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NBD: Squier CV 50s P
- Thread starter ChickWithaRic
- Start date
I smashed the glass on the back of my iPhone. I've found a kind of workaround for now. It's really quite annoying, and replacing that glass back is pricey. Ah well, it might be a good time to commit an insurance fraud.
Claim.
I mean claim. Legitimate claim.
I was initially looking at the blonde, but when I saw the burst in real life I was sold on it and went and ordered one directly from Fender the same day. I wish they would do a real transparent blonde. I'd snap one up.
Ok so... I've basically installed everything except the wiring harness and Hipshot control knobs. I think I will sit and assemble the harness this evening with a large glass of something red and a movie.
I have, just for now, spliced the Seymour Duncan into the Squier harness with a spot of solder and heatshrink tubing. I'll make a complete harness as a drop-in replacement. By the way, I am really loving my new Yihua digital soldering station. I always hated soldering. This thing makes it a breeze, and it wasn't even a lot of money.
Without further ado, then...
Gotoh FB30LP lollipops, Graphtec Tusq-XL nut, and Hipshot string retainer:
The nut was a little too low on the treble side, but keep in mind I run .035 strings. I put a 15 thou shim under the treble side of the nut. I've used the Squier bushings with the Gotoh tuners. I didn't want to risk chipping out the finish by drifting them out, and they fit perfectly. Not a problem.
Rear view:
The Gotoh baseplates are considerably larger than the Squier tuners. They do fit without overhanging the headstock, although in the case of the G tuner there is only about 20 thou in it. I really like the look of these.
Vanity plate:
When I removed the Squier plate and bolts, the neck refused to budge from its pocket. That's pretty impressive for an instrument in this price range.
Fender high mass bridge was a direct replacement thanks to Samick using the Fender 5 screw pattern. These are advertized as "brass saddles", but in fact the whole thing is brass. Something of a bargain, really, and it doesn't look at all out of place, which fits well with my "stealth mod" ethos for this bass. Eagle eyed readers will also spot a Schaller strap lock.
In a typical Fender move, they don't supply screws with it. I detect the ghost of Leo here... "Screws? They already have screws. Screws are expensive. Don't give them screws".
Seymour Duncam SCPB-3 Quarter Pounder installed. SD supply slot head screws and two very short lengths of surgical tubing to mount this. I don't think either are fit for purpose. It's very easy to slip out of a slot head screw and damage the finish. I used the Squier screws, and the Squier "bit-o-foam" instead.
Overall, nothing looks out of place. Unless you really know what you're looking at, you would have no idea this has been tricked out. And that's the way I like it. It's a sleeper.
I've tuned it up quick, gave it a blast through my Marshall, and suddenly it has bottom end. BIG bottom end (stop sniggering at the back), but it still has the articulate growly midrange of the basic Squier, and a little more top end sparkle. Very happy with this, and it still owes me a lot less money than if I had sprung for a MIM. And these things just look cool.
Hey, I hope everybody is having a great taco Tuesday.
I have, just for now, spliced the Seymour Duncan into the Squier harness with a spot of solder and heatshrink tubing. I'll make a complete harness as a drop-in replacement. By the way, I am really loving my new Yihua digital soldering station. I always hated soldering. This thing makes it a breeze, and it wasn't even a lot of money.
Without further ado, then...
Gotoh FB30LP lollipops, Graphtec Tusq-XL nut, and Hipshot string retainer:
The nut was a little too low on the treble side, but keep in mind I run .035 strings. I put a 15 thou shim under the treble side of the nut. I've used the Squier bushings with the Gotoh tuners. I didn't want to risk chipping out the finish by drifting them out, and they fit perfectly. Not a problem.
Rear view:
The Gotoh baseplates are considerably larger than the Squier tuners. They do fit without overhanging the headstock, although in the case of the G tuner there is only about 20 thou in it. I really like the look of these.
Vanity plate:
When I removed the Squier plate and bolts, the neck refused to budge from its pocket. That's pretty impressive for an instrument in this price range.
Fender high mass bridge was a direct replacement thanks to Samick using the Fender 5 screw pattern. These are advertized as "brass saddles", but in fact the whole thing is brass. Something of a bargain, really, and it doesn't look at all out of place, which fits well with my "stealth mod" ethos for this bass. Eagle eyed readers will also spot a Schaller strap lock.
In a typical Fender move, they don't supply screws with it. I detect the ghost of Leo here... "Screws? They already have screws. Screws are expensive. Don't give them screws".
