cockroach wrote:Ah well, as I said earlier on this thread, for we impecunious types, a cheap and cheerful alternative is to buy a set of flatwound 13-56 strings, and put them on a Strat, Tele, Jag, or Jazzmaster type guitar, then tune 'em down to D, C,B, or even A...which would just about do the job!
Bearing in mind the fact that the Burns six-string bass (back in the early-to-mid-sixties) had a scale-length of less than 24", why not just use a heavier set than 13-56 and tune EADGBE? You might have to adjust the nut slots and it might take an hour or two for the strings to settle into the correct shape where they bend over the bridge, and there are one or two other issues.
First of all, 13-56 is simply not in the bass range. 13-56 is the archetypal medium gauge for
guitar. Gibson Sonomatics (the originals, that is, not the current impostors) were 13-56, and The Shadows used them extensively during the 1960s (when given them free by Selmer) for normal tuning on electric and acoustic guitars. You can get 13-56 if you look around a bit. And if you want them at a lower tension (equivalent to a set 10-46 at concert pitch), you can get 13-56 to tune easily and consistently at BEADF#B (there's a reason for that relationship, but I shan't bore you with it).
But that's spoiling the ship for a ha'porth of tar. What you really want is EADGBE an octave lower than a guitar. You can do that on a 25.5" scale, but you'd need heavier strings than 13-56. I calculate that to tune to correct octave-below tuning (with a string tension in the "light gauge" range equivalent to about 10-46), you'd need to use a set of roundwounds (low to high):
E: 0.095"
A: 0.080"
D: 0.065"
G: 0.042"
B: 0.030"
e: 0.020"
The thinnest three are easy to find more or less anywhere. The others would be less easy to find, but not impossible. The lowest string in a genuine Fender Bass VI set (I have a spare set right here) is 0.095", but it is calculated for higher tension than a 10-46 set.
One other problem though (and I alluded to it earlier) is the bend over and through the bridge saddle. For the heavier strings, it could be a serious problem, though a possible solution would be to fit a replacement bridge unit with a top-loading facility.
Food for thought, I hope...
JN