A Translucent Bass Guitar Made From Reclaimed Acrylic

May 27, 2020 by apost team

Tim Sway is a musician and craftsman who builds with reclaimed materials. In a video posted on his YouTube channel in July 2019, Sway Sway explains the building of his crystal clear electric bass —all the way from planning and drafting to sitting down and making music.

When Tim Sway builds musical instruments, he likes to use unusual materials—especially recycled and reclaimed supplies in his building. He said he has been wanting to build an electric bass using no wood at all, and he recently did just that with the help of a couple of friends.

Sway says that his friend Paul Jackman sent him the acrylic that became the body of the electric bass. It was a one-and-a-quarter-inch thick piece of acrylic that was leftover from the set of a TV show. (It was used as "bulletproof glass" in a set from the TV show, House of Cards) Never one to waste good reclaimed material, Sway got to work making the acrylic into something beautiful, useful, and musical.

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In his video, Sway shares the theories and general specifications of his project. He shows how he designed the layout on the computer using software from Vectric, then prepared the acrylic using a table saw, specialized drill bits from Tools Today, and a specialized CNC cutting tool. The CNC cutter was used for the acrylic as well as for the aluminum, allowing Sway to be precise and include impressive design elements.

Since Sway considers himself a teacher as well as a craftsman, he gives lots of details about his process. He shares the similarities and the differences in working with acrylic and aluminum versus working with wood. The video is full of tips about cutting & lubricating, lining up & keeping things square, clean-up, polishing, attaching, and finishing. Considering this project a prototype, Sway even shares the elements that he would do differently next time.

Working with acrylic includes some elements that might be surprising. The acrylic was cut so cleanly by the CNC that the corners were impressively sharp. So those edges got rounded. To polish acrylic, the first step is sanding with extra-fine sandpaper. But the second step involves fire—flame polishing is just what it sounds like: gently heating the plastic, using a flame, so that the surface melts just enough to become clear.

Sway shares and shows how the flame polishing process did achieve a crystal clear, glossy finish on his bass. He also describes how the heat of flame polishing affected the neck of the instrument in a couple of ways.

He had connected some of the aluminum and acrylic pieces together with epoxy. This worked until the area was heated during flame polishing. Sway wisely added screws to attach the acrylic to the aluminum, since they provided extra stability.

Watching Tim Sway's process is fascinating, whether you're a musician, a DIY-er, or even if you just love watching a plan come together. He explains everything as the process happens, and he even plays some great music at the end of the build.

What do you think? Do you know any musicians who would love the classy, modern look of a crystal-clear musical instrument? Do you know any DIY-ers who would love the challenge of working with acrylic like Sway did? Tell us what you think, and tell a musician or an artist about this amazing work.