Refinishing

In my opinion half the fun of owning a WishBass is refinishing it. The bass comes from Steve Wishnevsky totally playable but with only a very basic lacquer coat and the overall shape, curves and contours can usually benefit from a little attention. Steve has told me he doesn’t like sanding anymore, but fortunately I’ve not done enough of it yet to get that way: I find it quite relaxing!

To answer the standard question, these basses do not usually come with a truss rod, although one can be fitted as an option. To quote Steve: “Yes the neck is kind of fat. No, there is no truss rod. There is one reason for both of these quirks. I am convinced that putting metal in a guitar neck hurts the sound. If you think i am wrong, buy something else”!

After the sanding and shaping there’s usually a little filling to do and then sealing before applying a hand rubbed oil finish. I like to shield the cavities and replace the Corian bridge and nut with ones made of ebony. On top of this I’ve also added other additions such as strap-locks, Varitone control harnesses, LED’s, new pick-ups, hardware, etc. You can see a selection of the tools and materials I’ll use over the course of a refin here.

Want more information about my refins? Contact me here.

Clicking on the following basses will take you to a build and photo diary of each refin: