Bassassin

[quote name='Musky' post='537321' date='Jul 10 2009, 04:54 PM']Any idea when the Grecos were being built by both FujiGen and Mat, Jon? Come to that, do you have any idea when Mat were using their different neck plate (Accurate Bolt On System, Adjustable Steel Neck and the ones saying just Made in Japan)?[/quote] It's hard to be completely certain about Grecos because these were predominantly copies, which tended to look quite similar! My inferences come from the catalogue scans on [url="http://psyco.jp/greco/cata.html"]this site[/url] & my worrying ability to ID certain JapCrap Rick copies from 100 metres. The very early catalogues show both Fujigen & Aria logos in their credits - fortunately in English! Kanda Shokai owns Greco & presumably contracted Fujigen directly & Matsumoku through Shiro Arai Co for the early 70s instruments. The catalogues show both Mat & Fujigen versions of 4001 basses up until 1976. The Mat copies were much more accurate, but the more ornate Fujigens sold at a higher price, presumably due to the extra bling! By around '76 the Fujigen design had been revised to be less inaccurate so it appears they dropped the cheaper Mat version because there was little distinction between the two by then. Beyond that point I'm unsure, although I've seen a Greco PB750 (P/J copy with unusual 16-pole J-sized pup in the bridge pos) with a '78 Mat plate. Mat plates themselves are confusing - it does appear they used various different styles & combinations of details at the same time. The classic pre '75 plate is the Steel Adjustable Neck/MIJ/Serial style - these go back to the late 60s (as far as I can tell) and early ones can sometimes read "Steel Reinforced", and one or other of the other bits can be missing. The serials are generally assumed to be random (twin-necks with completely unrelated numbers seem to bear this out) but of course might not be - maybe no-one's found the right enchantment yet... Anyway, to confuse things more, proper sequential serialisation seems to have appeared around 1975, along with Matsumoku-stamped plates. Original model Arias seem to have got Accurate Bolt Ons - but the different permutations still crop up. I've seen Westone Thunders with Steel Adjustable + sequential serial - and also with Mat plates & 2 different sorts of serial. It's horribly confusing & my head hurts and I'd like to claim my prize for Dull & Confused BC Post Of The Year. J.

Spartacus is probably right about the numbering - there was an odd period of Matsumoku using several different serial formats & this type appears to be the same as used by Fujigen, & therefore Ibanez. This is possibly due to the fact that Grecos were being built by Mat & Fujigen simultaneously, & both factories were producing some of the same models, so they kept the serial numbers consistent. Looks like some of the same plates ended up on other brands too. Simple, innit? I couldn't really guess at value but I'd have that for £70, no sweat! Jon.

You're expected to understand gibberish like "walnut blem-blem". You're expected to believe these aren't ten-for fifty-quid Taiwanese cheapos with zero quality control. Other than that it's a pretty nice-looking bass and probably great if you either have a massive lucky streak or get off on the element of risk. Jon.

[quote name='karlfer' post='536988' date='Jul 10 2009, 07:13 AM']THATS a challenge I shall look forward to![/quote] Look forward to it! Here's another Hondo, with a black refin that would probably scratch off in half an hour: [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&item=390066883099"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...em=390066883099[/url] This one uses the "R" word so will probably get pulled, contacting the seller to get their username is probably a good idea for interested parties. J.

[quote name='karlfer' post='535491' date='Jul 8 2009, 10:26 AM']Thanks J, in the process. So jealous of you, having a Kasuga. Still have photo on wall from 1980, brandishing mine at a 5000+ outdoor gig in Darlington. Had 3 real R's since, all long gone, but the Kasuga is still remembered as the best. Cost £110 on HP she did. Sold her in 85 to buy Gibbo Explorer bass. Happy days.[/quote] You missed a lovely Fireglo Kasuga a couple of weeks back - for some reason the listing's gone now but there are pics of it here: [url="http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=78514186083&ref=mf"]http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=78514186083&ref=mf[/url] You should put your pic from 1980 on there. Jon.

[quote name='spinynorman' post='536271' date='Jul 9 2009, 10:49 AM']Welcome back to the pick brotherhood.[/quote] You [b]never[/b] leave... :ph34r: J.

You can post pics if you save them on your pc and then upload them to BC as attachments. If the neck repair's good, the price is good too - a nice one of these can go for upwards of £500. The fact it has a repair probably means you have a bit of haggle-space too, you might get it for £250, in fact if it's a private sale, that's what the seller's probably expecting to get. Thumb rests weren't standard on these! Jon.

