ivansc Posted March 29, 2015 Share Posted March 29, 2015 I am about to be reunited with an old friend. Very late fifties or maybe very early sixties Fenton-Weill bass guitar. Produced by a Mr Weill and a Mr James Ormston Burns. I lent it to my youngest son years ago and when I came back to the UK in the nineties asked him how it was doing. "Dunno - it has disappeared" Some 25 odd years rolled by and last week I got The Call. "Hi Dad - was spring cleaning, moved my wardrobe and found your bass behind it, still in its case. Do you still want it?" So. I know it has a missing plastic button on the G tuner, but last time it was played it worked fine. Needless to say there will be photos when I get it back sometime this week. Made all the more pleasurable because I worked with Jim during the steer/scorpion era. Big grins. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kodiakblair Posted March 29, 2015 Share Posted March 29, 2015 That's absolutely brilliant. Be great if more of us could have those calls instead of " Err I broke it. " Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madshadows Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 Congrats on getting your old bass back John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bass_Guardian Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 Brilliant! Congrats Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 Looking forward to seeing the photos. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donnyboy Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 Nice one - look forwarding to reading more about it - I love this kind of thing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
interpol52 Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 Wow what a surprise! Untouched for 20 odd years, thats brilliant. Looking forward to seeing the photos. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
synthaside Posted March 31, 2015 Share Posted March 31, 2015 Show us the pictures ;-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mgeek Posted March 31, 2015 Share Posted March 31, 2015 Look forward to seeing this. Fwiw- Fenton Weill was started by Henry Weill when he and Jim Burns split from working together as Burns-Weill, in late '59/early '60. He ceased manufacturing in '65 or so, with 1962/3 being something of a peak. Should be able to give a rough date yours was made when I've seen the photos- there was a LOT of variation in features as they went along, and no two are alike! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ivansc Posted May 13, 2015 Author Share Posted May 13, 2015 https://www.dropbox.com/sh/gh0735lonl4gndl/AACqBLYBjOr5dhRl-hl_YVlsa?dl=0 According to Jim Burns Henry started FW and Jim worked for him for about a year - 1959/60 before starting Burns London, I am pretty sure this is from that 1958-59 period before Jim worked with Henry, but as you say... there was immense variation in the guitars AND the basses. I first came across them in that little shop that was next door to Selmers on Charing Cross Road in the late fifties. They had one of the contrabasses in their window and I practically broke the window in lusting over it! Unfortunately the original jack socket, although still mounted in the bass, doesn't have its innards any more - at least the jack socket mounted on the scratchplate isn't too ugly! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
12stringbassist Posted May 14, 2015 Share Posted May 14, 2015 We need pictures!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcnach Posted May 14, 2015 Share Posted May 14, 2015 [quote name='12stringbassist' timestamp='1431598756' post='2772933'] We need pictures!!! [/quote] on the link in the post above yours Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ivansc Posted May 25, 2015 Author Share Posted May 25, 2015 Well I got the broke machine heads sorted out, courtesy of a friend who has a vast collection of old guitar parts. The early Burns bass used the same Vah Ghent machine heads, so I picked up 2 from him and swapped the engraved "Fenton Weill" covers over. Took it to a gig last wednesday and it got its photo taken a lot, especially after I played it! For a 29" scale length, this thing has thump you would not believe. I was going to fix it up ad sell it to finance my 62 precision build, but now I am not so sure. Like I NEED another bass! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheGreek Posted May 25, 2015 Share Posted May 25, 2015 20 years behind a wardrobe??? Sounds like an ad from eBay... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyjr1515 Posted May 26, 2015 Share Posted May 26, 2015 Great feel good story . The bass looks fab.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donnyboy Posted May 26, 2015 Share Posted May 26, 2015 [quote name='Andyjr1515' timestamp='1432623606' post='2783241'] Great feel good story . The bass looks fab.... [/quote] Agreed! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ivansc Posted May 27, 2015 Author Share Posted May 27, 2015 I finally got to play the bass at an elitist swine jam night (you have to have demonstrated that you can actually play before they let you get up ) last Wednesday and the little bass performed really well. The neck pickup is a monster - fat full and very sixties. Despite playing all 34" scale instruments, this tiny 29" was actually very easy to play! Down side was that everyone was ignoring me and asking to take pictures of the bass! At least it can't sign autographs.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bassman Sam Posted May 27, 2015 Share Posted May 27, 2015 Very cool looking bass. Lovely story too, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Byo Posted May 27, 2015 Share Posted May 27, 2015 Wow, that is a really cool bass! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shaggy Posted May 27, 2015 Share Posted May 27, 2015 (edited) Very cool, not seen one like that before! I've got an early '60's "Broadway" semi-acoustic guitar with twin Fenton Weil pickups - look very similar to the units on your bass. The pickups are indeed fantastic units (Excuse crappy pic) Edited May 27, 2015 by Shaggy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ivansc Posted May 27, 2015 Author Share Posted May 27, 2015 Be grateful yours has obviously been tastefully restored. I have seen some horrendeous jobs done on some of those oldies. Funny, because the scratchplate with the controls mounted on it like that reminded me of the ghastly Rosetti Lucky Seven a mate of mine had. Pickups and controls including jack socket all in this ugly lump of white plastic..... Yours looks rather nice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shaggy Posted May 28, 2015 Share Posted May 28, 2015 [quote name='ivansc' timestamp='1432767134' post='2784893'] Be grateful yours has obviously been tastefully restored. I have seen some horrendeous jobs done on some of those oldies. Funny, because the scratchplate with the controls mounted on it like that reminded me of the ghastly Rosetti Lucky Seven a mate of mine had. Pickups and controls including jack socket all in this ugly lump of white plastic..... Yours looks rather nice! [/quote] I think Broadway were a budget brand of the importer Rose-Morris, with various UK and Euro parts stuck together depending on what was at hand. Maybe Rosetti was also? The pickups / electrics / pickguard assembly isn't actually recessed into the body at all, it "floats" above it on little mounts, and as there's no room for a full size jack socket it has a tiny one instead (oo-er.....). No truss rod (though neck is laminated and still perfectly straight) basic as can be, but actually plays very nice, and has that "instant '60's" Gretsch-type tone Mine was a junk-shop find for £30, I was actually going to strip the pickups out to use in a bass project and trash the guitar, but then didn't have the heart to. The finish was irretrievably knackered with punk-era graffiti painted all over it so had to be stripped, and I did the nitro refin. Likewise I fitted the Bigsby and roller bridge, keeping the incredibly basic wooden bridge and trapeze tailpiece Really liking that Fenton-Weill bass of yours - is it short scale? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ivansc Posted May 28, 2015 Author Share Posted May 28, 2015 Yeah - VERY short scale. I measured it at around 29 inches! Neck is a bit like holding a well used baseball bat. Sorta round but in a comfortable way. Not at all what I usually like - I just bought a 62 reissue Precision Bass neck of a fellow member here to try and re-create my original 62 sunburst-refinished olympic white one that I bought in 63, had stolen, got it back and had to sell to a friend to pay bills and then HE had it stolen in 1964. All three of us "owners " of this bass agreed it was the nicest Precision we had ever played. Wonder who has it now? I was so young and innocent back then I never thought to get the serial number and write it down! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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