DaveMuadDib

This thread details the modding of my Squier VM Jaguar, which was made possible thanks to a custom made Brass Control Plate courtesy of Mr Foxen: [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?s=&showtopic=114237"]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?s=&showtopic=114237[/url] The plate was built to an outstanding standard, and needless to say I was about to give up on this project before Mr Foxen came along to save the day!! I understand that he's willing to do the same for other basschatters who need similar custom metalwork, so by all means, get in touch with him if you're in the same predicament! Not ONE of the custom pickguard companies that I contacted were willing to do this for me!?

Ok with a bit of fiddling, I have been slowly transforming the recent Squier Vintage Modified Jaguar 2010 into my own personal instrument. This process has been slowed down severely due to medical failures, but I'm pretty much good to go now, so on with it I don't recommend gall stones to anybody, though [b]Step one: Golden up the hardware[/b] I LOVE my Fender Jazz Special with Status Graphite neck, but I desperately needed a good backup bass. Sadly, I made the decision to sell my trusty old Hohner headless, because excellent though it was, it just wasn't a viable backup in a live situation considering that it had two active humbuckers. Simply put, I needed something with a Jazz pup on the bridge and a Precision pup up in the neck position. So what could be more awesome than when the Squier Jaguar was announced; a great quality budget bass with exactly that pup configuration!! Of course I snapped it up pretty much on release day. And the first thing I did, naturally, was tear it apart. I strongly believe that a Black Bass + Gold Hardware + Tortoiseshell Pickguard is the aesthetic match made in heaven for me. It was my lucky day when this bass not only had the correct pop configuration, but actually had a black body and tortoiseshell pickguard ready fitted! Everything on this bass was pretty much stock Fender size, but the obvious obstacle was the Control Plate. This turned out to be an absolute nightmare to get my hands on, and none of the online custom shops were willing to do it for me!! Luckily, Basschat's own Mr Foxen came to the rescue, and was able to help me out in this department - I sent him a scan of plate, and in no time at all, I had a brass replica in the post. Excellent quality, and finishing - I couldn't recommend his services more! So here's a quick photo of the work in progress. Mods so far are as follows: - Gold Badass II - Gold Pickguard Screws - Gold Control Plate (courtesy of Mr Foxen) - Gold Straplock Pins - Gold String Retainer - Gold Machine Heads (25% complete!) [attachment=65982:08122010002.jpg] Excuse the shoddy lighting and mucky prints all over everything - I'll upload a new pic soon when I get the chance. For v2.0 I plan to install new pups and electronics. v3.0 should be the finished article, and if all goes to plan, she'll have... *drum roll* A Status Graphite Neck :-D I'll keep you all posted as soon as this comes to pass. If anyone else has modified one of these beautiful basses, I'd love to see your work! Dave

I've still not had any luck finding a replacement, I've tried contacting several people now! Anyone have any idea?

[attachment=60048:jaguar_c...ol_plate.jpg] [attachment=60049:jaguar_c..._plate_2.jpg]

[quote name='Mr. Foxen' post='970037' date='Sep 27 2010, 09:10 PM']Thinking a bit more, would have a spot weld mark on other side, might go further than the knob. Flatten off and then plate it and ya golden though. Or solder instead of spot weld.[/quote] After further inspection (read: fiddling) the washers are not actually affixed to the control plate at all - they're just being held down by the pot nut! DOH!! Just a simple 1:1 control plate it is then!!

[quote name='Mr. Foxen' post='969920' date='Sep 27 2010, 07:36 PM']Could totally make the washer thing, Center punch a washer, bend it and spot weld. Easy if you have a spot welder.[/quote] Oooh, you might very well be able to help me!! :-D I would love to have a perfect gold reproduction of my controlplate, complete with clicking mechanism! Bear in mind it's a fairly weak metal and it has some give to it, as it has to shimmy up and down to provide the clicking motion. I'll be in touch with you soon with a scan as soon as I can, might be a few days though!

[attachment=59975:27092010002.jpg] These are the tuning heads I've got - they're from a Squier VM Jaguar, new out this month. I want gold ones, and I have no idea what to get! For reference, I've tried the heads from my proper fender bass, and the hole spacing is far too broad to fit this bass. Any ideas? I've measured the hole spacing below if that helps: 26mm <-top-> 35mm ^ between ^ 20mm <bottom> Thanks

[quote name='Alien' post='969806' date='Sep 27 2010, 06:11 PM']There's always the Blue Peter route - sticky back plastic! [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Gold-Effect-Fablon-Type-Self-Adhesive-Vinyl-/130327591000"]Plain Gold[/url] or [url="http://www.choiceful.com/disprod.php?pId=76685"]Glitter Gold[/url] A[/quote] Ordered - I'll give it a go!

[quote name='LawrenceH' post='969344' date='Sep 27 2010, 12:25 PM']Any chance of a photo?[/quote] Why, soitenly! [attachment=59974:27092010001.jpg]

[quote name='LawrenceH' post='969055' date='Sep 27 2010, 12:54 AM']Metallic paints won't look right at all, unless you don't mind having a control plate that doesn't look like actual metal (in which case no problem). Best thing I can think of would be to use a yellow-tinted translucent spray paint. Getting it to stick might be a problem since you couldn't do the usual roughing up before spraying. Electroplating is the only really good way of doing this, gold leaf can look ok if you're really good with the application but it won't be durable at all.[/quote] Electroplating is definitely an option, the others are seemingly less-so. But it is expensive?