That's foul, even by Warwick standards. Jon.

Well - definitely no custom builds for me! At practice tonight I was afflicted with an horrific pain in the back of my right hand when playing - so I had no alternative other than returning to the pick. I was a little bit concerned that the subtlety & nuance of my playing would suffer as a result, but soon discovered that my bass parts require no subtlety whatsoever! It was surprisingly liberating. Looking forward to an hour and a half of plastic-fisted bludgeoning on Friday night then. J.

Not true - there are loads of people on here who appreciate the Matsumoku-built Arias form the 70s & 80s, and acknowledge their more recent output as decent budget instruments. I've had an Aria RSB-Deluxe 2 for years and also own a recent STB-GT and an AMB-50 acoustic - but I can't answer your IGB question & have no idea if £80 is a good price for one. For what it's worth the active pre on my STB is pointless & rapidly drains batteries when not in use, I'm going to bin it & replace it with a passive circuit, and replace the MM-type 'bucker with a beefier one with splittable coils. Jon.

[quote name='Snakeman1066' post='534372' date='Jul 7 2009, 05:45 AM']Still got her mate! Just not digging her clean tone.... here in the U.S. the split pick guard is less desireable to collectors than the one piece models......so they tend to be less expensive than the other models[/quote] Strange! Wonder why that is? As fas as I know, these were the very first 4003s, featuring revised truss rods. The rods adjust at the heel end which is why the guard 2-piece, I don't think they made them that way for long - so you'd think their comparative rarity would make them more desirable. Jon.

I did the tailpiece on my Frankenbugger Rick copy: [attachment=28390:fgtailpiece.jpg] This is what it looked like when I got it, on a different bass: [attachment=28391:mat4001orig05.jpg] Obviously a lot of the original plating was gone - as was some of the metal where all that weird oxidation & corrosion is. Some of this was taken back to the metal because the plating was half-gone, but a lot of the chrome was just roughened with wire wool to give a key for the paint. There's 4 or 5 coats of grey primer over the bare metal, and a subsequent 10+ coats of matt black over that. I left it for a fortnight after spraying before I fitted it - spray paint takes a long time to properly harden after initial drying. Because of all the layers of paint, I had to scrape it back to the metal inside the well where the bridge sits - it wouldn't fit otherwise. It's worth bearing in mind that nothing else is really in contact with this part - I think the paint would tend to flake on tuners or bridge saddles. Jon.

Since you're only down the road from the guy selling the Hondo, why not ask if he'd be OK for you to go round & have a tryout? He might well be prepared to do a cash deal off-Ebay, he plainly knows the problems that selling one can involve - I'm pretty sure this one's been on before & was pulled. J.

[quote name='BenK' post='531833' date='Jul 3 2009, 04:56 PM'][font="Century Gothic"][center] Dont know if i'm right here,but [url="http://www.curlymusic.co.uk/index.pl?browse=categories&id=281"]but these undbranded[/url] ones look like they came out the same factory. anyone know?[/center][right][/right][/font][/quote] There really isn't any way of telling, when you consider that every single guitar factory in China, Taiwan, Indonesia, Malaysia, Korea & probably every other country whose name ends in "a" will turn out thousands of P & J copies. I've no idea where SX basses are sourced from, and in fact I'd be very surprised if they all came from the same factory anyway. Finding a good cheap copy is pot luck, and it was ever thus. Jon.

Another vote for JD black nylon 1mm. Nice textured gripping area, plus a little bit of flex in the pick makes it slightly more expressive & subtle than rigid picks imo. .73mm grey Dunlops for g*it*r. Jon.

'Nother Hondo: [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/hondo-ll-classic-bass-copy_W0QQitemZ320393608190"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/hondo-ll-classic-bas...emZ320393608190[/url] Has this one been up before? Looks a bit familiar. J.

[quote name='molan' post='532942' date='Jul 5 2009, 01:05 PM']Here's the 'Sunbursy' listing [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Vintage-Sunbursy-Bass-Guitars_W0QQitemZ260440925098QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_Musical_Instruments_Guitars_CV?hash=item3ca37d23aa&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=65%3A10|66%3A2|39%3A1|240%3A1318|301%3A1|293%3A2|294%3A50#ebayphotohosting"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Vintage-Sunbursy-Bas...bayphotohosting[/url] And the great pic of a 'flying' bass (with washing line attachment) . . .[/quote] Funny thing is it's "sunbursy" in both the title & the text. It would be odd to make the same typo twice - what's he trying to say? Reminds me of a guy on the local Glumtree who keeps listing a pair of "Bass Pins" for sale! Jon.

