My 4004Cii5 FL

[gearhed289]

Cool bass. Did you have it converted to fretless? I don't think I've seen a factory fretless 4004.

[aceonbass]

I did have it converted, after which the fingerboard was painted with a very thin epoxy till it would absorb no more.

[cassius987]

I've always wondered what a bare-wood fretless bubinga board would sound like.

[FretlessOnly]

Second that! My immediate concern would be what would happen to the inlays, even the dots, say, just for example , on my '08 4003FL. I'm not so much worried about wearing them, but having them fall out. I much prefer unfinished boards since I mainly play FL and my style includes a fair bit of hammer-ons and slides that tend to get clacky on a finished board. An aggressive right-hand finger attack doesn't help either.

[cassius987]

The inlays are probably glued in anyways right?

[Tarrbot]

Dane, this is a fantastic piece.

My only complaint is the lined fingerboard... and despite Tony's preference... the MG-ness of it.

Awesome work.

[aceonbass]

Since it was already a dot fingerboard, it would have been a total waste of money to plane it off and replace it. If it were scratch built I would of course opt for no lines. They didn't bother Jaco, so I don't have any problem with them, or anyone else who plays a lined fingerboard.

[rickenbrother]

I really enjoyed playing this bass when it was a 4004CiiFL. I'd love to give it a go again now!

[Tarrbot]

Since it was already a dot fingerboard, it would have been a total waste of money to plane it off and replace it. If it were scratch built I would of course opt for no lines. They didn't bother Jaco, so I don't have any problem with them, or anyone else who plays a lined fingerboard.

Don't get me wrong, Dane.

I wouldn't be kicking it to the curb for a few lines. That's cosmetic and in no way deters me from plucking it.

[atomic_punk]

Interesting that it has the Rath-style headstock, as much as you disparaged that method for so long...

[aceonbass]

My problem with Jeff putting the tuners on the bottom was not where he put the extra tuner, but the method he used to put it there. The holes ended up being in a straight line instead of matching the curvature of the side of the headstock and that since the keys were still too close together, the A and G tuners were canted outward so the tuner keys would clear each other. Using tuners with larger posts allowed me to move the A and G tuners 9mm further apart and have them stick straight out with no interference and easy adjustment, while putting the D tuner the same distance from the edge of the headstock made it look more like it was supposed to be that way. The shape of the headstock with all that room on the bottom makes it a more natural place for a 5th tuner UNLESS you're rebuilding the headstock so the upper wing has more room, which is how RIC did it.

[ram]

+1