Yamaha Pacifica PAC612VIIFMX - Part 2

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8

PAC612VIIFMX FRD. Copyright ©2025 L.A. Music.

For folks just tuning in, this Yamaha Pacifica PAC612VIIFMX was sent in on November 15, 2025. And while I was giving this guitar a once-over, the owner pointed out a number of issues he'd like addressed. These include a malfunctioning master volume control, fret buzz, and a loose saddle height adjustment screw. Now, the PAC612VIIFMX is most certainly not your run-of-the-mill Pacifica. Therefore, it behooves me to first share some technical specifications, as sourced online from Yamaha and Sweetwater.

General

Manufacturer Part Number: PAC612VIIFMX FRD 

Number of Strings: 6 

Orientation: Right-Handed

Origin: Indonesia

Serial Number: IHZ153005 

Body 

Body Type: Solidbody 

Body Shape: Pacifica 

Body Material: Alder 

Top Material: Flamed Maple Veneer 

Body Finish: Gloss 

Color: Fired Red 

Neck 

Neck Material: Maple 

Neck Shape: C 

Neck Joint: Bolt-on 

Fretboard Material: Rosewood

Scale Length: 25.5"

Fretboard Radius: 13.75" 

Fretboard Inlays: Pearloid Dots 

Number of Frets: 22 

Nut Width: 1.614" 

Nut Material: Graph Tech TUSQ

String Trees: Graph Tech 

Hardware 

Bridge/Tailpiece: Wilkinson VS50 Vibrato Bridge 

Tuners: Grover Locking (internal-cam locking string posts) 

Electronics 

Neck Pickup: Seymour Duncan SSL-1 Single-Coil 

Middle Pickup: Seymour Duncan SSL-1 Single-Coil 

Bridge Pickup: Seymour Duncan Custom 5 TB-14 Humbucker 

Controls: 

Master Volume

Master Tone (push-pull humbucker coil split) 

Switching: 5-Way Blade

Yamaha Pacifica PAC612VIIFMX - Part 1

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8

Yamaha Pacifica PAC612VIIFMX received on November 15, 2025. Issues include a malfunctioning master volume control, fret buzz, and a loose saddle height adjustment screw.

Rest in Peace, Haji Fendi - November 13, 2025

This is the message I received from Haji Moslimin Halda @ Abe Mus earlier tonight (November 13, 2025).

"Assalamualaikum wbt

Dengan dukacita di maklumkan telah kembali ke rahmatullah Hj Afendi Bin Osman pada hari Khamis malam Jumaat 10:40 PM baru sebentar saja tadi (13 November 2025) di wad ICU HTAA (Kuantan). Semoga Allah SWT mencucuri rahmat ke atas roh arwah serta menempatkan nya bersama sama orang yang beriman, Aamiin. Jenazah akan di bawa pulang ke rumah anakanda nya di Bukit Sekilau. Contact nombor anakanda arwah 0129560877."

River Blues founding member Haji Fendi passed away in the HTAA ICU at 10:40 PM on November 13, 2025. He will be brought back to his son's home in Bukit Sekilau in preparation for for burial. His son may be contacted at 0129560877. May God rest his soul.

2:44 AM Update

I've just returned from Bukit Sekilau 

Tentative for tomorrow (November 14, 2025):

8 AM Solat Jenazah at Masjid Bukit Sekilau

10 AM Burial at Tanah Perkuburan Islam Setali

Hj Afendi Bin Osman

Hj Afendi Bin Osman

River Blues 2017 Lineup

Hj Afendi Bin Osman

River Blues 2018 Lineup

1996 MIK Squier Stratocaster Overhaul - Part 4

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6

Defretting the Neck

To recap, the owner isn't happy with the current frets installed on his 1996 MIK Squier Stratocaster neck. As such, he's requested a full refret. But first, these frets need to be removed, i.e. we'll have to "defret" this neck.

