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Bassassin

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Everything posted by Bassassin

  1. A true originator, it's not overstating it to say that Chuck Berry sowed the seed from which all guitar-based rock & pop has grown.
  2. Would've sold my granny for one of those back in the 80s. More pics please, for the love of porn!
  3. Fair enough! Note to self - do some research, and/or refrain from posting when tired and irate!
  4. [quote name='MoonBassAlpha' timestamp='1489530392' post='3257761'] Didn't Gibson lose the case against PRS over their single cut? Or was the appeal repealed? [/quote] They did and that will be why the LP is not in the list. The "lawsuit guitars" thing was a dispute over headstock shapes in 1977 - Gibson's then-parent company Norlin asserting its ownership of the "open book" headstock which adorned most MIJ copies at the time. They threatened action against Elger Hoshino, US importer of Ibanez guitars, without noticing that the headstocks had been changed to a non-infringing design the previous year. No legal action ever took place.
  5. "Weltron" = made-up Scumtree bullsh!t. If they could be bothered doing some research they could far more effectively monetise this particular piece of £5 car boot tat: [url="http://www.matsumoku.org/models/aria/catalogs/75_aria/75_aria_catalog_pg1.jpg.html"]http://www.matsumoku...og_pg1.jpg.html[/url]
  6. That's some mental money for the "Arbiter". These are pretty common & often go for sub £100. What's mildly amusing is that it's a copy of Gibson's budget Kalamazoo KB bass, which would probably sell for a fair bit less than £485. The Ideal-branded thing appears to be a 2-pickup version of a [url="http://markcolemusic.com/teisco/Images/literature/ad1-64_66.jpg"]mid-60s Teisco EB-18[/url]. That's got to be about 3 times what it's worth, in a sane world anyway. Never heard of a "Weltron" but Ebay's full of people making up crap. These are common early 70s starter basses, and oddly the exact same design was manufactured in Korea some years later.
  7. Well - unlike most of the rest of the bass, the bridge is a pretty accurate copy of the Gibson 2-point used on real EB-0s! And yes, they're pretty useless. There are drop-in alternatives available, Hipshot do a 2-point replacement, and there was a Schaller 3D version back in the 70s/80s. Not sure but if the stud spacing is the same, you could proibably use a Babicz 3-point too.
  8. Might well be a proper 'bucker - some of the early 70s MIJ copies (which this is) had Maxon humbuckers the same size as guitar pickups. That's what this looks like to me - usually "fakebuckers" have round-head pole screws. Easiest way to tell is to see if a screwdriver or similar steel impliment will stick to the smooth side. Also might well have a 5-digit code stamped underneath, which can be used to date it. Anyway, this is the original ad for the bass: [url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Collector-039-s-Rare-Ventura-Bass-Guitar-Right-Handed-/262877748147"]http://www.ebay.co.u...d-/262877748147[/url] I very much doubt it's a Ventura - Ventura was a brand name used by US importer/distributor C. Bruno, and they were never available in the UK. Basses like this would have been sold with numerous names (and frequently no name at all) all over the world. This one presumably did have a brand name that a previous owner objected to - sufficiently violently that it appears they did indeed kill it with fire. That reveals the interesting laminated neck construction, which is fairly common on 60s & a few early 70s MIJ guitars, sometimes known as "strip mahogany". Not beautiful but very resistant to twisting & warping, apparently. This probably would have had a black plastic veneer on the headstock face before the blowtorch attack. Pretty cool old bass & not bad for the money.
  9. What BigRedX just said. And today I'm terribly excited about a new/old song reworking that I think I've just nailed. I've amalgamated some ideas I've been kicking around for a few months (I always have a head full of random orphan riffs & progressions) with the excellent chorus from a decidedly average song from about 10 years ago. Plus, lyrics are usually the domain of my writing partner/vocalist and I don't usually get involved - but I've adapted her original chorus lyric to work with the ideas she has for what's now the verse part, and added a few bits of my own. So while the ideas & lyrical concept aren't mine, most of the actual lyric is - and I'm proper chuffed with it! Musically the guitar parts are likely to be somewhat more challenging than the bass.
  10. I quite like it - but I'm a sucker for a headless. Obviously a one-off but not as wonky as most home-made basses seem to be. Design would be quite nice if it was a bit less angular, imo. I usually like bold colours but that rattlecan purple's a bit grim, though. Now relisted at £150 BIN: [url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Headless-4-string-bass-unique/292047671627"]http://www.ebay.co.u...ue/292047671627[/url]
  11. Andy sent me a few pics that I'm sure he won't mind me sharing: [url="http://s1276.photobucket.com/user/LanterneRouge/media/Washburn%20Force%20ABT/image1_zpsjjpin0k2.jpg.html"][/url] [url="http://s1276.photobucket.com/user/LanterneRouge/media/Washburn%20Force%20ABT/image2_zpsvbpn72uy.jpg.html"][/url] [url="http://s1276.photobucket.com/user/LanterneRouge/media/Washburn%20Force%20ABT/image5_zpsiw9q4squ.jpg.html"][/url] [url="http://s1276.photobucket.com/user/LanterneRouge/media/Washburn%20Force%20ABT/image3_zps8njsnrnc.jpg.html"][/url] [url="http://s1276.photobucket.com/user/LanterneRouge/media/Washburn%20Force%20ABT/image4_zpsy9nnzbdc.jpg.html"][/url] Nice looking thing, that. Still unsure whether it's MIJ or not though. It has the same massive bridge as my MIJ SB40 (except mine doesn't have the logo) and these were definitely MIJ - made in-house by Chushin Gakki. Serial number looks like 7010221, and if it's dateable would likely suggest 1987 - plus the logo style would fit with that. Looks like Grover tuners. If it is MIK then I'd guess it was one of the first.