I bought mine used so I don't know if they're supplied with instructions - however string spacing's really easy to adjust. The string sits on an insert in the saddle which is held in place with an allen screw - simply loosen the screw, move string/insert to desired place & tighten again - doesn't affect intonation or any other adjustment. J.

The good thing about the Hipshot (well, [i]one[/i] of the good things!) is that it has adjustable string spacing. Looking at mine, it allows about 2mm in either direction which will probably be enough to let you set it up the same as the original. Rockinbetters look like they have a conventional neck taper, rather than the near-parallel necks of real Ricks & vintage copies, so it would probably be better off with a wider spaced bridge, to stop it feeling cramped & odd up the dusty end. I suppose you'll have to wait & see. J.

I suspect it looks that way because plectrum-only players are in the minority - proportionately I bet the numbers are the same. Over the last 5 or 6 years I've gone from being a 99% exclusive pick player to probably 75% fingers - yet I haven't any particular urge for a custom build. I think that's because the idea of commissioning a custom is to have the one perfect bass built to fulfil every need - and in the last 5 or 6 years I've gone from having 3 basses to having more than 20 coming & going! Variety is the spice! Jon.

[quote name='teaser360' post='531391' date='Jul 3 2009, 09:03 AM']Thanks Jon, I was thinking the same thing myself, ive got myself a rockinbetter on the way and im going to rick it like Ians, not sure what pick ups im using yet, im going to put a hipshot bridge on it. Ive found someone close to who deals with hipshot, £105 new. i was looking at the pickguardian website and it has the templates on there so i will make some out of cardboard first and see where we go from there, it would be intresting to see a pickguardian though! in the flesh, that way i can see how they mount on a real ric. On the subject of pick ups the rockinbetter is fitted with 2 toaster style, what would you suggest to replace them? have a look at the customised ric in the picture! Recent Rickenbacker® 4003F with vintage 60's style guard and double toaster pickups. Vintage neck pickup position, neck to bridge pickup pickguard coverage and evenly-aligned knob placement. the bridge pick up would have to be moved towards the neck position, how much i dont know, might start practicing with the router ? lol when i pick up the rockinbetter i will post pics as we go along and put the pics on the rickenfackers page on facebook. watch this space! thanks for your help in advance tony by the time ive finished it it may be more expensive than a real ric lol[/quote] You'll be able to pick up a Hipshot for a fair bit less than that if you import from the US: [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/NEW-Hipshot-bass-bridge-fits-Rickenbacker-bass_W0QQitemZ260391767398"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/NEW-Hipshot-bass-bri...emZ260391767398[/url] Are you going to fit the Rick-style surround just as an aesthetic touch or will you be mounting the pickup the same way as a Rick's? There's a massive cavity under a Rick's surround which your bass won't have, so be prepared for some routing! I really don't know about pickups - there are Seymour-Dunk & Bart replacement sets or if money (and waiting!)'s no object, you could have real Rick ones. Apart from the occasional JapCrap copy set that comes up on Ebay, I don't know if there are any others. What are the existing ones like? I think the Toaster in the bridge pos looks quite cool in the pic. [quote name='jonsmith' post='531592' date='Jul 3 2009, 12:29 PM']The Pickguardian solution fits easily on the Rickenbacker, using existing screw holes and pickup height is still adjustable with the large screws, providing the rest of the pickup mounting (springs etc.) is retained. Not sure how those screw holes would line up on a faker - although I'm sure Bassassin could confirm. I'm sure Pickguardian would do one with the screwholes in custom positions if needed.[/quote] The old Jap copies weren't even consistent with each other, never mind Rickenbackers! You can't use a Pickguardian on one without re-drilling the bass and modifying the pickup aperture on the surround - which was why I ended up making my own. The Rockinbetter copy doesn't have a "proper" surround, the bridge pickup's mounted in a conventional small route, under what looks like a Precision type cover. You'd either have to do a lot of excavation to mount a Rick bridge pickup, or just use the surround as an aesthetic embellishment. Either way new holes will have to be drilled. J.

[url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=52689"]Belgium, man - Belgium!!![/url] Jon.