I posted a while back asking about if Kramer Striker necks fit Fender pockets. Well, here's a thread about my current Frankenstein build that became of it.
About a year ago, I bought a 1988 or 1989 (not entirely sure) Kramer Striker 700ST, all original. But, it was pretty beat up.
The pickup switch barely worked (sometimes the J pickup wouldn't switch over) and the pots were scratchy. So, I sank some money into a new switch, some Bourns 1M/500K pots (500k on the Jazz and 1M on the P, didn't work like I'd hoped) and a new jack. That helped that.
I still wasn't really satisfied. The body is made from plywood, which was really heavy and hard on my back. I felt like wearing a boat anchor for a necklace. I wanted to get a different bass, but I loved the neck profile and playability the Kramer had. I also liked the built-in angle (I have issues getting low actions on Squiers without shimming the neck, didn't have that issue with the Kramer).
So, I bit the bullet and sold another bass I rarely played (an Ibanez ATK I had grown dissatisfied with) and bought a new MIM Fender P-bass body from Basspartsresource.com. Come to find out, the neck fit in the pocket like a latex glove. It was about 3/8 to 1/4 taller than how it sat in the Kramer pocket, but that shouldn't be too big a deal.
This was the body shortly after it arrived. I then added the Ernie Ball straplocks, and fitted the pickguard.
I had another Squier neck that I mounted to fit the pickguard.
Looking back, this probably wasn't the best method, because I had to re-drill one or two holes of the pickguard. And then had to rout a little towards the back of the cavity, as the Switchcraft jack didn't quite fit. It still needs some more sanding/grinding to fit, but it's not bulged nearly as bad anymore.
From there, I had to mount the DiMarzio DP127 I had. I liked the Spector pickups from the Kramer with 1M pots, but finding a P/J body made from a decent tonewood that isn't ridiculously priced is difficult. I've kept them, though, for a future project I have in mind. Prepping them for paint while I wait for strings and can't do anymore on this one.
I had this pickup in the Squier, but wasn't too satisfied with the result in that bass whether Series OR parallel. I used 500K pots and I don't think the body sounds very good in the first place. This time, I have CTS 1M pots, solid-shafts and a body from Alder. I also modified one of the pots to be no-load with just some nail polish.
So the next adventure was plugging and re-drilling the Kramer neck, as the bolt pattern was smaller and not quite on-center.
It was a very snug fit in the pocket, but I didn't have to really force it in. I cleaned up both pockets with a small chisel. I did the drilling by hand, just turning the screws and letting them cut the threads, backing them back out and cleaning whenever needed. Some would probably argue that's not the best way, but that's the only way I could do it, and the holes are fine. I've seen worse holes out of stock Fenders.
So, now the neck was mounted up, and it was time for the bridge! I went back with the original Schaller/Kramer bridge, because I like the adjustable saddles.
Mounting the bridge was pretty easy. After that, I re-fitted the pickguard and buttoned her up.
I've still got the wiring to do, had to get some more hookup wire and a 0.047uF poly film capacitor from Radio Shack first (found a pair Xicon Greenies, which are hard to get from online vendors as they've been obsoleted). So, here are some pictures, while I wait for the Elixir Stainless Steel .105-.045's from bassstringsonline.com.
So far, I'm pretty satisfied with the results. It looks like a P-bass, but it doesn't at the same time. It's also half the weight of the original body, and the color is great (the pictures don't do it justice). I can't wait to string 'er up and hear it for the first time! My last tasks are to drill out the knobs to fit, wire it up, and then do a full set up.
About a year ago, I bought a 1988 or 1989 (not entirely sure) Kramer Striker 700ST, all original. But, it was pretty beat up.
The pickup switch barely worked (sometimes the J pickup wouldn't switch over) and the pots were scratchy. So, I sank some money into a new switch, some Bourns 1M/500K pots (500k on the Jazz and 1M on the P, didn't work like I'd hoped) and a new jack. That helped that.
I still wasn't really satisfied. The body is made from plywood, which was really heavy and hard on my back. I felt like wearing a boat anchor for a necklace. I wanted to get a different bass, but I loved the neck profile and playability the Kramer had. I also liked the built-in angle (I have issues getting low actions on Squiers without shimming the neck, didn't have that issue with the Kramer).
So, I bit the bullet and sold another bass I rarely played (an Ibanez ATK I had grown dissatisfied with) and bought a new MIM Fender P-bass body from Basspartsresource.com. Come to find out, the neck fit in the pocket like a latex glove. It was about 3/8 to 1/4 taller than how it sat in the Kramer pocket, but that shouldn't be too big a deal.
This was the body shortly after it arrived. I then added the Ernie Ball straplocks, and fitted the pickguard.
I had another Squier neck that I mounted to fit the pickguard.
Looking back, this probably wasn't the best method, because I had to re-drill one or two holes of the pickguard. And then had to rout a little towards the back of the cavity, as the Switchcraft jack didn't quite fit. It still needs some more sanding/grinding to fit, but it's not bulged nearly as bad anymore.
From there, I had to mount the DiMarzio DP127 I had. I liked the Spector pickups from the Kramer with 1M pots, but finding a P/J body made from a decent tonewood that isn't ridiculously priced is difficult. I've kept them, though, for a future project I have in mind. Prepping them for paint while I wait for strings and can't do anymore on this one.
I had this pickup in the Squier, but wasn't too satisfied with the result in that bass whether Series OR parallel. I used 500K pots and I don't think the body sounds very good in the first place. This time, I have CTS 1M pots, solid-shafts and a body from Alder. I also modified one of the pots to be no-load with just some nail polish.
So the next adventure was plugging and re-drilling the Kramer neck, as the bolt pattern was smaller and not quite on-center.
It was a very snug fit in the pocket, but I didn't have to really force it in. I cleaned up both pockets with a small chisel. I did the drilling by hand, just turning the screws and letting them cut the threads, backing them back out and cleaning whenever needed. Some would probably argue that's not the best way, but that's the only way I could do it, and the holes are fine. I've seen worse holes out of stock Fenders.
So, now the neck was mounted up, and it was time for the bridge! I went back with the original Schaller/Kramer bridge, because I like the adjustable saddles.
Mounting the bridge was pretty easy. After that, I re-fitted the pickguard and buttoned her up.
I've still got the wiring to do, had to get some more hookup wire and a 0.047uF poly film capacitor from Radio Shack first (found a pair Xicon Greenies, which are hard to get from online vendors as they've been obsoleted). So, here are some pictures, while I wait for the Elixir Stainless Steel .105-.045's from bassstringsonline.com.
So far, I'm pretty satisfied with the results. It looks like a P-bass, but it doesn't at the same time. It's also half the weight of the original body, and the color is great (the pictures don't do it justice). I can't wait to string 'er up and hear it for the first time! My last tasks are to drill out the knobs to fit, wire it up, and then do a full set up.
