Bassassin

[quote name='Mrs Tinman' post='574605' date='Aug 19 2009, 07:17 PM']You already know what the Tinnie household think of this. Keep up the good work! We [b]will[/b] haul our sorry arses up to Edinbugger to see you sometime! [/quote] Be lovely if you did - but to be honest we'd far sooner play somewhere in your vicinity, we always like to get out & about and play to new people. Hometown gigs are frequently more of a necessity than a pleasure. Wonder if I'm unusual in finding that? J.

[quote name='casapete' post='574420' date='Aug 19 2009, 04:48 PM']Ace Chuck berry clip. The bemused looks on the faces of the band is fantastic! Chuck remains for me the best of the rock&roll pioneers. Been fortunate to see him half a dozen times, and he's varied from being amazing to indifferent but always somehow enjoyable. Met him (briefly)once too. Can be notoriously difficult, as anyone who's seen the footage of him rehearsing with Keith Richard etc in the film 'Hail Hail Rock&Roll'. Often let down by using under-rehearsed pick up bands (what I would have given to play for him though!) As a songwriter unequalled in my view,and a direct inspiration for so many legendary band/performers/writers. Still gigging at 82 years old. Go Chuck go![/quote] Arguably rock's first lead guitarist too - fantastic, witty songwriter & a living legend. An ancient Chuck Berry hits compliation was one of my favourite albums as a kid. Jon.

I would say relieve yourself of the burden by way of an act of charitable kindness. Give it to me. God will smile upon you. Jon.

Could just be a coincidence - however - it's in the Ebay section, not Basses For Sale. Therefore fair game. J.

[quote name='jamiejames' post='574103' date='Aug 19 2009, 01:17 PM']1) Do you welcome a bass specific shop in Scotland 2) What would you like to see in stock 3) Are you more likely to visit the shop or use our online service 4) Roughly how much do you spend on bass goods in a year 5) Is this likely to increase if you had a bass shop you could visit?[/quote] 1 - Definitely (or since it's Glasgow, definAtely!) 2 - A decent range of realistically-priced used/vintage stuff. Ebay is working hard to squeeze out private sellers so a shop with a good & varied secondhand range might be opportune. It would be good to see some less mainstream new stuff - Lace Helix, Status etc - things you don't get in GuitarGuitar. 3 - Probably a bit of both. I'm in Edinburgh & don't get through to Weege all that often but a website which let me see instore stock & prices would be an incentive. 4 - Realistically probably less than a grand. Like my sig says, I'm a cheapskate Pikey & most of my gear comes from either BC or Fleabay, Glumtree & the local car boot. 5 - The above is partly the case because there's no local (ish) bass shop - so yes! I'd also like to suggest a good range of components - hardware, pups & electronics, necks & bodies. BC is a perfect gauge of how popular building your own bass is - but trying to find the right parts can be a severe pain in the arse. Access to good recommended luthiers/techs & amp techs through the shop would be good too. Oh, and open it in Edinburgh. Jon.

This looks like a low-end 90s Ibanez to me, it's possibly MIJ but most budget stuff was Korean by that point. Certainly not 80s and not "vintage and rare". It first appears in a 1992 catalogue: [url="http://www.ibanez.co.jp/anniversary/198/17.jpg"]http://www.ibanez.co.jp/anniversary/198/17.jpg[/url] Ebay being Ebay, it's had lots of bids from excited punters - one of whom who will probably be a bit disappointed when they unwrap it. Unless shomeone'sh being shilly. Jon.

Cheers Garry - will PM you back shortly. We may need to talk... J.

Thanks! It does look sweet, even if it ain't a player yet! Bassmingo - no actual polish, just T-cut paint restorer out of Halfords, which I've found to be excellent for polishing up instruments with polyurethane finishes. These sorts of paintjobs have about a thick coat of clear poly lacquer over the actual colour, so a mild abrasive like T-cut buffs out all of the little scratches & with enough work can get a shine close to new. It also works on plastic parts - my scratchplate was cloudy & opaque pretty much all over, took a lot of effort but it's come back quite well. J.

