What have you guys done to your Hi-Fliers?Weird electrical mods, paint jobs, hardware substitutions?I was getting all jazzed about the summer and just wrote this whole really, really long thing about upgrading my Fliers, which was accidentally deleted when I went to save it as a draft! Fuck, probably for the better for everyone's sake, so I'll keep it short and sweet as I can in HF thread Mk. II.Got two Hi Fliers, a Phase I 'Custom' and a Phase IV. To some it might seem silly to put a bunch of effort into these, as alot of people feel they are what they are. But on the variable of fit and feel alone, for myself personally, both do a whole hell of alot more than just cutting the mustard - in very different ways. Also, the process of 'learning through upgrading / retrofitting' has probably been the single greatest source of acquring knowledge on the technical end of guitars for me. I would rather do it this way than buying some over-priced Fender out-the-gate any day of the week.So in lieu of my original extensive post, I'll just ask my main questions, but want to reiterate that I'm not just starting this thread with myself in mind. I really would like to hear others' experiences with modding / upgrading these.- For both of them, I replaced the tuners first thing. On the Phase I, I used some Allparts 3-on-a-plate Kluson style which worked good enough but not great. They just fit really well into the existing holes and were the only thing the local shop had when it was briefly my only axe (thus couldn't have it out of commission for too long). Outfitted the Phase IV with these weird Wilkinson locking tuners from GFS that fit nicely in place of the Grovers someone else had installed. Phase I problem is the improved, but residual tuning instability. I need 3-on-a-plate of the same dimensions, but of higher quality.Phase IV problem is the fact that the key shafts are just a tad bit too short and look really weird with the curved edge of the headstock. I had to cock them almost 45 deg. to the overall line of the headstock to get it approaching anything 'normal' looking / functioning (it follows the offset nicely, not nearly as stupid looking as it sounds). I feel like with longer key shafts I could just have them sticking straight out as God intended. A photo might be the only way of explaining this adequately...Any recommendations on something that might fit either? I've searched high and low on this to no avail.- I would really like to get the tremolo on the Phase I to be something that isn't just an instant 'out-of-tune-o-matic'. I've heard that they accept Jaguar tremolo OK, but having glanced a few pics in catalogs, this seems like a dicey prospect. Mainly because the Jaguar spring system is structurally very, very different - Jag has that cover on the bottom of the git similar to a Strat, running much deeper to the center of the guitar. While the Uni is more 'internal' so to speak - no access cover, save the one behind the bridge and much more truncated and towards the rear. Anyone have experience or knowledge of this?More to come... but these are the two big ones for now. Even if you don't have any advice, lemme see some pics gents!

Phase II. So fun. So light. So rock & roll.It's slowly but surely been falling apart since I got it. The last owner clearly didn't care much about it. I could take the time and money to restore it properly, but frankly I'm in the market for a guitar with a more comfortable neck, so I'll be sending it on its way in a few months. Still, a few years down the road when I can afford to have more than one or two guitars at once, if I find a cheap Hi-Flier with P90s in good condition, I might pick it up.

Matt - they are rare over here to the extent that I've only ever seen one other one and it was for sale for 800 quid! I think mine was about $350 from Nashville Craigslist but like I said, my friend bought me it. They come up on EBay a lot and the prices really vary but then again so does the quality of the guitars - a slightly fucked up Hi Flyer can be almost unusable. Don't be tempted by the Guyatone versions that crop up in the UK a lot, they look similar but they are utter shit. I bought one as a Hi-Flier substitute and I almost cried when I saw it and did when I played it.I think Asa's are Phase III models with the humbuckers like mine. They're great pickups, to the point where I am in the process of getting one to install in one of my other guitars. The build quality seems a little better than the earlier ones too, though the Phase I "Custom" and Phase II models with P90s have their own charms sound-wise.In short - get one.

