Paul S

More feedback for Andy. He came to my assistance when i cried for help in slimming down a neck from my Marathon bass. Perfect job. Once again a pleasure doing business.

Bought a pedaltrain mini from Matt - perfect transaction. Thanks!

And here it is, now fitted on the bass. Andy - you are a genius. [attachment=193940:marathonnewneck1.jpg]

[quote name='tedmanzie' timestamp='1433671131' post='2792891'] I had an old med scale Squire precision of similar era (84/5 I think) and changed pickups and all electronics and it sounded great (I stupidly sold it). [/quote] It still does, Ted, especially re-united with those old strings. Sorry, couldn't resist....

One band decided they wanted to play 'Can You Dig It' by the Mock Turtles. The first time I listened to it I thought the bassline was all over the place but when I actually got down to learning it everything neatly breaks down into repeated passages that aren't tricky at all. I think the slides make it sound more complicated.

Nice one, Mark - the condition is remarkable. Spot on in all respects - how they sound, weight and neck. I have a similar one (in much worse condition, really 'road worn') that early in life had been modded to a double pick-up by a luthier of some note Jim Cairnes. But it still sounds like a Marathon. The extra routing trimmed the weight down to 7.5lbs - unbelievably light for such a chunky bass. But the wide neck was an issue for me - Andy Rogers posted a diary on how he slimmed down a nos neck for me from 43mm to 38mm - I guess a slim neck should make it even lighter? [url="http://basschat.co.uk/topic/261486-slimming-down-a-shergold-replacement-neck/"]http://basschat.co.u...placement-neck/[/url] It should be arriving today so hopefully by close of play this afternoon I should have mine back in action.

[quote name='gary mac' timestamp='1433769697' post='2793762'] I find some disco lines a challenge, not so much because of any complexity but more the tempo and the octavingness [/quote] For the same reason 'Uprising' by Muse. One I have tried very hard to get right (and still struggle with by the end) is 'Keep The Faith', Bon Jovi. I play with a pick and have found making the fast changes between strings rather than just grazing down as a finger style player might just doesn't sound right. I sort of cheat and play it as a pull-off and hammer-on which is the only way I can get it to flow. But nailing the overall vibe of the bass line, nuances in how long the notes are held, getting it all to flow properly without derailing has been (continues to be?) a long process.

There's a body of one of these on eBay at the moment, finishing soonish. [url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Squier-Vintage-Modified-Jaguar-Bass-Special-HB-Body-Pickguard-/111681000260?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item1a00b4d344"]http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Squier-Vintage-Modified-Jaguar-Bass-Special-HB-Body-Pickguard-/111681000260?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item1a00b4d344[/url]

Vintage Modified HB is long scale. Active with single humbucker in Musicman position, though. Thomann were knocking out the black ones for around £120 a while back but they seem to have sold out.

Early Status Quo bass lines are pretty straightforward. More recent Status Quo bass lines are also pretty straightforward. As are ones from the middle era. With one or two exceptions, maybe.

Hi Ricky I believe the Shergold/Hayman are both an exact fit - see post #2 in this thread. The neck on mine was a Hayman neck. If you join up on the Shergold forum [url="http://www.shergold.co.uk/forum/index.php"]http://www.shergold.co.uk/forum/index.php[/url] and get in touch with a chap username 'Bloodaxe' on there - he had a very few nos necks. I think mine may have been the last of the fretted ones, I am not sure.

Totally brilliant work (again) Andy. Officially excited and impatient (even more so as I am away for a bit!)

Love the colour, Andy. Really looking forward to getting this back! Great, smart new neck on a beaten-up, cracked-lacquered body of a much-mojo'd Marathon body

Some magnificent and mind-boggling alchemy going on there, Andy - turning a totally impractical lump of thin wood into the owner's dream bass. I don't know how you did it - thinking outside the box doesn't seem to cover it.