Fender Jazz grounding strip geek-out

[nige1968]

If the thread title drew your eye, you’re no doubt aware that early 1960s Jazz Basses had a top-mounted brass earthing strip running from bridge pickup to bridge, visible when the ashtray is removed.

True bass geeks will also have spotted that there are at least two versions of this now-decorative strip on 1960s RI basses: the Japanese (thinner, running at a slight angle) and the American (fatter, running straight (perpendicular to bridge / pickup).

Oddly, an unscientific trawl of genuine original 1960s Fender basses seems to indicate that the Japanese style is more accurate.

Can anyone shed any light on the discrepancy? And for bonus points, when exactly did the change to internal grounding happen?

(With thanks to virus panic for finally allowing me time to pose this long-pondered but horrifyingly trivial question).

Thin strip:

Thick strip: 

(Both basses pictured are said to be genuine 1962 instruments)

Edited March 17, 2020 by nige1968
Pics

[hooky_lowdown]

I'm guessing as these were made by hand back then, the difference is due to different people doing the strip - nothing more than that.

[fingerz]

On 17/03/2020 at 12:08, hooky_lowdown said:

I'm guessing as these were made by hand back then, the difference is due to different people doing the strip - nothing more than that.

This sounds like a very reasonable and likely answer. I love the question and looking forward to many more trivial questions over the coming months.

 

I'm wondering why the Japanese reissues copy the less symmetrical look? You'd expect them to go with the uniform/perpendicular style.. Perhaps (inner pedant speaking), having it at an angle gives slightly more surface area at the contact points which achieves a microscopically better result? 

[nige1968]

Thanks both! So we think it’s down to whichever width of wire they had in that day? Maybe the Japanese designers were working from a particular reference model (though that doesn’t explain the machine heads)?
Anyone know which year they went over to internal grounding?

[hooky_lowdown]

14 hours ago, fingerz said:

I'm wondering why the Japanese reissues copy the less symmetrical look? You'd expect them to go with the uniform/perpendicular style.. Perhaps (inner pedant speaking), having it at an angle gives slightly more surface area at the contact points which achieves a microscopically better result? 

Probably due to the imperial and metric measuring systems being slightly different.

[fingerz]

Not sure about internal grounding year, I've never been a big anorak for vintage periods, probably an easy google though, and then a minefield at that!!

 

Cheers all