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$5 bass rescue from death
- Thread starter Never2Late
- Start date
Memphis is one of those cheapo off-brands that have changed hands multiple times since the 70s and have been made in Japan, Korea, and probably elsewhere. The quality is all over place - some are nice, some are firewood; some are solid wood, some are plywood. Judging by the logo, yours is an 80s MIK build.
I lucked in a nice Memphis several years ago and restored / modded it. Not to the extent of yours, though - that's quite a job!
Nice work! You should be commended for such nobility. It's a beautiful thing, to restore an instrument.
Thank you for the feedback on the write-up.
Reading through the all pages of replies has been heart warming.
I wasn't sure if sharing my experience in detail in a post like this would be useful.
Enjoyable? I have absolutely zero skills to pull off something like that and greatly admire those that can at such a high level.
@Never2Late this is a much more elegant way of doing this than my method I got this little bass book that I jot down all stuff bass on, this is noe bookmarked and part of my collection.
OP, I salute you!
Just because a musical instrument is inexpensive and shabby doesn't mean it's worthless.
Just because a musical instrument is inexpensive and shabby doesn't mean it's worthless.
Exciting updates! 
I ended up cleaning the strings more thoroughly and replacing most of the screws with new ones. (OCD) That made "Ghost Memphis" look and feel new and even nicer.
Then I played Ghost on and off for a few weeks. It sounds fantastic. I really like the sound of that P pickup.
And it balances beautifully. I had it on a slippery nylon strap, pointed up somewhere around 40 degrees, and the neck stayed up while playing. At only 8 pounds, that surprised me.
BUT what that process confirmed is that, while I am able to play a full size bass, I play better and am much more comfortable with short-scales.
I briefly considered mounting Ghost up on a wall just to look at.
But it seemed a shame to have a bass that feels and sounds that nice sitting around unused. I decided to see if I could find it another owner that would play and appreciate it. I had NO idea about its value.
So I brought it to Guitar Center. They looked it over, played it, commented about how nice it looked and played, and bought it. I eagerly watched the listing on their website to see what would happen. And a short while later it sold!
It's now been more than 45 days (the return period), so Ghost Memphis seems to have found its new home! After all the work and love that went into it, that thought of it being appreciated and regularly played makes me super happy.
I ended up cleaning the strings more thoroughly and replacing most of the screws with new ones. (OCD) That made "Ghost Memphis" look and feel new and even nicer.
Then I played Ghost on and off for a few weeks. It sounds fantastic. I really like the sound of that P pickup.
And it balances beautifully. I had it on a slippery nylon strap, pointed up somewhere around 40 degrees, and the neck stayed up while playing. At only 8 pounds, that surprised me.
BUT what that process confirmed is that, while I am able to play a full size bass, I play better and am much more comfortable with short-scales.
I briefly considered mounting Ghost up on a wall just to look at.
But it seemed a shame to have a bass that feels and sounds that nice sitting around unused. I decided to see if I could find it another owner that would play and appreciate it. I had NO idea about its value.
So I brought it to Guitar Center. They looked it over, played it, commented about how nice it looked and played, and bought it. I eagerly watched the listing on their website to see what would happen. And a short while later it sold!
It's now been more than 45 days (the return period), so Ghost Memphis seems to have found its new home! After all the work and love that went into it, that thought of it being appreciated and regularly played makes me super happy.
That is so cool!! A great story! And thanks for posting here and putting a ribbon on a wonderful tale!
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That's a brilliant tale all the way through - and you are still bookmarked for my next shielding job, in fact I've just yesterday taken stock of a Cort GB short scale. It's active so doesn't necessarily need a shielding job but that's never stopped me shielding actives before. Just got to work out how to fit a active/passive switch as the Cort is active only, then I'll whip the copper tape out.
Such a lovely end to your remarkable work, huge thanks for sharing beginning to a lovely end. Absolute respect to you and giving this beautiful instrument a new lease of life.
Thank you so much for the story.
Such a lovely end to your remarkable work, huge thanks for sharing beginning to a lovely end. Absolute respect to you and giving this beautiful instrument a new lease of life.
Thank you so much for the story.
