I stupidly bought a 1973 telecaster bass that was essentially massacred when they put on a new neck and bridge. By the time I got my hands on it the neck needed replaced and so I bought a replica of a tele Pbass neck. The issue is the bridge is off centered and the dumb dumb made to many holes to set it correctly. Now I’ve been told I cannot move the bridge with messing up the intonation. Is it at all possible to move up or down even a 1/8 of an inch so that I can at least have a bass that is playable? I know I’ll never get money out of this thing, I just don’t want to be stuck with an expensive paper weight.
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Pictures would help but it sounds like you need to fill the extra holes (using wood dowels) and just re-install the bridge in the proper location.
Ouch! So there are a couple of options depending on your level of woodworking experience and tools. One is to dowel the holes as mentioned above. Better is to plug the holes with plugs cut from similarly grained ash (I’m guessing?). A third option is to route that section of the body away say maybe 3/4” or 1” deep and glue in some grain matched ash. If you’re going to paint the body a solid color you can be less picky about the grain match. The video below covers the third option.
If you are going to be hitting any of those holes when you reinstall the bridge, then use plugs, not dowels. Plugs are much stronger when screwed into.
So the issue I’m having is the original neck had a larger but length. So the original bridge that I bought that is a back feeder doesn’t match up with the B pass neck I put on. I could drop 1300 bucks and get a original neck for it but at this point that is not an option I’m not gunna buy a neck for more than I originally paid for the bass. And even if I did the value wouldn’t raise much since they don’t have matching serial numbers. So I’m thinking my Best net as of now is filling the holes. I’m not am experienced woodworker tho, so I’m extremely nervous to do much on this thing. I wish I could get specs for the original bass but fender is a bunch of buttheads and don’t keep those kind of records (according to the response I got from their support team) like I’m seriously sick that this beauty can’t play. I don’t plan on refinishing anything I just want it to be in working condition, and to be a reminder to really look at what I’m buying lol.
Why does not keep such records make the people at 7ender what you called them?
The information Amount is so small it could literally be housed in an excel database...I don’t think the term butthead is incredibly offensive to begin with, but Not even being able to provide a manual or a link was surprising to me.
Absolutely better to plug the hole than using a dowel but most people don't have the plug cutters. For DIY'rs, a good oak or other hardwood dowel will work fine . He's got a mess on his hands and just wants to get it in playing condition.
What specification do you need ? Are you trying to determine where to mount the bridge?
Yeah well I was originally trying to find the correct neck specs. The Pbass neck I bought according to the person that made it was suppose to fit this telewhich it does but now the strings don’t fit on the fret board correctly. The neck that was originally on there had a wider nut size and is why the previous owner changed the bridge and drilled to many holes. I requested the neck specs that worked best for it before I bought the first neck but they didn’t have any to give me. At this point I would either have to buy an original neck which is like 1300 or Patch the body and redrill Because both bridges I have are off center
And I did agree with you that dowels are an option. The problem there is that when you’re dealing with end grain (dowels) and side grain (the body) right next to each other and you are drilling between the two the drill bit can wander and now the holes are off again, especially if the OP doesn’t have a drill press, which I’m guessing he doesn’t. Another thing that’s helpful with this is hinge bits. They will automatically center on the holes in the bridge.
General Tools Hinge Bit Set (2-Piece)-290ST - The Home Depot
Who would I take this too then a woodworker or a guitar repair pro? I’d like to do it my self. I have drill, no drill press tho. Bench fees on top of actual labor I’d probably looking at an extra 300-600 bucks which I wouldn’t like to spend to have a professional do it. And with my experience it will take months to get back
Can you answer a couple of questions about these picture?
- What is the distance between the G-string saddle (as it is positioned now) and the 12th fret?
- Does the neck sit properly in the neck pocket (is it all the way down and all the way against the butt end of the body)?
You are having a difficult time because you are frustrated. Stop and think about this for a minute. Have any holes been filled? It doesn't look like it to me, therefore the original holes for the original bridge are still available. The original bridge was a five hole bridge plate like you have now, but only had two saddles, but that is a non issue you can ignore. So, you know the scale length is 34". get yourself some painters tape and mark 34" on the body (a piece of tape on either side of the bridge and mark 34" from the nut on both. Now remove the neck and bridge. One of the holes in amongst the clutter of holes is on center and at the correct distance. Find centerline of the body now and mark it. That line should run right into and through one of the various holes somewhere around 35.5 inches. THAT is the center hole for your bridge. So put a screw through the center bridge hole and place the screw into that hole. The holes that line up with the bridge plate are the other holes you need. Unless you have holes on top of holes identifying the correct holes should be pretty straight forward. Use toothpicks to mark the correct holes and remove the bridge. Now that the bridge is off use dabs of fingernail polish, paint or even an ink pen to circle the bridge holes you have identified. Now any holes that are near you bridge holes, say within the diameter of the holes, fill with toothpicks that are covered with glue and trim them flush. When done you will have five holes that are circled or otherwise ID'd and holes that are close by filled with toothpicks and trimmed flush. Now you can attach the bridge using the correct holes. Don't forget that neck can be shifted to either side after you have strung it up to get things centered.
The ability to skew the neck side to side is probably what caused the previous owner to try moving the bridge to start with. Even the square heel of a Telecaster can be shifted.
The ability to skew the neck side to side is probably what caused the previous owner to try moving the bridge to start with. Even the square heel of a Telecaster can be shifted.
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Turnaround
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You should fill out your profile. If we knew where you are we might be able to suggest a tech in your area that would do it faster for a lot less.
The neck does fit properly, but the nut size is to small for the original backfeed bridge The g string doesn’t even sit on the fret board with the original bridge the E string currently is way to close to the edge and the g string is so far about 1/2 inch off. The problem is the original neck was so wide that the dummy before me replaced it with out doing anything properly so now there are to many holes to mount it correctly. Hopefully the pictures help let me know if I need to retake any of them
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That neck and bridge combination you have now has been in use for almost 50 years. There is nothing wrong with the parts. The problem is in the assembly. Read post 15 (my last post) two or three times taking your time and walking yourself through the procedure. You'll get it.
EDIT: FYI Fender makes another neck that has an even narrower nut for use with that bridge. Leo started making that one in 1963, 57 years ago, and many players actually prefer that narrow neck.
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Remember that when the 3rd owners of Fender bought the company in 1985, they bought the IP rights to the name only.
They did not get the factory, tooling, machinery, records or anything else from CBS Fender, nor the original Fender.
No I understand that is the correct bridge and neck that goes together. That’s not the problem. The original neck and bridge was completely different. It was much larger near the head hence why the original parts(pictured) are to wide for a PBass neck. The problem is now that I don’t have the exact neck that was originally on there the holes the previous Owner put in was completely wrong making it impossible to place without hitting another screw hole.
