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Fender Bitsa Recipes - What's Yours?


Telebass
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Pictures not neccesarily needed! EDIT: But here's a couple!

[attachment=241660:20170326_154024.jpg]

[attachment=241661:20170326_154034.jpg]

Mine started life as a stock black MIM Standard Precision. It immediately gained a black/white/black pickguard, and a tugbar.

Around 2007 it acquired a 1994 USA pickup, to see what difference it made. Answer: not much.

Around 2010, the neck started to go bad. Eventually, the truss rod started to emerge from the back of the neck, so an Allparts maple black blocks and binding neck was bought s/h from BC and fitted. Lovely neck.

Early 2015, and a brand new American Special Jazz neck was purchased from The Stratosphere on Ebay. This was in response to owning an AmSpl Jazz Bass for a short while. Still didn't like Jazzes, but adored the neck.

A set of Hipshot HB7s with oval paddles, and the bass was complete!

As I type, it sits besidde me. It needs new strings, 3-year-old TI Jazz Flats just don't have the punch for a full on rock band, but I use it anyway!

What's your story?

:D

Edited by Telebass
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Mine started off as a Squier Jazz. It quickly became apparent that the neck was a lot nicer than the (plywood) body. I quite fancied a change and there was a P-shaped hole in my arsenal, so I mooched around on fleabay and picked up a solid wood no-name P body, a Wilkinson pickup, a cream pearl pickguard, a not-entirely-accurate ;) headstock decal and some stick-on vinyl pretend-pearl block 'inlays' for the neck. Add into the mix a beefy bridge and EMG 2-band eq from the spares box, plus a couple of evenings' work, and Bob's your auntie. It weighs a ton but it sounds amazing. I think the pickguard was the most expensive bit!

Edited by Rich
typo
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I've posted these before

The one on the left I bought like that: Warmoth body, John East pre-amp, Badass bridge, Status Graphite neck, 3 Schallers and a Hipshot D-tuner/eXtender, Schaller straplocks.

The one on the right I made up from parts: Squier body, Mighty Mite fretless neck, Shadow pickup, my wiring assembly (CTS pots, Sprague cap & Switchcraft socket), 3 Wilkinson & a Hipshot D-tuner/eXtender, Schaller straplocks. (I have a custom "Prowla" logo transfer for the headstock, when I get around to it.)



The one on the left has a fretless sibling too: Warmoth Body, Status Graphite neck, 4 Schallers, EMG pickups. I don't have a picture of it just now.

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Only got photos of my lot all together at the moment - the two Jazz basses are stock apart from KiOgon looms and a scratchplate change on LPB. Got a Gotoh 201 I bought here to go on the LPB.

The two Precisions are both kinda bitsas, I think - well, more of a body swap. The Black 'n' Maple started life with the fretless neck that is now on the CAR. The CAR had the maple neck which is now on the Black 'n' Maple. The CAR, apart from the neck swap is a stock MIM - but I've got a hi-mass bridge, scratchplate and KiOgon loom with series/parallel push pot waiting to go on it. The tuners aren't original but I have no idea where they're from. So does it count as a bitsa...?
The Black 'n' Maple - neck and body are both Fender MIM but, as mentioned, "mix and match". Scratchplate is frome elsewhere, the pickup is a Quarter Pounder from that I think I bought here. The bridge is hi-mass via eBay (all the black headed screws are also from eBay).

I'm new to Fenders ut totally geeking out on all the possible upgrades and the fact you can swap stuff around to build your own bass :D Too much fun - ought to actually play them sometime too...

[attachment=241978:basses-1.jpg]
[attachment=241979:basses-2.jpg]

Edited by anzoid
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After going passive and never being happy with a stock fender(even us ones) I've been using bitsa basses. Around 3 years now, bar a modulus I recently had.

All are a mix of Warmoth parts, some have the same neck on. Always use dimarzio model Js and Ps wired into Klogon looms too.
Had fully unique ones, the yellow Jazz the black Jaguar, too copies. The red is a 60's reissue style and my most recent is a Takeshi Ueda signature copy.

I'm just deciding on what to get for a spare bass right now too.

Edited by Prime_BASS
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  • 4 weeks later...

Great thread... may even get some ideas here.
Just on the drawing board at the moment, but I fancy a Nate Mendel... without the road worn appearance.
Thinking of getting a MIM candy apple red P bass, swapping out a black scratchplate for the original white and putting on a new bridge... probably a Babicz rather than a Badass.
I'd see how I got on with the stock pups, but I might consider something vintage (like 62s) rather than a quarter pounder.
... erm... not really like a Nate then but you get the idea. In reality, it would be very like the MIA P bass that I should have kept ten years ago.

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Here's my "bitsa"..... not quite finished yet......

Fender MIM body with MIM Rascal shortscale wide nut neck ( I have tendon problems with my left shoulder, so this is the neck I need)

Had to do a bit of work on the join, despite them both being MIM.

