[Bass of the Week] Custom B Barribass 4 string

The feature bass this week has the builder’s stamp of approval on it. Literally.

Builder Bryon Suter writes:

I named this bass guitar “Swamp”. It’s ash, but not swamp ash. The guitar was commissioned and I was unsatisfied with the way the color turned out. I stopped the build, built a new body for the commission, & later refinished this body in a separate build. As I began refinishing this body, slowly removing the blue aniline dye from the wood’s surface, I saw the unique grains of the three-strata ash. It was at this point that I decided to leave the body as it was ~ with the blue dye only partially removed. I used a very fine wet sand, hoping not to lose any effects created by an unplanned interaction of complex wood grains and the dye. This finish was not enhanced in any way. It was a creation that came from a failed attempt and as I admired the results I thought to myself, “What a beautiful failure”. The unusual finish depicted where the guitar had come from up until now. The back of this guitar still displays a portion of what I had originally intended. In starting final assembly, I added a white three-ply pick guard which was completely out of place in this wild and natural bass guitar. Selecting from scraps of the same wood, I laminated a piece to the white pick guard and finished it clear. I distressed the edges and the openings for pickups. The pickups are a loose fit, but this characteristic brought together the final style ofß this guitar. Something wild, mysterious and untamed like the swamps of America’s southeast, thus, the name “Swamp”.

Technical specifications: Full size electric weighing 8 pounds 12 ounces
NECK: 4 string 34″ Scale neck • 14″ radius finger board • Corian nut • 1.74″ nut width, 2.35″ width at 22nd fret • 22 frets • 5 piece neck construction curly maple/walnut/curly maple with matching 3/32″ ash pick guard matching wood laminated headstock face • Cocabola finger board glued with hide glue and genuine mother of pearl fret dots with black fret markers • 5 screw bolt on neck • Complete neck triple binding, C/B/W • 16º slant headstock • Gibson style single truss rod plus additional graphite support rod • Hipshot Ultralite bass tuners with 20:1 tuning ratio • Finished in clear nitrocellulose lacquer • Lower case oval b headstock logo • Last but not least I apply my thumb print the back of my headstocks confirming I am the only luthier to build this guitar from beginning to end. Headstock is lamination is not a finger joined at the nut typical to many industry standards but flush laminated to the main neck stock and a 3/16″ ash face lamination which allows for the 16º slant headstock angle. Refer to headstock front and back photo for visual details.

BODY AND ELECTRONICS: The body is three strata of ash milled from the crotch of the tree. The top two layers were laminated to insure stability. Wood with grain as wild as this can move or check even after thorough drying, the third layer was the back because I tone chamber all of my guitars, bass or six string. The stain as explained earlier is analine dye finishing with nitrocellulose lacquer which is also on the neck. The pick guard is the same ash used to construct the body simply laminated to a three ply pick guard that matches the headstock face and then lacquered in nitrocellulose. Comparable to a P or J bass in body mass this guitar weighs in at only 8 Lbs 12 oz, and is NOT neck heavy and very comfortable to play. As always install Omega (Badass) bridges and what I personally feel is one of the best bass pick ups out there, the Bartolini P/J bass combination with standard passive V/V/T controls.

This bass offers punch, sustain and huge, articulate tone, perfect for blues, rock and jazz. The nature of the extreme grain and the thinness of nitrocellulose does not come off as a flawless finish, but the tone is all that any bass player would want or wish for. Minor play wear does exist but is barely apparent.

Well done!

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