prowla

(I can relate to it!)

Some people are just plain backward.

It's got one rod. Yes, I was a bit aghast that the machines were gone, but the Schaller ones are Ricky-authentic and if I get a D-tuner it should be a 1:1 replacement. Turns out the headstock logo is just a computer printout on paper stuck to the back of a clear truss rod cover (the back of it had something else printed on it!), so I'll probably put that right. The bridge was a bit weird, looked like it was bent so that the tail-end raised off the instrument; I'm not sure if it can be rescued. I've put my spare Hipshot on though, which was the aim anyway. I've ordered a twin jack plate, so that should be a few days. On a second play, the neck is more curved than my Ricky's, bit it has a good feel to it. I'll have to search around for a treble pickup; there is a set of three Bartolinis on ebay (neck, treble and string damper!), but I might have to exercise restraint. I have got a spare Ricky neck pickup, but it's the 4-pole one from early 70s (I thought it was a toaster but remembered wrong). I also compared the treble pickup surround to a real Ricky and the Ricky's has more rounded corners, but the screw holes are identical. The body has a couple of dings, but I may just leave them. Hopefully yes, a relatively straightforward project.

Right - I'm now a paid-up member of the 'fakers club! I have a Diamond (nee. Aria) 'faker. It does need a bit of work on it:[list] [*]The treble pickup is pooped - the coil has come away from the base and the wires have snapped. I have a genuine one which I could put in, if I choose to. [*]It's not got a jack socket and the chap I bought it off has made a rather cack-handed attempt to cut out a second hole. I'll tidy that up and acquire a double-jack plate. [*]The wiring harness has no wires, so I'll need to re-wire it. No problem, as I was going to do that anyway along with twin jacks. [*]One of the knobs is missing. Easy enough to get. [*]The original truss rod cover has gone and it's got one with the "R" word on it instead. It's a bit of a shame not having the original and I'm not to struck on putting fakes of the real brand on. [*]The seller replaced the stock machines with Schaller ones, but chucked the originals. I'd have liked to have had the originals, just to keep, anyway. They have wider posts than the genuine ones. [*]No scratchplate & pickup bezel screws and no treble pickup mounting bolts & springs. (Easy enough to get.) [/list] The good stuff:[list] [*]The neck really feels like the genuine one; spookily so, even though it is a bolt-on. [*]It's got its bridge and dampers. [*]The Schallers are quality machines. [*]It's got the correct MIJ neck plate. [/list] So, I've got to acquire some parts to get it going.

[quote name='miles'tone' timestamp='1484387829' post='3215070'] Yes. The orange looks excellent btw. Like 70s Capri orange. If you do decide it's a keeper bass as it is then you could always get a new pickguard cut later on to hide the gap, but until you're sure what you want to do just colour the gap in and enjoy the bass. [/quote] I think you're right - Capri orange. https://youtu.be/XG9z0APkJWw?t=62 (That's one Ford I would like!)

[quote name='miles'tone' timestamp='1484379324' post='3215031'] I'd just colour the exposed area in with a black permanent marker so it doesn't catch the eye. [/quote] Yes, the thought had occurred. And leave the gap as-is?

I've seen one Fender Precision that I've liked; when I said to the bloke in the shop it looked nice he said "That's my one!" and I can't remember how old it is. I'm making one up from parts for the heck of it, but I can't say I've really aspired to owning one. I don't particularly get the 3rd-party super-Fenders; I think they should get a bit of imagination and do their own thing.

Have you been to the place in Farnham? Rubbish for parking, but a huge range from cheap to "significant" instruments. There's also Andertons in Guildford, but they really do new stuff and I got a ticket parking there over the holiday period. Bass Gear in Twyford sadly closed - I may have been their last customer at the shop, as I bought a cable whilst they were packing things into vans. They still operate mail-order, though. There's another place in Woodley, but it is a bit limited.

I might even get a plain body and finish it myself, like I did my Stratoblaster. The body was pale wood, but a can of dark oak stain from Homebase, along with a spray can of lacquer ant it's not bad at all. (The neck on that one is temporary too and I haven't put the Floyd-Rose locking nut on it.)

