Grangur

I had a Warwick with a twisted neck and wrecked TR. I took it to a luthier who removed the fretboard, un-twisted the neck, replaced the truss rod (I supplied this), and refitted it all. Total cost £100. So don't despair, it's not too expensive if it does go to the worst. Let me know if you'd like luthier's details.

Speaking as someone with a fist-full of Warwicks ("The Sound of Wood"... etc, etc) They all have different wood and the do all sound different. There are a few similarities in tone I've noticed that would indicate that tonewood can have a small influence. All that said, IMHO the main affecting things are: Fingers/attitude, amplification, pickups, set-up, strings age, strings type, bridge, nut (open notes only), neck-wood, body-wood.

The volume from the split-coil pickup on any PJ is massively bigger than the J pickup. I have also changed the split-coil on mine. There is so little copper on the Squier pickups they hardly weigh anything. So I changed for a Jess Loureireo hand-wound Classic P. It's a fantastic improvement.

Aside of all the tonewood science, a change in the finish of the bass will change how the OP feels about the bass and so this could create a change in his attack with the fingers.

I like linear 250k ohm pots. I too have a Squier PJ and looked at upgrading the pots to "normal" sized ones, but I'm sure they won't fit in the body recess. What's worse is I think the pick guard isn't big enough to cover the cut-out if I did rout the hole bigger.

Yes, this happened to me with a set of Elixir strings. The problem sorted itself and went away after a few days.

Anyone else interested, can get a brand new air brush from Aldi for £65 https://www.aldi.co.uk/workzone-airbrush-compressor/p/083261211637200

Stanley do knives with snap-off blades, and replacement blades. We save all our scrap metal in something, then take it all to the council tip when we go. https://www.uktoolcentre.co.uk/products/stanley-tools-sm9-snap-off-blade-knives-9mm.html?SID=775115&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI8py4leSw2wIVhOcbCh1PQQBMEAQYGCABEgLeqfD_BwE#

My Bro-in-Law is a pro Cellist and teacher. He's tried to give me lessons, but I'm concerned about the tuning in 4ths as well. Some bassists manage it though: Also, to get a decent cello you need to fork out so much more!

@Andyjr1515 , in the other thread you say: I hope you've at least moved on to disposable blades and not generating plastic waste these days!

WD Music are good. https://www.wdmusic.co.uk/hardware-parts-c1 It's all looking really good. Watching with interest, although I'd agree with @Jabba_the_gut, I like the natural look.

Just arrived on this thread and, as you havent started: If you want a split-coil tele-P pickup. Jess Loureiro would probably make one for you. He hand winds and his pups are amazing. http://jlguitars.eu/shop/index.php?id_product=25&controller=product&id_lang=4

@FishmanHave you removed all the lacquer? If you have, then knock yourself out; use any finish you like. If you still have some lacquer there, then an oil finish won't go so well over lacquer. What would be better would be to spray the back with a semi-matt finish lacquer. The reason gloss finish lacquer sticks to your hand is friction. Semi-matt has an uneven surface and this stops the friction; like roughing the surface with a scotchbrite does too.

Hi Jack, T-Cut used to work on old cars to remove cloudy paint when the paint was all there was on the surface and we used to use T-Cut to remove the top layer. These days cars and basses have 6 tons of lacquer over the colour and you would need to remove all the lacquer to touch the paint. @Andyjr1515 is right about the damp. Milky finish is known in the spraying business as "bloom". It happens when you spray when the booth is too cold. A spray booth needs to be kept warm, so the humidity stays suspended in the air and not condense on any cold surfaces. A good French-polisher guy would be able to deal with it for you. I used to know a guy who did this on coffee tables by pouring on thinners, or something like, and setting fire to it. BUT DON'T DO THIS AT HOME!!!

To my shame I've done a few decals. I've always done it on bear wood and not had any problems. First you need to find out if the decal has been lacquered before you start. Waterside material, if not lacquered, will totally disintegrate in water. So, ask the question of the supplier if they don't make this clear in the instructions. When you soak the decal, don't be in a rush to get it out of the water too quick. You need to get it so the decal slides very readily off the backing. Then wet the headstock and slide the decal into place and gently dab the water away. Don't mess about with it. Get it in the position. Smooth out any bubbles and get the water off and let it dry. If you rush it too much and don't have the decal soaked enough, when it's dry and you're applying lacquer to the headstock, you'll almost certainly find the decal has a milky look. When it's dry, spray it with a few coats of clear lacquer. When it's had a few coats and dry, get some fine wet & dry paper and sand the edges of the decal to remove the ridge. Then, when dry again, spray it some more.

The worst thing about filing a nut is the crazy-high cost of nut files. Also, don't do what I did; file like crazy, then find you made the slot too low/wide.

Always intrigued by the vast numbers of people who sell basses who claim "I know nothing about Bass, but owned it for years". Also, the people who're selling a bass that "a mate left it here and never came back to collect it". Sounds like an independent "Crack Converter".

My brain aches. Think the only answer now is to build my own. All I need now is a door and a shelf, I believe.....

Que? I may know how to pronounce "Fender", but I'd prefer to have a well made bass, even if I'm unsure how to pronounce the brand name. (Not meaning Ibanez.)

It is, of course, possible the tilde on the "n" may have been dropped for selling in an international market.

So a predecessor to the Jazzman then? Cool. I had wondered if the pickup was the original. Thanks for the info. Welcome back.

I know this shows I'm tight, but it would bug me to buy a bass for a treat for my 50th, in the full knowledge that as I walk through the door it's value drops about 50%. For that reason I'd probably look out for a used bass I've always wanted. Each to their own. Some get a kick out of the smell of new paint I guess.

IME the reason can be that they're tossers from the record company. They don't pay to be there and it's all about networking to get on in the business... or so I believe. If I'm right, then I guess in their circles it's cool to not give a jot about seeing Clapton, for example. It's better to say, "Clapton, oh yeah, 15 times now. His 60th birthday party; you should have been there..."