Seymour Duncam SCPB-3 Quarter Pounder installed. SD supply slot head screws and two very short lengths of surgical tubing to mount this. I don't think either are fit for purpose. It's very easy to slip out of a slot head screw and damage the finish. I used the Squier screws, and the Squier "bit-o-foam" instead.
Overall, nothing looks out of place. Unless you really know what you're looking at, you would have no idea this has been tricked out. And that's the way I like it. It's a sleeper.
I've tuned it up quick, gave it a blast through my Marshall, and suddenly it has bottom end. BIG bottom end (stop sniggering at the back), but it still has the articulate growly midrange of the basic Squier, and a little more top end sparkle. Very happy with this, and it still owes me a lot less money than if I had sprung for a MIM. And these things just look cool.
Hey, I hope everybody is having a great taco Tuesday.
Attachments
With my eyesight, everything just looks great....
....
It would be nice to see all your changes taking place with clarity.
NICE work, ma'am. Wear it Out !
I prefer these sorts of hot rods to look like a prototype or standard catalog item, which this does, and all smart upgrades.
If you can find a Squiers like this OG PBass or my LPB JJ Jazz, they are terrific for just these kinds of hop up projects. Experienced players know what they want, and these are great axes to get just the way you want one for not much money.
I've watched some of Chick's 'from scratch' builds, and she could have easily built this herself, she's got the skills. But for a modded shortcut that's more than good enough, she chose this route instead. That says something to me.
Again, Bravo !
I prefer these sorts of hot rods to look like a prototype or standard catalog item, which this does, and all smart upgrades.
If you can find a Squiers like this OG PBass or my LPB JJ Jazz, they are terrific for just these kinds of hop up projects. Experienced players know what they want, and these are great axes to get just the way you want one for not much money.
I've watched some of Chick's 'from scratch' builds, and she could have easily built this herself, she's got the skills. But for a modded shortcut that's more than good enough, she chose this route instead. That says something to me.
Again, Bravo !
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So much love in this post.
I too, love light gauge strings and low action.
Getting a big sound out of a bass, when I "technically shouldn't" is always my goal.
I've done a full 7 point setup on it now, surprising how quickly you can do these with practice, and I've got the numbers where I want them. 20 thou clear at fret 1, 14 thou of relief, that just needed a little under a quarter truss rod turn to the left, and action is 5/64 across all four at the 17th. That's how I like to set up. I've not had to touch the frets, this is pure box standard fretwork. No rattles, no buzzes.
I play light strings because you know, I'm 5'1" and 105 pounds soaking wet. I don't have the fist of steel, so I make the instrument work for me, not against me. More physical players would hate my setup. It's all a matter of preference. Light strings will still sound huge if you get everything else right.
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You've hit the nail on the head, really. The current crop of Squiers (and I don't wanna be that person but I mean Squiers above the Affinity Squiers) have great DNA and good bone structure. Like, they are well made classic designs. I like the kind of funkiness of the Squier design approach where they will often ape a classic instrument but quietly add a modern touch. Just like, for example, the comfort contour body on the CV 50s P basses. Ok, hardly modern but compared to the slab body of the real thing? It's a nice touch. Purists will hate it, but then I think they are entirely missing the point of Fender basses. They are wonders of mass production. Always were, always will be.
It's a good platform, ready to gig right out of the box, or you can mess with it and get something that punches way above its weight.
I like things like this. Stealth mods.
I think your bass looks great.
Did the Gotoh baseplate mounting holes line up?
I think leaving the stock bushings was a good idea, they seem to be made well enough and they fit right.
Your Hipshot three string retainer is nice, the one I put on looks a lot like it, but it's not Hipshot quality.
Squier claims the stock nut is bone, why did you want to change it?
Glad to hear your neck and pocket are a good close fit, I think Samick did a really good job with these basses.
I like to use tubing for mounting split P pickups these days, it leaves a lot more room if I am putting in EMG pickups with their plug in connectors on the bottom of the pickups, but for this Duncan pickup I used foam also.
I agree about slotted screws, they suck. I've become a big fan of square drive for any construction/repair work (non bass) related stuff these days.
I don't think any of the MIM Fender basses are quite as cool as these basses, and I've got too many split P basses already.
If Fender had a Mexican made '51 Precision / '54 Precision I would check it out, but at this point I think you have to go to the Custom Shop to get a new 51P type bass.
It only took Fender from 1951 to 1954 to decide that body contours were a good idea, I wouldn't want a slab body 51P.
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I'm 5'10, 200~ish.
Not exactly a light dude.
But, I like an instrument to work for me, rather than against me, as you've said.
I recall an interview with Billy Gibbons, and his preference for .007s
He said "why fight heavy strings?"
