Harley Benton Bass Guitar Kit J-Style

This is a very good kit to work with and with a bit of effort, will result in a very usable bass guitar.

I've built HB kits before so I knew what to expect. True to form, it was well packaged, delivered very efficiently, and everything was there. The components were all wrapped carefully and everything was complete. It's a kit so I knew I'd need to do a reasonable amount of work on it. You could just build it as is but you get a better result with some effort.

The body was fairly well finished but there were some rough patches and a couple of marks from the sanding so it was sensible to sand it down to 400. Although it didn't need a primer, I applied one anyway because I was going to give it a gloss acrylic finish. After the initial cleaning up and painting the body I checked the neck. Very straight, frets perfect and there were no rough edges. It would have been fine to use straight out of the box but I shaped the headstock and then prepared and painted the neck too - don't forget to mask the fingerboard :) .

Once painted, I assembled the whole thing in about an hour but there were some little irritations on the way. The plastic plate was not cut accurately to fit the neck and needed a fair bit removing with a Dremel. Not difficult but surely it could have been cut accurately in advance. The screw holes for the plate were positioned accurately though they were drilled a little deep so the screws were loose once inserted. I just dipped the ends in wood filler and they settled in fine. These are very trivial irritations.

The bridge was positioned perfectly and once the strings were on I set it up. The truss rod needed only a quarter turn to set the action though getting the action right at the bridge meant the bridge was lowered virtually to the plate. That tells me that I'd have to put a shim under the neck to recover the adjustability. Something the width of a credit card will do the trick. It's not a deficiency of the kit, simply something we need to recognise and deal with for all bolt-on necks. A note in the construction booklet in future might be useful for others.

The pickups and controls were easy to install and everything works fine, both pickups giving a good signal and the tone control has a reasonable range. The downside is that these are cheap pickups and seem quite noisy. Given that the pickup and control cavities are not screened from EMI and since they are both single coil, noise is inevitable. I decided to disassemble the bass, put a shim under the neck join, and replace the pickups with Fender Jazz Bass pickups (from here) and also to line and earth all the cavities with copper tape which should all but eliminate noise. The strings provided are fine but I'm putting flats on for even less string noise.

First time round it played very well and comfortably and there's a good balance between neck and body. Even with the stock pickups, there's a good range of sounds available and it records well straight into a USB mixer. I'm playing mostly jazz and not gigging with it but even through a standard guitar amp, this gives plenty of rich bass tones. Once it has the Fender pickups in it, it'll sound even better.

As with every kit, you'll have to do some work but with a bit of patience and a modicum of skill, this kit gives you a very nice jazz bass at very low cost. Recommended.

A good kit to approch the art of guitar/bass building.
The wood of the body has a weird grain so a natural finish is not the best option, I finish mine in fiesta red nitro and the result is stunning. Body needs to be carefully sanded on some spots that are rough to grant a good final result.
The neck is quite good, I did a level-recrown-polish job to the frets as I did with all the low cost instruments, fretboard with a good soak of wood oil (I use the red one but there's plenty of choices) reveals a beautyful dark tone.
I can't judge the stock PU because I changed it with a pair of Di Marzio's DP123, electronic is the standard chinese stuff you find in low cost intruments, it works, for sure can be upgraded with quality part for a few bucks if you want.
Assembly is easy, the coupling neck-body is tight.
With a quick set up the finished bass is a good, playable instrument, soundwise my rating is influenced by the fact that I installed PUs that costs more than the kit but even with the standard ones you'll have a light bass with a confortable neck with no dead spots that you can think to upgrades later

I recently had the pleasure of assembling and playing the Harley Benton Bass J-Style DIY Kit, and I must say, it exceeded my expectations in every way. As a budget-friendly option, the kit offers insane quality for the price, making it an excellent choice for those curious about DIY projects.

The build process was straightforward and incredibly enjoyable. The kit comes with clear and concise instructions, making it accessible for those new to DIY instrument projects. The provided components are of impressive quality, and everything fits together seamlessly. The body and neck materials are sturdy, and the precision in the pre-cut parts ensures a hassle-free assembly. The body is ready for painting which comes out pretty good even with a spray can.

