U.S. Peavey Club

[Brocephus]

Thanks again KB. I know he expressed confusion over my 7 digit number,saying it should've been fewer, and I'm pretty sure he said 5 (now that I think about it, I'm sure he did, because that coincided with a 5-digit number I'd seen while searching the web). He also said he thought Chinese manufacturing was most likely on mine, though he wasn't adamant and acknowledged it could be any of several countries, given Peavey's lack of complete,detailed records on the Asian guitars.
He also said these basses were made between '95 and '98, but I'd read on-line (FWIW) that they dated back into the '80s. Got any factual info on that?
And i just checked again, my ser # is in the low 6-million range, and that's on the neck plate, nowhere else. Any chance there'd be anything visible if I look under the PG and neck? If not, I guess there's no way to establish the country of manufacture? (none of this is really critical, of course, it's just for curiosity's sake).
Thanks again for taking the time to weigh in!

 

[Jeff Siddall]

View attachment 3544211
View attachment 3544209

Hmmm... the inside of the cavity looks stained brown, but not the rest of the body. Based on the wear patterns it appears there was some kind of film finish used on the visible parts. My Patriot appears to have only been oiled, and there is no sign of any other color in the cavities, so maybe they changed finishing process at some point. However, it does look like the wood could be mahogany. If you generally like the look of mahogany then I would sand it down and apply a tung oil finish. That should darken it and accentuate the grain and make it look more like what everyone things of as mahogany. If you like it then keep it that way, otherwise spray over with whatever finish you want. Good luck!

 

[Brocephus]

then I would sand it down and apply a tung oil finish. !

At the risk of offering unsolicited advice , I would recommend considering Birchwood Casey's Tru-Oil instead of tung oil.
(I was a tung oil fan, till I got turned onto this stuff by the pros at re-ranch.) While Tru-Oil is marketed as a gunstock oil, it's highly popular with guitar builder/refurbishers. I've used it many times, and I don't think i can recall another product, of any type, that I've been as satisfied with as this stuff, LOL! It's cheap as dirt, applies quickly and easily, it dries faster than tung oil, you can add as few or as many coats as you like, even several per day, and it's surprisingly easy to end up with spectacular results. The stuff is virtually foolproof.
https://www.amazon.com/Birchwood-Ca...DK6985E4GF6&psc=1&refRID=H3H684NPHDK6985E4GF6

 

[Cliff Colton]

Thanks again KB. I know he expressed confusion over my 7 digit number,saying it should've been fewer, and I'm pretty sure he said 5 (now that I think about it, I'm sure he did, because that coincided with a 5-digit number I'd seen while searching the web). He also said he thought Chinese manufacturing was most likely on mine, though he wasn't adamant and acknowledged it could be any of several countries, given Peavey's lack of complete,detailed records on the Asian guitars.
He also said these basses were made between '95 and '98, but I'd read on-line (FWIW) that they dated back into the '80s. Got any factual info on that?
And i just checked again, my ser # is in the low 6-million range, and that's on the neck plate, nowhere else. Any chance there'd be anything visible if I look under the PG and neck? If not, I guess there's no way to establish the country of manufacture? (none of this is really critical, of course, it's just for curiosity's sake).
Thanks again for taking the time to weigh in!

Have you considered changing to 4 new light weight tuners? Sell the 3 you have. Your milestone looks quite similar to the late 90s fury, with the milestone having 20 frets and a longer upper horn for better balance, and an extra screw in the pick guard which should help with the warping issue. When I saw your pic, I thought it was a fury and I wondered what happened the the serial number.

Btw: my fury has “1996” stamped on the neck pocket, but I’m not sure if the Asian models did that too. Also, I understand Sperzel makes light tuners which are direct replacements for the peavey tuners with no mods, but I’m not sure. I like your bass. Good luck with it.

