Bassassin

Have you read through the thread and the info & articles linked to? Short version - 80s Japanese Squiers, particularly those with the JV serial prefix, were exceptionally high-quality replica-standard instruments, weren't produced in huge quantities, and comparitively few survive nearly 40 years later. This means they are rare, collectable and therefore highly desirable to some people.

No probs. But some of us really do need to get out more...

These gold stickers with the WO prefix appear on 70s & 80s guitars from the Cor-Tek (Cort) factory in Korea. Here's a random Cort-branded guitar with the same type of sticker: https://reverb.com/item/9881428-cort-double-cutaway-electric-guitar-1981-antique-brown-sunburst Cort's always been an OEM manufacturer as well as a brand name, and like all such factories, would badge guitars with whatever name the customer specified - as well as supplying unbranded instruments, like the one in the original link. The bulk of Korean instruments from the 70s and 80s seem to have come from either Cort or Samick, and since often no country of manufacture is specified on the instrument (stickers tend to get peeled off!) many people assume they're Japanese. If you know what to look for it's usually quite straightforward to spot differences between MIK & MIJ, despite there being a lot of shared designs. It does actually seem to be the case that as Japanese guitar manufacturing became more sophisticated and began producing higher standard instruments, budget ranges were outsourced to cheaper Korean manufacture. The problem with trying to understand the history of these old instruments - both Korean and Japanese- is that very few real records were kept, and a lot has to be pieced together from old brochures and details such as these WO stickers. There are still loads of grey areas, and probably a lot of stuff that'll never be 100% certain.

Random late 60s / early 70s Tele-shaped starter bass, could be from a number of different factories. It's an unbranded bass, ergo it's not "a Mansfield", "a Jedson" or any other importer brand. This style is known to have been made by Sakai Mokko, Guya & Tombo but there were doubtless others. The seller describes, but annoyingly doesn't show a 6-screw neckplate. This is an early Moridaira trait, but probably not exclusive. The two pots below the gap between the pickups aren't original. God knows what they do, probably nothing good.

It's a Cort, so made in Korea. Probably mid 70s, and based on Japanese designs from a decade or so earlier. The gold sticker with the WO-prefix number identifies it as Cort, not sure if this is a model number or production run.

Nah. The logo on this one's a sticker or transfer someone's obviously printed at home. He would've just scribbled on the headstock with a biro.

Looks like a bunch of leftover parts from half a dozen random basses, bodged together. This is that Eastwood shower again, isn't it? Bet it's about a grand, too.

For anyone interested in the origins, history, technical specs and model variations of the JV Squiers, this website and the attached forum should tell you anything you want to know. It's particularly recommended for anyone labouring under the bizarre and baseless delusion that MIJ Squiers, and the JV models in particular, were some sort of cheaply bodged-out, corner-cut borderline knockoff aimed at beginners. Read and learn. http://www.21frets.com/

They usually do a Fishy song or two - but I'm in Scotland so they probably feel they have to. That said, last time I saw them was Newcastle & they did Garden Party. Wouldn't mind in the slightest if they didn't though (although the first 3 albums had their moments), and looking forward to seeing them next week in Glasgow.

Disappointed (and surprised) by the absence of references to the "Brown Note" in the aforegoing comments. Having redressed that regrettable emission omission, my work here is done.

I'm leaning towards thinking he actually believes a lot of this guff himself. Sounds like he's chucked a lot of money at what's basically a generic £90 Korean Jazz copy, unless he's making it up. Anyone ever heard of these "not available in the UK" Roadrunner pickups?

Anyone disappointed in missing out on this might - I said might - just be interested in this, fresh from Chinaland. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Starshine-High-Quality-Electric-Bass-with-Colorful-LED-Light-Acrylic-Body/293224346909 Lighty-uppy twinkly LEDs. Oooh!

Good (from a blagger's POV) to see this sort of thing still happens! I've had more than my fair share of very, very silly Ebay bargains - typically when the seller had no idea what they had, or from errors in the listing making it hard for most people to find. Really very unusual these days.