What truly sets the Harley Benton Bass J-Style DIY Kit apart is its surprising tonal capabilities. Once assembled, the bass delivers a rich and versatile sound that is, again surprisingly, impressive for rock, punk, and metal. The pickups provide a well-defined and punchy tone, with a surprising amount of clarity in the midrange and a robust low end. Whether you're laying down a funky bassline, rocking out with power chords, or diving into metal riffs, this bass handles it all with ease.

Considering the affordability of this DIY kit, it's a fantastic option for musicians on a budget or those looking to add a unique touch to their collection without breaking the bank. The Harley Benton Bass J-Style DIY Kit combines value, quality, and tonal versatility in a way that is hard to beat. I highly recommend it to anyone in search of an affordable yet high-quality DIY bass experience.

I gave this four stars because it really is a great piece of kit.

I was surprised at the overall quality, let me make that clear.
The neck has a thin coating over it from the getgo, and as such I had to do no extra work to get a satisfying satin finish.
The machineheads do their job, and the neck fit perfectly (a REALLY important detail that easily gets overlooked by other kit vendors).

As this is modelled after a fender jazz bass, you should be wary that the neck is on the chunkier side in comparison to a traditional jazz; of course, as a cheap custom kit, this is by no means a deal breaker.
I can't comment on the stock pickups, but I'd imagine they do their job, they look and feel like the real deal.

I do have two grievances however:
1. The screws were on the cheap side, this is perfectly reasonable given the price, but don't be like me and use a drill for everything - screwdrivers are your friend here.

2. A bigger issue though is that I couldn't quite get rid of all the fret buzz, predominantly on the 9th fret (even with the help of a luthier).
As such I can't recommend it as a perfect kit, but as it is only an acoustic issue (if an issue at all), it doesn't bother me too much.

You really can't go wrong starting off with this kit, it won't be a "dream" guitar, but it's miles away from being something unplayable.
And given the price, it really is something to admire.
Good job Thomann.

I bought this in December as a project to complete during the lockdown and was not disappointed at the level of quality.

I've had no previous experience playing bass or guitar of any kind as I am predominantly a Saxophone player. Never the less the experience of assembling, finishing and learning to play the bass was extremely enjoyable.

Pros:
-Pre made high quality parts
-Very easy to follow instructions (in both English and German, nice touch)
-Thorough guide on how to finish the bass to your own style without damaging the kit

Cons:
- one of the pre drilled holes for the screws in the head of the bass was a little too small but was easily rectified by slowly tweaking the screw in and out before fitting the tuning pin

This bass is not intended as a professional grade instrument but with care and attention could quite easily get there. The 'modular' aspect of the kit makes it more than easy to upgrade any parts you wish to in the future. I would definitely recommend the kit to anyone who wants to have fun building their own instrument or a high quality starter kit to upgrade and tweak.

Full disclosure: I did immediately replace the plastic nut with a bone one before even beginning assembly, but aside from that I built this kit as stock (with the addition of some shielding paint, which it would have been nice to include by default).

The result? Well I'm no professional bassist, but I find it more than satisfactory. Feels good, sounds decent. The pickups and pots might be worth upgrading at some point in the future, but even as they are they're absolutely usable.

If there's on point of criticism I might offer it's that the routing in the body could use some smoothing, there's a bit of splintering I had to clean up. But for this price I can't be too harsh.

I had fun building this. The final product is an extremely playable bass that has only needed minor adjustments to get close to how I like my basses to be. The pickups are surprisingly good and fit well in a mix (although I think I will end up replacing them). My only complaint, and it's something to be expected when you're building something like this, is that some of the predrilled holes for the head stock were not deep enough to accommodate the screws. However, they were good enough for rock and roll and I've had no issues at all.

I did not sand and fill the holes with wood filler, which is usually what you should do with a piece of wood like this. Just a heads up for something to do before staining. The 3 pieces for the body were not that different in color and, although you can see the difference between the pieces, it doesn't impact the final product.

If you're looking for a bass and also want a project, I would highly recommend this. Not my favorite bass, but my favorite is several multiples in cost more expensive.