Duarte Posted August 17, 2021 Share Posted August 17, 2021 Helloo BC'ers! Since I'm in the depths of my longest lockdown, I've started a few different projects. One of them is something I've wanted to do for years - I have a project bass! It's a 1978 Yamaha Pulser bass, in bad cosmetic condition, but it plays reasonably well and sounds incredible. I bought it in Bangkok for about £60, which is a great deal for something I anticipated would be much more screwed up than it actually is. Anyway, the plan is to strip the body and neck, refinish, refret, replace rusted hardware, scratch plate and these awful new tuners. Thankfully the electronics are in great shape. Also the body appears to be one piece of ash or similar wood. I'm thinking of going for a natural finish with tru oil. Basically I wanted to a project bass which had a very low possibility of ending up any worse than when I started Any advice from anyone more experienced on any part of this project would be greatly appreciated. Here's the 'before' pics: 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Velarian Posted August 17, 2021 Share Posted August 17, 2021 That looks like a good bass to start from and a bargain at £60. I’ll be watching with interest. Good luck with the build. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulThePlug Posted August 17, 2021 Share Posted August 17, 2021 leave it... especialy the neck... it looks played.. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geek99 Posted August 17, 2021 Share Posted August 17, 2021 Yes I’d totally leave that alone 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duarte Posted August 17, 2021 Author Share Posted August 17, 2021 (edited) 1 hour ago, PaulThePlug said: leave it... especialy the neck... it looks played.. Haha! Maybe we can settle on a compromise... strip the body, leave the neck? I do love how the neck looks as it is, and the bits that aren't dented are wonderfully smooth and rounded. The body hasn't aged as gracefully. This bass will stay with me whatever happens, so I'm not worried about it re-sale-ability. Edited August 17, 2021 by Duarte 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Henrythe8 Posted August 17, 2021 Share Posted August 17, 2021 Dat neck screams MoJo ! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reggaebass Posted August 17, 2021 Share Posted August 17, 2021 Hey Duarte, I’d leave the neck it looks cool, and if it sounds good already I’d say you only have to do the body how you want , I’d also fit a threaded saddle bridge on to add to the vintage look 👍 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duarte Posted August 17, 2021 Author Share Posted August 17, 2021 2 minutes ago, Reggaebass said: Hey Duarte, I’d leave the neck it looks cool, and if it sounds good already I’d say you only have to do the body how you want , I’d also fit a threaded saddle bridge on to add to the vintage look 👍 I'm convinced - enough of you lot have said it now! The neck stays as-is. Any advice for the body? I did go into this looking for a project, so something's happening to it. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Henrythe8 Posted August 17, 2021 Share Posted August 17, 2021 As a project, you can dissassemble it, clean it the best you can, change the pickguard, tuners, knobs and the bridge. You can also level a bit the frets and polish them. If you're satisfied with the tone, clean the electronics with some magic contact cleaner. If not, you can hunt down a nice set of pots (Emerson; KioGon ? ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pea Turgh Posted August 17, 2021 Share Posted August 17, 2021 A damn good clean, a new scratch plate & strings. Done. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulThePlug Posted August 17, 2021 Share Posted August 17, 2021 (edited) 4 hours ago, Duarte said: I'm convinced - enough of you lot have said it now! The neck stays as-is. Any advice for the body? Great news on the neck! What ya thinking about the body?... Natural Wood, Stain or a Solid Colour? For me, It's screaming BLACK to go with that Maple neck... or an Aubergine Purple off Black... You thinking Rattle Cans? That scratchplate? Is/was it white plastic? looks like it could be anodised metal, hard to tell from the pics... but i think that should also stay... so many P-a-likes have slightly different shapes or screw spacings... Keep the bridge, that way ya sure the mounting holes line up... but as mention you could change the sadles for threaded for a bit more of a vintage look, maybe have em off something like this for £15?... https://www.northwestguitars.co.uk/vintage-style-4-string-bass-bridge-with-spiral-saddles/ @KiOgon P bass loom - Quality Pots n Jack - is a good idea for £25ish - Got one for my Budget Bitsa P Edited August 17, 2021 by PaulThePlug 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Velarian Posted August 17, 2021 Share Posted August 17, 2021 28 minutes ago, PaulThePlug said: For me, It's screaming BLACK to go with that Maple neck... This ^^^^ add a black pick guard and bring out that inner JJ Burnell 😉 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geek99 Posted August 17, 2021 Share Posted August 17, 2021 (edited) Relic the body Edited August 17, 2021 by Geek99 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duarte Posted August 18, 2021 Author Share Posted August 18, 2021 (edited) 7 hours ago, PaulThePlug said: Great news on the neck! What ya thinking about the body?... Natural Wood, Stain or a Solid Colour? For me, It's screaming BLACK to go with that Maple neck... or an Aubergine Purple off Black... You thinking Rattle Cans? That scratchplate? Is/was it white plastic? looks like it could be anodised metal, hard to tell from the pics... but i think