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- United States
1981 Gibson Ripper. I wanted a lightweight and well balanced Ripper with more output. Had to build it myself.
This was a very long-term project to build the perfect Ripper: about 5 years in the making. I love the look and the feel of Rippers, but they tend to be heavy and somewhat poorly balanced. The pickups are anemic compared to Thunderbirds and Fenders. The bridges suck (IMNSHO).
I finally found a Ripper "husk" that was the lightest and most resonant I have ever laid hands on. Original finish, which had mellowed into a nice even amber. No cracks or repairs. Plenty of life left on the frets. Perfect.
I ordered a direct-fit replacement bridge and set of lightweight tuners (including drop-D key) from Hipshot. Custom ordered a set of pickups from Seymour Duncan Custom Shop, specifying higher output. New pickguard from WD and some Dunlop straplocks.
Sent everything to my bass tech, Darrel Gilbert of the Gibson Artist Relations Center here in NYC. He was able to source a NOS 4-way rotary pickup switch from Gibson. He installed all the electronics and hardware. He didn't like the sound of the bridge pickup, so we sent it back to the SD Custom Shop, which took a few months to arrive.
Once the bass was assembled, Darrel performed the fret job and setup he's famous for. The original frets were good enough to keep - just needed leveling, crowning, and polishing. Strung it with some DR Nickel Lo-Riders and we were done.
I'm not 100% sure I want to sell this bass, but my appartment is overflowing with basses ... and I play my fretless Carl Thompson most of the time. Whenever I want to play fretted, I generally grab my 48th Street Custom PBass strung with TI Jazz Flats.
This was a very long-term project to build the perfect Ripper: about 5 years in the making. I love the look and the feel of Rippers, but they tend to be heavy and somewhat poorly balanced. The pickups are anemic compared to Thunderbirds and Fenders. The bridges suck (IMNSHO).
I finally found a Ripper "husk" that was the lightest and most resonant I have ever laid hands on. Original finish, which had mellowed into a nice even amber. No cracks or repairs. Plenty of life left on the frets. Perfect.
I ordered a direct-fit replacement bridge and set of lightweight tuners (including drop-D key) from Hipshot. Custom ordered a set of pickups from Seymour Duncan Custom Shop, specifying higher output. New pickguard from WD and some Dunlop straplocks.
Sent everything to my bass tech, Darrel Gilbert of the Gibson Artist Relations Center here in NYC. He was able to source a NOS 4-way rotary pickup switch from Gibson. He installed all the electronics and hardware. He didn't like the sound of the bridge pickup, so we sent it back to the SD Custom Shop, which took a few months to arrive.
Once the bass was assembled, Darrel performed the fret job and setup he's famous for. The original frets were good enough to keep - just needed leveling, crowning, and polishing. Strung it with some DR Nickel Lo-Riders and we were done.
I'm not 100% sure I want to sell this bass, but my appartment is overflowing with basses ... and I play my fretless Carl Thompson most of the time. Whenever I want to play fretted, I generally grab my 48th Street Custom PBass strung with TI Jazz Flats.
