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Epiphone Powerbass project


Stefanogregori
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Hi all,

Below you will see some pictures of my first ever bass, a Gibson Epiphone Powerbass. I am ashamed of the condition that I have let it get into. It needs a new nut and a replacement saddle for the bridge. The electrics need a good clean but apart from aesthetics, that is all that really needs doing. The strings are dead but it still sounds pretty good through an amplifier so I am going to keep the pickups for now.

The neck is particularly nice to play.

I have had it for over 20 years and have been meaning to restore it for some time but now is the time for action! If anyone is interested I will post pictures of progress as I go.

Cheers

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Ok, so I took the bass apart so it could be prepped for painting. You could say I was disappointed to find it is made of laminated wood! However, I am not going to let this stop me as I thought it sounded OK before I knew this fact!

I managed to find a replacement for the bridge. It is not a direct replacement so I need to choose whether to use just the saddles or the whole of the new bridge. This may effect my choice of colour for the body-any suggestions?

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[quote name='Stefanogregori' timestamp='1438693233' post='2836429']
Ok, so I took the bass apart so it could be prepped for painting. You could say I was disappointed to find it is made of laminated wood! However, I am not going to let this stop me as I thought it sounded OK before I knew this fact!

I managed to find a replacement for the bridge. It is not a direct replacement so I need to choose whether to use just the saddles or the whole of the new bridge. This may effect my choice of colour for the body-any suggestions?
[/quote]

Black and gold, didn't do the JPS Lotus any harm... ;)

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I wouldn't worry about laminated wood - it's in good company:


[url="http://www.kubicki.com/about.php"]http://www.kubicki.com/about.php[/url]


(The above is on a martin acoustic: [url="http://unofficialwarmoth.com/index.php?topic=20216.0"]http://unofficialwarmoth.com/index.php?topic=20216.0[/url] )

And most importantly:
[IMG]http://i1266.photobucket.com/albums/jj529/blablas/mk4/mk4-12/DSC_9398.jpg[/IMG]

[url="http://basschat.co.uk/topic/240945-de-afwerking-mk4-4-blablas-has-that-building-itch-again/"]http://basschat.co.uk/topic/240945-de-afwerking-mk4-4-blablas-has-that-building-itch-again/[/url]

My objection to laminated wood is the look and weight tends to be a little busy for me.

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[quote name='Stefanogregori' timestamp='1438805798' post='2837621']
. . . It did sound fairly resonant . . .
[/quote]

[quote name='Andyjr1515' timestamp='1438843642' post='2837821']
. . . nothing wrong with laminated wood for tone . . .
[/quote]



Wether wood makes a difference to tone (as far as wood species is concerned) is open to interpretation. What is for certain is You can get decent laminate acoustic instruments (up to and including contrabasses) so I can't see it being a problem on electric ones.
I agree with you, Andy1515, that laminates tend to be heavier (with all that stabilizing glue) - but with careful design it can be overcame. Like carbon graphite instruments - the laminate can be a skin and the inside can be filled with something stiff but very light. I think the Danelectro Longhorn is built using a similar concept - but I could be wrong.

EDIT: More on topic, black and gold can look great IMO:

Edited by PlungerModerno
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  • 1 month later...

It's been a while but finally have it sanded down. Just needs a little filler here and there and then it's ready to paint. Have found a product called 'Brass Black' which will turn the saddles black if I want to do that so that opens up colour options for the body. I will post more pics when I have more progress.

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  • 1 month later...
  • 4 months later...

[quote name='PlungerModerno' timestamp='1447913155' post='2911376']
Tis coming along - but it's not quite ready yet.

You stated: "Is there any paint that would withstand strings being pulled through them?" I doubt any normal paint would hold up long term. Most plating will tend to wear away after years of use. Maybe an ultra hard enamel?
[/quote]

Thanks, I'm thinking I may just leave them as they are!

Edited by Stefanogregori
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To be honest I'm not sure! I went to Halford's with the guy who sprayed it and picked out 'Ford metallic graphite grey' car spray paint as a colour so he had an idea of what I wanted. He said he was going to mix up a paint close to it and this is what he came up with.

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