Stroking A Big Red Swede

[GregP]

As my pops isn't currently in a band and when he pulls out his bass it's likely to be his American Standard Jazz anyhow, he's given me his old workhorse bass on permanent loan. (ie. until I get a bass of my own).

This isn't it, but mine looks exactly like it:

HIIBN or something like that is the model name. You can't see very well, but there's a switch of some sort on the upper horn. A 2-way. I'm not sure if it's meant to be just a 'kill switch' or not, but that's certainly what it's doing. Might just be faulty wiring. Then the controls are just like Les Paul controls (2 tone 2 vol, 3-way switch).

Hasn't been played in years, but when I pulled it out, I found the action to be much more to my liking than the Jazz! The neck is in great shape, but the frets are crapped up. I'm going to mask off the fingerboard and take some steel wool to them tomorrow. Not sure if that's the exact right thing to do, but I have the confidence borne from knowing that I certainly can't make the frets any worse.

"Mine" is actually in better shape than the one in the photo. If my camera decides to cooperate with me once I've de-gunked the frets, I'll post a shot.

It's a real player!

Greg

[marksound]

<flashback>

He pulled out an old beat up Hagstrom bass with nasty looking dead old flatwounds and said, "It's ok. I brought mine."

</flashback>

[lovekraft]

Aah, a cherry red Swede - that brings back some bittersweet memories! That was my first real bass, and I've loved Hags ever since! They even made an 8-string version of that axe - Noel Redding played one (post-Experience) when he was with either Fat Mattress or Road.

[GregP]

<flashback>

He pulled out an old beat up Hagstrom bass with nasty looking dead old flatwounds and said, "It's ok. I brought mine."

</flashback>

←

Not sure what you're flashing back to, but by coincidence, this bass DOES have flatwounds! But they're not too nasty. They're remarkably corrosion-free and I kind of like the sound of them.

LK - an 8-string would be sweet. Did your Hag have the damper on it? This model was made with one available, but I don't think my pops ever purchased that option.

[Mickguard]

nightmare bass flashback

[marksound]

[Southpa]

I own a 67 hagstrom III, had it for about 20 years now. Its fully functional and sports a very slim neck. I take it out now and then but it still needs some cleaning up. 3 single coils, strat style neck and sliding switches, 3 are on/off for each pup, and 2 are low and high range tones and the last switch is a mute. As well as 1 volume pot. The sliding switch near the upper horn is on/off, just like mine. The body shape is pretty much the same as mine. There is a new company in upstate NY that has brought the Hagstrom name back to life. the guitars are a little different than they used to be but the trademark truss rod is still being used.

Here are a few links for reading up on hagstrom guitars if you are interested.

http://perso.wanadoo.fr/hagstrom/redirect/index.html

http://www.haskinshagstroms.com/John/index...askinshagstroms

http://hem.passagen.se/awe/hagstromenindex.htm

http://www.21frets.com/index01.html

[smitty]

Aah, a cherry red Swede - that brings back some bittersweet memories! That was my first real bass, and I've loved Hags ever since! They even made an 8-string version of that axe - Noel Redding played one (post-Experience) when he was with either Fat Mattress or Road.

←