[quote name='allighatt0r' post='571789' date='Aug 17 2009, 05:04 PM']Just get one of those "Faker" or "Fecker" logos for it! ...In all honesty, how would this compare to an identical spec Fender from the same year? Are they really just as good? EDIT: Interesting G string! :brow:[/quote] Looking again, it doesn't actually say "Hondo" - maybe they'd realised! If it's 1981 then it's pre the MIJ Fenders - & US instruments were still being produced under CBS & their dubious quality control. I'd be surprised if it didn't stack up well against a "proper" Fender. Matsumoku were pretty much at the top of their game at this point. J.

It's not a Shaftesbury, they had small enclosed tuners & I've only ever seen Fireglo coloured ones. My first reaction is perhaps one of the late 70s Fujigen-built copies but I'd expect checked binding, which I don't think this has, and it would definitely have a serial number. There were quite a few non-specific Japanese brands - Fresher & Fernandes both did similarly spec'd examples - but it could also be a Brazilian-made Giannini. I think I'm tending to lean towards Giannini at the moment - the truss rod adjuster might confirm this - Gianninis I've seen have a single rod with long brass nut, as opposed to the recessed allen keys used on most Japanese copies. It's possible there might be some identifying marks behind the scratchplate on the pots/pickups, or even written inside the cavities. Jon.

Pics as promised: [attachment=31029:track2full.jpg][attachment=31028:track2front.jpg] [attachment=31030:track2head.jpg][attachment=31027:track2back.jpg] It's really come up rather well aesthetically - just that big chip on the back corner & a bit of buckle rash in addition to the more usual level of wear & tear. Mostly looks great from the front. I'm getting a replacement phase switch sent so I'll swap out the dodgy one, then I'll replace the nut, if I have the right size in t'parts box, otherwise I'll just shim this one, it's not worn or damaged at all. In other interesting news - the Track2 on Ebay sold for £230. Which is quite good to know! J.

I've just updated the Maya29 Myspace page with a medley of tracks from our forthcoming album,[i] The Fifth Sun[/i]. Which is, to be blunt, a concept album. About Aztecs. There's still some work to be done on the album but the excerpts (roughly a minute from each song) I think give a taste of what we're getting at. I've also uploaded a couple of curiosities - covers we've never played live, one of which features some fretless playing that didn't make me cringe anything like as much as I thought it might! [url="http://www.myspace.com/maya29band"]http://www.myspace.com/maya29band[/url] Jon.

[quote name='Happy Jack' post='570051' date='Aug 15 2009, 04:56 PM']Yes yes yes, I KNOW it's a Hondo, but it's not actually that horrid. The photos are hi-res and show what appears to be a rather nice MIJ P-bass. At £139 BIN that might be worth a punt. [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/RARE-MIJ-PRECISION-BASS-60s-shape-BODY-japan-p-bass_W0QQitemZ290340170815QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_Musical_Instruments_Guitars_CV?hash=item43999f6c3f&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/RARE-MIJ-PRECISION-B...id=p3286.c0.m14[/url][/quote] Definitely! There are a few of the higher-order MIJ Hondos around (I have a lovely set-neck/carved top Les Paul copy) and this is certainly light-years ahead of the plywood Korean stuff that usually turns up. MIJ Hondos were sourced from Matsumoku (confirmed) & Tokai (allegedly) - this one does not have a standard Matsumoku neckplate but if the numbering follows Uncle Mat's then it's from 1981. He's presumably dropped the BIN since you posted - now showing £129. I'd say that's pretty good, if you could live with the logo! J.

