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Number #3 in the series...why buy a roadworn bass??


BaggyMan
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Hi de ho bassistes

So i will be honest I have owned a large number of basses in my time and get a real buzz from getting/buying a fresh new bass and settling it in and am always impressed by the fit and finish on basses these days. Or by buying second hand getting it to play great. But never wanted to buy a deliberately road worn bass.

So here the deal. Why exactly would one buy a new bass that has been deliberately road worn?

Why not gig the **** out of one and remember why the divots were there??

Seen a few around and quite honestly I would want them pristine. Cant say I think any bass player is cooler for having a bass that looks like it survived hurricane katrina (posible exception 'might' be Billy Sheehans 'wife' bass, but respect that because it has seen 1000's of shows).

Thoughts and opinions??

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[quote name='BaggyMan' timestamp='1487258373' post='3238445']

So here the deal. Why exactly would one buy a new bass that has been deliberately road worn?

Why not gig the **** out of one and remember why the divots were there??

Seen a few around and quite honestly I would want them pristine. Cant say I think any bass player is cooler for having a bass that looks like it survived hurricane katrina (posible exception 'might' be Billy Sheehans 'wife' bass, but respect that because it has seen 1000's of shows).

Thoughts and opinions??
[/quote]


I don't own a Road Worn or Relic, but I can give you my reason for liking them.
I don't like new instruments. I just don't get on with clean brand new basses, they feel sterile to me and I struggle to become attached to them which is probably why I have ended up selling every 'new' bass I have owned.

I have only ever played Fender Relic and Road Worn instruments and every one was exceptionally comfortable to play. The necks have been stunning to play with a beautiful stripped but smooth feel and heavily rounded fingerboards which I love. With the exception of my old Stingray and a GB Spitfire, I have never played necks as nice, but thats all personal preference.

I am terribly fussy, verging on OCD about certain things including instruments. I love secondhand basses, but don't like them to have many marks or damage. To me there is no excuse for a knackered bass, I have friends who have 30+ year old instruments that are gigged heavily that look like new, its just neglect and lack or care in my opinion.

I am very paranoid about expensive basses which is why I have never held onto the ones I have owned very long. I get paranoid that I will drop it or damage it and that will effect its eventual resale value (I won't kid myself that I will hold onto basses for a lifetime or even more than a few years). So for me a roadworn/relic solves the issue and that is why my friends have them. Superb quality 'custom' built instruments with a super playable neck that feels like it has been played for decades without having to worry about where you put it or whether you knock it occasionally.

As an example, my guitarist has a few relics and a few new guitars. He had a very nice PRS that was mint and he hated gigging it in small tight venues because he was so paranoid. He doesn't have a single worry about leaving a battered old Tele or Strat on stage that cost the same as the PRS.

We are all different, and I personally think the Relic thing is a bit like Marmite, you love it or hate it, or you 'get it' or you don't.

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[quote name='Lw.' timestamp='1487261143' post='3238466']
How far away is your nearest GuitarGuitar? Many of these kinds of questions can be answered by simply going to a shop & playing one.
[/quote]

I have to agree, I only ended up with mine because I wanted a Sunburst Precision with a maple board and a guy I knew locally was selling a Roadworn, it is probably the best Precision I have ever played, I still feel the reliced look is cheating but purely as a bass guitar it is a fantastic bit of kit

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[quote name='Lw.' timestamp='1487261143' post='3238466']
How far away is your nearest GuitarGuitar? Many of these kinds of questions can be answered by simply going to a shop & playing one.
[/quote]
Did that. It did nothing for me. "It takes all sorts to make a world..."

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[quote name='Jungleman' timestamp='1487306557' post='3238793']
I recently bought a Flea Road Worn Jazz Bass, and couldn't be happier with its playability and tone.
[/quote]

Not disputing your opinion on the tone, but what do the dings and scrapes do to improve the tone? The tone would be identical if the paint was completely unmanaged?

Surely that argument has less strength than the one about tone woods.

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[quote name='SH73' timestamp='1487311799' post='3238798']
This reminds me what someone once has said to me. Coke taste better out of a can than out of a bottle.
[/quote]
Coke is corrosive and has an effect on the container. Does this argument carry weight in relation to the paint on a bass?

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[quote name='Grangur' timestamp='1487268504' post='3238541']
Did that. It did nothing for me. "It takes all sorts to make a world..."
[/quote]

Congratulations? The OP asked why buy a roadworn - I'd say the feel. There's no point explaining feel when it's easily experienced first hand.

I've played a few (though never bought one) & think they feel fantastic. You've played at least one & didn't like it. These two points are irrelevant as the OP doesn't have our fingers.

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[quote name='Lw.' timestamp='1487338640' post='3239116']


Congratulations? The OP asked why buy a roadworn - I'd say the feel. There's no point explaining feel when it's easily experienced first hand.

I've played a few (though never bought one) & think they feel fantastic. You've played at least one & didn't like it. These two points are irrelevant as the OP doesn't have our fingers.
[/quote]

Ok, so the removal of the paint makes it feel better to you? That's a fair opinion.

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I dunno...it just seems weird. Like others have said, we all think that a really old bass that has been knackered in an approved way has a vintage vibe that is very cool, but it feels wrong to have knackered the bass in the "wrong" way.

Oh how we love to judge other people's choices that make absolutely no difference to us personally. It is after all what the internet is for. But it's really interesting to hear that it's not just the look of the instruments (which is how they are sold) that is affected, and they actually feel played in.

And I think a lot of that is to do with just how much extra companies like Gibson charge for relic-ing your guitar for you (and don't get me started on what they charge for making sure that your guitar is relic'd to be an exact match for a famous player's guitar).

My favourite story is a mate who was buying a Bare Knuckle pickup and rang them to confirm the order. They asked him if he wanted it in chrome, gold or uncovered, and if chrome or gold whether he wanted it relic'd? He asked them how much extra it was for it to be relic'd? Nothing, they said, we just kick it around the workshop for a few minutes.

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[quote name='wateroftyne' timestamp='1487342285' post='3239152']
[url="https://www.google.co.uk/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8#q=site:basschat.co.uk+why+buy+relic"]Knock yoursel' oot.[/url]
[/quote]
I may need more popcorn...

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[quote name='Lozz196' timestamp='1487258534' post='3238446']
It always comes round to the playability for me, the Fender Road Worns are superb instruments, they just don`t do them in colours that I like that much, hence not having bought one yet.
[/quote]


I'm not a fan of the relic look, but when a bass feels and sounds very good I tend to give less importance to the looks.
I owned one Roadworn series Jazz and that was *despite* the roadworn-ness. It just was a great bass.

Next time you're near a music shop, see if they have the Roadworn Fenders and try them for yourself. You may still not like them, but then you will know for sure ;)

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