Beedster

I remember them as Fat Fingers as well 👍

So, this is where I've got to........ Very light sandpaper revealed that under the white paint a previous owner appears to have sanded the original finish before applying the paint (where the finish is worn through to the wood is very very smooth, and while there's enough original finish to work with - on which the lovely checking is still visible - even that has signs of previous quite heavy sanding. Also looks like there's been a repair under the rout, I'd guess a battery compartment was installed and then filled. Think I'm going to do some very mild relicing to the wood so that it matches the feel and colour of the other areas of bare wood which are significantly darker.

All (both.....) eras of RHCP covered.....

You'll never guess who make them.......

It wasn't a Torres by the way

I know many will disagree, but I don't really buy the idea of the unplayable 70's Fender (unless of course the neck has bowed which happens to manufacturers other than Fender e.g., EBMM and Ric). I've played some in shops and at a seller's house that have played like dogs - bad setup, dodgy electrics, neck not on straight or badly shimmed - but while I often declined to buy them at the time, I'm not convinced any couldn't be recovered! I bought a maple neck '75 Precision unseen on eBay and when it arrived it was a disaster, neck like a suspension bridge, strings nowhere near poles, more dead spots than Margate in winter, but I got it playable with some work. OK, it was VERY heavy, but I've nevere been that worried about weight.

Must dig out my old copy

I seem to be storing drums here so that would solve a problem I do have 👍

But they're clearly doing something right? Nearly all the people under the age of 30 I know who are making music don't play guitar or bass, it's all in the box, yet Fender still shift a shit load of instruments each year, way more I'd guess than the companies that copy them? Do Fender innovate? Hell no. Do they always build good instruments? Hell no? Are they, as they have been for 70-years, the dominant brand in a market that is 70-years old? Hell yes

Was Torres a neck man only then?

As I said, you're probably right, I was just wondering if there was the possibility of a more systematic process in play at Fender at the time, hence my question re necks versus bodies 👍

I realised this recently! I love the idea of PJ basses, and when I twiddle at home I just love to user the back PUP and experiment with blenidng. When I gig, front PUP all the way, don't blend the J in even occasionally. Leo got it right first time 👍 Might be listing a PJ for sale this weekend

Does anyone know why necks were identifiable to a specific maker but (apparently) not bodies?

i just wonder if before we say things like 'certainly' and 'surely' in a thread about vintage Fenders, we might want to provide more than opinion and what we've picked up in other threads? You're probably right, but on the other hand the four basses I've had with a Torres neck have also been four basses with really rather good heel/pocket fit, which let's face it, wasn't always a characteristic of 70's Fenders 👍

Evidence?

Mmm, any evidence for that?

Indeed, I often wonder what Sr Torres would have thought had he known his neck stamp had become such an iconic piece of Fender history.

Nice one mate, great to have the memories in concrete form 👍

Plenty of those around….. 👍