Fender Japan Jazz Bass 2004 w/Made in Japan: bogus or legit?

[danilo7]

Hey everyone!

Has anybody ever heard or read of a post 1997 Fender Jazz (2004 in fact, according to the serial number prefix "R"), with "Made in Japan" on the head...and "SERIAL NUMBER: R......" at the base of the neck, in a greyish decal?

Is this a sure-fire sign of a fake, or not necessarily...?

This friend of mine got his bass when a mate of his brought it back for him directly from Japan in 2005, when on holiday there.
Of course, he may have been conned IN Japan, natch...

I'd be totally grateful for any insights on this.

All the best to all!



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[Jono Bolton]

It's odd, why does it have holes drilled for a neck thumb rest and that wee black thing, I dunno what it's for, but not for a bridge cover?

[P-T-P]

Looks a bit awry to me. At a quick glance and working from memory...

Has a white 60's re-issue type pickguard - holes for a pick-up cover and grab rest type thing - and a 60's type neck with truss adjust at the heel but doesn't have 60's RI type bridge with the threaded sadles and the neck has a skunk stripe down it. Also I think the Jap RI basses have mint green guards, not white.

The pegs on the tuners look to have too small a diameter.

You can clearly see the joins for the pieces of the body through the finish which doesn't strike me as the kind of thing that a Jap Fender would have.

The Jap Fenders I've had which were CIJ have a serial number in a silver grey at the bass of the neck but also the words "Crafted in Japan" in black and the words "serial number" in black also IIRC.

An 04/05 serial number would be an R plus 5 digits according to Fender, this is R plus 6 digits.

Edited February 21, 2008 by P-T-P

[Buzz]

That pickguard looks decidely off, look by the neck pocket (g-string side) doesn't fit right it seems.

Edited February 21, 2008 by Buzz

[Pedro1020]

The Silver serial number on the back of the neck looks like a quick job, the decal seems prominant so it hasn't been properly lacquered over....that well

The screw in the middle is an odd thing :wacko:

I have a gut feelin' thats bogus but I could be wrong, its hard to tell with Fenders since anyone cud take a cheap bass, add a fender decal, imitate a serial number and sell it off.

[P-T-P]

[quote name='Pedro1020' post='144485' date='Feb 21 2008, 04:26 PM']The Silver serial number on the back of the neck looks like a quick job, the decal seems prominant so it hasn't been properly lacquered over....that well

The screw in the middle is an odd thing :wacko:[/quote]

Agreed on the serial number, looks like an afterthought.

The screw in the middle isn't that unusual, there are Fender basses with those, though I'n not sure what era exactly, though the Geddy re-issue has one IIRC.

[Jase]

The Pickguard has the same pre drilled holes as my 62, including the one in the middle, mine's a 2007 model with serial prefix S O, IIRC. T he cheaper basswood bodied models don't have the spiral bridge. Take a look at a JB-53 on the guitar emporium site, possible it's the Japanese Standard Jazz.

[mhuk]

The pickguard holes are in the same places as my CIJ. My serial number is in the same grey colour but mine has Crafted In Japan underneath it; not sure if MIJ have Made In Japan written in the same place. Can we see a close up of the head stock as the truss rod end looks unusual for a Jazz unless it is a JB75-100US?

Have you had a look at [url="http://www.fenderjapan.co.jp/fender/2007fender/jazzbass.htm"]http://www.fenderjapan.co.jp/fender/2007fender/jazzbass.htm[/url]

Edited February 21, 2008 by mhuk

[Soulfinger]

[quote name='mhuk' post='144741' date='Feb 21 2008, 11:26 PM']Can we see a close up of the head stock as the truss rod end looks unusual for a Jazz unless it is a JB75-100US?[/quote]
If it were a 75, it would have a bullet truss rod and block inlays.

To me, it looks like a legit bottom-of-the-line Jap Standard Jazz exactly like the one on top of the list [url="http://www.guitaremporium.co.uk/index.php?f=data_fender_japan_new_guitars&a=4"]here.[/url]

[Musky]

It seems that Fender Japan have been turning out basses with 'Made In Japan' on them recently. Not sure that extends back to 2004/2005 though.

I'd be inclined to think it's genuine - it seems to be a lot of bother to go to for not much return on a fake.

[P-T-P]

[quote name='Soulfinger' post='144911' date='Feb 22 2008, 11:32 AM']If it were a 75, it would have a bullet truss rod and block inlays.

To me, it looks like a legit bottom-of-the-line Jap Standard Jazz exactly like the one on top of the list [url="http://www.guitaremporium.co.uk/index.php?f=data_fender_japan_new_guitars&a=4"]here.[/url][/quote]

Yeah, looking at that pic, could well be a genuine, basic Jap Jazz.