And yes, heavy handed players would hate my setup too.
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Thanks, I'm really happy with how it looks. I would actually criticize the Hipshot retainer because it's made for Jazz bass string spacing at the nut, and I couldn't find a P Bass option. As a result it does very slightly "pinch" the A string. My original plan was to use the eye wateringly expensive Fender "Stealth" retainer for the A string, but having seen people complain about them bending and becoming useless straight away... I ditched that notion.I think your bass looks great.
Did the Gotoh baseplate mounting holes line up?
I think leaving the stock bushings was a good idea, they seem to be made well enough and they fit right.
Your Hipshot three string retainer is nice, the one I put on looks a lot like it, but it's not Hipshot quality.
Squier claims the stock nut is bone, why did you want to change it?
Glad to hear your neck and pocket are a good close fit, I think Samick did a really good job with these basses.
I like to use tubing for mounting split P pickups these days, it leaves a lot more room if I am putting in EMG pickups with their plug in connectors on the bottom of the pickups, but for this Duncan pickup I used foam also.
I agree about slotted screws, they suck. I've become a big fan of square drive for any construction/repair work related stuff these days.
I don't think any of the MIM Fender basses are quite as cool as these basses, and I've got too many split P type basses already.
If Fender had a Mexican made 51P or 54P I would check it out, but at this point I think you have to go to the Custom Shop to get a new 51P type bass.
The stock nut is indeed bone, but bone is still a "stictiony" material (is that even a word? It is now) and one of my goals was tuning stability and even tone between open and fretted strings, hence the Tusq-XL nut and the string retainer, to remove stiction and get a pretty much identical break angle over the nut across all four.
As for pickup mounting I almost always use surgical tubing, I have 25 feet of it hanging up here, but the pickup rout on these is way too deep for the height the pickup needs to be, so tubing just gave me a wobbly mess of a mounting.
I think I will do something with the pickguard. Either make my own 3 ply PG, or delete it and use furniture repair wax to delete the screw holes.
Edit to add: No, the Gotoh screw holes are nowhere near the Squier ones, but it wasn't a huge issue to line everything up and pilot new holes.
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Exactly, what's the point? It's not as if carpal tunnel is a fun day out.
On point, my friend.
The less I have to fight my bass, the more I can focus on what I want to say.
Unless you really lucked out or spent a hill of money, you're already strapping 9 pounds to yourself for an hour of sweaty mayhem. That's enough workout for anybody.
Do you made a template out of MDF?...and do you use a router (handheld or table mounted)?
Furniture repair wax? I was unaware that this was a good way to get that done.
If I knew there was an easy way to fill the holes right, I wouldn't have bought a replacement pickguard.
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Upgrades complete. I assembled the wiring harness using my fancy new digital control soldering station, which is something I should have bought a long time ago.
CTS 500k pots for a slight brightness increase over the stock 250k, .047 Sprague orange drop, genuine Switchcraft jack for longevity and the positive "click", and 22SWG silicone insulated extra flexible wire.
![20220510_030343[1].jpg](https://www.talkbass.com/attachments/20220510_030343-1-jpg.4687031/ "20220510_030343[1].jpg")
I had to redrill the control plate and jack escutcheon (word of the day) from the metric 8.5mm to 3/8" for the CTS pots and Switchcraft jack. 9.5mm for the rest of the world.
Once installed, I was able to fit the Hipshot knobs, which is just a personal preference.
![20220511_071405[1].jpg](https://www.talkbass.com/attachments/20220511_071405-1-jpg.4687032/ "20220511_071405[1].jpg")
Has it made a difference? Yes. Obviously a little brighter due to 500k pots, but I can get a much more useful range out of the tone control now than I could from the stock wiring. Not an expensive or in your face visible upgrade, but well worth spending the couple of hours of your time on doing.
It was a good bass. Now it's a great one.
CTS 500k pots for a slight brightness increase over the stock 250k, .047 Sprague orange drop, genuine Switchcraft jack for longevity and the positive "click", and 22SWG silicone insulated extra flexible wire.
I had to redrill the control plate and jack escutcheon (word of the day) from the metric 8.5mm to 3/8" for the CTS pots and Switchcraft jack. 9.5mm for the rest of the world.
Once installed, I was able to fit the Hipshot knobs, which is just a personal preference.
Has it made a difference? Yes. Obviously a little brighter due to 500k pots, but I can get a much more useful range out of the tone control now than I could from the stock wiring. Not an expensive or in your face visible upgrade, but well worth spending the couple of hours of your time on doing.
It was a good bass. Now it's a great one.
Nice solder work..very neat and professional...and tubing!!
