Ibanez "Brass B1" bridge

[Billyzoom]

Wasn't planning on throwing away, wanted to change the aesthetic by swapping in chrome & seeing how it felt, but I'm hoping to gather as much info as I could first, before going through the trouble of swapping just to find out the bass has taken a step back in terms of sound qualities.

I know zero in terms of metal polishing/reconditioning so I'd just looked at the corrosion around the edges and assumed there was a coating that was being worn off that would need to be taken completely off and replaced, which sounds complicated to this rookie. Even with polished brass, I, and of course more importantly my wife think having a chrome bridge ties in the look better than brass to match the chrome tuning machines, but of course I dont want to end up with a bass that is all show & no go...

I identify to a degree, because I remember in particular when I was first getting into playing, I wanted everything to look good, be shiny, etc. Now, I look at that bridge and it looks perfect to me. And I should have been using a lot of that time and attention practicing rather than thinking about stuff like that. That's just for me, and I still fight it.

But that looks cool to me, and people pay extra to buy stuff that looks like that, even if it's not honest mojo. I'd keep it. Just play!

 

[Wfrance3]

FWIW - I like high mass bridges and do an aftermarket one on every bass I buy (so far anyway). I started because I really bought into the higher the mass the better the sustain thing. Not saying that there’s nothing to that, but I think the thing about that I enjoy most these days is the quality and ease of use. There’s nothing (comparatively) tedious about changing strings on a Babicz, or a Hipshot A Bridge. - Which is real similar to an Ibanez Accucast.
So if you can’t find what you are looking for, you might consider one of those. Just watch out for going too far off the reservation. I saw a YouTube video of someone trying to set the string height on a p-bass that had a Rickenbacker bridge bolted onto it. Did not go well.
Hope this helps!

 

[bolophonic]

FWIW - I like high mass bridges and do an aftermarket one on every bass I buy (so far anyway). I started because I really bought into the higher the mass the better the sustain thing. Not saying that there’s nothing to that, but I think the thing about that I enjoy most these days is the quality and ease of use. There’s nothing (comparatively) tedious about changing strings on a Babicz, or a Hipshot A Bridge. - Which is real similar to an Ibanez Accucast.
So if you can’t find what you are looking for, you might consider one of those. Just watch out for going too far off the reservation. I saw a YouTube video of someone trying to set the string height on a p-bass that had a Rickenbacker bridge bolted onto it. Did not go well.
Hope this helps!

I need to find that video. Sounds... challenging.

 

[Blackfishfinger]

I agree, I do need to spend more time playing and less time geeking out on equipment...

I really appreciate the insights, you guys rock!

 

[Root 5]

Wasn't planning on throwing away, wanted to change the aesthetic by swapping in chrome & seeing how it felt, but I'm hoping to gather as much info as I could first, before going through the trouble of swapping just to find out the bass has taken a step back in terms of sound qualities.

I know zero in terms of metal polishing/reconditioning so I'd just looked at the corrosion around the edges and assumed there was a coating that was being worn off that would need to be taken completely off and replaced, which sounds complicated to this rookie. Even with polished brass, I, and of course more importantly my wife think having a chrome bridge ties in the look better than brass to match the chrome tuning machines, but of course I dont want to end up with a bass that is all show & no go...

To polish solid brass, this is what I do: 1) soak the baseplate and saddles in lacquer thinner ( in well-ventilated area ) to remove the lacquer coating on top of the brass.
2) wearing rubber gloves, scrub them with a hard toothbrush until looks golden.
3) let it dry or pat it dry.
4) spray a thin coat or two of clear lacquer ( do this outside or in well-ventilated area ) on the parts and let dry. Your bridge will look brand new.
5) re-install and you're back rockin.'

 

[Showdown]

FWIW - I like high mass bridges and do an aftermarket one on every bass I buy (so far anyway). I started because I really bought into the higher the mass the better the sustain thing.

But how much sustain do you really need on a bass? I really never play anything longer than a whole note, which almost every bass has enough sustain to do. In fact all my basses with the Fender style bent plate bridge have more than enough sustain for that.

 

[Wfrance3]

I need to find that video. Sounds... challenging.

I looked but can’t find it. It’s in Dave’s World of Fun Stuff. There are so many. It came up on my YouTube feed several months ago. Dave was complaining that because there was no play left the action on the bass was sky high at its lowest.