Tim Patterson
Fender Precision Bass
Recently I noticed half of the pickup didn't work on my beloved old 1987 Fender Precision Bass (I've been the only owner).. So tonight I took it apart to fix it and put on new strings.
Back in early 1994 I had Precision Guitar install an EMG pickup. I was under the impression I was buying a regular passive pickup. And when I went to pick it up and pay them they didn't tell me any different, and there was no battery cover on the back, so I thought all was good.
So tonight I noticed the mess they made under the pick guard.. They routed some of the body out so they could stuff a 9-volt battery wrapped in electrical tape in there. Since they never told me they decided (on their own) to install an active pickup I never knew, so I never checked it or changed it. (They don't last forever, and they knew this)
So tonight I find a heavily corroded battery in there, and it's so corroded I can't even detach it from the clip. At this point I am assuming the corrosion finally got bad enough in recent years that the rust/junk is no longer conducting electricity.
What really irritates me is that if the tech was going to dig out some wood with the router, why the hell not rout a small hole in the back and install a proper battery box so someone can access to change the battery?
Fender Precision Bass
Recently I noticed half of the pickup didn't work on my beloved old 1987 Fender Precision Bass (I've been the only owner).. So tonight I took it apart to fix it and put on new strings.
Back in early 1994 I had Precision Guitar install an EMG pickup. I was under the impression I was buying a regular passive pickup. And when I went to pick it up and pay them they didn't tell me any different, and there was no battery cover on the back, so I thought all was good.
So tonight I noticed the mess they made under the pick guard.. They routed some of the body out so they could stuff a 9-volt battery wrapped in electrical tape in there. Since they never told me they decided (on their own) to install an active pickup I never knew, so I never checked it or changed it. (They don't last forever, and they knew this)
So tonight I find a heavily corroded battery in there, and it's so corroded I can't even detach it from the clip. At this point I am assuming the corrosion finally got bad enough in recent years that the rust/junk is no longer conducting electricity.
What really irritates me is that if the tech was going to dig out some wood with the router, why the hell not rout a small hole in the back and install a proper battery box so someone can access to change the battery?