Bassassin

[quote name='noirpunk' post='275189' date='Sep 2 2008, 08:59 AM']I still curse myself for that, should've gone with the gut instinct and bought it. I could've lowered that action with some perseverance dagnabbit! Lovely punchy sound to it aswell [/quote] Like I said, I'd have given you a ton for it! Looking at the one on the 'Bay, it looks like some bridge modding/replacing, or a bit of minor body routing would be in order to get the action down. I'll have to get some more gigs organised in the Czech Republic for my band - and make it a bit of a Jolana buying trip while I'm there. Get your orders in! J.

And they just keep coming! I wouldn't ordinarily bother to flag up modern guff like this Cockinbutter (no point when you can buy 'em in your local music shop) but this one's worth it for a giggle at the shill-tastic bidding: [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Rickenbacker-Style-Bass-Guitar-Hard-Case-never-used_W0QQitemZ270271288761"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Rickenbacker-Style-B...emZ270271288761[/url] J.

[quote name='Happy Jack' post='275105' date='Sep 2 2008, 12:04 AM']Now THAT I'd buy without hesitation! What a show-stopper. :wub:[/quote] Probably be easier to find its body donor: [url="http://www.gibsonbass.com/RDartist.php"]http://www.gibsonbass.com/RDartist.php[/url] Though god knows what one of them would cost. J.

[quote name='Happy Jack' post='275091' date='Sep 1 2008, 11:52 PM']Wunderbar! Those crazy Czechs again - the Jolana Disco Bass,[/quote] Dunno why he's calling it that, the Jolana Disco bass exists, but it ain't a Rick copy: Oh - and yes, I would! J.

That's a Jolana D - made in Czechoslovakia in the mid 80s. They do come up from time to time - in fact Noirpunk on here got offered one for £40 - and refused! Admittedly he was playing out in Hungary & getting it back would probably have been a pain. I do have a bit of GAS for one of these - hopefully I'll find one nearer to £40 than the £360 BIN the guy's after for this one. And looking at the action, I can't help thinking it would be more of a wall-hanger than a player... :ph34r: J.

[quote name='Happy Jack' post='274249' date='Sep 1 2008, 09:23 AM']Just how crooked is that bridge? It slants at about 5 degrees to the left - I wonder what that does for intonation. [/quote] Very observant, Mr Jack! But considering how, err - [i]limited[/i] - the original Rickenbacker bridge design is, it's probably an improvement! Easy enough to fill & re-drill the holes & straighten it up - but that really is a bit dodgy. J.

A through-neck Fireglo no-brand, courtesy of the reliable Mr Ashdigits: [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=140262912886"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...em=140262912886[/url] And I'll even forgive him his spurious & gratuitous use of The "I" Word because he says: [quote name='Ashdigits']I was told this was an Ibanez bass but I believe it is a Shaftesbury version[/quote] And when he later says he's tried not to upset anyone with his description - I can't help wondering if he's [i]not[/i] just talking abour RIC / Ebay! Anyhow, since Ash seems to be quite flexible with his best offers, I'd say his BIN of £315 is not unreasonable - he's probably let it go for £270 or so. J.

We might have to change the title of the thread to TallyCrap Spotting: [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=260280891144"]Another Melody P copy[/url] Is the light attracting them or what? J.

Thinking about it, McCartoony's bass is one of the 60s Rose-Morris imports, and these pre-date the skunk stripe, so the Fernandes is just being accurate. J.

I'm in a slightly similar situation here - drummer from my band also plays in a traditional celtic/folky band. Quite an interesting setup - guitarist/vocalist, a multi-instrumentalist who plays mandolin, banjo, bouzouki, bodhran & whistle (not at the same time!) and our drummist Mark on his electronic kit. I recorded a demo for them in the spring & ended up putting bass on a few of the songs where it was appropriate - and now they've asked if I'll "stand in" for Mark, while he's away on honeymoon in September & October! How the hell does a bassist stand in for a very versatile drummer playing an electronic kit? Add this to the 56-song set list they've handed me, and panic is just a breath away... Seriously, I honestly don't know what bass will add to their music with no drums - but it will be interesting, I hope. And if not, I'll be getting paid anyway... Jon.

My band plays proggy hard rock - I write all the instrumental aspect of the music so obviously I write bass parts I like to play - but playing bass alone I do like to try & play jazzy stuff, funky stuff & improvise a bit. None of this features in my band's actual compositions, but it's always what comes out when we have a muckabout jam - "Jazz Odyssey" has become a standing in-joke, and one day we [i]will[/i] play an entire gig consisting of just that. Or so we keep saying... My listening habits - or lack of - are making me a bit sad - I really have got to the point where I'm really not listening to recorded music [i]at all[/i], apart from my own stuff while I'm working on it. Bands & artists I love bring out albums & if they're lucky they get a cursory once-through, then put aside until I "have time" to listen properly - which of course I never seem to do. On the other hand, I love live music of all types & genres, as long as it's played with passion or skill - preferably both. Jon.

The only cure for GAS is [i]having them all[/i]. Jon.

