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g&l sb-1 has seen the road and lived!

I

idResponse

May 6, 2002
136
3
45
Olympia, WA - usa
subliminal.janked.org
#1
so... as a testament to the longevity of G&L gear, as well as fender, i have pictures of my main instrument. it ain't pretty! I was also wondering, what is the best way to clean up the pickup rust buildup? i don't think it's affecting the sound at all... but... the bridge is really gross... this thing has been really really abused. seroiusly, this bad boy plays like butter still, and sounds great... i'm not entirely sure i even want to bother cleaning it up, i kinda like how worn it looks...
I'm also wondering if anyone can actually identify what year release this thing is? every time i see an sb-1 picture it has a different pickup! i don't get it...

g%26lsb1_1.jpg

g%26lsb1_3.jpg

g%26lsb1_4.jpg

g%26lsb1_5.jpg

g%26lsb1_6.jpg


as for comments on the longevity of fender gear, a friend of mine had a fender bass that once managed to fall out of a vehicle while on the freeway. remarkably the beast lived on unscathed save for a few scratches and nicks. the thing still played and sounded just fine!

so, while you folks out there are playing dearly beloved multi thousand dollar instruments, there are those of us out there that manage to make sub thousand dollar instruments sound great, AND we are not afraid of what happens to them, don't have to worry about it. leo fender should have been in the business of building cars, as his gear is indestructable! :D

:bassist:
 
#4
I just wiped out years off mojo (and beer and lord knows what else. I certainly don't want to know) on a Yamaha I got yesterday. Didn't bother me a bit. Now its a clean slate for /my/ mojo...

If it were mine, I would get the G&L squeaky clean but everyone is different and I can appreciate the charm its mojoed self has as well. Keep it like that if that is how you like it. ^_^

And I was asking about getting rust off pups myself in a recent thread. That is something you really should take care of as I was told the rust will travel down and cause damage. Steel wool is a big NO. Scotch bright was debatable (as some including myself thought it was ok but some didn't). I haven't taken the rust off the pup on my bass that has it but I will be doing so with a silver polishing cloth and seeing how that goes to start with. I would highly recommend that you get the rust off the pup at least!

Oh yea and when you are done getting the rust off coat the points with clear fingernail polish to protect it from moisture in the future to prevent it from reoccurring.
 
#6
idResponse said:
as for comments on the longevity of fender gear, a friend of mine had a fender bass that once managed to fall out of a vehicle while on the freeway. remarkably the beast lived on unscathed save for a few scratches and nicks. the thing still played and sounded just fine!
Click to expand...
Last week, my cousin was telling me about how the school's bass fell out of a van and right in the path of an oncoming school bus. The Fender Standard Jazz lived on, with its biggest problem being that it was short-scale.
 
#10
Great info site:
http://www.ggjaguar.com/sb-1-83.htm

You can date by serial number from the G&L website FAQ page.

"Corrosion X:"
http://www.corrosionx.com/products.html
works really good at rust removal. I've used it on pole pieces...don't use lots!
I apply it to a Q-Tip, and swab on. Leave it for a few seconds, swab off.

Thanks for the post; neat bass! How long you had it?
What kinda music you play? What amp and such?

( I love my ole SB1!)
 
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#11
As these are seldom seen, I thought I'd post mine too...
Mine's not as Mojo-tastic as yours;)

SB1frontcu.jpg

SB1large.jpg

SB1rear.jpg



These were G&L's "student line," beginner basses. The only "concession to quality" is the sslab body-which I like anyway. The single pickup SB1 is very much like a 51 Precision, but with a hotter pickup.
There was also an SB2 two pickup model built for the same 1982-1984 time span:
sb2bodywide.jpg

sb2fl2.jpg


Very nice ''Jazz basses" tho I don't like the "stratocaster pickup selector" as much as I like a straight v/v/t setup.
 
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#12
"You can date by serial number from the G&L website FAQ page."

where do you find the serial number? i'm not willing to touch the neck plate. with action that sweet i'm not going anywhere near screwing it up! :)

"Thanks for the post; neat bass! How long you had it?
What kinda music you play? What amp and such?"

i've had the bass for oh, five or six years? perhaps more? i can't remember when i got it. i've used it in a prog power rock trio a-la rush, and use it for -everything- i record at home for my solo music. my current gig is a hippie jamband, so i'm using it for dub/reggae/psychedelic/ballad/power rock/funk/(insert style here)
it's certainly a versatile instrument.
my amp has been for ages a behringer ultrabass 300w head and a 15" paradise cab with a peavey black widow in it. honestly, i can't stand the black widow's tone, but it sure is reliable. i've just been too poor to afford anything really good. i've been wanting some sort of more portable solution that doesn't have a problem overpowering drums when they get loud, but has a more transparent sound.

thanks for the comments and suggestions!
 
#13
That looks like a bass with some stories to tell! The later G&L SB-1 with the "P" style pickup and the 7.25" radius jazz style neck is one of my favorite basses from the past. Its been discontinued for quite a while now but I think they should bring it back. The ones I played in the '90's sounded huge and were really easy to play.

George
 
#14
That bass would be from the early-ish 80's. I had a two pickup SB-2 version, that would make yours look positivly pristine. :) That bass had been gigged HARD before I acquired it, and had suffered the indignities of an 80's style spray can graphics paint scheme.

Great basses, and pretty much bomb proof. The maple body on mine made if fairly heavy, but it had snap and agressive snarl by the bucket load.

Great bass! :)
 
#17
That era SB-1 should have the serial number on the plate.

That was the first generation from 82-84 and you really don't need a precise year.

Mojo schmojo keep the adjustment pieces like the intonation screws functional.

I remember someone had an old Stingray where the intonation screws were frozen due to "mojo". I say BS clean that stuff up.

Finish and non moving parts who cares, but letting "mojo" destroy functionality is just stupid.

My old Sabre is beat to crap but all pots, jacks, and moving parts are kept up to snuff.

Jim
 
#18
spideyjg said:
That era SB-1 should have the serial number on the plate.

That was the first generation from 82-84 and you really don't need a precise year.

Mojo schmojo keep the adjustment pieces like the intonation screws functional.

I remember someone had an old Stingray where the intonation screws were frozen due to "mojo". I say BS clean that stuff up.

Finish and non moving parts who cares, but letting "mojo" destroy functionality is just stupid.

My old Sabre is beat to crap but all pots, jacks, and moving parts are kept up to snuff.

Jim
Click to expand...

A big +1

My main fender has a semi-rusty bridge, but its tuners are pristine since I need them to work!

The bridge I can care less about, though I keep the screws well oiled for saddle adjustments.

:bassist:
 
#19
My SB1 has the number on the bridge.
My similar viontage SB2's are both on the neck plate.

dunno why they'd do it different...but that's typical for G&L, and Fender in some cases too: ''typical, but not always" is how it's done a lot of times.
 

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