Bassassin

Very interesting. I've read about these but never seen one before - and here's where I read about 'em: [url="http://www.vintageguitar.com/features/brands/details.asp?AID=1032"]http://www.vintageguitar.com/features/bran...ls.asp?AID=1032[/url] This should also answer your Fresher question better than I could, and is where the guy selling the guitar has lifted the entirety of his sales pitch! Shame he didn't read the whole article. As far as the truss rod's concerned, I'm voting incompetence - the only way this would have no truss rod would be if it had graphite or some other neck reinforcement, and if that was the case then it would be mentioned in the instrument's specs & overview. Did a quick Google of the model no. and there's another one, branded JHS discussed [url="http://www.musicradar.com/forum/showthread.php?t=24680"]here[/url]. I'd say £150-odd was a good score for whoever got it - these are clearly seriously rare. That said, it wasn't exactly the £350 BIN he wanted in his original listing, although it's still £125 profit over what I'd guess he paid for it at the car boot... J.

[quote name='grumble' post='920131' date='Aug 9 2010, 10:04 PM']Well guv I will be happy to give you a ton or so for the Talbo, purely for scrap value you understand [/quote] Aww. Tell you what - If I ever get dragged down an alley & mugged by the Charity Fairy, I'll keep you in mind! J.

I spotted this last night - now, I have seen one of these before and I can't remember where, which is incredibly irritating. It's not in the Tokai Registry catalogue archive, or any of the Japanese catalogue collections I have links to. It's possible it was an old Ebay listing (or even someone on here) but I'm 99% sure that it's 80s, MIJ and isn't a Frankenbass It stuck in my mind because it's quite similar to my cheap-but-sexy Aria STB-GT - bound flamed maple top, maple fretboard etc. The pics are poor so there's no telling what kind of state this one is in, but it might well have the potential to be a significant bargain for one of youse lot. Jon. *EDIT* Found it - it's a 1982 Hardpuncher Limited Edition. Here's one on TB (bottom of the page): [url="http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=542180"]http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=542180[/url]

[quote name='Annoying Twit' post='919633' date='Aug 9 2010, 02:02 PM']Good luck with that. I won't be bidding, and I won't be contacting the bidder to somehow "reserve" it from under your nose either [/quote] Giving it some thought - I'll sit this one out because I'm currently taking on more projects than I could finish in my remaining lifespan! So if you or anyone else fancies a pop please go for it & I hope you get a bargain. Expect to see me offloading a lot of stuff I'm never going to finish/use on here real soon. Anyone want a brand-new Badass 2, still in the packet? J.

[quote name='Clarky' post='919607' date='Aug 9 2010, 01:42 PM']Edit: 10 years ago I owned a Fender 80s black/maple Jazz that was previously owned by Terence Trent Darby's player, or so I was told by Macari's on Charing Cross Road. Bit of a comedown from Willie Weeks, no offence TTD's bass player![/quote] TTD's original bassist was Cass Lewis, subsequently of Skunk Anansie. If it was him I'd be suitably impressed. I very much doubt if any of my tat has a high-profile provenance - although I did once have a Columbus Jazz copy with a big Cargo Studios (where early Joy Division & loads of Factory Records stuff was made) sticker on the back - and I always sort of hoped it might've been a Cargo house bass at one point. In which case it might have technically belonged to Peter Hook, who co-owned Cargo in the 80s. But I doubt it. Jon.

This topic would fare better if moved to the "Bass Guitars" forum, I think. Oi - Mods! I've actually got an Aria STB-GT. It's a gorgeous-looking bass but came with a couple of issues which I'd be unhappy with if I'd paid new shop price for it (which being a cheapskate pikey, I didn't). First of all the fretwork was a bit scruffy, with some ragged ends up the dusty end of the board, and a bit of buzzing & rattling here & there. I'm quite happy to roll my sleeves up and sort out stuff like this but I appreciate that most people aren't as hands-on. Secondly, the active preamp has a nasty habit of eating batteries, even when the lead's disconnected. I've been unable to find out why it does this so I have to remember to take out the battery when not using the bass. I'm not a huge fan of actives so my intention is to bin the preamp & original pup & replace it with a decent passive MM type with splittable coils, and try playing around with some interesting wiring options. Jon.

[quote name='Annoying Twit' post='919355' date='Aug 9 2010, 10:28 AM']My ears went up in a Snoopy like fashion when I saw the word "Status", thinking that maybe it was a Status neck like the UK made Westone 6 strings. But, it seems that it's only the hardware that's branded Status, and it might not be the same company. In any case, here it is for those with the practical skills. [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Status-Washburn-headless-Bass-guitar-body-and-Hardware-/300453646869?cmd=ViewItem&pt=UK_Musical_Instruments_Guitars_CV&hash=item45f46ed215"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Status-Washburn-head...=item45f46ed215[/url][/quote] It is a "proper" Status in that these were official licensed copies made in Japan & sold with the Washburn brand, as you say with genuine Status hardware & electronics. This is a potentially very easy project for someone who'd be happy bunging conventional J pups & wiring in, as a gyppo such as me might. I'm watchin'. Jon

[url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=270619342707"]This[/url] is quite simply extraordinary. I just don't know what to say... J.