Thanks - I do plan to replace the body at some time (it is "characterful" though, but I think the colour does work, even if it probably came from a can of spray paint). Yes, I've got the neck sitting there disembodied now. Whereabouts are you (I'm in Berkshire, UK)? I've also got a logo transfer saying "Prowla" in the correct font.

Are there good Peavey basses? I've never been sure about them, but perhaps I've confused budget and high-end models. (Genuine question, BTW - I'm not dissing them and am prepared to be "informed"!)

Well, P-Bass pickups are humbuckers anyway. I think you can get Jazz replacement humbuckers, which wouldn't require surgery. An active circuit might be an option and cutting out a battery bay would probably be acceptable or even enhance the instrument. Before getting out your hammer and chisel, it might be worth seeing the character of the instrument itself; try playing your basses unplugged and see if they sound similar, to avoid trying to compensate with pickups for something which isn't there in the first place. An alternative to changing the bass at all would be to get a shaping preamp - I have a SansAmp and it is really good, for example to lift a passive bass to match an active one. OTOH, if you want to play and tinker with the bass, then go for it and have a blast!

So, a few months back I decided I'd like to make a bass up from parts and went off browsing ebay. Well, I spotted a Squier P-Bass with a load of extra parts and thought "that'll do!"; the body had been sprayed orange and the owner had then lost interest... So, I got it and assembled it, and it was OK. I then dug out some parts I had and put a badass bridge on it and a better (Shadow) pickup, along with wiring up the electrics and putting on some Straplocks. For the electrics I decided I might be chopping and changing a bit, so I put in small connectors rather than having to use a soldering iron all the time. Then someone at work said they were going to upgrade the neck on their fretless bass (with a Tokai body), so I had that off them; it's a Mighty Mite and is extraordinarily good. Now, if you are eagle-eyed, you'll spot something strange about the 1st machine head - I put on a D-tuner. So, now the only original bit left of the Squier is the body; I'll probably replace that too at some point, if/when the right one comes along. However, in the interim there is one small problem - there is a couple of mm gap in the neck pocket between it and the body and also a further gap to the end of the scratchplate. Any suggestions on how I might fill that, 'til I get a new body and/or scratchplate? I don't want to fill & re-drill the neck holes for this body, so that's not an option.

[quote name='Bassassin' timestamp='1484232950' post='3213790'] Never spotted that! Guess I could put up with just the 20, at a push... [/quote] That's my super master skills with Windows Paint! (The earlier picture I posted shows it as it is.) I think it is a shortcoming of the Ricky and they missed the opportunity to add more when they shifted the neck pickup back in the 4003 & Laredo. If I were to get a headless, I'd have as many frets as would fit there. The other thing about a headless is that I might not have it [i]look[/i] like a Ricky, so long as it [i]sounded[/i] like one, so I could maybe have a completely custom body, but it would probably have to be the same woods and through neck (with dual rods) and Ricky pickups in the correct positions. Graphite and brass hardware probably wouldn't work. I guess I'm taking a different angle on the faker there - most people seem to want something which looks like a Ricky, even if it sounds not quite right and plays different; I want the sound and the feel. On the flipside I am still planning to pick up the Japanese faker on the weekend, though we've just had winter arrive, so I'll have to see how the weather goes - it's a two and a half hour drive, so I need a clear run really.

[quote name='Bassassin' timestamp='1484178041' post='3213410'] Your '73 is pretty much my dream Rick - all the vintage bells & whistles (it's even a 21 fretter!) and that age-darkened Fireglo. Gorgeous. [/quote] Cheers! (Actually I added in the extra fret in the rather crudely edited picture where I chopped the headstock off...)

Yep - I'm chaning my mindset and plan to probably put the faker back to its original state (if I get the original machines with it). As for the real ones, I think they are the most stunning man-created object ever; one of mine is the '73 above and the other is this '64.

