Bassassin

[quote name='pfretrock' timestamp='1505571429' post='3372931'] February 1952, as it happened. (sorry ) [/quote] Close enough for rock 'n roll?

I've done a few (occupational hazard of fixing up old Japanese guitars) and had good results with hand-hot water followed by compression on kitchen worktop under flat/heavy object. A hairdryer/heat gun could work too but be careful, concentrating too much heat on one area could easily wreck the whole thing.

1953, as it happens. But I think in the instance of the lyric of this song, the king in question is what we call a "metaphor".

Florence & The Machine. She has an immense voice, completely wasted in that messy, mimsy indie twaddle.

http://www.bradfordpriceproject.co.uk/ Like SP above, just a single page with links to FB & SoundCloud - having knocked up numerous band sites over the years, with varying levels of complexity, currently it doesn't seem important to have anything more than a token site alongside the social media stuff. We're currently a non-performing recording project - and still at the demo stage - so there may be a need for more as things develop. Edit: Should mention - knocked up with a very old copy of Dreamweaver MX, hosted in a small, dusty corner of webspace belonging to the charity I work for (with permission, of course!) with a redirected url.

[quote name='dyerseve' timestamp='1504987133' post='3368754'] Gee thanks so much for your valued opinion. [/quote] Apologies, don't mean to cause offence & didn't realise the bass was owned by a BC member. However. I do know a little about Japanese instruments from this era, and having (a few years ago now, admittedly) bought & sold them to earn a living, I do have some awareness of the market for them, and their values. The simple fact is that, like any vintage instrument, original components and finish, both in good order, are paramount to their value. Refinishes and non-original components (regardless of quality) are unlikely to add value. I can only look at an instrument from the perspective of what I'd expect it to achieve if I were selling it - and a VA900B in top condition would likely be a £350-£400 bass. They are excellent instruments but looking at Matsumoku builds from this era, the Vantage brand is valued a bit lower than similarly specced Westones, and both of those are poor relations to Aria Pro SBs & SB-Rs. Of course these are little more than assumptions on my part & I'd actually like to be proven wrong about your bass. I hope you get your asking price.

Irrelevant if you refer to the pickups correctly: "The boomy one" and "the tinny one".

HOW MUCH??? Ffs it's not even original.

That's interesting. I put together a PC-based recording setup a month or two ago & downloaded a few free/unrestricted DAWs to try: Reaper, Studio1 and Tracktion 5. Out of those I definitely find myself using T5 the most, despite (or maybe because of!) the unconventional front end - so I'll definitely give this a go. Hopefully my T5 projects will load without issue.

No. Was wondering about this the other day as I have a bass waiting for the pickup I lent him. Haven't heard a word since posting it off.

These are the kinds of parties bassists never get invited to.

Force 4 - Force 8 had a bound body with bookmatched top & maple board. I know because I have slightly uncomfortable GAS for one. Classy, understated thing this one - love that shape.

[quote name='SICbass' timestamp='1504443397' post='3364856'] Over a grand is a bit steep for a JV isn't it? [/quote] Without a JV serial neckplate it kind of isn't a JV. Done a fair bit of reading about 80s Squiers & the early days of Fender Japan under Kanda Shokai and never heard the slightest mention of a brass non-serial neckplate option. Hmmm indeed.

That got spotted in Ebay Corner a few days ago: [url="http://basschat.co.uk/topic/7473-japcrap-spotting/page__view__findpost__p__3362167"]http://basschat.co.u...ost__p__3362167[/url] Not MIJ but I do like the starry, starry neck.

[quote name='toneknob' timestamp='1504111552' post='3362782'] I met Nick Beggs in the queue to get into a Frank Zappa movie at the Prince Charles Cinema. His first sentence to me contained the word "willy" [/quote] I was lucky enough to get the opportunity to reprimand the lovely Mr Beggs for his role in influencing me to play hamfisted, inept & inappropriate slap lines on numerous unsuspecting songs in the early/mid 80s. He seemed quite amused but disappointingly didn't mention willies.

Now here's an interesting one - 1986 Ibanez Proline PL5050: [url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Ibanez-PL5050-Bass-Guitar-86-Jap-FujiGen-Made/122661478487"]http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Ibanez-PL5050-Bass-Guitar-86-Jap-FujiGen-Made/122661478487[/url] Essentially the debut of what would go on to be the SoundGear series. Very reasonable price for such a rarity, and in great condition by the looks. Shame (or lucky escape?) he won't post.

Just read the Ebay T&Cs, and it's now a requirement that anyone who wishes to sell through the site must be a compulsive liar.

Cheapo Korean, but I'd probably dump £50 on that for the star inlays, if it was near me! Always thought "Starforce" gets confused with "Starfield" - which was made by Fujigen for Hoshino. Starfield apparently being pretty much a translation of Hoshino.

[quote name='therealting' timestamp='1504088641' post='3362554'] Interesting. If it doesn't say MIJ, I'd guess it's really Chinese made... not that that's necessarily bad. [/quote] Little gold sticker on the heel that you can't quite read looks a lot more like "China" than "Japan". [url="https://postimg.org/image/yysth1x2d/"][/url] So, very, very expensive, IMO - certainly compared to this: [url="https://www.thomann.de/gb/harley_benton_hbp90bk_shortscale_ebass.htm"]https://www.thomann....scale_ebass.htm[/url]

[quote name='Lightlyseared' timestamp='1503954944' post='3361855'] Greco made an Iceman shaped 5 called the Mirage, they show up on Ishibashi and other Japanese sites now and then. [/quote] Would expect Greco Mirages to be a lot less common than Ibby Icemen (Icemans?) as Greco is technically a Japan-only brand. The original Iceman & Mirage guitars from the late 70s are the same instruments - a Fujigen Gakki build (and possibly design) sold as both Ibanez and Greco - and probably a few other names as well, back then. Always fancied an Iceman bass.

Bit of an odd one - for me as my thing's typically prog & metal, and also as it's an acoustic cover by an act who aren't "serious" musicians. Australian comedy trio The Doug Anthony Allstars' cover of Hunters & Collectors "Throw Your Arms Around Me". Just gorgeous. [media]http://youtu.be/-j0g2oG_w2g[/media]

Odd - I was only thinking about them yesterday & wondering/hoping they might do something like this. Clearly it's only rumours at the moment but I'd love to see them release new post-Rush stuff, & tour - hopefully in much smaller venues - with a full band. Make a proper break from their old way of working.

Very pretty! Not quite red enough to be the Cursed Red Rick Of Doom - but be careful, anyway.

Kind of like it - anything that's not stylistically a bloody P or J derivative feels like a breath of fresh air, though! Design-wise it's a bit almost/not quite - the basic shape is nice but the slabbiness of it is at odds with what I think is trying to be a fairly modern-looking bass. Slim it down a bit & contour it and it would look more balanced (and probably be more comfortable) without losing its non-reverse T-Bird influence. The headstock's a bit nasty & the scratchplate looks like an afterthought/offcut, but I really like the offset inlays. Not a big fan of the colours but they probably (the blue, at least) look better in real life.