Hello,
Many of you remember when I created a thread a while back asking about how I could have my 65 P neck restored. The fretboard was separating and had minor (according to the luthier) cracks, oh and it had been dyed and unfretted LOL. Here at Bass4’s bass dungeon we prefer our vintage instruments to not be all bubba’d up, so I’m starting this thread to document my restoration.
First up is the body…
The body is a 65 P body identifiable by the fullerton hump, 60’s routing, and the fact it came with a 65 neck plate starting with L, grey bottom pups, and of course a 65 P neck. After I got most of the mold off I contacted MJT so they can strip and refinish it in Fiesta Red. I’m going to have them replicate all the honest wear that the original owner put on the bass, but without the mildew and crappy white fence paint (like seriously mojo aside this paint is just awful)
Next up is the hardware…
The hardware was rusted to crap and I salvaged what I could. As you can see above, the bridge was pretty crummy but I soaked it in wd40 for a couple hours and then hit it with ballistol. All the active rust was eliminated but the pitting remains. The D bridge saddle was frozen in time, so I replaced it with a new reissue one while still using the original intonation screw and spring. I did the same with the pickguard screws, neck bolts, and strap buttons, while crusty they are now clean(ish) and the active rust is eliminated.
Now for the neck…
The neck arrived with the board starting to separate with no frets. The board has some cracks in it too. With the helpful recommendations from TB members, I chose Jeremy Kirsch, aka Freekmagnet, as the luthier to take on the project. The plan is to have the neck refretted and for him to work his magic on the neck, so stoked! I elected to choose gotoh lightweight reverse tuners for this neck, as I really have had great experiences with them. I may consider actual pre cbs reverse klusons but they’re pricey, so it’s something to think about
As for the electronics…
The bass came with the original 1965 grey bobbin pickup. Pickup covers didn’t have the little divots on the bottom, so I know for a fact that they’re pre cbs. I sent them to Tom Brantley for a full rewind at the beginning of this month, so I should have it back within the next 2 weeks. I also have an original 1965 P bass wiring harness on the way, so that will be fun to have a 100% oem circuit under the pickguard.
As for the pickguard I’ve got a lavaguard P pickguard I will put on (look at my post history, I had it on a Riggio P copy) or maybe a relic’d mint guard. I would get an original but frankly the prices are ridiculous and I’ve spent some serious money on vintage fender stuff.
Should look like this in the end, but with the above mentioned wear patterns
Until I post again!
Many of you remember when I created a thread a while back asking about how I could have my 65 P neck restored. The fretboard was separating and had minor (according to the luthier) cracks, oh and it had been dyed and unfretted LOL. Here at Bass4’s bass dungeon we prefer our vintage instruments to not be all bubba’d up, so I’m starting this thread to document my restoration.
First up is the body…
The body is a 65 P body identifiable by the fullerton hump, 60’s routing, and the fact it came with a 65 neck plate starting with L, grey bottom pups, and of course a 65 P neck. After I got most of the mold off I contacted MJT so they can strip and refinish it in Fiesta Red. I’m going to have them replicate all the honest wear that the original owner put on the bass, but without the mildew and crappy white fence paint (like seriously mojo aside this paint is just awful)
Next up is the hardware…
The hardware was rusted to crap and I salvaged what I could. As you can see above, the bridge was pretty crummy but I soaked it in wd40 for a couple hours and then hit it with ballistol. All the active rust was eliminated but the pitting remains. The D bridge saddle was frozen in time, so I replaced it with a new reissue one while still using the original intonation screw and spring. I did the same with the pickguard screws, neck bolts, and strap buttons, while crusty they are now clean(ish) and the active rust is eliminated.
Now for the neck…
The neck arrived with the board starting to separate with no frets. The board has some cracks in it too. With the helpful recommendations from TB members, I chose Jeremy Kirsch, aka Freekmagnet, as the luthier to take on the project. The plan is to have the neck refretted and for him to work his magic on the neck, so stoked! I elected to choose gotoh lightweight reverse tuners for this neck, as I really have had great experiences with them. I may consider actual pre cbs reverse klusons but they’re pricey, so it’s something to think about
As for the electronics…
The bass came with the original 1965 grey bobbin pickup. Pickup covers didn’t have the little divots on the bottom, so I know for a fact that they’re pre cbs. I sent them to Tom Brantley for a full rewind at the beginning of this month, so I should have it back within the next 2 weeks. I also have an original 1965 P bass wiring harness on the way, so that will be fun to have a 100% oem circuit under the pickguard.
As for the pickguard I’ve got a lavaguard P pickguard I will put on (look at my post history, I had it on a Riggio P copy) or maybe a relic’d mint guard. I would get an original but frankly the prices are ridiculous and I’ve spent some serious money on vintage fender stuff.
Should look like this in the end, but with the above mentioned wear patterns
Until I post again!
