Alembic Guitars Club
Alembic products => Dreaming... for now => Topic started by: flaxattack on October 02, 2004, 11:05:08 AM
-
(Message edited by flaxattack on October 02, 2004)
-
here is a sneak peek at susans first drawing of the inlay-we used Garcia's wolf as the prototype she did a great job on the rendition
i asked for a tweaking...(http://club.alembic.com/Images/402/13103.jpg)
-
Great choice. That has always been one of my favorite graphics. Very '50s cartoony.
Bill, the bass one
-
thanks mine too. susan is redrawing him- slightly bigger,ears centered at top, and i asked to kinda move the snout between the eyes. it seemed to me that the head went to the left and the snout to the right, and maybe a tad nastier- they just picked my wood in ftc- check it out
wolf inlay Materials: lower bout
Ebony
Silver
red pearloid
Black Tahitian Mother of Pearl
White Mother of Pearl
Golden Agoya shell
Pink Ivory wood
-
the direwolf is
32 in mark king bal k 5 string w/contours
2purple/1 ebony lam neck
heart omega
body- ash core/walnut lam/maple lam /coco
abalone inlays
wood truss cover
continuous back
shaved neck
1.75 nut 2.50 at 24th fret
.500 spacing and .180 edges
24th fret in total abalone with D W in ebony fill
gold alembic logo
black tuners/locks
k crown peg
-
Very nice, Jeff. You were right about the surprise. You kept it close to your vest that this was to be a Jerry-inspired bass. I didn't realize you were a Dead Head. Well then, you're in pretty good company here!
-
thanks kev- its gonna be sweeeeeeet....
jerry inspired? naaah
tribute? maybe...just happen to love wolves...
check out ftc
-
(http://club.alembic.com/Images/402/13325.jpg)
-
Jeff,
Very nice combination of woods, I can't wait to see it come to fruition. I love the Balance K shape. If I were ever to build a custom bass, it'd be that style.
It'll be able to collect it's due while the boys sing 'round the fire....
-
(Message edited by flaxattack on October 21, 2004)
-
Well, for what it's worth, we're here with ya...
-
(Message edited by flaxattack on October 20, 2004)
-
I can feel your pain, Jeff...
It's definitely no picnic waiting, but Mica has many more hats to wear than just 'FTC Updater.' The less often she updates here, the more time she can devote to her other responsibilities, which in turn gets the instruments out faster...
Just another perspective to look at...
-
Jeff,
I don't appreciate the attitude.
-
maybe i dont understand the process susan. no offense should be taken.
-
I think the process is that it is a very small shop of artisans, with a very long waiting list of customers. And it is my guess that not only do these people devote many hours to handcrafting instruments; but they also have lives away from work as well. Those who have placed custom orders in the past, as well as those who have had instruments repaired or modified, know that it can take a very long time, and that patience is required. I must admit that when I read Jeff?s post, my initial reaction was that I thought the comment to be hurtful. Two weeks, I said to myself, the guy is complaining after only two weeks. But it does occur to me now that perhaps, as he has stated, he really does not understand the process. I have to admit that I do read most of the posts to this forum, so I am quite aware of how patient you need to be with a custom order. We've watched projects in the FTC section that have taken well over a year. On several occasions, basses have been very close to completion, waiting only for one thing, such as something coming back from the plater, only to have the work to be sent back two or three times adding weeks of waiting. However, I guess most folks don?t read all the posts (which is quite understandable, there are other things in life to do besides sit in from of the computer reading about string tension ), and there are probably some who do not realize that the people at Alembic are working on quite a large number of projects at once, most of which have been in process many months. Still, the tone of Jeff?s comment seemed inappropriate. And as Susan's response indicates, the tone was indeed hurtful. In his last post Jeff stated that no offense should be taken. This phrase is a standard response used frequently by Americans; but consider it?s meaning. Offense had been given; a complaint had been made in a public forum in front on a very large number of Alembic's other customers, which made clear that Jeff was quite displeased with the level of service he was receiving. I think it understandable that offense was taken. Perhaps it was not Jeff?s intention to offend; perhaps he did not realize such a remark could be hurtful. Perhaps the tone of his remark is the standard method of communication among the people that Jeff works with on a daily basis. Perhaps it has been his experience that such comments get results. I don't know.
I do realize that my own comments here may be taken as offensive as well; and I think that is understandable. And for that I do apologize. It is not my intention to be hurtful to Jeff or anyone else. But, given the narrow context of posts to the forum, I guess I'm thinking that these comments might be helpful to all of us. That perhaps we could all stand to pause and consider that it may be the case that true happiness does not arise from the possession of things, that it may be the case that true happiness arises from the practice of treating others and ourselves with compassion and mindfulness. It is not an easy thing to do. Unfortunately, those of us who live in the US live in a society that stresses consumerism and selfishness above all else. This attitude has become pervasive and is constantly reinforced through television and other media. While many Americans consider themselves to be ?religious? people, it does appear that selfishness rather than selflessness drives the majority of our actions; it does appear that we believe that only through the accumulation of things and the consumption of goods and services that we will become happy. This self-centeredness is the real religion of Americans; for it is the behavior that our society instills in us, it is the belief system that our society teaches its young.
