Prostheta Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 What clear/lacquer are you guys using as a replacement? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Norris Posted May 11, 2015 Author Share Posted May 11, 2015 [b]Respray Time[/b] Unfortunately I haven't any photos of the glue repairs that Andy had to do. As I mentioned there were a few cracks to deal with. Anyway having spent ages with paint stripper, scrapers and lots of sanding it was time to respray. The lacquer that was stripped off was honey in colour. I'm not sure if it started out that way or was originally clear in the days before the smoking ban! But having seen the gorgeously blonde wood while 'naked' I decided on a clear gloss to try to keep it as light as possible. Some of the photos here make it look a little dark, but it has actually kept a lot of the lightness. Anyone for a bit of Nitrocellulose? (That's Andy ) Who's a shiny bass then? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Norris Posted May 11, 2015 Author Share Posted May 11, 2015 [b]Where There's Muck There's Brass[/b] The hardware that came off the bass was pretty grimy. Andy took his dremmel to the brass bridge, nut and back covers. The chrome tuners were beyond saving. I never really felt that the brass/chrome combination worked, and much as they are derided by many, it was time to [i]bring on the bling[/i] with some new [color=#ff8c00][b]gold-plated[/b][/color] Grover tuners (144G). But you don't get to see them just yet (mwahh-ha-ha) Starting to look a little better - and that last photo even has the original overlay for the controls Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3below Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 An excellent restoration, always wanted one of these at the time, seeing this one brings back memories of youth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
White Cloud Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 Such a beautiful job....I love seeing old classics brought back to life. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Norris Posted May 11, 2015 Author Share Posted May 11, 2015 Now the issue is, that having re-assembled the bass the electrics need sorting. The output was very quiet... too quiet. So I don't want to post any photos that make it look finished until it is. But to bring you nearly up to date, I got a meter on the pickup and couldn't get a reading. Both coils seem to be open circuit. I fetched it out of the bass to measure again - still no good. Having read a fair bit of the internet, it seems it is not uncommon on these old basses. Anyway that's for a future post Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HowieBass Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 That resprayed body looks immaculate! Fantastic work! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annoying Twit Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 [quote name='Norris' timestamp='1431358495' post='2770434'] I wish I'd taken photos with the old strings on. You can probably tell how bad they were from the state of the case lid. They were twice the normal gauge from all the rust. What you probably can't see on the photos are the cracks that had to be glued. Mainly around the knobs, switch and socket, but also quite a nasty one on the top half of the body where it had started splitting along the grain of the wood. [/quote] Generally it didn't look too bad. Except for those frets! It's looking fabulous now. Ditto on old classics being brought back to life. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AntLockyer Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 What strings are you going for? Seeing as I'm keeping mine now I thought about treating it to some new ones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Norris Posted May 11, 2015 Author Share Posted May 11, 2015 It's got a new set of Ernie Balls on at the moment - which is all I've ever used on it. However I'm trying out some D'Addario Prosteels on my Ric... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AntLockyer Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 Something in the back of my head says I have to use rotos on mine. http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTYwMFgxMjEx/z/Jf4AAOxynRRSRQge/$T2eC16hHJIUFHHV(h+OIBSRQgWpTs!~~60_3.JPG Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Norris Posted May 11, 2015 Author Share Posted May 11, 2015 I tried a set of rotos once 30 years ago. They lasted for 2 weeks before they went dead. EBs ever since. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloodaxe Posted May 12, 2015 Share Posted May 12, 2015 (edited) I **think** Rotos were fitted when new - if not then some other stainless roundwounds with red silks. I gave up on those many years ago & went over to EB Hybrid Slinkys (45-105 Nickel) and then Hartke 45-105 Nickels. Can't seem to get the Hartkes in the UK any more, so I've gone back to Rotosound, but opted for the RS-55 Ground/Compression wound sets (green silks) on my SB-1000 Fretless & SB-900 fretted. Love them. Smoother than rounds, but with enough 'tooth' to avoid friction burns that flats give me; kinder to the fingerboard than rounds (& to frets); really long-lived (3 years & counting on the fretless), & they sound great to my ears - probably not what you want if trebly slap is your thing, but they seem to work well with the mid-hump of the MB pickups & poke nicely through the mix. Only downside is the price - around £27-28/set Ant... if you want a go on the groundwounds, I'll take the SB-900 to this month's Pelton Jam (BH Sunday). Pete. Edited May 12, 2015 by Bloodaxe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colonel36 Posted May 12, 2015 Share Posted May 12, 2015 [quote name='HowieBass' timestamp='1431372390' post='2770680'] That resprayed body looks immaculate! Fantastic work! [/quote] Indeed it does. This just keeps getting better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PlungerModerno Posted May 12, 2015 Share Posted May 12, 2015 Exquisite! