Ibanez Axstar restoration

[Stealth]

Let's hope the new pickups, being overwound, won't be too muddy.
If they do, take an assortment of capacitors and wire one in series with the pickup - that'll kill some of the low end and hopefully just take out the mud. If it fails, try a different one till you get the sound you want.

 

[Rejected666]

I've already installed and tested the new pups and they're not too muddy; in fact I'm very happy with the tone I'm getting

 

[Stealth]

You know the rules. No clips, no tone.

 

[Rejected666]

here you go:

[SOUNDCLOUD]http://soundcloud.com/jeroendegendt/sets/axb50-stand-by-me[/SOUNDCLOUD]

First one is unaltered, second one is with the tone pot on max.

 

[Joe Nerve]

that was an awesome transformation. first bass, ugly as sin, new bass... sweet! very well planned.

 

[Rejected666]

Thank you very much

 

[Stealth]

Sweeeeeet.

 

[Eater_of_Birds]

Have to say the orange is looking fine. What a transformation

 

[Cy_Miles]

subscribed....

I had the pleasure of playing an AxStar in some studio sessions years ago. It was by far the most comfortable bass I have every played. I have a build in my future somewhere that I think will borrow heavily from the AxStar and my 83 Roadstar RB999, another sleak Ibanez.

 

[Rejected666]

It has taken a long while, but past friday I finally received the final part for the Axstar; the new part for the tuning mechanism which had to be custom made.
But I shouldn't complain too much because it was done completely free

On the right an original one, left the new one.

So now the bass has 4 strings again and is ready to be played.

I've already done a rehearsel with it and I must say it's an absolute pleasure to play!
The light weight and perfect balance make it the most comfortable bass I have ever played, from this day forward this will definitely be my main bass


P.S. My apologies for the crappy pictures, I will put up some better ones tomorrow

 

[Rejected666]

As promised some nicer pics:

The Axstar in all its glory.

And under blacklight.

 

[Stealth]

Hoooo boy. That's a mean looking bass. Congrats

 

[cccy]

sick!

 

[JohnnyLiBass]

Maybe I missed it, but did you strip it before you repainted it? Sick looking bass man, well done.

 

[Rejected666]

No, I didn't strip it.
I did some sanding, but not through the existing finish.

And thank you all for the kind words

 

[saskia strange]

Beautifully done! Nice to see all the step-by-step photos of the restoration - I've got my own Axstar, with that same dingy, cracked, dented black finish, and now I've seen how nice it could look I really want some shiny new paint. And I really want to restring with Neons...

 

[b16vrn]

Hi there,
I have been reading with great interest your experiences in restoring your Axstar bass. I too have a 1986 Axstar bass, which was originally off-white, but has yellowed considerably, as well as sustaining numerous injuries, with age. I am planning a restoration and was wondering if you could assist me on two points. Firstly, the decal. I obviously wish to replace this once I have refinished the bass and was wondering if you made this yourself (if so- how?) or if these are available to purchase? Also - I think the replacement silver bridge screws and string/nut retaining screws that you used look fantastic, and I was hoping that you may have sourced these online and could point in the direction of the supplier. Thanks again and hope this isn't a hassle. Martin.

 

[kohntarkosz]

Interesting basses. One of my bass heroes, Joe Preston, plays one;

Apparently the finish cracked between the knobs on his as well as OP's. I wonder if this was some 'bug' that Ibanez were not aware of with the design, or the formulation of the paint. A white Axstar is on my bucket list of basses for sure.

Am I right in thinking that the pickups are standard Humbucker-sized units?

 

[Buchada Azeda]

Hi there,
I have been reading with great interest your experiences in restoring your Axstar bass. I too have a 1986 Axstar bass, which was originally off-white, but has yellowed considerably, as well as sustaining numerous injuries, with age. I am planning a restoration and was wondering if you could assist me on two points. Firstly, the decal. I obviously wish to replace this once I have refinished the bass and was wondering if you made this yourself (if so- how?) or if these are available to purchase? Also - I think the replacement silver bridge screws and string/nut retaining screws that you used look fantastic, and I was hoping that you may have sourced these online and could point in the direction of the supplier. Thanks again and hope this isn't a hassle. Martin.

Try contacting Ibanez for the decal; I doubt they have them in stock, but they probably have a digital version of the logo you could print out.

 

[SnoMan]

Love the orange restoration. Since this thread inspired my most recent purchase, I'm left with no choice but to share some pics!

Loved the DR Neon Orange's so I had to try out the Blue Neon's. Also added the new knobs...and of course the snowflakes. Not ballsy enough to try a paint job myself, but she seems in good enough condition to not need it anytime soon. It's a fun bass. Next upgrade will be adding a new neck pickup...since this one doesn't work, but for now the bridge is giving me some great tones! So no biggie! Can't wait to get it onstage!