MINK 4001 BASS REFINISH
This was the very first of several refinishes in the scheme that is dubbed "Mink" that Studio California did over the years. It was a restoration of a mid-1970s 4001 bass, done for Paul Boyer (author of the Rickenbacker Bass book). It seems that Paul had once seen a Gibson Les Paul finished in this burst, and had wanted a bass in the same color scheme for a long time...
"Mink" is a complex burst (Studio California executes it in no less than five colors!), beginning in a pale Lavender center, and fading through blends of Orange, Fuchsia, Chocolate Brown and finally black at the edges of the "Checkerboard" purfling. Paul described it to me verbally, and when he received the completed bass, he commented that we had "nailed" it.
We've done about a dozen instruments in this scheme over the years.
Photos below show the transformation, step-by-step, from a worn, run-of-the-mill working bass, to a stunning showpiece.
