Upgrade a 4001 with New PU,etc.. (Info/help needed)

[heptagram]

I've been trying to sell my '74 4001 to get a second 4003, but haven't had any luck selling the 4001... Which I'm surprised (haven't used Ebay yet).. I prefer the sound of my '01 4003, which is much heavier. I'm thinking about possibly keeping the 4001 and putting in new 4003 neck and bridge pickups (with adjustable pole pieces), the push/pull mod, rewire, new machine heads (vintage RIC), new 4003 pickguard (for the new 4003 neck pickup),etc... So I need to know EVERYTHING I would need to purchase to make this possible and thought you guys could kindly point me in the right direction with your RIC wisdom

I would also be refinishing the bass as well, so I would need to know the best way to strip off the old FG finish and what I would need to do so. There is a small tiny bit of the body (near the top of the pickguard) that would need to be filled in with wood filler, as well as the old screw holes. I guess I would have to do a Jetglo finish due to the wood filler? This is obviously a lot of work and I would need someone to do it for me.... so would it be worth it in the end or would it just be better to continue to try and sell the 4001 to get a second '07 4003?

Cheers!

Josh

[rickaddict]

I think your best bet is selling the 4001 and buying a new 4003. Maybe your price is too high on the 4001 or you need to go to evilbay. A competent re-fin plus all of the new parts you're thinking of would cost almost as much as a new 4003 and probably lower the value of your 4001.

[heptagram]

I'm asking $2,500 Australian for my '74 4001, which is what I paid for it a few months ago. I don't want to sell it at a loss... Yeah, I thought so too (getting a new RIC) and think I'll just keep trying to sell it to get a new '07 4003

Cheers!

[rickaddict]

Oops. I forgot that you're in OZ. Maybe I'm not so qualified to give advice on what you should do in this situation then. Not sure how much a new 4003 would cost you there and how easy it might be to find one. Also not sure how easy it is to find someone good to do a re-fin and what the cost of that might be. Also not sure how expensive parts are and whether they're easily available.

Around here though, (Stateside!) the decision would be a no-brainer: Lower the price, swallow your pride(!), take a small loss if you have to to avoid the huge hassle and an even larger loss converting your old 4001 into a makeshift 4003.

Rock on!

[heptagram]

Thanks for the advice mate New RICs are impossible to find here as we don't have a distributor... They usually go for about $3,200 AUD or more when they were available to purchase new in a shop. I'm on the waiting list with RIC ASIA (who can send to AU) for a 4003 MID, but that's a two year waiting list (I'll still get that one too ) . When I order a new one from the US the RIC will cost me $1,499 to $1,899 US plus $400 US for shipping and the about another $300 AU (AU customs emailed me back) for taxes and duties.

So it's going to cost me around $2,900 AU to import a new '07 4003, which I'm cool with. Since they are so hard to get here, I don't really want to take a loss on the '74 4001, which I've only had for a few months. My gorgeous '01 4003 MG (which was still pretty much NOS) which I purchased from a private seller here in Australia cost me $2,800 AU shipped. I'm also selling my Iceman (bought new and with EMG 35DC pickups) to get the 3rd RIC

[heinpete]

Dear Josh! I slightly disaggree to Jeff. A 74 4001 is an excellent player, due to light weight and neck, so I suggest investing the 4003 upgrade. If you can spend more time and money you might even thoroughly restore it back to original condition. Anyway, keep it! You might get used to the different feel, neck and weight. It is definitely a good back up for any 4003, if that is your aim primarily.

[thisismusicinc]

Have you tried to bypass the cap? I just bought a beatup 4001 from 76. Used it on practice for the first time yesterday, and it sounds very much thinner than my 73. I will bypass the cap today, as I bought it mainly to be a backup.

[jwr2]

If you want to make a 4001 sound like a 4003 then put in 11k ohm high gain pickups and put in 250k ohm pots (or 330k ohm) and remove the cap ...

Actually I have rewired a couple of 70s 4001 basses ... one was a 73 when I was done it had 8k ohm 70s pickups, all 250k ohm pots and no cap ... it sounded really good ... one was a 76 azureglo it had the original 70s high gain bridge pickup without the cap and I put in a neck toaster, and it had all 250k ohm pots ...

now the reverse ... if you want to make your modern 4003 have more 4001 bite try 500k ohm tone pots ...

[heptagram]

'74 4001 SOLD