[quote name='JPJ' post='969208' date='Sep 27 2010, 10:20 AM']If your handy, why not buy a piece of gold plastic sheet used for making scratchplates etc and make one out of that? It will then be shiney and gold [/quote] Not a bad idea, you know! I've got plenty of copper tape to shield the underbelly too! It probably wouldn't give me that true mirrored metallic finish though, but I'll definitely look into that option. Now I'm at uni, I might be able to bribe the design department to cut it for me

[quote name='Mr. Foxen' post='969056' date='Sep 27 2010, 12:57 AM']What's the story? I'm fairly sure there'll be another way, depending on what it is. I can get them made, but might not be economic.[/quote] Well, the situation is like so (kinda complex to explain!): The VM Jaguar has a concentric pot for each p'up, and quite uniquely, the bottom tone knobs click as they turn, while the smaller volume knobs on top rotate smoothly as standard. The potentiometers themselves are completely normal. So to achieve this clicking mechanism, there is a metal disc beneath both of the knobs, one half of which is welded to the control plate, the other half of which is slightly raised. There is also a tiny raised dome in the middle of this half of the disc. The large tone knobs have a series of holes underneath, dotted equally around the circumference. So the dome interacts with the hole in the knob, providing the clicking mechanism! (You might think that the knobs would be non-replaceable, but luckily the large unique tone knob is black, so it's only the top one that I need to replace, and I've done so already!) Phew! So if I were to replace the control plate and wanted to maintain this mechanism, I would either need to relocate the metal discs (impossible, and I don't want to damage the old hardware), make new ones (rather implausible) or bypass this nice clever clicking mechanism (undesirable). But it looks like the latter might have to be the solution! How uneconomic would a replacement control plate be? I'm a rather poor student

Nope, I'm not talking about alchemy Basically I've got a squier vm jaguar and I'm in the process of giving it gold hardware, but for better or worse, the stock chrome control plate seems like it's going to need to be recoloured rather than replace (long story). What's the best way to do this? Is there a spraypaint that will be durable, stick to shiny chrome, and look vaguely gold and shiny? Or would I be better off painting it? I don't want to go down the electroplating road if at all possible. Thanks! (if anyone knows where to get replacement tuning heads with the smaller-than-fender trapezoid screw spacing on the back, it would be appreciated! Everything else is sorted!)

Just sold Edd my beloved Hohner B2ADB Headless Bass, the bass that I swore was perfect in every way and would be the only bass I'd ever need or want. How things can change!! Besides my feeble nostalgia, Edd is a thoroughly pleasant chap to deal with, excellent communication, wouldn't hesitate to deal with him again! It's an excellent bass and I hope you enjoy it!

I got a Fender bridge and couple of gig bags off Gaf, extremely pleasant first class service all the way, always happy to deal with my incessant lists of technical questions and problems, and I can only assure him that I will contact him again in the future

[quote name='EBS_freak' post='963121' date='Sep 21 2010, 11:13 AM'][url="http://www.allparts.com/Control-Plates-s/83.htm"]http://www.allparts.com/Control-Plates-s/83.htm[/url][/quote] Well from the looks of it, it might actually fit, but... $70 FOR SHIPPING??! Insanity! I'll paint the original with gold nail varnish before I pay that! There must be someone on here who can cut these plates to order? Anyone? Dave

I've got a VM Jaguar which has an awkwardly shaped control plate, and i would like to replace it with a gold one. I tried emailing aurora project but they just informed me that they don't do polished gold! Any ideas?

Ok guys, I'm a little bit stuck with this one. I've just bought a Squier Vintage Modified Jaguar, and I blooming love it - but naturally, the first thing I've done is rip the sucker apart. I've shielded her within an inch of her life, which has helped massively, but I'd now like to completely revamp the electronics and give her gold hardware :-) This is where the problem lies, and i'll give you a checklist of what I need: -The tuning heads and string retainer. I usually go for Wilkinson, but Squier use funny sizes - which ones do I need to get for this bass? -Which Hipshot Extender (detuner) will fit one of these too? I bought one for my old VM Jazz once upon a time, but the spacing was wrong -There are 2 pots, concentric volume and tone for each pickup. The tone controls underneath click (by design) when you turn them. Where in the blazes can I get a better quality replacement for these? -The knobs are stacked black metal (tone) with chrome metal on top (volume) - how can I replace these? They seem incredibly non-standard. -The control plate is a write-off - nobody is going to sell a gold Squier Jaguar control plate So how can I get one made custom? I've heard good things about Aurora project, are these the guys to see? -Replacing the neck plate and the neck screws - again, what will fit? I nearly ruined my best bass by doing this wrong once upon a time :-/ -I've already got the bridge, but I need the right screws for it? I assume these are standard screws? Same applies for the pickguard screws. Any help you guys can give would be immensely appreciated!