I made this in high school shop in 1976 in Brentwood, MO, and so I think it should be in the can’t afford it so I made it museum. My brother plays the fiddle and the mandolin, I think we got as far away from disco as we could in the 70s. I wanted to have a bass to play with and they cost a minimum of $175, so I built this for about $60 dollars. This is salvaged machine. The neck is walnut, a regular bass would be about half that. I worked at an Ace Hardware, and I went in after hours and I tapped on the wash tubs to find one that didn’t rattle too much.

[…] At one point I had a hacksaw with horsehair on it and I tried to play it that way. […] Having this as a teenager, we would go to these bluegrass festivals and I would [plays a note]. […] People would come around and see it, going ‘What instrument is that?’, and my brother would keep them there all night long. When I told friends and family about this event they said, “You’re bringing your bass, right?” So they knew what I was going to bring before I told them.

This belongs in the Can’t Afford It So I Made It Museum

Exhibited by Patrick Pryor

Transcript edited by Serena Washington