[quote name='Bassmingo' post='569923' date='Aug 15 2009, 02:03 PM']Hey there, just joined today and saw your thread. I have the exact same track II with the exact same problems. I inherited it from an old boss, so it cost me nothing. it all works, except the bridge has a split at the A string, and it was missing the toggle switch. Where did you get your replacement bridge from? and how much did it cost? If we can help each other in any way about these basses, just let me know.[/quote] Hi - bit of a coincidence because I've just put it back together & was about to post an update! Anyway - a couple of problems, no. 1 being my new micro-switch for the pup is defective - works fine in one position but no sound in the other. The switch appears to be the problem rather than my wiring... Problem no. 2 is that the nut's cut a bit too deep so there's choking & rattling on the open stings, particularly the E. Nothing major, then, but annoying nonetheless. Bassmingo - my replacement bridge came from another BC member who had one (minus a couple of saddles) in his parts drawer, I paid him £6 for it which was more than reasonable! Possibly someone else will have one so you could start a topic in the "Wanted" forum yourself. Alternatively, you can get [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Gibson-Epiphone-3-Point-Bass-Guitar-Bridge-New-Nickel_W0QQitemZ190328599052"]these on Ebay[/url] from a Canadian seller, they do go for sensible prices & according to everything I've read should be an exact fit. The new switch on mine came from Ebay - basically 3 for £5, I assume the other ones will work OK but I need to find out the seller's replacement/exchange etc policy before I fit another. The wiring schematic is easy to find - the pickup in the bass is a Dimarzio Model P and there's a PDF for wiring it to a phase switch on the Dimarzio website. Anyway, mine's certainly looking a lot better now than it did a week ago. It took plenty of T-cut & elbow grease to get a shine back on the body & scratchplate and it looks pretty good now - if a little "roadworn" - fortunately I don't mind a bit of genuine "relicing" on an old bass. I'll take some pics later on before I start pulling it apart again & messing with the nut. I'll give it a bit of a fret dress too while I'm at it. By the way - good score getting it for nothing, while [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Westbury-Track-2-Electric-Bass-Guitar-Japan-Matsumoku_W0QQitemZ260462633979"]this[/url] may be ever-so-slightly optimistic, it's nice to know when you've had a bargain... Jon.

[quote name='TMB' post='568701' date='Aug 14 2009, 09:56 AM']There is a raging arguement amongst my friends and collegues.[/quote] I would assume they're not musicians. You should point out that music isn't a competition. Jon.

[quote name='Jean-Luc Pickguard' post='567426' date='Aug 12 2009, 10:49 PM']Shingai in the Noisettes uses one [/quote] Saw them ages ago before they were a manufactured dodgy pop product - she was beating the hell out of a weird old Teisco. Jon.

I'm waiting for Fender to do a Dennis Dunaway sig: [attachment=30774:dunaway_jazz.jpg] I so would.... Jon.

Apart from things like the Allparts replacement, which is a practically identical copy of the original, the Hipshot is the only currently-made after-market upgrade. This is probably because Rickenbacker are so protective of their products (Hipshot have had all sorts of grief) and also because most Rick players don't seem to like change! Rickenbacker themselves have been threatening to issue a redesigned bridge for years, apparently there's one in development but I wouldn't hold my breath. FWIW I have a Hipshot & it's excellent. Jon.

[quote name='SteveO' post='564144' date='Aug 9 2009, 02:08 PM']Maybe they just imported into scandinavia?[/quote]Very likely - it would be a local importer (lots of the UK ones were just music shops) who sourced their instruments directly through Japanese manufacturers or exporters. Exactly the same thing goes on these days with Chinese factories. Jon.

From a quick glance at the pics, it ain't from 1960 and it seriously ain't worth £400! Maybe a tenth of that. This is a generic mid-70s plywood starter bass - it looks medium-scale to me, & the brand name will, like about 95% of 70s MIJ guitars, be just an importer's brand & nothing to do with a manufacturer. The "domino" position markers are quite unusual & fairly cool - but still don't make it worth that money. J.