[quote name='Billy Apple' timestamp='1484119867' post='3212761'] There is nothing against Forum rules with posting a picture of a lovely JB bass. But to reference that it's for sale, the price and the location is. This may appear odd due to the volume of information available on the internets, but IIWII and if you require the reasons behind it all please feel free to contact John Hall at Rickenbacker. Now, how about a picture of a nice John Birch bass? [/quote] Sure - apologies again; I'm new here and hadn't really twigged. I do get what Rickenbacker are doing too and don't blame them either. I think it's terrible what's happened with Fender and transfers - there are so many forgeries about, so if Rickenbacker need to protect their brand then it can help the unwitting too. I've got two real Rickys and should be picking up my first 'faker on the weekend (unless the weather hits the UK roads). I view the fakers as a bit of fun rather than impinging on the true company's business. In the case of the John Birch, I think it merits as a guitar in its own right regardless of what it happens to look like. Anyway, it's great to have the forum and this thread and long may it live!

I'm sorry about that - I posted the white JB because it was a nice looking bass, not because of the sale per-se. I fully appreciate the stance; my bad!

So anyway, I've always had this hankering to have a headless Ricky. A bit of crude cut'n'paste for a rough idea... Whaddya reckon - might work? Heck, maybe a donor Ricky with a broken head might make a good base. I could otherwise experiment with body shapes or base it on a more modern Ricky where the neck pickup is further down, so the body could be shortened a bit.,.

[quote name='five-string.co.uk' timestamp='1484063996' post='3212353'] I really like Scott's comment at the bottom of the page..... [indent=2][color=#696969][i]"[font=Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif]I was waiting for the price to drop on these: 4K for a passive j or p bass with very little customisation has me going all kinds of "ehhhhh", considering you're in sadowsky NYC territory price wise. And leaving you space for a preamp is kind of like selling a Lamborghini with a big gap in the engine bay where the turbo would go. Man, drop the price by 2k, and outsource the labour to Japan, Ken Smith style. People can still "have" a fodera of company monitored quality. I think we all put the brand up on a bit of a pedestal, and this line feels like it's taking the piss a bit"[/font][/i][/color][/indent] [/quote] Following the car metaphor, to me these super P/Js are like buying a Lambo with a Ford body.

Well, I'm waiting to see what the one I'm getting is going to be like. It might be a hoot or it could be a pile of toot. I've always had a soft spot for the Shaftsburys. Another one I would like is a John Birch - I remember Carlsbro Sound having a green-black sunburst (greenburst?) one years ago. But they're really a good guitar styled like a Ricky, rather than a copy per-se.

I have an Affinity P-Bass; it cost me £50. It's now got a Mighty Mite neck on it (that cost me £50 too!). And a Hipshot D-tuner (yep, another £50). And a Badass bridge (I've had it many years, but it probably cost £50). And a Shadow pickup (that was less than £50). I'll probably replace the body at some point, and then it'll be de-Squired. I will then have all the Squier bits to put together and start again though... or I might sell it (for £50!).

[quote name='Harryburke14' timestamp='1483994638' post='3211855'] How much does your average rockinbetter weigh? Ive heard mixed reports about them being an anchor or being "a decent weight" [/quote] I have to say that I've seen the Rockinbetters and not been inclined to pick one up.

[quote name='Bassassin' timestamp='1483812854' post='3210359'] Thought so! And just to demonstrate that I know my Fakers, the one you're buying is a Matsumoku-built bolt-neck, which would (assuming you're in the UK) have likely originally been badged as Arbiter, CMI, Aria or Aria Pro II, amongst others. You'll find it has a neckplate stamped "Steel Adjustable Neck" with a random serial number you can't date it from. Shame it has Schaller tuners because that means the original Wavy Grover copies have been replaced. Not that there's anything wrong with Schallers. It may also have dual truss rods like a real Rick (which unlike a real Rick, should work properly) but not all Mat bolt-necks have them. I can tell all that from four little dots. [/quote] Yep - STEEL ADJUSTABLE NECK

[quote name='Skybone' timestamp='1483978563' post='3211632'] They used to, the BT 5 IIRC (or was it the BT6?) [/quote] It should be the 5, but it's not currently listed on their site.