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Firstly, here's the current electronics loom:
Ignore the Jazz pickup - that will have to go.
The original bridge pickup is in a sorry state. The two magnets on the bottom are supposed to be glued and slightly apart but the glue has failed and they have been dragged together. Methinks this might be an @Alegree question - I think it will need a rewind and a reset of the magnets, and I want another one for the neck.. maybe something similar but not exactly the same? Also - I need to source a cover for the neck one.. hmmm.
Pots look ok, but the wiring is shot, so I need to make a new loom for it. The output socket is rusted to oblivion inside.
Disassembled:
First up was the body. First thought was "strip and oil" but I soon decided not to. Got the Virtuoso cleaner out and lathered liberally over it. It's mostly just built up grime and after some polish and a quick rub it's looking more than acceptable:
So it's staying as is - but will get further buffing and cleaning to get it a bit more sparkly.
Neck was an easy clean - and it's in great condition. Nut is a bit suspect but I'll give it a go. If it needs doing, then it may well be a nut replacement and defret to make it a short scale fretless....
It's a clear guard painted black at the bottom with the logo applied as a sticker. It's serviceable and not too bad so I'll leave as is. The extra notches in the neck rout would be covered by a neck pickup cover so I'm not fussed if I can find a replacement cover.
If anyone has one down the back of the sofa or in the shed.. do let me know
They fit into that odd period in the 70's/early 80's when Epiphones were mostly Japanese made following the move away from Kalamazoo. Some good, some bad (well, mostly bad). It's a Matsumoku build, late 70's, and funnily enough it's really really light weight (unlike a lot of 70's stuff) Build quality is OK, but nothing special - it was built to a price, but you can tell that with some care and attention it can be made to play perfectly well.
The main thing I need to do is source a pickup cover and then work out what to do with the pickups - ideally I'd like to stick to the original formula if possible, but open to suggestions for a pair of pickups that would fit under the existing covers reasonably well..
Looks like it's a bent metal frame with the poles running through it. Oddly the two magnets are just plonked on the bottom - they are supposed to be N N to repel each other but as they aren't stuck on they could flip easily and cause a weak output (apparently this is common!)
I've screwed them back out a bit
I wonder if the holes in the magnets were supposed to accommodate screws to screw them securely onto something?
Do you reckon you could fabricate a matching pair of similar design? I’m toying with the idea of fabricating a flat cover to go where the chrome one is now
I've dug up the photo of those Vox bass pickups I was talking about.
Basically a 4 poled P90.