  12. Should be on display in a museum - proper bit of rock history, that is.
  13. Strangely cool, if worryingly neck-divey looking. I'm familiar with Giannini, which is a Brazilian manufacturer of predominantly acoustic guitars - the odd shape of this is a derivation of their "signature" acoustic design. Interesting that they're producing electric basses again, even though they seem to be made in China now. Also has something of the Fernandes Nomad about it...
  14. Andy - pics please! There's a lot of knowledge about vintage Washburns on the [url="https://www.facebook.com/groups/1066707010017715/"]Daion guitars[/url] FB group, largely because early MIJ Washies were made by the same factory (Yamaki Gakki) that built Daion, and many share common features. A fella called Michael Bechmann is pretty much the guru about this stuff - although I don't agree with [i]all[/i] of his info & conclusions! It's not terribly clear when MIJ production stopped and what factories were involved, beyond Yamaki and probably Chushin Gakki. I think the consenus now is that Matsumoku never built Washburn. Stuff like serial number & components might help establish a country of origin. I'd be wary about general internet speculation - people seem to really want their old 80s instruments to be MIJ, even when they're demonstrably not.
  15. I remember these - or at least the same necks - on Ebay basses about 10 years ago - looking at the logo I think the brand might've been "Wolf", or something similarly vulpine. I have to say I really, really like the 3-piece neck with the dark middle stringer up the fretboard. But sweet Jeebus what the hell is that headstock about? Makes me want to hide under the covers.
  16. [quote name='Defo' timestamp='1487873887' post='3243817'] Righto. Will post a NBD when she arrives [/quote] Look forward to it - I'll probably have got over it by then! Probably.
  17. Some low-grade GAS is a permanent state & I imagine I'll be randomly buying & selling basses I find curious, attractive and otherwise interesting until Trumpageddon comes. However, I thought I was beyond all that full-on, real deal, full-blown, life-dependent craving. I had a vague idea that one day I'd like to get a couple of things I'd always aspired to, but always seemed out of reach. Those are a guitar - a Yamaha SG2000, or similar neck-through 1980s Yam SG, and an Aria Pro II SB-R80. The Yams are available but typically 4-figure expensive, and realistically remain out of reach. The SB-Rs are pretty scarce, often modded or otherwise unoriginal and usually look their age and then some. Prices are on an upward trend & I'd kind of thought that a good, original one would be something I couldn't realistically afford. [url="http://basschat.co.uk/topic/300933-gorgeous-aria-pro-ii-in-bass-direct/"]And then this happened.[/url] Looks like I missed that by an hour or so. And now I understand that I am not free of it. Never will be. GAS. GAS never changes...
  18. I'd probably pay £70 for a reasonable one just out of curiosity & to get a look at one. Doubt I'd hang on to it long though!
  19. [quote name='Defo' timestamp='1487850760' post='3243488'] 'Twas me, will post photos etc. When she arrives - bucket list bass [/quote] Glad it was someone on here and not some Ebay scalper wanting to make a quick £200. On a personal level I'm surprising myself about how gutted I am to have missed this - if you decide it's not for you, do give me a shout.
  20. New Ebayer, only joined on Feb 21st. Seems he just sold a bunch of items - including this bass - as BINs: [url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/wilrobert_8/m.html?item=152445733908&LH_Complete=1&LH_Sold=1&rt=nc&_trksid=p2046732.m1684"]http://www.ebay.co.u...=p2046732.m1684[/url]
  21. [quote name='MoJo' timestamp='1487770647' post='3242635'] I believe the GSR180 doesn't have a colour matched headstock [/quote] It doesn't - and it wouldn't have the SDGR logo either. Or black hardware.
  22. On hold. Bugger. My dream Aria SB-R right there, and a surprisingly good price too. Would very probably have pulled the trigger on that.
  23. Mann was a Canadian import brand known for their range of MIJ copies in the 70s. They were never sold in the UK. Which is cool because this is neither a Mann nor is it Japanese - it's an Italian-made Melody from the same era. A bit more interesting than the MIJ Grabber copies and a bit less common - mostly because they all seem to fall to bits, like this one is doing. Interesting to see but he's having a laugh starting this at £200 with its comedy collapsing neck.
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