Our society has taught us that it is our right to become upset when we have to stand in line at the grocery store, when the car in front of us is too slow, when the waitress is slow to refill our drink. Our society teaches us that it is ok to voice our displeasure with others, to be hurtful to others in the mistaken belief that we will gain from such actions. It is in such a context that we make comments that can be hurtful to others without even thinking about it. Such behavior is endemic in American society.
But it doesn?t have to be that way. We can each endeavor to change ourselves. It is difficult and requires much practice. It requires mindfulness of our thoughts and actions. It requires the cultivation of compassion toward others. It?s like the process of becoming a good musician; it takes a lot of practice.
Or not. I imagine that many if not most Americans will not agree with what I have written here; and that?s understandable and I accept that. I don?t know why I have spent the morning writing this for posting here; but it does seem that these thoughts might be worth mentioning in the present context. And again, I apologize to those of you who find my comments offensive. It is not my intention to offend, only to offer my opinions and observations as related to the current context in that some here may find them helpful or worthy of reflection.
And it does occur to me that since all of the above was written before my first cup of coffee was finished, it may be the case that none of this makes any sense whatsoever.
Now I need to get another cup of coffee and go practice my scales.
-
Dave:
Right on!
Bill, the guitar one.
-
There was probably some inappropriate remark on Jeff's edited post, two up from Susan's. Like Dave said, some people seem to have a problem with the concept of patience. I get the impression that life is extremely busy at Alembic at the moment, so let's not hassle the good people who work their magic there.
-
Dave - your thoughtful comments are appreciated. I think it's all too easy and common to get caught up in a day-to-day rat race that we often forget courtesy and respect in our communication and actions. Weather consumerism and the desire for instant gratification is at the root, I'm not qualified to say. Sometimes, especially in electronic communication, efficiency can be misinterpreted as rudeness. I am not referring specifically to any posts here in the club and I'm making no excuses for anyone. I think it's our responsibility to participate in our lives in a decent way. Anyway, thanks for your reminder.
As far as the FTC goes, I will not presume to speak for Alembic, but my impression is that it serves the function of a communication forum for Alembic and the customer when there are decisions to be made regarding an instrument build. We can't all drop by the shop at critical moments in the build process to ask or answer questions, some of which may require visual information, and the FTC provides the next best thing. The fact that Mica also posts photos of non-critical stages in production of instruments is great. It's informative to all, and gives a nice feeling to the customer who is at home dreaming about their new bass or guitar. But I've always kind of seen those non-critical photos (like, ...here's your bass being sanded ...) as a bonus, rather than an expected service.
Well, I've gone on too long. Susan, Mica, Ron, and all - thanks for your dedication to quality and the spirit of collaboration.
Tom
-
When all is said and done, it comes down to one thing. Unless you want to break your relationship, you are best served to make your complaints through private channels. This little misunderstanding/spat should never have been a matter of public record, and that's the fault of both sides. Now that we'be been through this, let's all try to be a little bit more cordial and understanding so we don't find our way back to this ground.
-
Dave,
Thank you for once again taking the time to express in words what I?m sure many of us were feeling.
Patience is something that one can only learn by waiting for it. Waiting can be a painful, frustrating experience, but the gift of learning patience is most certainly worth the wait.
-
2 things:
1. If you want to complain, always avoid emails or message board postings unless the persons you are speaking about arent around. Speaking with someone directly will always have better results. I have seen this to be true time and time again. A face to face conversation or a phone call are much better ways to vent, email and message boards are just too easily misconstrued.
2. Selfishness and impatience are really not an end result of America itself. It still comes down to the person. Its way too general a statement to make to insinuate that we all act in the ways that were mentioned. Im sorry, but thats far from the truth. If you pay attention, most people simply do not act like that and even if they are impatient they do not act upon the frustration with regards to how they speak or treat other people.
I live in one of the busiest areas of the world, no doubt about that. I do indeed see selfishness nad impatience every single day. But, and its a big but, it is still only a very small fraction of the people I deal with who act that way and its their own issues that make them do that. I think its a stretch to come to the conclusion that most people or a whole society are selfish or impatient. Maybe thats not what was implied, but I read the post twice and got that out of it. Most people are good folks and thats how I see it. I have been around the entire US and have traveled a lot and the good ones outweigh the bad ones by a tremendously large percentage.
I never read what was said by flax, Im just commenting on the messages coming after that one.
-
Russ:
By my understanding of Dave's post, his comments were directed more to American Society than actual Americans. I agree with you that there are many, many good folk in this country. I will submit, however, that these people exist in spite of, rather than because of, the values that have come to define American society to the rest of the world.
Bill, the guitar one
-
Those attitudes exist in more or less every culture, nation, race, etc. To me, to signify it as an American trait or a byproduct of the US is boderline bigoted (and untrue), although I know that wasn't the intent.