[quote name='karlfer' post='563584' date='Aug 8 2009, 05:23 PM']Thanks once again Jon. I looked on the fetish sight, but could not find the bass in their catalogues (dating from about 64 to mid 80's). I really just want to as honest as I can be when I advertise it, so I will need to think carefully about what I say. I do remember seeing somewhere the Italian version had a narrow tailpiece and one piece pick guard , but I am b******d if I can remember where I saw that. Reality is I will be as honest as I can , but going out at £160 to BC'ers and £180 reserve on ebay, I am not going to worry into an early grave! Again Jon, many thanks, you have helped a lot of people with your knowledge sharing. Cheers, Karl.[/quote] It might be an idea to do a bit of exploratory surgery on it - unscrew the scratchplate & have a look at the backs of the pots, same with pickups, tuners & other hardware - you might well find some evidence of country of origin - or even a particular manufacturer there. I'm by no means 100% convinced this is Italian. I'd say £160-ish is a pretty decent price for this (sorry not in the running to buy, too skint!) but I'd be wary of high reserves/start prices on Ebay these days. I've seen lots of stuff that's quite realistically priced fail to sell because of this - on the other hand low starts/no reserves are attracting plenty of early bids & often end up in demented bidding wars. Funny thing, Ebay psychology... J.

[quote name='pete.young' post='563355' date='Aug 8 2009, 10:30 AM']What appears to be a Maya precison with a maple neck - is this a '70s Matsumoku? [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/MAYA-BASS-GUITAR_W0QQitemZ190326483805QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_Musical_Instruments_Guitars_CV?hash=item2c5057ab5d&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/MAYA-BASS-GUITAR_W0Q...id=p3286.c0.m14[/url][/quote] No - Maya (and El Maya) were owned by a Kobe-based trading company called Rokkomann, who were understood to manufacture their own instruments. Anecdotally the Maya factory was destroyed by the Kobe earthquake in 1995. FWIW there was nothing to choose between the better quality instruments from the various Japanese factories. J.

[quote name='Beer of the Bass' post='563395' date='Aug 8 2009, 11:44 AM']That'd be mine - It's on here too. The £200 one the other week was from someone else - that would be silly money even in my opinion.[/quote] Sorry mate - no offence meant! The offer of £50 still stands, though. J.

[quote name='karlfer' post='563278' date='Aug 8 2009, 07:05 AM']Now I've remembered why I looked here the other night. Hopefully Bassassin can be his usual copy Rickapedia. Hopefully these photos will attach, (only poor camera phone I'm afraid) she will be going on sale soon. I bought this on ebay a couple of months back and unsurprisingly things weren't quite what they seem. The biggest problem is that it is medium scale and my fingers are long scale (and actually pretty fat scale, slightly resembling the centres of American Hot dogs). Anyway,I would like to describe as accurately as possible, so J, if youv'e got your ears on, any info gratefully accepted. Condition rather quite good except for some poor attempts at respraying(only visible close up). Neck has been re-glued at some stage, excess glue has not been removed, but other than that a good job. There are no model/serial number, or "Made in...." written on it. It was advertised as made in Japan. I cannot find it in any EKO catalogue, and I seem to remember reading somewhere that even Ibanez didn't start serial numbers until 1975. This is a good sounding, good condition, very light bass, that my fingers are too big for. Any help from anybody to help describe as accurately as possible would be gratefully accepted. Confused of Wigan.[/quote] Quite tricky, this - there isn't much info out there about these but from seeing them come up on Ebay (they're not too uncommon) there were definitely both Japanese and Italian versions of the same thing sold under the Shaftesbury brand. The set-neck & style of tuners on yours makes me inclined to think it's Italian, and this being the case it's pretty early, possibly even late 60s - but with no catalogues to cross-reference I'm just guessing! Anyway, Shaftesbury guitars initially seemed to be Italian-made copies (as well as Ricks I've seen thinline Tele guitars & 50s-style P basses) and UK-made (Ned Callan) originals but by the mid 70s they pretty much all seemed to be decent-quality MIJ copies, predominantly Matsumoku. That's just the history as far as I can make it out - I don't think the basses like yours were Matsumokus but the Japanese ones might represent some sort of transitional period in the Shafty range. I've seen MIJ Shafty P-basses too, like the Italian ones. Eko definitely supplied Shaftesbury acoustics & electrics so I'd be inclined to think the Rick "copies" (there never was a real Rick 330 bass) came from the same place There's some info about Shaftesbury/Eko on the [url="http://www.fetishguitars.com/html/general/shaftesbury.html"]Fetishguitars site[/url] but they've changed it a bit recently and the English version of this page has conveniently vanished! Jon.