mikeycrikey

I saw that as soon as I looked at the OP's first picture. Top marks for bringing it to life

Just picked up a 425x after placing a wanted advert. Keeping my 424x company as the 414 and 734a have been under the bed since lockdown began. Fell out of love with the BB shape a few months ago but I've been seduced back into the fold 😲. Bought a Harley Benton 5 string to tip a toe into the 5 string pond. Really liked it so thought I would give the 425x a shot. So far so good. Not miles better than the Harley Benton and a hell of a lot heavier but with a wide leather strap you don't notice to much and it balances well too. Currently wearing old Cobalt Flats which seem to suit the bass. The B string feels pretty tight, possibly better than the Harley Bentons. Think am going to get on with this but may alternate between this and the Harley Benton, which is wearing DR Hi Beams

I find the 414 neck a lot slimmer than my other BBs . Getting close to Jazz width.

I had the 1024x too and used it on all my gigs, mainly because it cost more than the 424x but eventually I realised I prefer the tone of the the 424x, so the 1024x was sold on.

The 424x sounds superb. I have one with old flatwound Chromes on it and love it. Seems to suit the music we do down to the ground. Recently got 425x. This one has Cobalt flats on it. So far so good with that one. Might put some new round wounds on BB 414 to get some top end brightness. Andy what neck do you prefer out of the 414 and 424. For me the neck on the 424x is just perfect.

I like them all. Even the headstock looks better

After being a long term user of Yamaha BB basses I find myself in a similar frame of mind. I love the way they play, the sound and everything about them except..... the big bloated body. At one point I loved the appearance of my 424x and 1024x with the additional scratch plate and chrome but now its looks leave me cold. Sold the 1024x which was my main gigging bass, which played and sounded great and replaced it with a Precision player series. Probably not as good or as versatile as the 1024x but I just find it more appealing and want to pick it up more to play. Still got my BB 414, 424x and 734a which has a slightly smaller and more appealing Body shape. Have had the same thought about transferring all the parts off one of my BBs onto a precision style body. Hoping its just a phase and I will fall back in love with the BB body shape. Note did have a BB 604 which had a smaller body and great pre amp in but wasn't as good as any of my current BBs

I did replace the earth wire under the bridge but only because I managed to damage it. I had removed the bridge earlier on to inspect the earth wire. The strands of the wire are splayed out under the bridge. When I touched them a good few snapped off so I decided to replace it. When installing the tape start at the top on the route and work down. You can overlap it and cut to shape easily. Doesn't have to look perfect just cover the full route. Also use a pencil with a rubber on the end to push the tape flat and into the corners. The edges of the tape are quite sharp and its easy to cut your finger. I also upgraded to a kiogon wiring loom. Made a huge difference to the sound.

I had exactly the same issue with my Classic Vibe Precision. Bought a roll of self adhesive Copper Shielding tape from Amazon. Removed the pick guard, pickup and electronic and lined the cavities with the copper tape. Problem solved, no more buzzing. Tape is really easy to install too

So thats where all the Sterlings have gone to. Love The one you use with the Lotharios. Sounds fantastic in a band setting.