I pity all you folks waiting on backorders these days; I purchased this beauty new about three months after its manufacture -- just walked into the store where it was hanging on the wall. I gave the guy a fake EB-something and $200. He threw in a perfect setup, too -- so good that until about eight weeks ago, I hadn't touched it.
From late '73 to about 1994, this instrument saw steady gigs with a pop-rock cover band. It was my only bass. Since 1995 or so, it's been in its case for the most part. Recently I got the urge to play again, so I pulled it out. Then I found Rickresource and, thanks to this particular forum, started looking at my instrument in ways that had nothing to do with how it sounded. Please keep that in mind when you check out these warts-and-all photos. I deliberately didn't do any preliminary clean-up. I'm not proud of the shape it's in -- but then, that's why I'm doing this in the first place: penitence of a sort.
I have four objectives for this project:
- Thorough cleaning and polishing, including temporary protection of damaged areas.
- Investigation and repair of bridge pickup output.
- Remove a bit of relief in the neck.
- Document cleaning and polishing for the benefit of the membership.
Let's start at the top. Here's the headstock. Anyone know the meaning of the number inscribed there?
Don't worry, I'd already removed the TRC; it's safe and sound. Speaking of truss rods, here's a further close-up:
That gouging at the back of the cavity is under the finish, in case it's not clear. Everyone, including Ric factory folks apparently, finds it a tight space.
Here's a shot at the octave. Some fret wear, especially under the D and G strings, but nothing I can't live with.
The lighter grain in the fretboard might appear to be cracking, but it's not. The board, except for dirt and such jammed up against the frets (why is it green?), is in good shape -- and beautifully variegated.
Extreme Close-up! Here's the relief I'll be taking out. It's actually a little greater than this because the bass is on its back.
This is where I really started to feel bad. I had figured that I'd just pull all the hardware off, figure out the pup problem, clean and polish, then put it all back together. But check out the condition of the screws.
All of them, as well as the rest of the screws except for the strap and mute buttons, need to be replaced. I'd never noticed.
I hang my head.
But the toaster looks good, and the plating is intact.
Here's the bridge pup. Lots of dust (hey, is that what the guard is for?) and some contact wear on the poletops. Again, though, the plating -- underneath the fingerprints -- looks great.
I've got four shots of the tailpiece, if only to demonstrate how the a**hole owner neglected this lovely instrument.
Ignore the dust and grime. Just admire the architecture of this casting.
Intonation on this bass has been rock solid. I changed strings every couple of months during its active life, and never had to adjust the saddles. It's had RotoSounds on it for all but the first few months that I've owned it.
Here's more dust and grime, plus a shot of the mute pad, which is dessicated and misshapen; you can't really see it here, but it's arched a bit in the middle, so raising the mute would engage the A and D before the E and G. I never used it much because I palmed or used picking technique to attenuate sustain. Still, it's a matter of pride now to restore it.
This shows something your can't see in the other tailpiece photos: the adjustment screw on the right (the E-side screw) seems to be rusty. I've put it on the parts list.
Last tailpiece shot. Is this what you guys mean when you talk about tail-lift?
It's been there for as long as I can remember, and it's never bothered me. In fact, it's a great place to stash an extra pick, as you can see in the very first photo. Should I do anything about it?
The pickguard is in good shape. The treble volume label flaked off and disappeared sometime in the first year of ownership. Note to self: replace more screws; see if the boutique has knobs in stock.
Last shot for now:
This is the lower bout on the bass side, maybe two and a half inches from the lower strap button. It took me a while to figure out what caused the wear-through in the finish and the odd stain on the binding. I think I've figured it out, but it might be fun to entertain guesses. What do you think caused it?
Coming up next: toolkit and teardown!
):
