Iceman Bass Music Man Style Re-Finished PG. 4

[HNB]

Mirrored pickguard is winning...

IMG_20210625_145808 by Christopher Louck, on Flickr

IMG_20210625_145748 by Christopher Louck, on Flickr

IMG_20210625_145754 by Christopher Louck, on Flickr

[countertext]

OH MY GOD HE’S TRAPPED INSIDE HIS BASS SOMEBODY GET HIM OUT!

[countertext]

Also, that guard looks just right on that axe.

[HNB]

Thanks!!

[Odonian]

This is gorgeous, great work! Always been a fan of the iceman body!

[HNB]

Thank you! I am pretty pleased with the look. Might eventually get a neck that fits the pocket better. Main issue is I like the peavey headstock shape. Fender ones look goofy on iceman bodies and warmth only has that small point two by two headstock as another option. In a perfect world, I would have someone cut a fender headstock to a more pointy peavey shape.

[HNB]

The neck pocket gap bugs me so I decided to order an allparts neck. A good friend agreed to reshape it to be more like a peavey neck to fit the guitar look better. Here is what he did for me. Pretty epic. I can't wait to work on it.

IMG_4579 by Christopher Louck, on Flickr

IMG_4580 by Christopher Louck, on Flickr

[HNB]

Dyed and drying.

IMG_20210717_140711 by Christopher Louck, on Flickr

IMG_20210717_140730 by Christopher Louck, on Flickr

[HNB]

Got to working on the clear.

IMG_20210727_220200 by Christopher Louck, on Flickr

IMG_20210727_220203 by Christopher Louck, on Flickr

IMG_20210727_220206 by Christopher Louck, on Flickr

IMG_20210727_220216 by Christopher Louck, on Flickr

[countertext]

You need to be on stage with this thing. Seriously.

[HNB]

If only.

[mackerelmint]

Well, I'm annoyed that I managed to somehow miss this thread for almost 3 months. But I'm glad I finally noticed it.

That's a great build. I mean, I always enjoy your builds, Chris, and this is no exception. But I've got a soft spot for the Iceman. The mirrored pickguard piece is very Iceman-appropriate. I got to the picture of the MM guard and thought "this needs a mirrored Iceman guard," and you apparently agreed.

Well, congratulations on another great build.

[HNB]

Well, I'm annoyed that I managed to somehow miss this thread for almost 3 months. But I'm glad I finally noticed it.

That's a great build. I mean, I always enjoy your builds, Chris, and this is no exception. But I've got a soft spot for the Iceman. The mirrored pickguard piece is very Iceman-appropriate. I got to the picture of the MM guard and thought "this needs a mirrored Iceman guard," and you apparently agreed.

Well, congratulations on another great build.

That is very kind of you. I feel like it looks a lot like a watermelon with the green with the dark grain stripes. I joke with my wife and call it Xīguā because her mother is Taiwanese and "watermelon's is one of the few mandarin words I know. She loves green and it has grown on me after doing a couple green builds. I still need an olive drab guitar though.

I like the Iceman guard much more also. I was lucky that I found a guy who makes them and was willing to mod it for me.

My introduction to Iceman guitars was System of a Down. I know Kiss used them, but I never really got into Kiss. They are hard to balance weight wise. That is why I put the upper button right by the neck. It is still a little neck heavy, but not terrible. Use a nice old vinyl strap and it stays put fine.

I can't decide what pickup I like best with basses. I used to prefer jazz bass ones. Then I was super into Geezer ones in my p basses. Then I tried a music man style bass and bought it right away. The three tone pots give so many different sound options. It can be traditional, bright, gritty, grunty, or whatever you want. This two band one is good also, but I think the four knob version is supreme. The also look cool and are humbucking.

[mackerelmint]

Yeah, they *are* pretty unbalanced. A friend of mine had one for ages, one of the 90s reissues with a basswood body. Neck dive city. He ended up with the longest strap ever, playing it with the neck pointing almost vertically up.

MM pickups are pretty awesome, for sure. I've never had a bass with those, I'm always going for PJ setups and telling myself I'll get something with a MM pickup and then not doing it.

[HNB]

I picked up a Sterling Stingray bass and it is super solid and wasn't pricey. It was like $800 new with a roasted maple neck. Worth looking into.