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What to do with this bass.. (Squier P/J)

B

BlackFenderBass

Aug 9, 2009
178
1
#1
Hey all,
I have this old Squier P/J here:

Fy98o.jpg

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And I want to do something with it. Anything. I want to make it as original (tone and style) to a 60s era Precision as possible.. but I need suggestions. Right now I have no game plan. Go!
 
#4
Tort on black is just plane ugly IMHO, a black pick guard would really set it off. Especially if you put an ash tray and pickup covers on it. A Fender 62 P bass pickup wouldn't hurt either.
 
#5
Are you saying you want to remove the bridge Jazz pickup, put two controls on it and move the input jack to the pickguard? Also, that has a Jazz neck so you would have to buy a Precision neck to make it correct. If so, just go buy a Squier P bass, it is so much simpler and you won't ruin an nice Standard Model. Squier Standards are nice instruments, don't ruin it.
Rocky
 
#8
I just bought a very similar bass. Here's how a 13-hole Fender P pickguard fits it.

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Impossible to work it out without huge neck gap or routing showing, so it needs a custom jobber. I priced them out and they're almost what I paid for the bass, which was a pretty good deal especially when considering the fretwork the previous owner did. Maybe his is worth more than mine with the matching headstock, though.
 
#9
If you choose a black guard, nobody will notice the gap at the neck, because the body is black too!

I suggest just playing it as is. If you want the vintage vibe, buy a CV or VM precision and put pup/bridge covers on it. Or do what I did and build your own from parts! Let's you get exactly what you want in your bass at a lower price tag (if you wait around for deals and buy used) than a production bass that you don't get to choose what you get. Mines painted with lacquer, so it's doing the natural checking (because i'm dumb and left in my car on a hot day then brought it in an air conditioned building) and wearing (i sweat a lot!) giving it a cool vintagey vibe. You won't get that with a urethane finish unless you're really careless.
 
#10
Stilettoprefer said:
If you choose a black guard, nobody will notice the gap at the neck, because the body is black too!

I suggest just playing it as is. If you want the vintage vibe, buy a CV or VM precision and put pup/bridge covers on it. Or do what I did and build your own from parts!
Click to expand...

Rocky McDougall said:
Are you saying you want to remove the bridge Jazz pickup, put two controls on it and move the input jack to the pickguard? Also, that has a Jazz neck so you would have to buy a Precision neck to make it correct. If so, just go buy a Squier P bass, it is so much simpler and you won't ruin an nice Standard Model. Squier Standards are nice instruments, don't ruin it.
Rocky
Click to expand...


This is the advice I would follow, personally.

It's a fine bass "as is", if you want a 60s vibe get a Squier Classic Vibe 60s. I got one for $200 used and after a day of working on the setup it plays/sounds great with flats on it.
 
#13
This is what I did with mine. Not 60s at all but just wanted to share the experience of modifying it.

This was a project that turned out great but in the end, it cost me 3 times the original value of the bass. It became my favorite. Sounds and feels great. I kept the original pickguard, body and the neck plate. Here are the replacements parts:

1-Mighty Mite Jazz neck. The rosewood fretboard have been pressed another time, the edges sanded and the rest treated with Tung oil.

2-Hipshot tuners with drop D.

3-EMG X P/J. The body needed some modifications to make the pickups and the battery fit.

4-Babicz bridge. This is something I would recommend.
Great hardware!

Cheers
 

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