Well, I have a new project! I actually started it a few days ago. Both of my 5 string DIY bass kits crashed and burned and when I mentioned it to a buddy at work, he gave me this disassembled Ibanez SR405. But boy does it need a good cleaning (as you can see in a few of the attached pictures).
Anywho, my friend got this from a friend of his who won it at a charity auction, and not knowing how to play bass, decided to take it apart (for god-knows-what reason), threw it in a box, and gave it to my friend, who stored it in his (fortunately) dry basement.
My friend stored it on a shelf, thinking he would eventually get around to playing it (he’s a guitar player, but never messed w/ a 5 string bass). Realizing he'd never get to it and knowing he'd never play a 5 string, he gave it to me. Follow all that? Good.
So, I get it home, and I want to give it a GOOD deep cleaning and get it back in playing shape. The first thing I did was to pull off the bridge and throw it in an ultrasonic cleaner and try to get it cleaned up a bit. Came out pretty good, actually. The tuners are dirty/dusty, but I don’t think I’m going to pull them off the headstock, at least not right now. The jatoba fretboard looks like it was never oiled, so I’ll do that after I give the neck and headstock a good cleaning.
The bridge and knobs are a bit corroded, and if they don’t clean up well, I may replace them. I have some Flitz polish I may try on the bridge and knobs, to see if I can get them cleaned up a bit. Any other suggestions? I have a set of D'Addario EXL165 strings to put on it as a starting point, since that’s what it came with originally.
More pics to come as I get it cleaned up and put back together.
--EDIT--
Spelling, of course!
Anywho, my friend got this from a friend of his who won it at a charity auction, and not knowing how to play bass, decided to take it apart (for god-knows-what reason), threw it in a box, and gave it to my friend, who stored it in his (fortunately) dry basement.
My friend stored it on a shelf, thinking he would eventually get around to playing it (he’s a guitar player, but never messed w/ a 5 string bass). Realizing he'd never get to it and knowing he'd never play a 5 string, he gave it to me. Follow all that? Good.
So, I get it home, and I want to give it a GOOD deep cleaning and get it back in playing shape. The first thing I did was to pull off the bridge and throw it in an ultrasonic cleaner and try to get it cleaned up a bit. Came out pretty good, actually. The tuners are dirty/dusty, but I don’t think I’m going to pull them off the headstock, at least not right now. The jatoba fretboard looks like it was never oiled, so I’ll do that after I give the neck and headstock a good cleaning.
The bridge and knobs are a bit corroded, and if they don’t clean up well, I may replace them. I have some Flitz polish I may try on the bridge and knobs, to see if I can get them cleaned up a bit. Any other suggestions? I have a set of D'Addario EXL165 strings to put on it as a starting point, since that’s what it came with originally.
More pics to come as I get it cleaned up and put back together.
--EDIT--
Spelling, of course!
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I'll let it dry out for a day before I oil it up. I did find a dent/ding in the body between the pups. I'm thinking it doesn't need to be sealed or anything. There are plenty of unpainted basses (my SR650 included), so I'm not too worried about it. Kind of a bummer though. Oh well, not like it's a high-end bass or anything.
