My First Mod' (small 'mods' that make your day)

[drunkenDAYlewis]

Make fun of me as you see fit

So get this, I had to sell my American Standard Jazz due to a sad financial state. But I kept my MIM Jazz.
Yesterday I saw a Fender Corona California neck plate at Long & McQuade for $15 so I bought it and installed it. It makes me feel a bit better about no longer owning an American made instrument (I know it's silly) it's like 'well I still have a piece of one', I dunno it sounds dumb but this tiny part helped me find closure towards selling my MIA.

I've own a lot of basses but this was the first time I took the neck off this one so it was also kinda cool finding out the dates and things (all parts are May 2011)

Anyway to make this a forum worth posting in what's the SMALLEST thing you've done that made a huge difference?

 

[TheOxRocks]

Replaced the stock humbucking pickups in my Carvin IC4P with single-coils. Fuller, rounder tone, noticeable immediately, more like what I'd been looking for.

 

[meatwad]

I would've done the same thing, since I truly despise a plain jane neck plate.

The smallest mod I ever did was change a natural '71 Jazz rear pickup cover from black to creme, and left the front black. Then I later removed the pickguard, and without realizing it, I had a Timmy C. tribute bass.

 

[newyorkiddo]

adding a tugbar/thumbrest

 

[homie]

I've done the same neck plate swap on my 62' reissue jazz bass.

 

[somegeezer]

I swapped out the awful diecast machines for some Warwicks, and the stock bridge with a Schaller 3D-5. Next up, pickups, electronics and defretting. I may get a new nut for it, too, but not sure.

 

[wmhill]

Adding a cheapa$$ fender thumb rest to my MTD artist. It has the MM style pickup, and the 2 "dog ears" on the pickup are rounded and made it next to impossible to get a good anchor point. HUGE improvement for $5!

 

[GKon]

Smallest mod I can think of that really made me happy was putting different knobs on my bass. I bought a set of knobs made from dice that were used at a casino.
I love 'em!!!! If it can be considered a "mod", I also put red strings (Aurora) on the same bass.

Another I can think of is I bought some adhesive fret markers that I added to another of my basses. It completely changed the look and makes me
happy when I see them on the bass.

I have a EUB that has a metal bar to be used as a rest for your body, mimicking how you would use the side of a AUB. It was the wrong shape.
So I used a tube bender to reshape it and now, it works like a charm. I then added a piece of padding to the tube, and now it's comfy as well.

 

[crucislancer]

The smallest mod I ever did to a bass was change the knobs on a MiM Jazz. Prior to the early 2000's, the MiM Jazz basses had Stratocaster knobs, the round ones with numbers on them, so I got a set of the correct knobs. One of the many mods I did to my black Jazz bass.

 

[bluefizz]

Added a strap button to the back of the headstock on my fender 60s series jazz bass. Completely pointless now a days, but completed the bass for me (after re doing in everything from the ground up like a real 62).

 

[awilkie84]

First mod I ever did was paint my pickguard on my MIM P. Flat black & then put gold symbols on it with stencils. Looked like crap but I liked it.

 

[Salicete]

I'm weird about modifications. If a bass isn't the way I like it, I just don't buy it.

I'm not a builder, technician or designer, so I figure the factory/manufacturer knows best. I just play em.

I look at it this way. What is the first thing most guys do when they score a cool piece of vintage gear?

You guessed it, they try to restore it to factory new specs, no mods.....

 

[punchdrunk]

Removed the tone pot from my passive Fender p/j. Opened the sound up quite nicely.

 

[singlemalt]

Luminlay side dots. Way too much fun for how little time and money I put in.

Very cool blue glowing dots!

 

[BazzTard]

I changed the horrible white pickguard on my MIM jazz with a red tortoiseshell one from China for ten bucks. Looks a million dollars now!

 

[Laughing Hyena]

Changed the tuners on my MIM Precision bass to Hipshot HB7's and the pickguard to mint.

 

[KohanMike]

The smallest mod I ever did to a bass was change the knobs on a MiM Jazz. Prior to the early 2000's, the MiM Jazz basses had Stratocaster knobs, the round ones with numbers on them, so I got a set of the correct knobs. One of the many mods I did to my black Jazz bass.

I went the opposite, switched the chrome topped knobs on an Epiphone Les Paul Express that I converted to a bass to Strat black numbered knobs. Also rotated the pickup switch from flip up and down to the more logical forward and back. (Not to mention changing the bridge, nut, strings, removing two tuners and adding string-through holes with ferrules.)

 

[Need Gigs]

I flipped the volume and tone controls in my P and replaced the knobs. The tone knob with one from my first amp, and the volume with one from my old friends Strat. The Tone control It messes with everyone, including myself.

 

[signboy]

My Washburn BB6 had no fret markers, and both upset players had a hard time following what I was doing. I went to dollarama and got some girly bling stickers, and arranged them into patterns on the fretboard.

It made me happy.

 

[oysteivi]

For looks: I like black strings, especially over a maple fretboard.

For comfort: Hipshot ultralites to balance a neck heavy bass.

For convenience: Hipshot (ultralite) D-Tuner for those riffs written for drop-d guitar.

As it happens, this is the sum of mods I've done to my Precision. (It already came with that corona neck plate).