OLP recovery

[Tom0Blam0]

Another project I am working on that I would like to document is this OLP 4-string stingray copy I got in a trade from craigslist. The guy I got it from was a real idiot (he tried to convince me that the bass was worth more because he'd "never seen a pickup like that before" which means it must be unique and clearly worth a lot of much money). That is an irrelevant detail, but he was stupid enough for it to merit some mention.

Anyway, As you can see from the photos, this old girl was in a state when I got it. It played pretty dang well for a cheap bass. The finish had been removed with (i'm assuming) a heat gun...poorly. The body is heavily burned. Judging on how comprehensive the burns are, I think what happened is the finish remover accidentally burned an area and in order to keep the unfinished look, peppered in burns all over the place. Well I think it looks like crap, so I'm going to have it repainted.

Additionally, I bought a preamp from ebay that is a copy of the original stingray pre-amp (it was a good price and the seller had good reviews/ratings) and an MM pickup from guitar fetish, since I had similarly heard good reviews and wanted to keep the price low.

2 issues I ran into are that the board on the pre would not fit in the space available and, likewise, the battery would not fit. So...to the shop!

 

[Tom0Blam0]

Didn't want the first post to be too long...

So I made a template for adding a little more space to the cavity. Then, for the first time, I fired up my router! I'm not sure if you can see from the pictures, but there were some minor issues. If I were making this for someone else or selling it, it would be a problem, but since it's mine and it'll be covered, who cares?! Just a couple of chips/tear outs, on right at the top by a screw hole, but otherwise everything went pretty well. I definitely learned a lot from this experience and am now psyched to start using this all the time and making some bodies of my own! There is now a comfy amount of space for everything to fit.

I also added a cavity for the battery (I actually did this part first). I used fostner bits to remove material and then finished up with a chisel which worked well. Again, it's not perfect, but since it's completely hidden it's no big deal. A happy accident occurred in that the cavity for the batter just barely overlapped with the route I made for the controls. The result was a little hole I could chisel into a rectangle large enough for me to slip the 9v connector through without needing to rewire anything! Score!

Next step is to sand the body over again (it was not done well the first time, go figure) and get it prepped for paintin'. Pics to come!

Also - just to get some thoughts, this bass will have all black hardware. What color should I paint it? I want a cool, funky (like seafoam green or something) color without being too tacky/flashy. I also thought about going all black, but since the body was originally black that seems like a considerable amount of time and energy to undo someone else's work.

 

[Matt Liebenau]

Looks like a good start. Sea foam green or some of the variations are a favorite of mine.

 

[T_Bone_TL]

I believe that "seafoam green" is the most "like seafoam green or something" color out there.

Not my taste, might work for my mom, though a bit bluer would suit her better. But if its your taste, (as it should be) go with what you came up with when reaching for a color, unless "burnt orange" works better with the "history" of this bass, say...

All colors are potentially valid, so pick the one you like. Or pick two you like and do stripes or checkerboards, or hex cells. If you do hex cells, then add a bee or two or three.

Polka dots. Stars. Starfish (go well with seafoam green.) Kittens...

Or use white, black, red, yellow and blue and make it a Mondrian-esque pattern.

Get back to the sea and do some Japanese wave art ala hokusai

Let your imagination run wild.

 

[Tom0Blam0]

I should have specified, I like to have a color that "fits" the bass, I guess. I'm trying to think of a color that fits with the stingray look, but also matches the rosewood and black hardware/pickguard combo. While I really like the seafoam green on stingrays, I think of a maple neck and white guard. Just wanted other folks thoughts to see if it would stir some inspiration (I've been thinking about this for a while and haven't really had any inspiration...).

If I had the skill I might try something like the Hokusai wave though...maybe on a rickenbacker

 

[Microbass]

Cool score, the OLP's were good basses. Wish I'd bought one as I had planned then upgraded the pickup and made it active.

Actually looks kinda funky with the burn finish.. That pick guard has to go!

Why not go stealth on this one? Black hardware, matt black finish, charcoal guard. Silver knobs for contrast

 

[Tom0Blam0]

Cool score, the OLP's were good basses. Wish I'd bought one as I had planned then upgraded the pickup and made it active.

Actually looks kinda funky with the burn finish.. That pick guard has to go!

Why not go stealth on this one? Black hardware, matt black finish, charcoal guard. Silver knobs for contrast

Yeah the pickguard is nasty. It's covered in some gnarly paint. I already bought an all black guard from pickguard heaven.

Matte black is definitelly not a bad call. I've seen some pictures of a "murdered out" HH stingray that looks pretty awesome. I thought of white for a while as well. If I wasn't worried about botching the job i'd like to try a gold leaf finish like JIO does. Those always look amazing, but then again, he's a professional

 

[Microbass]

haha, could be cool!
I love the all black 'Rays... Black Perloid guard might be even better..

 

[Tom0Blam0]

haha, could be cool!
I love the all black 'Rays... Black Perloid guard might be even better..

I'm not a huge fan of black pearl, but I did find a method of finishing the body which might mean I don't have to wait very long at all to assemble this bad boy!

Speedball Black Guitar Finish

Good call on the flat black!

 

[Tom0Blam0]

I got a lot done this weekend. I spent a good chunk of Saturday sanding and sanding and sanding to get the body ready for a finish. I ended up using the India ink method. Ultimately I think it came out pretty good. I wish I would have used a stain as well as the grain did not get as much color as I would like. Likewise, I think I could have been a little more heavy handed with the ink, especially on the first application.

 

[Tom0Blam0]

Finished. I went over the body with a final round of 0000 steel wool and began assembling. I added copper shielding, but didn't bother to take any pictures. Likewise, the route for the pickup was not large enough so I spent a good hour or two with some files trying to get everything to fit. Once that was done, I assembled!

So, final verdict. The finish turned out pretty good. As I noted before, I wish I had been a little heavier with the ink, especially on the first go. I only had a little bit, so I was being careful but I think liberal use of the India ink is a safer bet. The good news is I think it still looks good as is, just not exactly what I had pictured in my head.

Other issues - I botched the wiring and given I have spent a good 2 days on this bad boy I'm going to have someone else look at it. electronics just aren't my forte. I'm also going to have someone set it up and then I should be good to go!

 

[MoeTown1986]

Nice work! Looks really good.

 

[Microbass]

Lovely!

 

[Tom0Blam0]

There were other pictures. I jumped the gun...

 

[Gilmourisgod]

I like it, a no-nonsense finish that’s easy to fix by just applying more ink. Does it come off in your skin by sweat? I assume a satin poly or similar overcoat would fix it in place permanently. Nice save, nice bass.

 

[Tom0Blam0]

I like it, a no-nonsense finish that’s easy to fix by just applying more ink. Does it come off in your skin by sweat? I assume a satin poly or similar overcoat would fix it in place permanently. Nice save, nice bass.

I put 3 coats of minwax wipe-on satin poly after the ink. So far nothing is coming off as I play it, but i haven't played a really long and/or sweaty session yet