I turned this old out busted Alvarez bass into a one of a kind gift for my wife. I completely refurbished the electronics, bridge, and a couple tune keys. Custom paint by yours truly and a clear coat for shine made this thing a sick art piece.

Supplies

1 old busted bass from the dump,( I literally got this thing from a giant trash pile.) Couple replacement parts( tune key and strings). 1 spray can blue paint, 1 can sky blue, 1 can white, 1 can spray clear coating.

Step 1: Demo: Blow It Up

First I disassembled the whole thing to see what could be salvaged and what had to be replaced.

Step 2: Demo: Take Out the Guts

If your going to repaint a guitar, your have to take out the electronics, bridges, and anything else you don’t want paint on.

Step 3: Demo: Guts Continued

So electric guitars and bass instruments have multiple devices inside of them so make sure to take an account of how everything was wired.

Step 4: Paint Prep: AKA Elbow Grease and 1000 Grit

Sand down all surfaces, you don’t have to take it all back to wood but you’ll want to have that clear coat scuffed up, if not all removed before painting.

Step 5: Paint: Base Coat

I did an electric blue base coat which really helped my accents pop when adding the next layers.

Step 6: Paint: the Accents

I did the neck and body paint next, after giving the base coat time to dry.

Step 7: Finish Coat: Clear Coat

Did the final layer which was 3 passes of clear coat. After this I hung everything up from my deck rafters and let it dry overnight before reassembling the body.

Step 8: Reassembly: Well You Made It This Far

Reference your old wiring and placement of the hard ware, I had to replace a tune key (that I got online for $7)

Step 9: Final Step: the Reveal

Soooo, after all that work I couldn’t stop there, it had to be a surprise after all, but I think my wife’s face says it all, it came out wonderfully and she was surprised.