This came in recently along with the AV-330 deal- it's pretty raw, but almost everything's there. Serial # 1110146, the body is similar to the Fly Ashtray & Squid Head in that the body's not angled away/beveled where your right forearm crosses, plus the fretboard height is further off the deck than the later models. However, it has the truss at the headstock end, which I guess it must due to the rhythm pickup location. Also, a glossier headstock & stripe like the later models. Not many pics at this point, but I've started this thread just to prompt me to plan it all out & document a bit of it.
The body was fully sanded down at some point. Overall a pretty good job, two little dings that are hardly visible and should hide perfectly with the re-fin (I'm going with an opaque finish). There's a very small sliver of wood between neck p'up cavity & neck joint that appears to have broken during sanding, but has been glued back in with the original finish still on the top of it (denim-looking translucent blue, a finish I'd
LOVE to have!
). No worries, that section is hidden under the p'up trim ring.
Frets appear to be in good shape, filed/dressed a bit at some point. I forget if the truss rod cover is included or not. Neck has been sanded on the back, "hazed" lightly on the fretboard & back of headstock, and left OEM glossy on the headstock face. I'm thinking this is the perfect application for a custom sticker, no? I can't remember which forum member came up with this one, but I think it might find a home here (or, at least, on the back of the headstock):
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A local good friend is a very talented woodworker, and has often bartered his labor with me in the past (he's sanded & oiled at least 16 vintage black walnut JBL speaker cabinets for me, re-veneered 2 others). I visited his shop with this 325 body and other Avengers in tow, looking to discuss finish options, and noticed a bunch of custom cabinetry that he was working on. The finish is tough to describe, it's got some light silverflake to it along with some faint marbling...should be durable, unique & interesting, but would push me towards Barry's black bridge solution instead of the OEM brass barrel bridge. Hoping to hear from him soon, and I'll post some progress pics asap.
The OEM brass nut is there, but the low E slot has been over-filed, and I'm not yet sure what I'm going to be able to do with this. Might start a thread just for advice on that, I've never tried to build up the height of a brass nut slot. I may just replace it entirely if it becomes a sticking point.
Pickups that came with it are two MMK45s, which I love, but one looks like it's had some work done on the wiring...haven't yet tested things fully. All pots (including push/pull tones) are here. No knobs, but they'll soon be black dome knobs anyway.
I've attached the only pic I have so far, from the previous owner.
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Should be fun...
je
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I was open to a simple seal, or a stain, or whatever...but once I saw the finish he was doing on the cabs, it had a nice combination of durable + unique + cool. Added bonus was that he was right in the middle of processing those cabs, so he's not charging me for materials- he's just putting it through the process along with the cabinet doors & trim pieces. Score!
):