 

[Brocephus]

Thanks Cliff, that ain't a bad idea, but I'm on a shoestring budget here, and especially don;t want to get more financially extended till I'm sure I'm really gonna stick with it, and as long as the factory tuners seem to work, (as they seem to, even with the missing screw), I'll try to stand pat.
BTW, here's a pic of my headstock. FWIW, it says it's a Milestone II, but you guys have me wondering.......

 

[Jeff Siddall]

At the risk of offering unsolicited advice , I would recommend considering Birchwood Casey's Tru-Oil instead of tung oil.
(I was a tung oil fan, till I got turned onto this stuff by the pros at re-ranch.) While Tru-Oil is marketed as a gunstock oil, it's highly popular with guitar builder/refurbishers. I've used it many times, and I don't think i can recall another product, of any type, that I've been as satisfied with as this stuff, LOL! It's cheap as dirt, applies quickly and easily, it dries faster than tung oil, you can add as few or as many coats as you like, even several per day, and it's surprisingly easy to end up with spectacular results. The stuff is virtually foolproof.
https://www.amazon.com/Birchwood-Ca...DK6985E4GF6&psc=1&refRID=H3H684NPHDK6985E4GF6

Well, Tom did sort of solicit advice so I say you should advise away!

I don't have anything against Tru-Oil, but as I understand it, it is basically a wipe on varnish. The finishes I have seen have all ended up glossy. If that is what you are looking for then perfect!

If you are looking for a more traditional low sheen oil finish then tung oil can do that. I am currently using a polymerized version which is available in high sheen as well as and a sealer that can be blended in any ratio to give the sheen desired. Being polymerized it dries quite quickly for an oil (a day or less):

Polymerized Tung Oil Sealer - Lee Valley Tools

You probably can't go wrong either way.

 

[JEDI BASS]

At the risk of offering unsolicited advice , I would recommend considering Birchwood Casey's Tru-Oil instead of tung oil.
(I was a tung oil fan, till I got turned onto this stuff by the pros at re-ranch.) While Tru-Oil is marketed as a gunstock oil, it's highly popular with guitar builder/refurbishers. I've used it many times, and I don't think i can recall another product, of any type, that I've been as satisfied with as this stuff, LOL! It's cheap as dirt, applies quickly and easily, it dries faster than tung oil, you can add as few or as many coats as you like, even several per day, and it's surprisingly easy to end up with spectacular results. The stuff is virtually foolproof.
https://www.amazon.com/Birchwood-Ca...DK6985E4GF6&psc=1&refRID=H3H684NPHDK6985E4GF6

Tru oil, diluted with mineral spirits IIRC, is what Lakland finishes their US necks with. I think EBMM uses the same exact process.

 

[JEDI BASS]

Tru oil can be buffed to a satin-y raw wood feel with something as simple as a paper towel, or applied in layers to give a gloss-like finish. I like both tung and tru oil.

 

[Chuck M]

Thanks Cliff, that ain't a bad idea, but I'm on a shoestring budget here, and especially don;t want to get more financially extended till I'm sure I'm really gonna stick with it, and as long as the factory tuners seem to work, (as they seem to, even with the missing screw), I'll try to stand pat.
BTW, here's a pic of my headstock. FWIW, it says it's a Milestone II, but you guys have me wondering.......

View attachment 3544542

I would take one of the bolts to a fastener store. I'm confident they could provide screws that would work. If they are a different color just buy 4 and change them all so they match. If you have a well established music store in town that does repairs they may have something in their parts stash.

 

[kodiakblair]

He also said these basses were made between '95 and '98, but I'd read on-line (FWIW) that they dated back into the '80s. Got any factual info on that?

Milestones were made in the 80's. They were guitars though not basses,even was a 12 string version.

BTW, here's a pic of my headstock. FWIW, it says it's a Milestone II, but you guys have me wondering.......

There's no wondering. It's an East Asian bass. The horns on the body are thicker than 2nd & 3rd generation Furys,also they don't have as much of a point as 2nd or 3rd gens.

