🔥 Sunday Special 🔥

This is not your ordinary Stray Of The Day.

🦁 Meet Leo 🦁

🏷️ Adoption Fee: £1850 🏷️

Ernie Ball Music Man StingRay 5, 2004, Lava Pearl

San Luis Obispo, California, USA

Ready for rehoming, this incredible USA-made Music Man StingRay 5 is finished in the rare and long-discontinued Lava Pearl.

Under normal light, Leo wears a deep burnt-copper finish. Move him beneath the lights and that three-stage pearl paint erupts into fiery reds, warm bronze and glowing orange flares. It is one of those finishes photographs simply cannot capture properly. He changes every time you look at him.

Leo has also been one of the most intensive and rewarding restorations to come through our workshop so far.

After spending almost two decades cased inside a damp storage locker, he arrived with a whole host of problems. His neck had developed a severe bow and twist, the electrics were partially seized and full of crackles, his clarity had disappeared, the G string suffered from persistent fret buzz, and areas of exposed timber had developed mould.

Cosmetically, though, he had somehow survived remarkably well. Beneath the effects of storage sat an exceptional 2004 StingRay 5, built at the Music Man factory in San Luis Obispo, California, with one of the most recognisable bass designs and sounds ever created.

Leo Fender’s bones were still there.

He just needed saving.

Jordan began with a full sanitisation and decontamination of the instrument. Every affected surface, cavity and exposed section of timber was carefully cleaned and treated, removing the contamination caused by years of damp storage before any mechanical work began.

Sarah then took charge of the finish. Leo’s individually selected solid ash body had survived with only one notable chip, measuring approximately 2mm by 3mm. This was carefully stabilised with clear CA to prevent any further damage while retaining the honest history of the instrument. The body was then painstakingly hand-buffed to remove years of haze and restore the depth of that incredible Lava Pearl finish.

Finally, it received a protective carnauba wax polish, helping to guard the lacquer against moisture and salts while giving Leo a deep, mirror-like shine.

The back of the neck was carefully cleaned and restored without burying its natural feel beneath heavy lacquer or polish. That familiar Music Man gunstock oil and wax character has been preserved, leaving the neck smooth, fast and wonderfully natural beneath the hand.

Then came the difficult part.

The one-piece maple neck had developed both a pronounced bow and a twist during its years in storage. Jordan began with a carefully controlled decompression and heat realignment process, gradually bringing the neck back into shape without forcing or shocking the timber.

Once stable, the neck pocket and six-bolt joint were precisely reset and squared, restoring the correct relationship between the neck and solid ash body. This brought the neck back into alignment, improved the playing geometry and secured the strong transfer of resonance and sustain that these instruments are known for.

The fretwork had also suffered from the changing moisture levels. Several frets had lifted or sprouted as the timber moved, so Jordan reseated and stabilised them before carrying out a complete fret level, crown and polish.

Every fret was brought back into line, carefully reshaped and polished to a smooth mirror finish. The fret ends were dressed, the playing surface was checked across the full neck, and that persistent G-string buzz was finally eliminated.

This is the level of attention an American StingRay deserves. They are iconic for a reason.

The rosewood fingerboard then underwent a multistage clean and conditioning process. After years of neglect, damp storage and the intensive neck treatment required to save it, the board needed far more than a quick wipe with oil. It has been carefully restored to bring back its dark colour, smooth playing feel and natural lustre.

Under the hood, the restoration continued.

The electrical cavity was thoroughly cleaned, and the controls and switches were carefully flushed and treated to remove the contamination left by years in damp storage. The seized movement, crackles and loss of clarity have gone. The controls now move freely, operate cleanly and allow the bass to deliver the powerful, articulate response it was built for.

At some point during his life, Leo’s original owner upgraded him with a boutique Nordstrand pickup. With its oversized exposed pole pieces and muscular Alnico character, it gives this StingRay an enormous voice.

Played clean, it can be crisp, articulate and beautifully controlled for jazz, funk and studio work. Add some drive and it delivers a huge midrange bark with the punch, attack and authority that make a StingRay so instantly recognisable.

The three-way selector unlocks three distinct voices:

Series mode delivers the highest output, with a thick, aggressive bark that is ideal for heavy rock and driven tones.

Single-coil mode gives a cleaner, more open response with scooped, articulate character.

Parallel mode delivers that classic 1970s StingRay sound, with the snap, punch and percussive attack that made these basses legendary.

The active 9-volt preamp gives complete control through master volume, bass, middle and treble boost and cut. Combined with the instrument’s factory shielding and hum-cancelling design, Leo remains impressively quiet while offering a genuinely enormous tonal range.

To complete the restoration, Jordan carried out a full professional setup and fitted Leo with a fresh set of Ernie Ball Regular Slinky strings.

The result is a bass that feels alive again.

Fast beneath the hand. Powerful through an amplifier. Clear, responsive and capable of moving from warm, controlled studio tones to huge, aggressive rock sounds without ever losing definition.

Leo has not been disguised as an untouched collector’s piece. His restoration and Nordstrand pickup upgrade form part of his history and will be fully disclosed. What he offers is something far more interesting: a genuine American-made StingRay 5 that was brought back from the edge through careful, extensive workshop restoration.

He still carries the class and retro character of an early-2000s Music Man, but now has the reliability, playability and dynamic range needed for modern studio, stage and touring use.

Whether he is heading into a professional recording session, climbing aboard a tour bus, holding down a heavy rhythm section or simply becoming the finest sofa bass you have ever owned, Leo is ready for his next chapter.

USA made.

Rare Lava Pearl finish.

Boutique Nordstrand pickup.

Professionally restored.

Five strings and one enormous voice.

Leo was built to be played.

We made sure he could be again.