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Fixing up 1963 Precision Bass
- Thread starter DavidBassista
- Start date
JohnK is indeed "the man" when it comes to Fender bass restorations -- someday I hope to have him restore one of my basses! Congrats on the bass, David B.
Concur. Especially burst finishes. He did an early 70's bass for me and it is amazing.
Edit to add that I see you already sent the bass to Dave S. Looking forward to seeing the finished bass.
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Congratulations on your new to you bass. I don't blame you for wanting to have it refinished. However, have you considered that a new paint job on the body may look a little out of place with the old neck and hardware? I don't care for the fake relic look, but in your case, I would consider a subtle aging of the new body finish for a better blended bass.
I have some experience with this and don't agree. I have a 59 that I've had since I was 12 (almost 50 yrs, but who's counting). It had already been repainted when I got it (with a brush!) and a few years ago, I had it done professionally - Olympic White, with bronze anodized pickgouard. Maple neck has original finish. It looks great with the new finish and old neck finish. Since its already been refinished, do what you like, as long as its high quality work.
I'm on the road, otherwise I'd post a pic.
Ironically, my first amp (in 1968) as a B15N. Wish that I still had it.......
Yes I realize that there will be some differences in the various sections of the bass, some worn and some new. I don't think it will be too weird looking. And it will be part of the story of the bass. I did purchase a brand new chrome pickup guard cover. The bass has the original bridge cover that is quite worn-in. If the new bridge cover looks too shiny and out of place with the chrome on the bridge and knobs than I might make it more dull with some steel wool, but that's the extent of any relicing I would do.
I think you guys may be reading too much into my suggestion. Mainly, I would consider a gentle cleaning of the hardware and leaving a satin finish on the new paint, rather than bring it to a high gloss that would normally be found on a new finish. Some light scuffing with steel wool is probably a good idea on any replacement hardware. It's the OPs bass, so he is certainly free to do with it as he wishes.
Right on. The original bridge and cover will get a light cleaning to remove rust.
Hey guys, I'm going to have to have a custom tort pick guard made for this thing after the body is refinished (it's going through that process now). Can I get some suggestions on who to use to have the pick guard made?
I need to have a conversation with the restorer about who he recommends, but I wanted to get peoples' opinions here as well. I recently ordered a new pick guard (Black Abalone) for my Stingray5 from WD Music products. Invalid Link Removed
I also saw here on Talkbass there is another guy who does specifically Tort guards, called Spitfire. http://spitfiretortoiseshellpickguards.wordpress.com/
The Spitfire are more than twice as much as the WD. But it's difficult to see what the difference is with regards to quality and authenticity. I don't mind paying $150 for a spitfire guard if it's better and more original than the WD, but don't want to pay more if they are generally the same.
Any advice?
I need to have a conversation with the restorer about who he recommends, but I wanted to get peoples' opinions here as well. I recently ordered a new pick guard (Black Abalone) for my Stingray5 from WD Music products. Invalid Link Removed
I also saw here on Talkbass there is another guy who does specifically Tort guards, called Spitfire. http://spitfiretortoiseshellpickguards.wordpress.com/
The Spitfire are more than twice as much as the WD. But it's difficult to see what the difference is with regards to quality and authenticity. I don't mind paying $150 for a spitfire guard if it's better and more original than the WD, but don't want to pay more if they are generally the same.
Any advice?
I don't know the vintage market as well as some of you other guys. But for custom pickguards, I would talk to Tony from pickguardian.com
He's a good dude that makes a great product. He will either be able to help you out himself or point you in the right direction.
He's a good dude that makes a great product. He will either be able to help you out himself or point you in the right direction.
Follow up: The spitfire website lists several different color and style options (Burgundy, bright red, dark, faded, subtle, speckled, faded etc).
Which of these color and style combinations would most accurately depict how a 63 guard would have been? Or was it totally random back then and I should just chose what I think will look best?
Thanks. I'm thinking burgundy speckled.
Which of these color and style combinations would most accurately depict how a 63 guard would have been? Or was it totally random back then and I should just chose what I think will look best?
Thanks. I'm thinking burgundy speckled.
Judging by the pictures I've seen of the spitfire tort, they don't come close to the tort on my '62 Jazz, and they certainly don't justify their $150 price tag. The WD tort pictures, while far from being a perfect match, look more authentic than spitfire, in my opinion. If I had them in hand, I may change my mind, but that's the only way I would buy either of them, at their asking price.
Edit: Maybe spitfire would send you a small sample of their tort material. Offer them ten bucks for the sample, to be taken off the purchase price, if you decide to buy from them.
If you get it shot in nitro, it will soon enough look good enough with the neck anyway, IMO. Might actually look cooler.
Thats a cool looking Bass,I would get it set up to your likes and just change out the pickguard to a vintage looking tort guard,throw some Flats on it and call it good...
The black paint has already been steamed off. I should get an update tomorrow on how it's coming along.
Pictures and notes from the restorer, Dave:
"Final coats of clear go on tonight. We should be close to finished by early next week. The body has some scars but still manages to look good. Also have the neck crack glued."
"They cleaned up pretty well, and the pole pieces are sitting up now. New foam on the ground plates after corrosion cleaned."
"Final coats of clear go on tonight. We should be close to finished by early next week. The body has some scars but still manages to look good. Also have the neck crack glued."
"They cleaned up pretty well, and the pole pieces are sitting up now. New foam on the ground plates after corrosion cleaned."
