JZ-6 build

[jmax]

Like so many people who watched "Get Back" last December and saw John Lennon playing the Bass VI, I said to myself, "I want one of those!"

It's also been a year since I built my last kit, and I always make it a point to try to build something that's a bit off the beaten track.

And then I found the JZ-6. I know it's not exactly like a JZ-6, but it is interesting, and sort of fills a similar evolutionary niche - a bit like penguins and puffins.

So, this is my sixth build, my third PitBull, and only my second solid body, and only my second bolt-on neck. I'm not sure I'm going to miss threading all the electronics through an f-hole, though.

The box arrived today - less than a week from Australia to the UK, which is kind of impressive.

[jmax]

And while I wait for the Bass VI strings, the sandpaper, and the Wudtone finishing kit to arrive, I did the only thing I could do without all that stuff - I reshaped the headstock.

I went for something between a P-Bass and a late 60s Strat.

[Simon Barden]

Welcome back.

A few people have made Bass VI conversions. A selection of points to note.

The bridge may need some hole enlargement to fit the Bass VI strings, but nothing too complicated.

And the standard kit tuners aren't as good with the thicker base strings as the vintage slotted type.

There is also the fact that the kit scratchplate is a standard JZ type, and not elongated for its baritone application (likewise the body routs for the pickups, so the bridge and middle pickups are further forward than they should be. A couple of people have done some extra routing and made their own scratchplates with repositioned pickups to match the original.

A neck shim may be a good idea to get the bridge sitting higher and improving the string break angle over it. But as the bridge isn't a grooved cylinder Fender-style one, it may not be necessary. An easy post-build modification if required.

All the best with the build.

[jmax]

Thanks!

I’ve been following the threads here on JZ-6s and have seen the discussions about pickup spacing.

My plan of action is to build as is and see how I feel about the sound. If I’m feeling bold, I might give reconfiguration a try.

One thing I’ve thought about - the distance between the 3rd pickup and the bridge on the JZ-6 is about the same, relatively, as the distance from the pickup and the bridge of a P Bass. Which is, as we all know, is the most perfect electric string instrument ever designed.

[Simon Barden]

They’ll all work, you just won’t get quite the range of sounds from bright to dark as the original. But some people prefer that as they feel the bridge pickup position on a bass VI can be too bright for bass work.

[Dikkybee007]

I bought a modified JZ-6 that gave me a blank body and the neck as I was not interested in a trem and didn't know what pickups I was going to use.

Have purchased a low profile roller Tune-o-matic that I can make new custom rollers if necessary, will have a through body string setup via some vintage style ferrules on the top face, will be using a blank Jazzmaster pickguard so I can place the 2 P-90 pickups I am using where ever I want and have some Ernie Ball 6 String Slinky bass strings.

As for the tuners will wait and see what I need. Just waiting on finances to become available due to the 6 other guitars that are ahead on the list and favourable weather to sit outside and sand all the parts before I put on the finish. Was looking at a Walnut stain for the body but have seen a nice Butterscotch that may get the nod.

Looked at the fret work on the neck and will probably remove the kit ones and replace them as I don't like the angle on the ends.

[tommycarlos]

Yay! There can never be too many Bass VIs in this world! Good luck on the build. I love my two so very much.

[jmax]

I’ve got some time to wait before the Wudtone finish arrives, so I did a full assembly, because it’s a Fender-style, so it’s easy enough to take apart again.

I’m using D’Addario Bass VI strings. I also took advantage of the PitBull offer to upgrade to Grover locking tuners, so that initially presented an interesting and unanticipated challenge. I figured out that I can strip the wrap on the three lowest strings and use the core for the locking device. I feel rather clever, we’ll see how well that works over time.

The action is pretty good, I had to take the 2nd and 3rd frets down a bit and add a bit of relief to get rid of a few buzzes.

The route for the whammy is pretty tight and when the strings are under full tension, the front of the plate is pulled up to the edge of the cavity and the whammy doesn’t move. I think I can fix that with a bit of filing.

The stock pickups sound pretty good. There’s no noise, so I don’t think I need to do any shielding.

I somehow wired the two tone pots in the wrong order. The good news is that there’s enough play in the wires to swap them, so I didn’t have to bother firing up the soldering iron. The bad news is that I was clumsy fitting it back together, and broke off one of the leads, so I have to fire up the soldering iron anyway.

The only hitch right now is that my usual method for pulling Tuneomatic bushings isn’t working (dropping in a shelf stud from a Billy bookcase and screwing in the post). They won’t budge. I can finish with them in, but I didn’t install the ground wire. If I can’t get them out, I’m thinking that I can make the end of ground wire very “bushy” and jam it up against the bushing through the hole and then glue it in place.

[Dikkybee007]

To remove bushings I have in the past just screwed in a bolt or the screw that comes with the Tuneomatic, depending on the style, and use a piece of wood/cardboard/carpet to help stop any marks on the face and used a claw hammer and levered the bush out.

[jmax]

Thanks for the tip!

I was a bit nervous about trying it, but the claw hammer approach worked. I was able to get both out without damaging anything