Sunburst Precision Bass Copy LH

This instrument was a no-name left-handed sunburst Precision Bass copy that looked, felt and played like something much more expensive; I kid you not. However, as is to be expected from a Far East copy instrument, there was barely any shielding, and the electronics were of the el cheapo variety. The saddles were beginning to seize due to crud and rust, and the pickups could not be raised. As it turned out, the pickup height adjustment mechanism was two pieces of high-density foam that had lost their springiness over time. I knew I'd have to remedy that problem later.

Anyhow, it was time to get down and dirty. Once the stock electronics were desoldered, I shielded the underside of the pickguard with aluminium foil, and the pickup/control cavities with carbon paint. Following this, I wired in Alpha A250K pots, a Russian K40Y-9 PIO cap, and Neutrik/Rean NYS229 output jack. Meanwhile, the fretboard, which was gnarly and cruddy, had to be reconditioned; and the frets polished. As for the saddles, two of the height-adjusting hex screws were goners and had to be replaced.The neck angle was a little off too, but a teakwood veneer neck pocket shim managed to do the trick. Remember the pickups? Well, I removed the foam and installed four springs, one for each height-adjustment screw. Thankfully, I could now raise and lower the pickups with ease. Strung up with a fresh set of D'Addarios, set up carefully, and after a lot of spit and polish; this baby was eventually playing as well as it ever could.