Just posted a pic of this in a different thread. This bass - a CSL-branded Jazz copy from 1980-ish - was a £60 pawn shop blag back when I was making a few bob buying & selling old MIJ basses & guitars. Bought it to tidy up & flip, but it turned out to be simply the nicest-playing bass I have ever picked up - just feels completely "right". Original pickups were weak so I popped in a pair of DiMarzio Model Js. Bridge, stack knobs & scratchplate were really just for fun, nothing wrong with the originals. This has been my go-to bass for probably 15 years or so now, and the one I'd keep if all the others had to go.

Funnily enough, this is the one I'd save in a fire. A bit modded but it's a beast, nicest neck I've played on anything. It is a re-badged Cimar, as I expect the h/h hardtail Strat @Meddle talked about was.

Just had a look at the GuitarGuitar listing - not surprised it sold, these are like rocking-horse poo & that's in excellent nick for a 1972-ish bass. Would've been tempted myself if I'd seen it, tbh, and I don't even have GAS for one! Checking out the old Ibanez catalogue images, yes, the CSL is the exact same bass as Ibanez: If you're wondering why the bass in the Ibby catalogue has no brand, it's because the images were Fujigen factory shots - if there was a CSL catalogue, it would've used the same pic, as would Antoria, who also sold these basses in the UK. They also used the same model numbers.

Cheers Mr 'Bag! Summerfields was UK importer for Ibanez during the notorious 70s copy era, and it seems as part of the deal they sourced their own CSL brand from Ibanez owner, Hoshino Gakki. Ibanez has only ever been a brand name, not a manufacturer, and I think the CSL Dan Armstrong copies very likely are the same instruments as Ibanez, and as Fleabag says, made by Fujigen. Later CSLs were rebrands of Hoshino's Cimar range & don't look like Fgn builds to me. Looks like most of the Japanese factories in the mid-70s had their own version of the acrylic Armstrong - there's a long & interesting (if you like that sort of thing) article about them on the Dan Armstrong info site: http://www.danarmstrong.org/copies.html Regarding acrylic basses in general, a few years back I lobbed this together - body came from a cheapo thing branded AXL and everything else from the parts box: Absolute back-breaker, and unfortunately the neck turned out to be like a bendy tree trunk. Would be the very definition of a wall-hanger, assuming I wanted huge lumps of plaster & brickwork ripped out of said wall.

Lacklustre? They were on the level of a school band's second rehearsal - sloppy, out-of-time and inept. This sort of stuff can be great when played well, but this lot were pretty much incompetent. What they're "doing right" is having marketing money behind them, which is likely to be a lot more to do with what the singer looks like than anything else.

This has been causing some consternation on the Ebay etc board! https://www.basschat.co.uk/topic/364787-jacoland-barcelona-custom-built-guitar/

Looking at his other items, turns out this has been listed 5 times already. Now I'm genuinely wondering if it's actually a sophisiticated example of surrealist satire.

Certainly the MIJ Squiers. Understandable with the early 80s JVs & SQs, which are both rare & high-quality, but the 90s Silver Series has nothing over the MIK stuff that was around at the same time. Apart from that "Made In Japan" decal. Which, of course, gave rise to Fender doing a deal with Kanda Shokai (owner of the Greco brand) to set up Fender Japan, on condition they ceased production of Greco-branded Fender copies. Round & round it goes.

Would think you could import one from Japan for less than that. Like I expect the seller did...

Body could well be MIJ, don't think the neck is. Whip the neck off & see if there's a heel stamp, might be an Allprats or other licensed Fender type. I think the neck's probably been bought unbranded & the decal's an Ebay special - and, in an unusual moment of honesty, whoever applied it cut off the bit that said "Fender"! I quite like it, tbh, I do like a maple/dots neck on a J. If it was mine the black hardware would be straight back on Ebay and replaced with some nice chrome/nickel bits. And a proper string tree!

Sorry about the belated reply! Hand-cut fairly roughly with a junior hacksaw, shaped with various files followed by increasingly fine grades of sandpaper, final polish with good, old-fashioned T-Cut! They're fairly small pieces so hand-cutting's not much of a chore given how easy the material is to work with. I have a scroll saw but that does tend to melt the acrylic.

If someone offers you £140 for it, yes.