Yamaha TRBX174 Bass Needs Some Help | Part 2

◀ Part 1

7 Servicing, Cleaning and Polishing

As seen in Part 1, this TRBX174 was certainly in need of a "cosmetic makeover," so to speak. Let's start off with the hardware, then. Servicing, as expected, involved lots of time, Autosol, various polishes; and a generous dose of elbow grease. Was it worth the effort? Yes, I'd say. In any case, when something has to be done, you don't dilly-dally; you just roll up your sleeves get down to business.

Cleaning and polishing the non-metallic components on this bass was yet another unenviable task, make no mistake about that. Now, while a gloss black polyurethane finish is a joy to behold, maintaining a clean and smudge-free surface is a right royal PITA. To this end, a wide range of cleaners, polishes and waxes were used, running the gamut from Zippo Lighter Fuel [naphtha] to Gibson Guitar Polish and carnauba wax. And yes, since then, I've only handled the bass with surgical gloves on.

Hardware After Servicing

Tuners Greased Before Reassembly

8 Conditioning the Fretboard

Cleaning the sonokeling fretboard did not involve any scraping, thankfully. All it took was naphtha, 3M pads and 0000 grade steel wool. As for the frets, all the tarnish was gone after a spot of steel-wooling. Conditioning the fretboard, on the other hand, took way longer than expected. This was due to it being ultra dry. So dry, in fact, that it took some eight applications of lemon oil to hydrate it sufficiently; I kid you not.

Fretboard After Cleaning

Lemon Oil Applied

After Eight Applications of Lemon Oil

9 Correcting Neck Pitch

You might recall that the neck pitch on this TRBX174 was slightly off, resulting in an upwards slant and excessively high action. As you must have already guessed, the remedy would be a suitable shim. Here, I opted for 80 grit silicon carbide paper, a trick I learned from Nonus Zella. What? no tapered wooden shim? Well, in this case, one was not needed. And yes, I do use tapered wooden shims when nothing else will do, such as on this RC Stromm Offset Solidbody. So, there you go.

Silicon Carbide Paper Shim

Desired Neck Pitch Achieved

10 The Home Stretch

With hardware reinstalled and the neck reattached to the body, we finally had the finish line in sight. All that was left was restringing and setup. I'm really impressed with the owner's choice of strings, D'Addario EXL170s. This is one guy who knows his stuff. As an aside, I'd advise four-string players to look for a set with a low E of at least 100 gauge. 105 would be even better, but you don't come across them often. 95? No way, unless you play with a really light touch.

Body Cleaned and Polished

Close-Up of Pickups and Bridge

D'Addario EXL170 Strings

11 Mini Photo Shoot

The job's done, and I'm one happy repairman. As per usual, I've not missed the opportunity to snap a few pics for posterity. Truth be told, this Yamaha TRBX174 four-string bass, despite being pre-loved; is still a gorgeous instrument. With regular maintenance, I'm certain it will serve its owner well for years to come.

Yamaha TRBX174 - Front View

Headstock Face and Fretboard

Body - Front View

Yamaha TRBX174 - Back View

Back of Headstock and Neck

Body - Back View