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I guess if these have worked properly for the past 25 years, then there's no reason why they wont work for another 25 years.
Wow....those logos are awesome!
You said it! they are great pickups...unique sounding and surprisingly quiet.It ain't the wiring it is all about the Super Ferrites!
I used to have a 93 Foundation, it had stamps in the neck pocket and behind the neck plate. Seems they are production or part numbers. There is that sticker under the neck plate. That seems to be a lot # for batches of bodies. My 93 has an inspection stamp and that silver sticker that lends a 'made in Korea' vibe. I assume the bodies were made there at this time as a cost saving measure..? I have seen very similar stamps and stickers on Korean made instruments from this era.
I'll mirror the sentiment that there is no need to change the pots and caps unless they don't work properly or you want to change the value or taper. The 90s pots are imported pots (which I also believe was a cost saving measure), but still the larger 25mm size. What I really like are linear taper volumes in Foundations/Jazz basses. This allows much better blending of the pickups as the usable range for fine tuning the blend gets much wider. The 84 & 85 have audio pots all around, but I think I remember the 93 having linear volumes from the factory. I do believe that is what I see with your pots, too. Linear volumes, audio tone.
I honestly would like to think that the body,neck are American made, along with that great sounding SF pickup. I would agree with you that perhaps the pots,tuners & other hardware "may" be outsourced, to keep the price competitive with other basses from the early 90's. It was nice to see another Foundation with the same amount of holes drilled even though, your ink stamp is easier to read than mine & thank you for the information regarding the pots and caps of both 80's & 90's versions enjoyed reading that. With all the replies I have had I am going to leave my Foundation stock so thank you gentlemen for all your advice it was appreciated.I used to have a 93 Foundation, it had stamps in the neck pocket and behind the neck plate. Seems they are production or part numbers. There is that sticker under the neck plate. That seems to be a lot # for batches of bodies. My 93 has an inspection stamp and that silver sticker that lends a 'made in Korea' vibe. I assume the bodies were made there at this time as a cost saving measure..? I have seen very similar stamps and stickers on Korean made instruments from this era.
Lots of extra holes and such in the neck pocket area. I assume they were there for manufacturing processes and painting, where stick is screwed or a hook or pin is often inserted through the neck pocket to hang it in the spray booth.
Take note: the micro tilt screw is off center. The neck lined up perfectly, but the micro tilt kind of skewed the angle a bit. I had to tighten the neck screws in a certain order for it to all align properly.
I'll mirror the sentiment that there is no need to change the pots and caps unless they don't work properly or you want to change the value or taper. The 90s pots are imported pots (which I also believe was a cost saving measure), but still the larger 25mm size. What I really like are linear taper volumes in Foundations/Jazz basses. This allows much better blending of the pickups as the usable range for fine tuning the blend gets much wider. The 84 & 85 have audio pots all around, but I think I remember the 93 having linear volumes from the factory. I do believe that is what I see with your pots, too. Linear volumes, audio tone.
I also prefer a tone cap around .047uF. My 84 has one that I installed, the 93 had a factory .047 as does your 92. The fretless 85 has a .022uF. I tried stacking another .022 on the 85 (for a .044uF), but in the end preferred the more midrangey/enhanced mwah tone of a rolled off .022 for fretless. That may be a fretless thing from the factory, as the solder joints all look original. The 84 and 85 have .001uF treble bleeds on the volumes, my 93 didn't, nor does yours.
The 90s bridge is also more import looking with the standard size barrel saddles on the square bent plate. The strap buttons were also a touch thinner than the 80s. The 80s metal P knobs are way more stylish vs the 90s chrome domes or the the late 80s speed knobs, haha...
These are all minor things, it's all about the Super Ferrites and that killer neck!
