The journey

This project, in all actuality, is a journey many our age are taking one last time.  We are all going back in time to recapture something.  I suppose the reason for each of us is somewhat different, but I think there is an underlying truth we all seek.... what brought us to this point in our lives?  What was it of the past that we need to visit one last time?  Simpler lives?  An old love or friend?  A feeling?

I remember cruising Broadway, turning around in the McDonalds' parking lot.... Kissing my girl by Silver Lake... playing 60s music on the stage of some High School with these guys.  Something about all those experiences brought me to this place in time.  A place Tom says we will not ever have a chance to visit aga

in.

I've watched the videos and cruised the pictures and it looks like you a

ll have had some great fun at these Rochester Jams.  I want you to know I've been practicing hard.  I don't know wh

o of this band will make it to this Gig in Rochester. 

 I do know I will carry their spirits for them if I were the only one.... but ya know, when the time comes, I don't think I'll be alone on that stage....

SKULLY: Weapon of bass destruction

Now that the first reunion practice is over and I have had time to listen to a couple of our recorded videos, I really like how my project to customize my bass guitar turned out. Called "The SKULL Bass" while being fitted with new pickups and a bridge, it is now affectionately known to the band as "SKULLY". This is what I did to this bass:

When I started playing again after so many years, I ordered a bass that wasn't too expensive. A search around eBay lead me to the Cort Action 4-string bass with an Agathis body, bolt-on maple neck, 24 frets and 34-inch scale. I liked the shape of the body then and absolutely love it now. It is easy on the shoulder, finished very nicely, and manufactured in Korea.

I found some EMG HZ P-J pickups on Music123 that looked like they might fit where the original Mighty Mites were centered. I found, however, that while the split P pickup dropped in perfectly, the single J pickup was slightly too large. I used a Dremel tool with a cylindrical sander bit to rout the cavity ever so slightly and the J pickup fit it nicely.
About the same time, I noticed that the bridge had pulled away from the body and was bent. Too much string tension on a light-weight bridge. I searched around and decided on the Hipshot A series bass bridge with .75-inch string spacing. This is a terrific bridge secured by four long screws. You can load the strings from either the top or through the body.

To finish off the custom look for SKULLY, I added two skull decals: a large skull on the back in the area most likely to get scratched, and a series of skulls for the front at the base of the neck. (See photos). These decals were purchased on-line from a car decal manufacturer. I also added skull strap locks and the stylish skull adorned strap.

I never really had a chance to hear SKULLY through an amplifier until our first reunion jam. Until then, I could only practice with a headphone amp so to not piss off the neighbors. My reaction to the tone now is something between "OMIGOD" and "Holy Sh**"! Powerful, smooth as butter, pure and gutsy...that kind of says it all. The customizing project was a big success and I plan to keep SKULLY as my main axe for quite some time. The rest of the guys in the band are jealous of the fact that I like SKULLY more than any of them and they hate me for it. Jimmy actually talked about holding SKULLY hostage and replacing the skull decals with Care Bears!

I don't think so!

Ace