[quote name='nick' post='271959' date='Aug 28 2008, 06:58 PM']Nice looking Fernandes 4001S 'Faker',very similar to my Maya with exception of neck pickup & control knobs....but alas in Japan. [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Fernandes-Paul-McCartony-model-80-s-Copy-NT_W0QQitemZ300253430578QQcmdZViewItem?hash=item300253430578&_trkparms=72%3A12%7C39%3A1%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A12%7C240%3A1318&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Fernandes-Paul-McCar...id=p3286.c0.m14[/url][/quote] Nice, that. Does yours have the one-piece neck like this one, or skunk stripe? More/better pics on the Japanese dealer's own site: [url="http://www.aquamusic.jp/product/49"]http://www.aquamusic.jp/product/49[/url] No-one seems to know exactly who made Fernandes in the 70s/80s - a cause of some debate in JapCrap circles, some of their original designs are identical to certain importer brands that people have been quibbling over the origin of for ages. Might possibly be Kawai, according to some people. J.

I have a Knob Of Butter: [url="http://www.maya29.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/pics/knobofbutter.jpg"][b]Click[/b][/url] Told you. Jon.

Every 70s Japcrap Jazz copy I've dismembered (and that's quite a few) has been painted like that. Not very many have such blatantly cheap & nasty pickup routing. Another reason to buy CIJ? Jon.

[quote name='SJA' post='271163' date='Aug 27 2008, 04:48 PM']funny how they chose not to put a dot marker at the 19th fret. Eko also used the wheel trussrod adjuster in the 70's. ironically EB Musicman and Peavey use it now on much more expensive instruments.[/quote] That's very common on early/mid 70s JapCrap, and was one of the reasons I assumed Noirpunk's P was MIJ. That wheel adjuster also appears on some early Jap guitars, but more usually Kawai/Teisco 60s type originals. It's pretty common on Koreans - lots of Hondos have it. J.

[quote name='noirpunk' post='270788' date='Aug 27 2008, 09:33 AM']That melody is identical to that P-Bass I picked up, albeit a darker stain This one has the thumb rest and bridge cover mine is missing - same scratchplate holes aswell. So my P is Italian then?[/quote] Based on the fact it's near identical to this 'un, I'd say yes. Obviously this means the plot thickens - more of the unbranded stuff that usually gets assumed to be Jap or Korean might in fact be Italian. There's a possibility of course that there was an importer sticking their own Melody logo on Oriental stuff (much like there was a 70s brand called Status, nowt to do with Mr Green), but I don't think so. The pic of the bass in the Melody catalogue is crap, but you can see some details that match - dot markers stop at 17th fret, zoom in on the logo, I'd say it's the same as what's been on this one, and I think I can see a square notch in the scratchplate for the truss adjuster. J.

That auction went up on Sunday - I messaged the guy to inform him that it's not Japanese - Melody was a 60s/70s (and possibly later) Italian brand, and there's a P copy pictured in a Melody catalogue on the Fetishguitars site: [url="http://www.fetishguitars.com/img/italiane/melody/catalogo/melody.pdf"]http://www.fetishguitars.com/img/italiane/...logo/melody.pdf[/url] He didn't bother responding or amending his ad - so the truth plainly doesn't suit his sales pitch. Not that I think he's got much chance of getting £160 for that, no matter how pretty the wood is. J.

Very sad news. Remember him well from BW days. Jon.

I think this damage looks too severe to be down to the suggested causes - I can't see something as major as this appearing overnight on a bass that I'd guess is a few years old already. I'd say it's somehow had a knock, probably to the backs of the tuners. Looks like 3 individual cracks, each one starting at the respective tuner screw, but you'll need to get the hardware off to see properly. A warranty or other manufacturer repair certainly would be the best solution - but speaking as a bodger, I'd probably just remove the tuners and flow superglue around the cracks. Chances are with the hardware off, it'll close up so it might need to be flexed open fractionally to allow the glue to penetrate. Then I'd clamp it up and leave it overnight, next day buff any superglue excess off with fine wire wool. Whatever you do - [b]don't[/b] go breaking lumps of it off!! You're very lucky it's just a couple of splits as it is! Jon.

Here's a nice-looking Aria/Matsumoku bolt-neck, nice fireglo, looks all original (including weird "staple" type bridge pickup) only thing missing is the pup cover: [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/70s-Bass-Guitar-4001_W0QQitemZ140261021290"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/70s-Bass-Guitar-4001...emZ140261021290[/url] £290 BIN or offers seems almost sane, considering. One slightly odd thing - the seller says "probably 1970's Jap. Not sure" - and if you look closely at the neckplate, it has "Steel Adjustable Neck" and a serial number, as one would expect - but no MIJ stamp. Since the Grover copy tuners & strange pickup convince me it's an Aria/Mat copy, maybe a dodgy batch of neckplates? Edit: Twin truss rods too. Nice. J.

[quote name='SJA' post='268567' date='Aug 23 2008, 06:58 PM']how about, see-thru acrylic P-bass, Aurora project glowguard + fretlights [/quote] I'd hit it, oh yes. :brow: Jon.

[quote name='warwickhunt' post='268726' date='Aug 24 2008, 08:05 AM'][size=7]£100[/size] That is obscene! I've never liked the look of the re-issue ones but I must confess an 'orange' one if cheap enough might have tempted me [/quote] Even more obscene when you've been watching it like a GAS-raddled hawk for a week - and are prepared to bid a few multiples of what it ended up selling for. And you miss it. I can only guess it went so cheap because it's so obscure. Seller must've been gutted. If I ever decide to move my orange plastic horror on, I'll let you know! J.