a video below from the owner of this instrument that further explains how this wild look is achieved.
Owner Micah Terry writes:
This is my second build with Shawn. Back in 2015, I started researching Luthiers to possibly build me a custom bass as a present for completing my Master’s degree. After talking to a couple, I came across Shawn May in the Talk Bass forums. I went to his website, and immediately fell in love with his work. I contacted him and knew right away that I had made the right decision. He was very easy to work with, and has a true passion for what he does. He is an attentive builder, and it is a collaborative effort. He takes your input on wood choices, electronics, what sound you are going for, etc. to make sure he builds the instrument that will best fit your individual needs.
Shortly before my first bass was finished, Shawn built himself a bass with a Stabilized Buckeye top. I’ve always thought buckeye was a gorgeous wood, but this just put it over the top. The resin injection makes the wood much more uniform and workable for a builder, and the different color dyes used in the stabilization makes every piece unique. I knew then I had to have one someday. Once I took delivery of my Claro Walnut Burl 6 string, I decided it was time to sell my old fretless and commission one with this top wood. The journey began, again…
Shawn and I got together and after paying the deposit, we found the top wood piece I wanted. We then agreed on mahogany for its tonal properties for the fretless, and came up with a figured maple neck with Wenge, Purpleheart, and Yellowheart woods that made up the construction as well. The electronics are all Nordstrand, with a Nordy 3 band preamp, as well as Nordy DC pickups. Both pickups have their own 3-way switch, enabling me to select between Series/Single/Parallel settings. The third switch is for the blue LED side dots. The matching knobs were made by Devin Cline from D-Cline designs, and the pickup covers themselves were meticulously crafted by Shawn to go over the Nordstrand pickups perfectly. (Nordstrand has an option where pickups are sent ready for wood covers, which is what these were. The covers themselves were built by Shawn). The bass has active/passive option, as well as the passive tone control built into the preamp. So far, for a modern sounding fretless, I engage the preamp, blend to center, set the neck pickup to single coil, and the bridge pickup to either parallel or series. For a vintage, warm sound with plenty of mwah, I have found that passive mode, blend set to bridge pickup in series mode sounds INCREDIBLE. I didn’t find this until after shooting the video, but it is probably going to be my go to fretless sound.
Shawn is an incredible builder. Friendly, easy to work with, professional, and shows a genuine interest in making sure you get what you want. In addition to this, his artistry as a luthier speaks for itself. I’m very proud to have both my May Custom Basses as part of my collection.
Video
Micah talks about the construction of the instrument and also gives a demo of its sound.
Just Awesome. Great Work!
Beautiful bass and fretless tone, i’m jealous
Beautiful. Video should have some playing, the bass speaks for itself.
How heavy are those two?
I wish I had played more on the video, as you are right – it does speak for itself! I hadn’t really gotten to know it yet on the video, so was timid about playing it too much. From the video, you can go to my YouTube page and check out the cover for A Remark You Made. It is the first cover video I’ve done with the bass after getting to know it a little more, so you can hear it better. No effects – it is recorded completely natural. As for weight, I’m honestly not sure. I know the walnut one is a bit heavier than the fretless due to the bubinga body core. While both are fairly heavy, they have a great balance to them and are comfortable to play both sitting and standing.
I’m normally a die hard 4 banger fretless thumper, & wouldn’t look twice at a 5, 6, or any more-than-four string basses. That is until I saw & heard this one. Holy cow! What a beauty! Beautiful in sight & sound! Great build! Wish I had one!
Thanks Gary! Yeah, 5 string is usually my go to, with a number of 4 strings in my collection as well. I like having a 6 for fretless because of the range, and since I won’t be doing much slapping on it. Hands down the most comfortable playing 6 string I’ve ever played, and I’ve owned a few! Very pleased with this instrument.
Wow, where did you source the stablized buckeye burl? It’s hypnotic. My wife says is reminds her of Van Gogh’s “Starry Night”.
Contact Shawn May at May Custom Basses. He can be found on Facebook. I believe it came from California Fruit Woods. And I thought the same thing about this bass! I named it “Vinny”, in honor of Vincent Van Gogh for that very reason. 🙂
Wow, normally I am a natural wood guy for high end stuff but that is stunning. My bass was on here about a year ago and there are many similarities in these 2 builders. If you look up Cliff Bordwell you will see what I mean.
Definitely! I looked up Cliff originally before my first one was built, having seen his work after checking out Here Come The Mummies and the maple CB their bassist had. At the time his build time was about 15 months so I kept looking, and found Shawn. Cliff later reached out to me saying he had a slot open up, but I was already working with Shawn. My first May is more traditional, with the Walnut burl, but I fell in love with the stabilized buckeye and had to do a fretless. Cliff and Shawn do have some similarities, and both do awesome work. 🙂
Man what a beautiful piece of wood… looks really amazing. Thanks for the video too. I like the sound of it as well… Awesome job!!
Thank you! I’m thankful for the opportunity to share Shawn’s work. And it really does sound as good as it looks. 😉 The more I dig in, the more I am in love!
As a retired luthier, I can tell you that having the buckeye burl stabilized is a terrific idea, and the colour in this top and pickup covers is simply awesome indeed! And the rest of the bass is killer too–well done Shawn!