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AntLockyer Posted May 13, 2015 Share Posted May 13, 2015 [quote name='Bloodaxe' timestamp='1431406559' post='2770887'] Ant... if you want a go on the groundwounds, I'll take the SB-900 to this month's Pelton Jam (BH Sunday). Pete. [/quote] I should be able to make it thanks for the offer. I played with Dennis a couple of weeks ago, great fun. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich Posted May 13, 2015 Share Posted May 13, 2015 What a lovely instrument, and a superb restoration. I had an aching desire to own one of these back in the day, and it hasn't diminished over the years. Following this with interest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Norris Posted May 13, 2015 Author Share Posted May 13, 2015 A new pickup is on order but will take a few weeks to arrive. I'll also replace the preamp with one of Prostheta's reproduction boxes. There's not much I can do to it in the meantime Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted May 13, 2015 Share Posted May 13, 2015 Nothing but let that nitro breathe. It'll take a long time to offgas adequately since nitro never really "cures" as such. That said, a better choice than poly! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annoying Twit Posted May 13, 2015 Share Posted May 13, 2015 [quote name='Norris' timestamp='1431533489' post='2772331'] A new pickup is on order but will take a few weeks to arrive. I'll also replace the preamp with one of Prostheta's reproduction boxes. There's not much I can do to it in the meantime [/quote] Solely out of curiosity where did you get the replacement pickup from? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Norris Posted May 14, 2015 Author Share Posted May 14, 2015 [quote name='Annoying Twit' timestamp='1431548513' post='2772570'] Solely out of curiosity where did you get the replacement pickup from? [/quote] Rautia Guitars (as recommended by Prostheta). I did look at Armstrong but wasn't convinced that they were the most accurate reproductions available. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bartelby Posted May 14, 2015 Share Posted May 14, 2015 (edited) [quote name='Norris' timestamp='1431585750' post='2772741'] Rautia Guitars (as recommended by Prostheta). [/quote] Which one did you go for? Edited May 14, 2015 by bartelby Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Norris Posted May 14, 2015 Author Share Posted May 14, 2015 (edited) [quote name='bartelby' timestamp='1431589062' post='2772778'] Which one did you go for? [/quote] A straight replacement of the original MB-1 (3-wire) Edit: Or did you mean Prostheta's "BB" noisekiller circuit? - in which case the one with modern components. Edited May 14, 2015 by Norris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted May 14, 2015 Share Posted May 14, 2015 I know I say this a lot, but the choice of words with "modern" components skirts a bit of an infamous line with us musicians, especially those that value "vintage" for no real world reason. The existing stock of preamps uses Yageo resistors which will eventually be upgraded to Vishay Dale RN55Ds. I do this just to ensure quality out of the gate, plus longevity and stability over the long term. There are no (and should be no) alterations in the function or tone, otherwise it would not be a satisfactory appropriate reproduction item. That is why I think "vintage-correct function/modern component benefits" is better. Noise inherent in the 4558 is not too far removed from the old 741 which is no surprise given they share(d) a relatively similar input stage and production methods. Back in the 70s when the 4558 was produced for the original preamps, you didn't have expensive fabs with ULPA clean rooms so die quality was highly variable. Old chips could be crazy noisy and real carburettor-era stuff without any carburettor benefits; a 4558 sucks about the same amount of juice as a 741! We're talking a dreary 16MPG '70s slug rather than a modern unleaded performance machine with a tenth of the fuel consumption (and no smoke belching). New 4558s are far better in terms of manufacture, however producing a Ford Cortina in a modern factory still leaves you with a Ford Cortina. The modern APII BB preamp still uses crappy carbon comp resistors and other "Maplin-grade" components. Then again, they're not intentionally making them as a "lifetime bass" out of the gate. You can see where the accountants have had their say. I make preamps which are total overkill in too many ways (non-Eutectic solder, 2oz copper traces, flux clean, etc.) but hey, Aspergers. In my book, basses like the SB-1000 are the "new vintage" which can be seen with prices going sillier each year. Replacing the preamp should logically be done with one that matches where Matsumoku SB-1000s are going in the vintage market. I want these preamps to last [i]at least[/i] another thirty years! Hell, I'll be in my seventies by that point (and we still won't have flying cars) and my vanity would like to imagine playing SB-1000s changing hands for 5-6 figures (8 with inflation) in a state that is as close to "restorable original" as is humanly possible. Depending on how life pans out over the rest of the year (hopefully Putin doesn't try messing with us, etc.) I hope to make a solder-free drop-in replacement SB-1000 circuit, so the original looms can be pulled and stored in a ziplock with a dessicant for preservation. ProTip: Even if they are not working. Vintage collectors are weird. ProTip 2: Keep a box of silica gel sachets from shoes or whatever you find them in. They're great for drying out phones or use a sockful on the dash in winter to prevent your windscreen icing inside overnight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted May 14, 2015 Share Posted May 14, 2015 Obviously I don't say ALL of that a lot, only the main points. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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