-
Jon:
I'm not necessarily myself signifying that the money is the most important thing there is and I WANT IT NOW attitude as an American trait. From my own experiecne and those of numerous people I've spoken with who have travelled abroad far more extensively than I, a fairly substantial portion of the rest of the world shares this belief. Of course they could all be wrong. And I'm sure we'll find those WMD's any day now.
Bill, tgo
-
Bill,
My post wasn't aimed at you, but since you bring it up, anecdotal, excuse me, crap like everyone else says it is hardly a solid argument.
I could just as easily say that, based on my interactions, that the majority of people with those anti-US attitudes are driven by jealousy and fear, and have their attitudes and opinions shaped by those who share the same uniformed opinions, and are more than willing to tell lies to further their political beliefs.
It's very hard to make accurate generalizations about a people without spending much time there; ugly americans, euro-trash: both mischaracterizations driven by ignorance, hyperbole, and in some case blantant dishonesty.
-
this is all getting waay too deep-too long and too involved- thanks to those who reached out to me and help me to understand better. I had a chat with Valentino and i have a better feel
for this. If anyone wants to discuss further with me- please send me an email and please dont post it in here. i made a mistake and paid a price- thanks
-
When I awoke the Dire Wolf
six hundred pounds of sin
was grinning at my window
all I said was come on in.
It's gonna be a beautiful bass.....
-
Hey Guy's
The best thing about this site is the intellegence that exist from everyone! I have met some pretty awesome people and I enjoy all of you quite a lot. That being said I think it is time we talk about something a little less threatning. Let's see, did you hear the one about the traveling sales man? Maybe I better not finish that one! What about the time this guy was on a farm and he met this farmers daughter and! I guess we can't discuss that either. I guess the best thing for me to do is to know when to stop!
Rory
-
Hey, I didn't mean to start a geo-political cyclone. All I know is the bus came by and I got on, that's when it all began. So don't murder me, I beg of you don't murder me. PLEASE don't murder me.
Bill, tgo
-
now thats the spirit...lmao
i aint often right and i never been wrong,seldom turns out the way it does in a song.
GOOD NEWS TH0UGH- THE DOCTOR SAID MY MOUTH WILL GET BETTER AFTER THEY REMOVE MY FOOT!!!!
-
everybody take 2 hits and call me in the morning
-
One clarification if I may. I limited my remarks to the US, and Americans, and American society, because I have lived my whole life in the US and I have been exposed to an exceedingly great amount of American television, newspapers, magazines, etc. Except for a visit to Canada with my parents when I was a kid, I have never visited another country, much less had any great exposure to one. Thus my experience of American society was infinitely greater than my experience of any other society. For instance, I have absolutely no context upon which to make any speculation as to the people of Belgium, their television, their economic policies, their government, their religious and social institutions, their crime rate, their divorce rate. (In fact, from what I have been able to determine, they all play Alembic basses and are really nice folks.) Thus, I limited my remarks to American society; it was the only one I had any experience with.
-
In the backwash of Fennario
The black and bloody mire
The Dire Wolf collects his due
while the boys sing round the fire
-
if bush or kerry throws a post in here i will scream...
one way or another this darkness got to give
-
talk to my friend
the jack of hearts(http://club.alembic.com/Images/402/13613.jpg)
-
(http://club.alembic.com/Images/402/13616.jpg)
-
lastly- i happen to be an artisan myself
i made this lamp(http://club.alembic.com/Images/402/13619.jpg)
-
Alright boys, enough is enough
It's back to basses and guitars for all of us
although I have always like those lyrics.
signed,
George Bus..I mean.. John Kerr.. er I mean
susan that's it , yeah susan
-
Wow! Nice lamp!
-
(http://club.alembic.com/Images/402/13622.jpg)
just your typical city involved in a typical daydream, lets hang it up and see what tmrw brings
-
if you folks would be kind enough to delete your global political posts i would appreciate it,
susan would you be kind enough to also,,,, i been a baaaaaaaaaaad boy,,,amd
been beat up and battered around,.,,
its been a long long day
-
AND I PROMISE TO BE A GOOD BOY :-)
-
Hey Jeff,
You do beautiful work. Thanks for the pics!
-
thank you all for the compliments on the glass
am about to start my latest adventure
the alembic logo in stain glass
-
Jeff:
7 stripe frontosa? Or is it a Tretachephalus?
Bill, the guitar (& fish) one
-
Oh ....uuh ....keep the post about the Belgians ....it's ALL true.
Paul the bad one
MMmmmm ...now where the @>
-
7 stripe my man....
female i think- it never got super big
-
Jeff:
Looks like a female, unless it's very young. The males develop a very prominent bump on the forehead. I used to have a breeding colony.
Bill, tgo
-
Now that we've run the gamut of philosophical, ethical, behavioural, ichthyological (?) and other sciences, I'm actually dying to see how the Dire Wolf turns out, LOL!
I was listening to a rare live Dire Wolf Europe '72 tour version last eve. (alas no Jerry on pedal steel..he played it on Looks Like Rain instead!!!) and it peaked my interest.