Craftsman Bass - Active to Passive Conversion

Preamble

This active Craftsman bass was sent in on May 23 with a host of issues, as seen in the video below. What worried the owner the most, though, was the malfunctioning electronics. 

Existing Electronics

A closer examination of the innards revealed iffy soldering, widespread corrosion, and even spliced joints wrapped in plumber's tape. Someone had definitely tried to fix or modify the electronics, with detrimental results. The owner, understandably, did not take this news well. Long story short, he asked for the active electronics to be discarded, and passive components wired in.

Existing Electronics

Mings GE-2 Preamp

Output Jack (Retained)

Master Volume Pot

Bass Boost/Cut Pot

Pickup Blend Pot

Treble Boost/Cut Pot

Active to Passive Conversion

With the existing electronics desoldered, we were ready to wire in new components. Note that two components were retained; namely, the pickups and output jack. The new passive circuit comprised a three-way toggle switch for pickup selection (bass/both/treble), four Alpha A500K pots (2 volumes, 2 tones), and two 0.047uF tone caps.

Replacement Electronics

Passive Circuit Completed

Faulty Bridge Ground

Meanwhile, the monorail bridge was disassembled as continuity between the individual saddles and ground was spotty at best. The reason behind this was a torn and woefully narrow copper foil strip, as well as a rusty ground wire. Fixing this issue involved soldering on a new ground wire and sandwiching it between two layers of conductive copper foil.

Torn Copper Foil

New Ground Wire

Bridge Ground Fully Installed

Monorail Bridge Reinstalled

Pots and Toggle Switch

Volume and Tone Knobs Installed

Fretboard Matters

We'll start off with fretwork, then. After the neck was straightened, a total of eight high frets were detected. These frets were spot leveled, recrowned, cleaned, and polished. As for the fretboard (14" radius), it was full of gunk, crud and dried polish. Servicing involved scraping, cleanup with naphtha, and conditioning with lemon oil.

High Frets - Image 1

High Frets - Image 2

High Frets - Image 3

Spot Leveling in Progress

Abrading the Leveled/Recrowned Frets

Scraping the Fretboard

Polishing the Frets

Cleanup with Naphtha

Conditioning the Fretboard

Mini Photo Shoot

After the neck was reattached to the body, this Craftsman was set up with Olympia B45105 (45 - 105) strings. And now, before we say adieu, here are a few pics for your viewing pleasure. 

Photo Shoot - Image 1

Photo Shoot - Image 2

Photo Shoot - Image 3

Photo Shoot - Image 4

Photo Shoot - Image 5

Photo Shoot - Image 6