Scored a free bass...

... or should I say, scored a free bass wreck.
It's a Hondo II plywood bass, sort of JazzBass copy, with humbuckers, master volume and tone control, and toggle switch.
It's in a pretty bad shape altogether. Not only is it dirty, the screws are rusty, the electronics don't work, it misses two strings, a tuner bushing, the tone control knob, some screws, and a piece of binding at the first fret; and it has a nasty crack in the headstock at the e-string tuner.

But getting this thing to play again should keep me from the streets for a while...

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3038/2569310491_88df71c647.jpg?v=0

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3266/2570136348_8fb05bf2fc.jpg?v=1213170255

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Nice score, nothing major to fix, if you go PU's can I suggest Bill Lawrence PU's, I have a P bass replacement, not only very reasonable price but exceptional PU.
Clive

Free is my favorite price! Nice score.

Cheers, Tim

I'd definitely give those pickups a try before swapping them out. They may be fabulous! Only one way to know.

It's a great looking bass, and it's free. Congrats!! Now you can replace the pots, switches & jack! And get that tuner fixed before re-stringing (you may need to get a whole new tuner. Post pics as you go and let us know how it sounds!

I'd definitely give those pickups a try before swapping them out. They may be fabulous! Only one way to know.

Yep, I definitely planned on checking them out. Looks like it's seventies stuff more than eighties.

It's a great looking bass, and it's free. Congrats!! Now you can replace the pots, switches & jack! And get that tuner fixed before re-stringing (you may need to get a whole new tuner). Post pics as you go and let us know how it sounds!

I will!
I'll have to clean it first though... man, this thing is dirty! All of it is covered with a layer of sticky gunk. Yuck.

How I knew it was plywood...
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3005/2572694796_1794eb4255.jpg?v=0

Not very well fitting control plate, there's crack near the jack. When cleaning it smelled just like the old bakelite panhandles .
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3039/2572694996_2a98dcfcf6.jpg?v=1213257285

Rusty saddle screws:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3112/2572694984_aa1bfc6266.jpg?v=0

Cracked binding, strange nut, glued on truss rod cover, crack... the headstock area is the problem area of this bass.
Also, that string tree looks like it sits way too low.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3102/2571871039_0458693a8b.jpg?v=0

Control plate:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3088/2571870941_20407580a3.jpg?v=0

Basic electronics:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3193/2572694844_7a8c4f07db.jpg?v=0

Pickups, front:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3059/2572694834_90c5d40998.jpg?v=0

Pickups, back:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3042/2572694836_4c1c4174b1.jpg?v=0

Those pickups could be ok. They look sturdy built for one thing.

The back:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3017/2571870863_cf5cce4fe8.jpg?v=0

So, it's a Hondo II HJB-2S. Nothing to be found on this one in google. I guess over time this page will show up as only result if you search "Hondo II HJB-2S"... :mrgreen:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3048/2571870881_944e0ec476.jpg?v=0

I started cleaning; the body and neck with Polyboy, the pickup mounting ring and pickguard with ordinary dishwashing soap, and the fretboard with Gibson fretboard conditioner (which might not be the right stuff to do it with, given the amount of hardened grime).

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http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3281/2571870981_aabc567a87.jpg?v=0

Another problem with this bass: the MOP block inlays are sticking out and can be moved around a bit. The gaps around the MOP are big, about a mm.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3017/2572694904_40b5e18bba.jpg?v=0

good luck on getting her back in working order. it least the bass found its way to someone who cared enough to fix her up. keep us posted on the progress of the repairs. i'm sure you'll turn her into a real player by the time you're done.

free don't come cheap, does it? :smile:

Free is the best. Nice score! All is fixable and will look good after it's cleaned up.

good luck on getting her back in working order. it least the bass found its way to someone who cared enough to fix her up. keep us posted on the progress of the repairs. i'm sure you'll turn her into a real player by the time you're done.

free don't come cheap, does it? :smile:

It sure don't, and it's gonna take time, a whole lot of precious time, to quote George Harrison.
But indeed, it looks fixable.

That said... there is another weird thing I discovered... take a look at this middle fret:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3281/2571870981_aabc567a87.jpg?v=0

It's a whole different fret! Flatter, duller, greyer, and not following the radius of the board. I'm going to learn a lot of this beast.

Fortunately it's a rosewood fretboard so it is fairly easy to pull the fret and replace it with the correct size. I guess you will be browsing stewmac for a while?
Clive

I've been looking around stewmac indeed, Clive. But... it will be the first fretwork I do ever, so I'm very nervous to do anything. Even when it's a free instrument.

Another strange thing: you can't seem to buy just bushings for tuners... at least, I didn't find them yet.

I checked the pickups today, and they're fine. Bridge pickup reads 10.3, neck pickup reads 11.6.

Hey, tuuur, I've got a few Japanese instruments in various states of repair, including my original bass, a gift from the 'rents back in '83. I'd like to get on with getting them into better shape, but as you've noticed, the parts are a bit difficult to come by. Best shot is usually to stop in the local repair shop and ask if they've got any old bits, like bushings, etc, around that you could sift through looking for matches.

Good Luck