(We now join this RM 1999 restoration already in progress)

[aceonbass]

According to Mark Arnquist (former RIC employee), RIC was putting these tailpieces too far forward till the mid 70's. For some reason he never understood, this seemed to be on purpose, not because of variances in production. If I had to guess, I'll bet someone just though it was easier to measure 33" from the nut instead of 33 1/4".

[walker]

The next step is getting the fretboard reset along with a complete refret. Don't know when that's going to happen, so it'll probably be awhile before I make any progress. In the meantime, please enjoy this video of stupid people hurting themselves while the people videoing them laugh hysterically.

[walker]

In giving the neck & fretboard a good steam to shift the angle of the neck slightly, I noticed the strong sweet smell of Cedar. And after sanding the finish off the headstock, I notice that it's a very orange/red color. Could the "Rosewood" on this bass actually be Cedar, or does Rosewood also have a strong sweet smell?

[Colonel Sanders]

In giving the neck & fretboard a good steam to shift the angle of the neck slightly, I noticed the strong sweet smell of Cedar. And after sanding the finish off the headstock, I notice that it's a very orange/red color. Could the "Rosewood" on this bass actually be Cedar, or does Rosewood also have a strong sweet smell?

Some rosewoods will have a spicy smell, cedar like.

As cedar is a soft wood, it is very unlikely it would have been used for a fingerboard.

[walker]

Aaaah. That makes scents.

(Sorry.)

[ricnbacker]

People sure do get worked up about all kinds of stuff huh...?

Mark, cheers man, I hope it turns out exactly how you want it to.

yeah..I was thinking something along the lines of Panties being bunched but worked up works...

[walker]

HA HA! Worked up panties in a bunch. Yeah, it happens to the best of us. Kind of annoying, but then all you have to do is pull them out of your a$$ and get on with your day.

On that note, I got bored with trying to find someone to put the fretboard back on, so I did it myself. After studying the situation, I figured that all I really needed to do was carefully remove all the gunk from the neck & fretboard and make sure the two pieces were aligned properly when gluing. And now that that aspect's done, I'm going to go ahead and get the bass playable, do the refin, then worry about a refret down the road. So the end is getting closer!

I'll post photos of the string tension tests later on.

[opticnerve]

Cool beanz!

[henry5]

According to Mark Arnquist (former RIC employee), RIC was putting these tailpieces too far forward till the mid 70's. For some reason he never understood, this seemed to be on purpose, not because of variances in production. If I had to guess, I'll bet someone just though it was easier to measure 33" from the nut instead of 33 1/4".

This is an issue of mine with the earlier basses as I like to have very low action and I struggle to get the intonation (one of the reasons I sold the 21 fretter). My Fireglo '72 has had the tailpiece routed for a slightly later bridge unit at some point to get round it. My Azure has the original bridge unit which I had some new aluminium saddles made for; however it's still a bit borderline and the bridge unit is very tilted. I may get the whole tailpiece moved back slightly at some point to see if it makes a difference, although TBH there's not much leeway with the cavities being as they are. Has anyone come up with a really good solution for this?

[walker]

...Has anyone come up with a really good solution for this?

The quick-fix: I use small washers as shims under the bridge instead of the height adjustment screws. Since it provides a flat surface for the bridge to sit on, it also helps improve sustain.

[aceonbass]

This is an issue of mine with the earlier basses as I like to have very low action and I struggle to get the intonation (one of the reasons I sold the 21 fretter). My Fireglo '72 has had the tailpiece routed for a slightly later bridge unit at some point to get round it. I may get the whole tailpiece moved back slightly at some point to see if it makes a difference, although TBH there's not much leeway with the cavities being as they are. Has anyone come up with a really good solution for this?

If you've moved the tailpiece as far back as you can without uncovering the mute route, and your intonation is still off, you can re-shape the saddles to move the witness point further rearward, and also allow for more rearward travel. You can also remove up to about 1/16" of material from the bottom of the bridge to further lower action. These solutions have kept a few customers from having the top of the bass routed to lower the whole tailpiece(WHY?), or selling an otherwise nice bass.

[walker]

I ground down the tops of the screws so that the washers sit flush. If you don't want to mess with the original screws, use three newer ones and grind those down - like I did. After all, without the 3 original tailpiece screws, it's not really an RM 1999. Or something.

[ricnbacker]

HA HA! Worked up panties in a bunch. Yeah, it happens to the best of us. Kind of annoying, but then all you have to do is pull them out of your a$$ and get on with your day.

On that note, I got bored with trying to find someone to put the fretboard back on, so I did it myself. After studying the situation, I figured that all I really needed to do was carefully remove all the gunk from the neck & fretboard and make sure the two pieces were aligned properly when gluing. And now that that aspect's done, I'm going to go ahead and get the bass playable, do the refin, then worry about a refret down the road. So the end is getting closer!

I'll post photos of the string tension tests later on.

dude, you have a lot of guts...I get nervous changing strings....lol

I could only get past 12 or 13 pages of bickering about your project but man, thats some job you are doing.

I may have to call you to see if you are interested in slapping a new nut on my bass...cant find anyone around her I trust. already had it done twice and I am not happy with either attempt...

[wints]

After all, without the 3 original tailpiece screws, it's not really an RM 1999. Or something.

Not at all...

However, selling the original top wing on eBay for $37? Well...

[walker]

I'd be happy to take a look at the bass, Chris. Hit me via PM with the details.

And Kudos to you for weeding through the nay-sayer commentary and cutting to the chase. Stick around - this RM 1999 is almost "a wrap."