 

[Brocephus]

Oh sure, I realized it was Asian-made, what I was wondering (along with the country of origin) is if the neck and body had been juggled up somewhere along the line (as seemed to be implied earlier, with comments that it appears to be a Fury rather than a Milestone II).
And here's an old ad I'd seen of the same bass I have, that the guy states is late 80's, and Korean made (and of course, I realize this is basically internet hearsay, and establishes nothing.)
Peavey Milestone II International Series, late 80's - Black

 

[kodiakblair]

(as seemed to be implied earlier, with comments that it appears to be a Fury rather than a Milestone II).

Steve (@ack) said it looked like a Fury and it does,a USA Fury that is Peavey did release Asian Furys but those were active so the passive P-basses like your's got the "Milestone II" moniker to avoid confusion. Further confusion is caused by Peavey also using "Milestone IV" for a passive P-bass and "Milestone 4" for their current PJ bass.

USA Furys

Korean Fury II


Peavey kept production States-side until 1994 so the guy claiming "80's Korean" is talking out his backside,. The company were pretty vocal about the move to overseas production so it's easy to verify this fact.

 

[Cliff Colton]

Here’s a pic of later model Milestone, and ‘96 Fury which resembles the early Milestone. I made a gripper truss rod wrench and was able to turn the nut, so I filed and crowned the frets today. Bass is under construction so pardon the mess.

 

[Brocephus]

Thanks again guys, I appreciate y'all devoting the attention to my humble recent acquisition !
BTW, I pulled the neck a little while ago, and there's no marking inside,at all. But I noticed the body is a laminate, (as in a 1.75 inch-thick slab of plywood, not the 5-6 pieces of real wood glued together, like on a MIM Strat). The guy at Peavey told me it would be poplar, but didn;t mention it being a complete laminate ( he may not have known).
Cliff, I notice your bridge has 4 screws, one in each corner, while mine has 5 screws in a straight line, running under the saddle screws. Yours also has 3 pickguard screws along the top edge, same as mine. The one in that old Reverb ad I posted above, shows one with 4 screws.
Now sure what any of that means, if anything, just some observations. I'm still curious to know my country of origin, but that may not be in the cards.
Anyway, thanks again.....

 

[Cliff Colton]

Thanks again guys, I appreciate y'all devoting the attention to my humble recent acquisition !
BTW, I pulled the neck a little while ago, and there's no marking inside,at all. But I noticed the body is a laminate, (as in a 1.75 inch-thick slab of plywood, not the 5-6 pieces of real wood glued together, like on a MIM Strat). The guy at Peavey told me it would be poplar, but didn;t mention it being a complete laminate ( he may not have known).
Cliff, I notice your bridge has 4 screws, one in each corner, while mine has 5 screws in a straight line, running under the saddle screws. Yours also has 3 pickguard screws along the top edge, same as mine. The one in that old Reverb ad I posted above, shows one with 4 screws.
Now sure what any of that means, if anything, just some observations. I'm still curious to know my country of origin, but that may not be in the cards.
Anyway, thanks again.....

How much does it weigh?

 

[Brocephus]

How much does it weigh?

It's pretty heavy by (regular) guitar standards, but it ain't a full-on brick,either. My cheap bathroom scale is showing about 8-9 lbs, which was what i was guesstimating.

 

[Cliff Colton]

It's pretty heavy by (regular) guitar standards, but it ain't a full-on brick,either. My cheap bathroom scale is showing about 8-9 lbs, which was what i was guesstimating.

Mine is 8.5 pounds on my broken bathroom scale. All my basses are 8.5. The weight feels the same as the fury. I think you’ll enjoy that bass.

 

[JEDI BASS]

8.5 isn’t heavy. 11.5 is... some say 10.5 is heavy. For me, anything below 9.5 is lightweight.

 

[Cliff Colton]

A heavier bass makes the neck feel more stable imo. It’s better.

 

[Chuck M]

A heavier bass makes the neck feel more stable imo. It’s better.

I have not found any correlation between bass weight and neck stability. I don’t know why there would be.