JJ tailpiece and string ball diameters

[Triassic_Ash]

Hi guys,

Two years ago I bit the bullet and ordered a custom signature 5 string bass. And during the building process I choose to pay a design tip of the hat to my favorite bassist and really great guy Jimmy Johnson with the JJ tailpiece. Here is my question the bass shipped with Alembic strings, which I actually really enjoyed. However, these strings are pricey and need to be ordered, so spur of the moment string changes aren't really realistic. Given that string manufacturers use different diameter ball ends, can anyone let me know what string manufacturers have the same ball end diameter as the Alembic brand strings?

[JimmyJ]

Well I'm flattered.  But I hope I haven't led you astray with my weird design.    Part of the reason it worked for me was because I have been playing the same brand and model of strings since 1976!!  HA!!  Ironically, some of the most recent batches of Boomers have been a very tight fit onto my touring bass tailpiece posts.  GHS says the holes haven't gotten any smaller - and I can't imagine my steel rods have gotten any larger.  Mystery.

Do you have a caliper or some way of measuring the diameter of your "posts"?  I'd also love to see a picture of it if you wouldn't mind posting one.

Now that I've asked, I guess I need to dig out the micrometer...

Jimmy J

[Triassic_Ash]

Hey Jimmy! I don't have a caliper to measure the diameter of my posts, but getting one probably isn't a terrible idea. And the rumor is GHS is the manufacturer of Alembic strings so some Boomers or Pressure wounds might be worth a try. Maybe with some WD40 or a little machine grease on hand. 

PS Hope to see you at the Baked Potato soon!

Best,

-Ash

[JimmyJ]

Nice tailpiece!  I like the gentle curve. Yeah, maybe you can find some ghs sets that you like. 

Jimmy J

[pauldo]

Wonder if the thru-hole in the ball end may have a slight burr.  A small round jewelers file stroked through it a few times might help?

[JimmyJ]

Wonder if the thru-hole in the ball end may have a slight burr.  A small round jewelers file stroked through it a few times might help?

Yeah, I was thinking of setting up a drill bit rig to slightly enlarge the holes but a jeweler's file is a good idea.  I wrote to GHS when the issue first appeared and they said their ballends are made by Vardico in Switzerland and have a .004 tolerance (presumably inches).  Not sure that would be enough for me to notice unless it happened to swing from years of over-sized to suddenly under-sized.  Anyway, there are worse problems.   

Jimmy J

[Triassic_Ash]

Update:

So I bought a digital caliper as Jimmy suggested and can confirm that Alembic's and GHS ball ends inner diameters are the same ~3.15mm, so both string types can fit over the posts. Hopefully this can be a resource for any other Alembic owners who opted for a JJ style tail piece.

Best,
-Ash

[JimmyJ]

...Hopefully this can be a resource for any other Alembic owners who opted for a JJ style tail piece.

That might only be you and me.    But thanks for doing the measurements.  Thats mighty close to 1/8" so I wonder if that's what ghs originally requested.  Although the Swiss likely work in mm. 

At least you got a nice tool to play with, now you can measure everything!  For example, it can be interesting to check your string gauges.

Cheers,
Jimmy J