My go-to tools for defretting are a scalpel, a soldering iron, and a pair of flush-ground nippers. In the pictures below, the existing finish along both sides of each fret has already been scored with the scalpel to reduce chipping or tear-out. The frets were then carefully heated with the soldering iron, and slowly eased out of their slots with the nippers. Here's a short video demonstrating this process.

Hakko 981 Soldering Iron

Flush-Ground Nippers

The Nut's Been Removed

Defretted Fretboard - 1

Defretted Fretboard - 2

The Original Frets

Sanding and Restaining

Remember that darkish finish a previous owner applied to the fretboard? Well, that's got to go. I've tried paint thinner and even acetone, but to no avail. What's left, then? Good old sandpaper, that's what. In the pictures below, I'm using 240 grit paper wrapped around a 9.5" wooden radius block and a sanding sponge to get rid of that faux "roasted maple" finish.

Initial Sanding With a 9.5" Radius Block

Here's the Result

Subsequent Sanding With a Sanding Sponge

Checking the Fretboard Radius

Finish Removal Completed

Now the fretboard is rather pale compared to the headstock, so we'll have to darken it a tad. For starters, I've applied a wee bit of StewMac ColorTone Vintage Amber (#5030) liquid stain dissolved in isopropyl alcohol to the bare fretboard. We'll give it some time to dry, and see what it looks like.

ColorTone Vintage Amber Stain Applied

1996 MIK Squier Stratocaster Overhaul - Part 3

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6

Headstock and Neck - Right Side

With the neck lying on its left side, we'll take a journey along the right (lower) edge of the headstock and neck all the way down to the neck heel. The first thing you'll notice is the snug fit of the nut in its slot, testimony to Cor-Tek's meticulousness. Sighting down this edge also reveals a clearly demarcated "border" between the fretboard refinish and the original. Refinish notwithstanding, this is definitely a true blue one-piece maple neck, what a rarity!

Headstock - Right (Lower) Side

Nut - Right Side

Right Side of Neck - 1

Evidence of Refinished Fretboard

Right Side of Neck - 2

Right Side of Neck - 3

Right Side of Neck - 4

Right Side of Neck Heel - 1

Right Side of Neck Heel - 2

Headstock and Neck - Left Side

Now we've flipped the neck and it's resting on its right side. Let us once again journey from the headstock to the neck heel, albeit down the left (upper) edge. Once again, the well-seated nut takes center stage. The fit is virtually seamless, save for embedded dust and grime, which is to be expected on an instrument of this age. This edge also displays black side dots at the 3rd, 5th, 7th, 9th, 12th, 15th, 17th, 19th, and 21st frets. And here, once again, we are confronted with clear evidence of a much darker fretboard refinish.  

Headstock - Left (Upper) Side

Nut - Left Side

Left Side of Neck - 1

Left Side of Neck - 2

Left Side of Neck - 3

Evidence of Refinished Fretboard

Left Side of Neck - 4

Left Side of Neck Heel - 1

Left Side of Neck Heel - 2

  

Back of Headstock and Neck

The back of the headstock displays attractive figuring, as does the rest of the neck. Sadly, a close look at this side of the headstock tells us that the missing stock tuners were of the economical "trapezoid" variety. Moving down, the classic "skunk" stripe, a necessity on any one-piece neck, begins around the 2nd fret. Although this neck would have been originally finished in clear poly, years of use have removed any stickiness, and it now feels silky smooth. On the whole, this neck is relatively free from any defects, save for a dent at the 9th fret.

Back of Headstock - Trapezoid Tuners

Back of Neck - 1

Back of Neck - 2

Back of Neck - 3

Back of Neck - 4

The neck heel is where the skunk stripe ends, with a small gap between it and the truss rod anchor. Now, the truss rod anchor on this Squier Strat is a wooden cylinder, quite unlike the metal anchors you'd typically find on Strats of that era. There are also markings on the neck heel, the most noticeable being a figure 8 painted in black. There is also a reddish marking below the 8, probably made with a carpenter's pencil. It's too faint to be read, however. Finally, the grain pattern at the butt end of this neck strongly suggests that it's rift sawn.

Neck Heel Markings

Neck Heel - Butt End