Well, after 8 days in the hands of UPS, the package arrived. My heart kind of sank when I saw the box. Either they sent the wrong instrument or the box was way too short - it was an Epiphone GUITAR case box for a 24 3/4" scale instrument. I figured there was either a guitar in there or a damaged bass.
When I opened it up I discovered only minimal packing material around my old bass and the box was actually shorter that the bass. It only fit because the top and bottom flaps were bulged out. Since I don't have closeups from the store, i don't know if the bit of damage down near the bottom strap button is new since they shipped it. I bet it is seeing how there was not really any protection down there, just a bit of bubble wrap.
I would like to thank Daddy's Junky Music who have again lived up to their name. They charged me $40 to pack and ship this bass. The actual shipping is about $23 so for the difference I got a really crappy packing job in a too small box with not enough used bubble wrap. End Rant... Roll in the thumbnails - click for the big pics
The Rundown:
OK. I am happy to see this bass but it is going to be more of a project than I thought. It feels as right in my currently useless hands as any bass could. This bass has taken a bit of a beating since I last saw it, though it still looks quite good. The spot that I am sure is shipping damage bothers me too.
It may have been stored in a basement next to someone's furnace or something but it somehow has developed a bit of fret sprout. if it had any at all before, you could not feel it when you ran your hand up and down the neck. Now you can and there is much more visible finish cracking at the fret ends. The nut got banged up a bit by someone.
It has been restrung with beat up used strings. When I let them down to start cleaning things, I could see bends where they had crossed another nut. The setup sucks and one end of the 9th fret may be up a little bit. Action is way too high at the octave .Aside from the fret sprout, the neck itself looks ok THANK GOODNESS.
There is a tiny bit of finish cracking near the neck pocket that was not there before. One knob is now mismatched and the pot under it has been changed. May not be worth opening up the cavity till I am ready to rewire because I'm sure it is a mess - it was before. It still needs a bridge.
The worst thing is that the bass is dirty and it stinks, mostly of Old English Furniture Polish which I react to quite badly. I need to wear a mask with a carbon layer in order to be in the room with any bass that I have encountered since my illness became worse but this bass is tough to be around even with the mask on. I had to bag it up because it was not enough to just keep it in the unused room. It made the whole place stink.
Any cleaning suggestions will be helpful. If I use the right mask and work a little at a time with ventilation, I can get away with a little alcohol to start. The good thing about alcohol is that it evaporates well and does not leave much behind. The bad thing about it is it can dissolve stinky stuff and drive it deeper into unfinished surfaces like a fingerboard. I may try a bit of peroxide. That has worked for some things.
Anyway, I will see the doctor next week about my hands. I am still a month or two away from trying to play. I thought it would be sooner but progress has been slow.
THANKS TO ALL OF YOU WHO HAVE SHARED YOUR THOUGHTS AND KINDNESS.
Susan
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