that should also stay... so many P-a-likes have slightly different shapes or screw spacings... Keep the bridge, that way ya sure the mounting holes line up... but as mention you could change the sadles for threaded for a bit more of a vintage look, maybe have em off something like this for £15?... https://www.northwestguitars.co.uk/vintage-style-4-string-bass-bridge-with-spiral-saddles/ @KiOgon P bass loom - Quality Pots n Jack - is a good idea for £25ish - Got one for my Budget Bitsa P Ideas!! Natural wood is my first choice. The grain is too nice to hide. Tru oil and a long lockdown of gradually getting it to a glorious sheen is what I'm thinking... It might be a terrible idea. But I won't know for sure until I've actually done it. I love the aubergine purple idea! I am eyeballing another bass, an 80's Jazz bass special (the one with slanted pickups) which looks like it was left out in the Thai sun for year, which would be a good candidate for that kind of treatment! I''ll include a pic below. This bass is on sale for £140. Scratch plate is anodised metal. Screw holes appear to align with standard fender dimensions, and there are 13 filled holes in the body, which leads me to believe that someone had to make a fender sized one fit. I'll go for black. As for the bridge, I actually have an old spare fender one kicking around that fits. Electronics seem fine as they are. I think they've been replaced, as pots are nice and sturdy with no crackles. Also there are weird routings where it looks like someone might have added active electronics at some point. Pickups seems OG and are nice and hot. However, for the sake of getting it up to the next level of quality, KiOgon is a good shout. I installed one of his harnesses on my main player and it's top notch. Here's that other bass I'm talking about. Edited August 18, 2021 by Duarte 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulThePlug Posted August 18, 2021 Share Posted August 18, 2021 (edited) I like that... if that was a Jazz body that would be epic-on-the-eye... offset body with the slanty pups... rear rout too... my fav! Oh! and i likes a Strat Knob... thats got me thinking Cream Strat Knobs, or Jazz Knobs to match the Cream Split P Covers on my Bitsa Build... ebay here i come! Edited August 19, 2021 by PaulThePlug 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duarte Posted August 22, 2021 Author Share Posted August 22, 2021 (edited) It has begun. I almost changed my mind and left it as it was... but then I had a gin and changed my mind again. The finish was thick and not easy to remove, but I'm happy with what I found underneath! If you need me I'll be sanding on the balcony. Edited August 22, 2021 by Duarte 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulThePlug Posted August 22, 2021 Share Posted August 22, 2021 (edited) Nice bit of 'Guinness Flow' in the middle... So what's it to be?.. Oil, Stain or Paint? Edited August 22, 2021 by PaulThePlug Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duarte Posted August 22, 2021 Author Share Posted August 22, 2021 1 minute ago, PaulThePlug said: Nice bit of 'Guinness Flow' in the middle... So what's it to be?.. Oil, Stain or Paint? It's a really interesting grain isn't it! Decided on oil, to showcase the grain 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reggaebass Posted August 22, 2021 Share Posted August 22, 2021 From what I can see it looks like a one piece body, which is nice 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duarte Posted August 22, 2021 Author Share Posted August 22, 2021 4 minutes ago, Reggaebass said: From what I can see it looks like a one piece body, which is nice Sure is. Great bonus! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulThePlug Posted August 22, 2021 Share Posted August 22, 2021 (edited) I'd hang on to the ally pick guard... and save yaself a few quid... 0000 wire wool should clean up the detritus but leave the patina... without scratching it. Not so common as a Gold, think it would look quite unique, and keep a lighter overall appearance on natural wood and look like a 'smile' over a more usual 'sulk' of the heavier looking black plate. Offer it up for a pic... Edited August 22, 2021 by PaulThePlug Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duarte Posted August 22, 2021 Author Share Posted August 22, 2021 8 minutes ago, PaulThePlug said: I'd hang on to the ally pick guard... 0000 wire wool should clean up the detritus but leave the patina... without scratching it. Not so common as a Gold, think it would look quite unique, and keep a lighter overall appearance on natural wood over a more usual and heavier looking black plate. Offer it up for a pic... Interesting idea. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulThePlug Posted August 22, 2021 Share Posted August 22, 2021 (edited) 70's Mojo right there, with a hint of after market modification... Thats a YES from me... I've not seen one like it... Edited August 22, 2021 by PaulThePlug Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheGreek Posted August 22, 2021 Share Posted August 22, 2021 (edited) I'm not normally a fan of (faux) relicing but IMO it was the only way to go with this. Too much "character" to try to renovate. Natural finish is the way to go - I linked to a vintage finish (vinegar & wire wool) in another thread - could be the way to go. Found it: Edited August 22, 2021 by TheGreek 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ped Posted August 22, 2021 Share Posted August 22, 2021 Aluminium scratchplates age really nicely. Never known why they aren’t more widely seen over their plastic counterparts 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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