Hipshot Tuners on the way. Gotta move the bridge to fit the short scale. May put something better there.

I was gonna refinish the headstock in red, but I quite like the red/white/blue vibe.

I'll post another pic when it's finished :)

Edited by Root45
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This has been my main bass for a few years now. 2 piece swamp ash PJ body, oil & wax finished by myself.

Jazz width neck is from a seller in the Netherlands, I can't remember what they were called and can't find them on the web any more.

Bridge is the excellent Schaller 2000 (choose your string spacing !)

pickguard, tuners, knobs etc are generic. Controls are simply vol, tone and a 2 way switch between having both pickups 50% and the P pickup only, which are the only 2 sounds I ever need.

Strung with Fender 7250M 105-45 nickel roundwounds.

Weight is an extremely manageable 3.4 kgs (on my bathroom scales)

Edit .... forget to mention that the pickups are my secret recipe (which shall now be revealed to you !). A Tonerider jazz bridge pickup and a Wilkinson ceramic P pickup. These 2 together are awesome and ar my very favourite PJ mix (and happen to cost less than £50 together brand new). I have owned and tried a shedload of expensive PJ pickup selections and these truly are excellent - don't waste your money on boutique ones.

The very sad news is that I have just fallen in love with a Tune Bass Maniac I have just bought from Dandelion and this lovely bass has just been relegated to number 2.

Edited by hamfist
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[quote name='prowla' timestamp='1490435810' post='3265100']
I've posted these before

The one on the left I bought like that: Warmoth body, John East pre-amp, Badass bridge, Status Graphite neck, 3 Schallers and a Hipshot D-tuner/eXtender, Schaller straplocks.

The one on the right I made up from parts: Squier body, Mighty Mite fretless neck, Shadow pickup, my wiring assembly (CTS pots, Sprague cap & Switchcraft socket), 3 Wilkinson & a Hipshot D-tuner/eXtender, Schaller straplocks. (I have a custom "Prowla" logo transfer for the headstock, when I get around to it.)



The one on the left has a fretless sibling too: Warmoth Body, Status Graphite neck, 4 Schallers, EMG pickups. I don't have a picture of it just now.
[/quote]
And the green fretless...

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[quote name='Root45' timestamp='1492874962' post='3283830']
Here's my "bitsa"..... not quite finished yet......

Fender MIM body with MIM Rascal shortscale wide nut neck ( I have tendon problems with my left shoulder, so this is the neck I need)

[/quote]

Will this intonate properly with a short scale neck on a standard scale body? Surely the bridge will have to move?

P

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[quote name='hamfist' timestamp='1492937642' post='3284173']
This has been my main bass for a few years now. 2 piece swamp ash PJ body, oil & wax finished by myself.

Jazz width neck is from a seller in the Netherlands, I can't remember what they were called and can't find them on the web any more.

Bridge is the excellent Schaller 2000 (choose your string spacing !)

pickguard, tuners, knobs etc are generic. Controls are simply vol, tone and a 2 way switch between having both pickups 50% and the P pickup only, which are the only 2 sounds I ever need.

Strung with Fender 7250M 105-45 nickel roundwounds.

Weight is an extremely manageable 3.4 kgs (on my bathroom scales)

Edit .... forget to mention that the pickups are my secret recipe (which shall now be revealed to you !). A Tonerider jazz bridge pickup and a Wilkinson ceramic P pickup. These 2 together are awesome and ar my very favourite PJ mix (and happen to cost less than £50 together brand new). I have owned and tried a shedload of expensive PJ pickup selections and these truly are excellent - don't waste your money on boutique ones.

The very sad news is that I have just fallen in love with a Tune Bass Maniac I have just bought from Dandelion and this lovely bass has just been relegated to number 2.
[/quote]

That......is bloody gorgeous.

Mine will be done end of May/beginning of June, but I will warn you....it IS pink.

Ideally it would have a sexy natural wood finish like that, though.

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[quote name='philw' timestamp='1492953290' post='3284321']
Will this intonate properly with a short scale neck on a standard scale body? Surely the bridge will have to move?


[/quote]

As I said in the quoted post - yes, the bridge has to be moved :)

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[quote name='Root45' timestamp='1492991268' post='3284717']
As I said in the quoted post - yes, the bridge has to be moved :)
[/quote]

Just goes to show how closely I read things! Remind me never to sign anything without having somebody else read it first.

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I have several bitsas, but the one that sees more live action is:

- Fender Highway 1 P-bass body finished in nitro black
- All Parts J-Bass maple neck with cream blocks.
- Fender tuners.
- Dimarzio pup.
- Kiogon loom with series/paralel.
- Badass II bridge

Killer bass with piano-esque sustain.

Bitsas are amazing when they come out right, I have tried combos that just didn't work for me.

Edited by Byo
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