[quote name='Oggy' post='918799' date='Aug 8 2010, 03:27 PM']Your a very lucky old git if you have the talent to not only play but also create fresh music - more power to your elbow Bassassin. Oggy [/quote] Many thanks for the kind words Oggy - I suppose I'm a writer first before I'm a bassist. I've certainly played my share of covers & enjoyed it (up to a point) but I've always got much more out of performing my own work! We have no illusions about commercial success - yes, I think there's probably an audience & therefore a market for what we do, but for me it's about making & playing the music - not trying to sell it! A lot of people seem to stop doing music for a good few years & then come back to it in their late 30s - 40s. I've played continuously - I did have 6 or 7 years out of bands but during that time I was focussed on writing & recording (alongside getting married/having kids/getting divorced) and it was creatively a very productive period for me. It meant when I got back into bands, I had a ready-made set, and in fact one of the songs from that era is still in my present band's repertoire! There was a discussion on here a while ago about giving up music, someone made a comment along the lines that "you're not finished with music until music's finished with you". That stuck in my mind - I like that a lot! Jon.

[quote name='Happy Jack' post='917948' date='Aug 7 2010, 01:26 PM']Did I mention [i][b]dull Pacific Rim instruments[/b][/i]? For some reason, Washburn have just never made it onto my radar.[/quote] I've got a soft spot for the late 70s/early 80s Washboards, probably due to my first "quality" bass being a B20 Stage series Explorer-ish posing plank. Borderline unplayable unless you had gorilla-arms, but a work of art as far as finish & attention to detail was concerned. And you have to admit £85 is ridiculous for a top-end Matsumoku/Yamaki (no-one's entirely sure) bass. Dull or otherwise! J.

Selling's a different matter. All my listings are 99p, no reserve and while most things are still reaching very good final prices, I've had a string of non-paying bidders lately. I think Ebay's attitude of buyer = God, private seller = dodgy scumbag has led to the place being full of tyrekickers just bidding stuff up for a laugh, because there are no consequences to being a twat any more. It really is sh!t these days. J.

It's certainly interesting, but I'm not quite sure. It's almost as though the question of how to design a bass guitar has been answered with "Strat on steroids". It's got an air of parts-box not-quite-rightness about it which puts me in mind of some of [url="http://www.givson.com/products8.htm"]Mother India's finest[/url]. Jon.

It's been getting gradually worse for the last 3 or 4 years, and they do insist on "upgrading" the search engine regularly to make sure it spams you with a lot of BIN tat (usually from the States) that you don't want. I've given up with saved search parameters for this reason so my search tends to go Bass >> Guitars >> Newly Listed >> UK Only - and I still manage to find a fair few interesting auctions that way. And there's still the occasional mad bargain to be found: [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Washburn-SB40-Bass-Guitar-/270616091785"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Washburn-SB40-Bass-G...r-/270616091785[/url] Jon.

Ice lolly sticks. You can use the side edges of the pocket to mark a template on each side of the heel & cut & shape bits of lolly stick to fit. Eat the lollies first. Glue 'em on and then use a sanding block to thin them until you get a firm fit. With any luck your scratchplate will cover the tops of the shims when the bass is assembled. Jon.

Not completely sure how I feel about this sort of thing. I suppose it should be right up my street, me being an old git involved in playing, writing & recording original material at an unsigned level, and that seeming to be what their "mission statement" is predominantly championing. However I can't help feeling that the last thing a band like mine needs is to voluntarily pigeonhole - and further marginalise - itself as a "mature" band. I'm not sure I'm expressing this too well - in fact I probably need to give a bit more thought to my reaction in order to articulate it to myself a bit more clearly. This is doubtless a good thing for some old gits - but perhaps not for [i]all[/i] old gits! Jon.

I'm not sure what there is to argue about here. The seller offers a returns policy which entitles you to a refund based simply on your whim. If he refuses to honour this he is in breach of Ebay's T&Cs and possibly risks having his account suspended. I strongly suspect his 10% surcharge also breaches T&Cs he's signed up to. Ebay is massively weighted in favour of the buyer. Send the bloody bass back & use Ebay's dispute process to force him to give you a full refund. And next time buy a bass off BC! Jon.

[quote name='OldGit' post='916043' date='Aug 5 2010, 02:42 PM']Wanted a loud one wiv lotsa wats £240 BIN? [url="http://www.soundslive.co.uk/product~name~Squire-Vintage-Modified-Jazz-Bass~ID~5360.asp"]£230 new[/url][/quote] Not as good as this gonk: [url="http://edinburgh.gumtree.com/edinburgh/37/63301037.html"]http://edinburgh.gumtree.com/edinburgh/37/63301037.html[/url] I dunno though - maybe that's a good price for a "Jass Percussion bass"... J.

[quote name='Mr. Foxen' post='916170' date='Aug 5 2010, 04:42 PM']Email him, saying you want it for the BIN, and he can cancel the bid.[/quote] I'll do that, if you'll loan me the £999 on an indefinite, interest-free basis! J.