NBD 1967 Sunburst Starfire II

wisconsindead · Mar 20, 2014

Hey guys. First post here. Long time phil lesh/GD nut. Just got this bass today. Sunburst 67 Starfire II. It has a pretty nasty headstock break which occurred some 20 years ago? Though its remained stable. Its in quite nice condition otherwise. The figuring on the neck is frickin gorgeous. The pickups have additional magnets from Rick Turner. Really excited to be the proud owner of a starfire bass. Also excited to join the short scale world. The bass even has the original sticker from the store where it was first bought.

Problem: The bridge pickup came detached from the chrome fitting (i assume during transit). What would be the best type of glue/epoxy to use for putting it back? I dont want to mess it up even though I assume just about any glue should work as long as it holds.

Check her out!
http://s1036.photobucket.com/user/z...3&page=1&_suid=139534258685509783788273282064

wisconsindead · Mar 20, 2014

Just got this bass today. 67 sunburst starfire II bass. Its really a beauty. Incredible figuring on the neck. Some blemishes. Additional magnets from Rick turner on each pup. The head stock had a bad break a long time ago but is stable. Even has the sticker from the original store. Excited to join the short scale starfire world. Ive only played a squire P bass until now...

I have an issue though. The bridge pickup detached from the chrome molding. Any suggestions on a glue/epoxy to use for re-attachment?

Check it out!

http://s1036.photobucket.com/user/ztwatson/library/?sort=3&page=1

fronobulax · Mar 21, 2014

Welcome.

No suggestions for the repair. Embedded a direct link to one of your pics because it is a nice burst. Since the information content varied a bit I did leave the duplicate post. No harm, no foul. Lots of folks create duplicates when a posts doesn't show up immediately because new members get the first few posts moderated.

twocorgis · Mar 21, 2014

Welcome to LTG. That's a beautiful bass!

Default · Mar 21, 2014

I'm a fan of doublesided carpet tape for plastic and metal joints. I wouldn't use it on lacquered surfaces, but if you used a razor blade to trim it down to proper size, it should hold for another twenty years.

wisconsindead · Mar 21, 2014

Thanks Frono, sorry for the double post. I couldn't figure out how to post pictures so just did a photobucket.

Thanks for the compliments as well.

I was pretty antsy to play the bass so I ended up putting a couple small dots of hot glue to hold the pickup in place as that can be easily removed. Any more advice is welcome.

bassmyf · Mar 21, 2014

Welcome. Beautiful Burst. Let me be the first to suggest taking the "suck" switch out of the circuit. I wont be the last..

wisconsindead · Mar 21, 2014

Thanks bassmyf. I know basically nothing about electronics. Would it be easy for me to accomplish without backgorund knowledge?

SFIV1967 · Mar 21, 2014

wisconsindead said:
Problem: The bridge pickup came detached from the chrome fitting (i assume during transit). What would be the best type of glue/epoxy to use for putting it back? I dont want to mess it up even though I assume just about any glue should work as long as it holds.

Welcome to LTG! I recommend you get in touch with Curtis Novak (http://curtisnovak.com/pickups/BS-DS.shtml), who is also a member here (Curtis Novak). His email is listed on his webpage.

Regarding the headstock break, let us know in which area you live and we might be able to recommend a good luthier in your area who might be able to fix it/improve it.

Ralf

Yggdrasil · Mar 21, 2014

wisconsindead said:
I have an issue though. The bridge pickup detached from the chrome molding. Any suggestions on a glue/epoxy to use for re-attachment?
http://s1036.photobucket.com/user/ztwatson/library/?sort=3&page=1

I had the same issue with a 67 Starfire that had the pup rewound at Fralin. it separated from the ring in shipping. the luthier who did the install recommended this:

"the ring doesn't fit that well, i'd use a soft glue that fills the gaps

silicone glue, like a bathtub sealer would work well, as long as you're careful with the application. don't use any glue that needs heat to be loosened."

Happy Face · Mar 21, 2014

That is a lovely instrument.

wisconsindead · Mar 22, 2014

Thanks SFIV. I sent curtis a pm. I got this bass from Edwin and he had it checked out by a luthier who essentially stated if its been stable, it should remain so. Thus a repair of the headstock would mostly be a costly cosmetic fix.

Yggdrasil, Thanks for the tip.

Thanks Happy Face, shes been getting looked at like a beautiful woman by many since I got it.

grisezd · Mar 22, 2014

Hot melt glue seems like a good option. The heat's not so very high for very long at all and can be pried loose later without heat (actually, rubbing alcohol will soften it pretty nicely). And it's pretty chemically inert. At work I use it to temporarily glue sensors onto cars and haven't damaged any paint yet!

wisconsindead · Mar 22, 2014

Thanks grisezd. Thats actually what I did. Just put a little bit in the corners to hold it in. Good temporary/reversible fix.

Question: To adjust the poles, its loosen to lower and tighten to heighten? The poles seem to get a little caught on the black plastic and dont easily come back up once lowered.

Question 2: The bridge pick up seems to be putting out a lot more volume than the neck pick up. By just using a simple screwdriver tap on the poles there is quite a big difference. Furthermore with both pickups on (full tone and volume), the bridge pickup dominates the sound. Is this common? something with the wiring? way to fix this? (lower all the poles on the bridge pup?)

Question 3: The E string puts out some serious bass. This is great, but when switching from the E to the A string the notes get a bit lost as the volume change is bit drastic. I did raise the bridge pup A string pole as it was a bit low but havent played as I dont want to keep loosening and tightening the strings. The A pole got too low and couldnt be raised so I had to take the pick up out to get it back.

TIA!

fronobulax · Mar 23, 2014

Dunno any answers, but does the suck switch effect your perception of the neck being softer? It is only wired to effect the neck so maybe something is not quite right there.

Happy Face · Mar 23, 2014

Yes, I am astonished that the bridge pickup is louder. Hoping to hear other opinions ....

mavuser · Mar 24, 2014

wisconsindead said:
Question 2: The bridge pick up seems to be putting out a lot more volume than the neck pick up.

Question 3: The E string puts out some serious bass

TIA!

question 2: sounds like u have got the suck switch on, which only affects the neck pickup. It cuts the signal/volume by at least 50 percent or more. Keep pressing that button "off/on" until it turns off. If it hasn't been used in a while it may need a few warm up tries before it comes to life. If it is permanently stuck "on" u may need to have that switch disconnected sooner than later, if u intend to use the neck pick up the way it should sound.

question 3: try changin to light gauge strings. I recommend the D'addario medium scale light gauge chrome flats as one option. It is that low E that really is the most different than a heavy gauge set.

wisconsindead · Mar 24, 2014

Thanks guys. The such switch wasn't on. I've tried adjusting the pole pieces but it doesn't seem to make that much of a difference between the two outputs. I'm not sure if I stated that the bridge was clearly louder by just tapping the pole pieces with a screw driver. And it currently has TI flats on it, so those are pretty low tension.

edwin · Mar 25, 2014

You've got new strings on the way! Try them out and see what happens. As far as the E string goes, it seemed in line with my other Starfire, regardless of pickups (which my other Starfire has seen many).

One thing you might try is to swap the bridge and neck pickups. If it seems that the neck pickup is defective in any way, get in touch in email and I will work it out. But, I wonder if the suck switch might not be loading down the neck pickup even when off.

wisconsindead · Mar 25, 2014

Sweet thanks Edwin. Yea I think the next thing in line after the string issue will be to deactivate the suck switch. Hopefully that brings more life to the pup.

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