Putting Fender 9050Ms on my '80 4001...

kenf · Post by **kenf** » Thu May 05, 2005 3:22 am

... would I live to regret it?

My 4001 is the last bass I haven't switched over to 9050Ms due to concerns about the neck. How much of the 4001 neck fragility is urban legend, and how much is fact?

I suppose I could reel it back to a set of 9050MLs, but I *love* the thud I get with the mediums.

(9050M = .055 - .105, 9050ML = .050 - .100)

edski · Post by **edski** » Thu May 05, 2005 4:09 am

I have used the ML's for a while on my 75 4001 with no ill effects...and the neck had some damage fixed on it in the early 80's (when I was generally using Rotosounds...)

There is enough fact about the 4001 neck fragility, but there may also be UL components as well. Seems to me the old adage that RW's are higher tension strings is really a poor generalization.

I'm sure the *thud* from the M's is fanastic...I suppose if there was damage it'd probably end up like mine if fixed correctly-probably stronger than it ever was, and you could move on merrily.

My 75 has a rather slender neck for the time (or compared to other Ricks I remember friends having back then). Not sure if the 80's had any tendency to be chunkier, but that's also the time that RIC started introducing the 4003, which used stronger steel for the TR's...

Maybe some of the better versed historians know if any later 4001's got those amped up TR's and if there'd be a way to tell?

maplered · Post by **maplered** » Thu May 05, 2005 4:11 am

I had a set of light gauge Fender flats on my 4001C64. It really had no ill effects on the neck but I did get the dreaded tailpiece bow.

rictified · Post by **rictified** » Fri May 06, 2005 7:50 pm

I'd be very careful about putting Fender flatwound mediums on and 4001, those are about the highest tension strings I've ever used. I'd say maybe one out of ten 4001's would be ok with them, maybe. Ed must have had a good one, I also had a 75 with those strings on it and it was fine but that was unusual. If you really like those strings I'd buy a new 4003. Pyramid flats have good thud also and are somewhat lighter in tension but are expensive, I wouldn't really even recommend those for most 4001's. Fender med lights are not light in any way shape or form, I'm not saying I dislike them because I do like them sometimes, just that they are really high tension strings and 4001's were designed for low tension strings.

kenf · Post by **kenf** » Sat May 07, 2005 3:36 am

Hmmmm. That's what I was afraid of - I'd hate to screw up a perfectly good neck.

Maybe I'll try a set of TI Jazz Flats - you can't get much lower tension than that! It's been wearing the same set of GHS groundwounds for the last five years.

rictified · Post by **rictified** » Sat May 07, 2005 8:52 am

You don't get much thud from those though, try the Pyramids, if those are too heavy, try the light Fenders. If you want good thud though I would get a 90's 4003 and throw the big boys on it and thud away. The pickups are also a lot stronger on the new ones, they are great basses.