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1980 Vantage VA-900B Restoration with modification

dyerseve

By dyerseve,
in Build Diaries

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dyerseve Mentor

dyerseve

Posted
Posted

Hi All,

Not exactly a "build" but as I am new here I thought I would share some details and photos from a resotration I have previously done:


Before moving here from Australia I lucked out on the Aussie ebay and managed to pick up a very nice and unusual Vantage double P bass guitar for $400. handmade in the famous Matsumoku factory in Japan in 1980. The bass was very high end for its time with neck-thru construction, 18v active EQ, twin precision Dimarzio pickups, high mass brass bridge, more switches and knobs than you could poke a stick at etc.

The bass sounded good when I received it but it was 25+ years old and looked it. The finish was a stained wood with a thick clear coat that had yellowed with age. The clear coat has lost all its lustre and was cracked and dinged all over. There was also some playability issues with the neck being very chunky (a 'C' shaped profile), the high mass brass bridge was great but wouldnt allow me set the action low enough for my playing style. It was also a neck diver and the active EQ was very unsual in that you could either boost the bass or the treble - not both at the same time as I was used to.

So I decided that when time and money allowed I would restore this bass and add a few tweaks/mods.
The first step was to strip the horrible old finish - hot air gun and paint stripper were the weapons of choice here. It was a long and stressful process with plenty of awkward places and shapes to strip the finish from but evetually I got there.
Next comes the sanding, followed by more sanding and then some more sanding. During this stage I decided to tackle the chunky neck and sanded it down until it was much thinner but without compromising the strength of it.
After much sanding with ever increasingly fine grit I finished with several passes with 1200 wet and dry whilst wiping ther bass down with white spirit in between.
For the finish I decided on Danish oil as it was the combination of protection/colour and grain enhancing. Cant remeber how many coats I applied but i was a lot as the wood just drank it up.
Next came the hardware choice. I decided to give the bass an update here and went with an Aguilar OBP3 active pre amp - this allows idependent treble, mid and bass boost/cut options - I also specced it with a with a switch that allows you to choose between two different mid frequencies to boost cut(i did this mainly to give me another switch with which to fill an existing hole from the old electrics). The other controls are volume and pickup balance pots and a switch to select between active and passive operation. The switch at the top of body near the neck is redundant.
For the pickups I decided on some Seymour Duncan Quarter Pounders which combine with the 18v active EQ gives a huge full bodied sound but also provides plenty of punch in passive mode.
To further combat the neck-dive issue I also fitted Hipshot Ultralight tuning keys and actually thinned down the headstock itself by removing the facing laminate -personally I think it looks much better for it. The issue I had with not being able to set the action low enough with the high mass bridge I overcame by routing a recess into the body of the bass so that the 4mm base plate of the bridge was then flush-mounted and the action lowered by 4mm.
So after installing all the hardware and stringing the bass up I was slightly pissed off to find myself n fret buzz city. Closer inspection revealed that the frets had started to lift away from the fretboard so i decided to take it to a pro to get the whole neck fret-dressed and the the frets reseated. It came back fully setup with new strings and plays like a dream. The neck profile is perfect and the bass is now beautifully balanced.
Oh yeah, it sounds rather awesome BTW with limitless versatility and I dont think it looks too bad either:

The sanding stage(the colour of the old finish is still visible in some places like the battery compartnment and truss rod recess to give you an idea):
[url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/69201764@N05/12539442235/"][/url]
[url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/69201764@N05/12539580563/"][/url]
[url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/69201764@N05/12539581263/"][/url]
[url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/69201764@N05/12539945514/"][/url]
[url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/69201764@N05/12539440915/"][/url]

Better get some oil on that naked body:

[url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/69201764@N05/12539517165/"][/url]
[url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/69201764@N05/12539516185/"][/url]
[url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/69201764@N05/12539515615/"][/url]
[url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/69201764@N05/12540015864/"][/url]
[url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/69201764@N05/12540015864/"]Vantage 029[/url] by [url="http://www.flickr.com/people/69201764@N05/"]justmyfourstringsandme[/url], on Flickr
[url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/69201764@N05/12539652643/"][/url]
[url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/69201764@N05/12539647773/"][/url]
[url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/69201764@N05/12540021734/"][/url]

Electrickery:

[url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/69201764@N05/12540028924/"][/url]
[url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/69201764@N05/12539526825/"][/url]
[url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/69201764@N05/12539662613/"][/url]
[url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/69201764@N05/12539526315/"][/url]
[url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/69201764@N05/12540027274/"][/url]
The finished article:
[url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/69201764@N05/12540051564/"][/url]
[url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/69201764@N05/12539685183/"][/url]
[url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/69201764@N05/12539546355/"][/url]
[url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/69201764@N05/12539681253/"][/url]
[url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/69201764@N05/12539541135/"][/url]
[url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/69201764@N05/12539540555/"][/url]
[url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/69201764@N05/12540046914/"][/url]
[url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/69201764@N05/12540043074/"][/url]

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dyerseve Mentor

dyerseve

Posted
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Posted

thanks for the very kind words guys. For my first ever restoration I was very happy with the results and this is a bass I will never sell as it has so much of my time and effort invested in it. The fact the it has a truly epic tone also helps! I am currently juicing up the rechargeable 9V batteries ready to supply the EQ once again as I have currently been playing it passive only.

Interestingly, due to output level mismatch when using the balance pot blended 50/50, I now have each pup wired with it's own vol pot which I actually prefer over the balance pot..

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  • 1 year later...
SpondonBassed Grand Master

SpondonBassed

Posted
Posted (edited)

That's a beautiful instrument. I'm glad you posted because I rarely see anything about Vantage bass. I own one that I bought new near the end of Matsumoku's era (1986/7) but I am thinking it is a rare example today. Maybe it's not [i]cool[/i] or something. It's lovely to play so I don't care about cool.

I'm trying to decide now whether I need a neck shim or whether I'll steal your idea to sink the bridge a little to allow me better action adjustment on my Pit Bull kit build.

The truss rod and saddle adjustment are both max'd out and I still have about the highest action I have ever played. I always ran with low action before with my other basses but I am getting accustomed to the higher action gradually. Neck angle or bridge height modifications are tweaks I might do but I'm thinking of upgrading my neck at some point so I might leave it seeing as it currently plays well. I'm taking it out for the first time tomorrow to an Open Mic. We'll see. The maple on my neck does not have the straightest of grains so I need to observe the stability of it over a longer period before I know what, if anything, is needed.

I am curious about your finish. You say you used Danish Oil but you seem to have got a high gloss. Did you use a polishing paste to finish? Danish usually gives me a satin texture. I use Teak Oil for gloss rather than Danish.

You did right to reveal the laminated neck at the headstock. The overall look of the instrument is tied together well as a result. I'd have tried to get all brass/gold effect or all polished chrome hardware but I know that can lead to a large bill when it's all added up.

Very nicely done chap.

Edited by SpondonBassed
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SpondonBassed Grand Master

SpondonBassed

Posted
Posted

[quote name='dyerseve' timestamp='1473066538' post='3126456']
...I will never sell as it has so much of my time and effort invested in it...
[/quote]

The following would be for valuation purposes then? I'm curious as to whether you get the offered the asking price.

[quote name='TheGreek' timestamp='1504897560' post='3368212']
This?

[url="https://www.gumtree.com/p/guitar-instrument/1980-vantage-va-900b-twin-p-bass-neck-thru-18v-3-band-eq-/1265258068"]https://www.gumtree....-eq-/1265258068[/url]
[/quote]

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