Here's mine (on the day I got it and then after some modifications that are barely noticeable):A friend in Texas had some money worries and I helped him sell his Travis Bean so he bought this for me from Nashville and posted it as a thank you. I can't think of many happier mornings than getting this in the post!I swapped the stock tuners for 3-a-side "tulip head" Grovers like you'd get on an old SG. They work nicely now. I spoke to a tech-friend about switching the bridge to a Tun-o-matic but he felt strongly against it because of the same problems you get when you do this switch on a Jag/Jazzmaster in that the tremelo bridge (even if you don't use the arm) is designed to have a bridge with roller saddles. He suggested that a bridge from something like a ES335 with a Bigsby might fit (I think Badass made them with little micro metal roller saddles as seen here on my friends Trini Lopez: http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3597/334 ... 677020.jpg ) but it wouldn't be a straight swap so I left the original bridge and I think it's the best option.The guy who bought me the HF has his own one:and he swapped out the P90s for high output humbuckers and swapped the bridge for a Tun-o-matic. It works well for him as he sometimes has this strung as a baritone but the bridge allignment is now pretty off and it lacks a certain "chimeyness" as a result that suits him but I wouldn't prefer.Other mods were to replace the wiring and 3-way switch with a new one because they just wore out and I added 70s hi-fi knobs for the Vol/Tone because I liked the way they look. Previous owner scratched his/her social security number on the neck heel and put a bizarre indecipherable sticker on the backtoo.The best sounding Hi-Flier I can think of is Asa from Lungfish. As far as I know both his Phase IIIs are totally stock, except he sprayed the pickguards with glitter.Love these guitars though - for someone with really small hands they play and feel perfect and both sets of pickups they came with sound wonderful.

I have a very strong desire for one of these. Unfortunately here in the UK they seem to be as rare as a load of hen's teeth that have been pooed out by a rocking horse. Unless I'm simply being a total spoon and looking in the the wrong places? Anyhow, if I do ever decide to "pull the trigger" on a Stateside one, are there any particular models that have terrible issues that I should avoid? Like Chris, I love the sound of Asa Osborne's so that's what I'd be shooting for. Does he have one each of the P-90 and the humbucker versions? I am a big P-90 fan. Ooh, and also, supplementary question, should I just get one of the Eastwood "tributes"?Thanks,Matt.

I picked up a pretty destroyed High Flyer bass from a forum member, rebuilt it as a Bass VI, and resold to another forum member. It was hard to part w/ it...looked cool.

One thing that you might want to consider is that they were manufactured in the early days in Long Island, New York when Univox still resided there. After being sold off to Matsumoku, the Univox branding was obviously still continued on Hi-Fliers, but were often sold (rebranded, of course) to more obscure companies like Aria and Westbury. Maybe you would have more luck searching for one of these. Neuloveyou wrote: are there any particular models that have terrible issues that I should avoid?As far as I can tell, in the units that include them, the tremolo is next to useless (hence, my original post).Many times, like with any proletarian guitars this old, the pickups are EXTREMELY microphonic. I have yet to pot the ones on my Phase I Custom. Excellent for the bedroom, absolutely terrible for the basement. Gonna see how that works out - if it don't then I'm probably gonna go with a set of TV Jones P-90s. I agree that the build quality in the older ones seems to be a bit higher. I have a Phase IV as well, as I prefer a hard tail on anything and sometimes like humbuckers (the Uni HBs are really really awesome, they only came on Phase III and IV). The necks are like two totally different guitars. Phase I Custom (which has a different, thinner neck than the regular Phase I) is a really nice middle ground. Phase IV is the thinnest neck I've ever played, almost ridiculously so.The stock tuning machines and the bridges are the most obvious design flaw. Oh, that and the insanely un-ergonomic rocker switches on the Phase I's. Right in your strumming path. [Not my guitar, but you can see them in this pic] The standard rout doesn't allow for mounting a three-way on the lower bout below the neck p/u. I'm gonna try and place it by the volume and tone knobs and avoid routing. Neuloveyou wrote:Ooh, and also, supplementary question, should I just get one of the Eastwood tributes?I've heard mixed things about the Eastwoods. But then again, it's always been from Americans, in comparison to the actual Unis. They might be a fair substitution if one didn't have access to the regular guys. For me personally, a good portion of the appeal isn't there in the Eastwoods - since they're not really the same guitar, and cost more / as much as the originals over here. I do want one of their Airline '59 DLXs though...

Hey honeyisfunny, what is that crazy-looking bumblebee amp you got there?

Mason, if one of the English guys doesn't want to go through the hassle of shipping, be sure to let me know when you're ready to let her go.

CityOfSalt wrote:Hey honeyisfunny, what is that crazy-looking bumblebee amp you got there?It's a Marshall somethingorother solid state bass head (in fact, it's 2 of them but only one is painted yellow with household gloss paint and only one is switched on). The cab is a no name 1x15 that I suspect is a Laney. Bought them both off ianscanlon for about a tenner. Still got the yellow ones but sold the spare head ages ago. At the time they were run in parallel with a Marshall JMP 100w or a Hiwatt copy I have through a 4x12. As a result I have no hearing anymore.Cool Hi-Flier story: Phil from Trans Am has a neat P90 model that he said he got from a show where the opening band was going to just use it for the last song and trash it so he talked them out of it and left the show with it.