A Rather Nice Acoustic-Electric Guitar

This guitar has me stumped. Right off the bat, the spelling error on the label raises a red flag. An exhaustive online check on the model name has turned up loads of acoustic-electrics with Zebrawood tops, backs and sides; but none that resemble this. Then, there's the matter of the serial number drawing a blank on the usual sites I rely on for verification. A well-made knockoff? Your guess is as good as mine. It came in for an electronics check after a fall. Turned out to be a disconnected ground. Fixed that.

The top appears to be spruce. The neck, back and sides could be some species of mahogany. The fretboard and bridge look like rosewood. Frets are nicely crowned and the ends smoothly dressed. In terms of looks, there's black body binding and faux tortoiseshell purfling, a black heel cap; and Florentine cutaway to boot! Long story short, it looks good, feels good, plays good, intonation is spot-on; and the preamp works as it should. What's not to like?

Fender Japan Traditional II 60s Precision Bass: Part Two

◀ Part One

Deep Dive

This is the second installment of a series on a truly good-looking and groovalicious three-tone-sunburst Fender Japan Traditional II 60s Precision Bass. In Part One, we took a look at some of this fine instrument's most prominent features and specifications. Honestly, after spending some serious face and ear time with it, I do believe that this bass "was created by fusing traditional Fender aesthetics of instrument making with sophisticated Japanese craftsmanship."

Enough about that, then. In this exciting episode, we'll take the bass apart, restring it with La Bella 760FS Deep Talkin' Bass Stainless Steel Flatwounds; and set it up for optimal playability. And, of course; there'll be loads of pics. Yes, I actually had to remove the neck in order to access the heel-mount truss-rod adjustment nut. Headstock access would have been way easier, but what the heck; Fender Japan wants to keep things as vintage as possible.

Now, since the neck was already off the body; I could not resist the temptation to remove the gorgeous four-ply tortoiseshell pickguard for a sneak peek under the hood. What I saw was nice, really nice. Neat soldering and wiring, CTS pots; and a Switchcraft #11 output jack. 

The Vintage-Style Split Single-Coil Precision Bass® Pickup was shielded by a Vintage-Style Precision Bass Brass Grounding/Shielding Plate, and the electronics; under-pickguard self-stick foil. The control cavity was unshielded, though. I was lamenting this shortcoming for awhile; before remembering that my Robert Cray Strat also lacked control cavity shielding when I first got it. It's a '60s thing, you know.

So, I got the fretboard nice and flat, reattached the neck; and proceeded to restring the bass. Setup wasn't a breeze, thanks to heel-mount truss-rod access; but you gotta do what you gotta do. In the end, I managed to get the action much lower than the factory setup without any buzzes or farts. The owner came by close to midnight to pick up his bass, being the busy guy he is. 

As the neighbors were already asleep, trying it out amplified was out of the question. He settled for a few minutes of unplugged noodling, and took his leave when Johnny (another neighbor's dog) started barking for no apparent reason. I guess Johnny isn't into Fenders.

Well, folks, that's the story on this three-tone-sunburst Fender Japan Traditional II 60s Precision Bass. One thing I can tell you is that the good folk at FujiGen Gakki certainly know they're doing; more power to them! Thank you for stopping by my humble blog, and do come again. Till we next meet, stay safe :)

Fender Japan Traditional II 60s Precision Bass: Part One

Part Two ▶

Specifications

This is the first of two posts on a brand new three-tone-sunburst MIJ Fender Precision Bass. It came in for a string change from roundwounds to flatwounds and the necessary setup that follows. Although it's marketed as being "Traditional 60s," the radius of the rosewood fretboard is a modern 9.5 inches, as measured at the 3rd, 7th, 12th and 20th frets. The specs shown below are based upon information sourced from Swee Lee Malaysia, Gakkido Online Shop; and my own observations. Thanks for dropping by, enjoy the pics; and stay tuned for Part Two.

Body
Body Shape: Precision Bass®
Body Material: Basswood
Body Color: Three-Tone Sunburst
Body Finish: Polyester

Neck
Neck Material: Maple
Neck Finish: Gloss Urethane
Neck Shape: "U" Shape
Neck Plate: Four-Bolt
Truss Rod: Heel-mount truss-rod adjustment/Phillips head truss rod nut

Fretboard
Fretboard Material: Rosewood
Fretboard Radius: 9.5" (241 mm)
Scale Length: 34" (864 mm)
No. of Frets: 20
Fret Size: Vintage Style
Fretboard Inlays: White Dots

Electronics
Pickups: Vintage-Style Split Single-Coil Precision Bass®
Controls :CTS 250K Master Volume, CTS 250K Master Tone
Tone Cap: Poly 0.047uF
Output Jack: Switchcraft #11
Shielding:
Vintage-Style Precision Bass Brass Grounding/Shielding Plate
Under-pickguard foil shielding

Hardware
Hardware Finish: Chrome
Bridge: Four-Saddle Vintage-Style
Control Knobs: Knurled Flat-Top
Pickguard: Four-Ply Tortoiseshell
Tuning Machines: Vintage-Style

HSS Strat Copy Overhaul: Part One

Part Two ▶

According to the guy who sent it in, 'someone' left this sunburst HSS Strat copy lying in a corner uncovered (nekkid) for two years. Seems that almost every part of this instrument is covered in dust, grime, rust; and stains from some kind of liquid (your guess is as good as mine). Yes, folks; it's time for an overhaul!

So far I've dismantled most everything that needs to be cleaned, serviced; or replaced. The saddle height hex screws will definitely be junked; if I can somehow remove them. Same goes for the nut, output jack plate and electronics. I'll be keeping the trem springs and strap buttons, though; as they have a certain mojo.

The pickups are working, thank goodness. The white tape protecting the coils of the humbucker has started to disintegrate; so I've gingerly removed it and done a re-wrap with proper black cloth pickup tape. Looking at the pics I've posted might not be a pleasant experience, I realize. 

However, I believe that the onus is on me to show readers just what outright neglect can do to a guitar in time. Thanks for checking out this post. See you real soon in Part Two, and don't forget to give your guitars lots of TLC :)

Note: Fender®, Stratocaster®, Strat®, Telecaster®, Tele®, P Bass®, Precision Bass®, and the distinctive headstock designs of these guitars are registered trademarks of Fender Musical Instruments Corporation.