Beedster Posted January 5, 2008 Share Posted January 5, 2008 [quote name='Deep Thought' post='113924' date='Jan 5 2008, 10:05 AM']I'd hate to do that to an old one which are almost becoming bits of history now.[/quote] That's why I like old basses, I don't worry at all about dinging them. The only part of any of my four 70's Fenders I'm anal about knocking are the fretboards on the two fretlii which, for some reason, despite being over 30 years old, are still immaculate. Re the points above, it's one of those discussion where nearly every view is valid, even if completely opposite to another equally valid view . The old Fenders, compared to modern machines, are pretty agricultural. Then again, so are old Triumphs, Porsches etc etc. The other day, Jonathan Ross questioned why men - and only men - are obsessed with collecting stuff from their childhood. I suspect that to many of the owners of old Fenders, it's as much this apparently male-specific quest for the items they dreamed about in their formative years as it is the quest for the perfect instrument. It certainly is for me Don't get me wrong, I think my four 70's Precisions (couldn't find a emoticon for 'smug') are the best basses I've owned, but I'd never be foolish enough to argue that my judgement in this respect is not at least partially driven by emotion and sentiment. Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bnt Posted January 5, 2008 Share Posted January 5, 2008 (edited) When I started learning the bass in the mid 80s, 70s Fenders were not considered collectable at all. Everyone wanted Pre-CBS instruments, from the time before Leo Fender sold the company in 1965. It was something of a cult, and still is - try search eBay USA for "pre-CBS Fender". $59,999 for a '61 Jazz... $200 for a single tuning peg? Now, does anyone have a pre-Gibson Steinberger to sell me... or a pre-Fender SWR amp? Edited January 5, 2008 by bnt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cetera Posted January 5, 2008 Share Posted January 5, 2008 [quote name='dood' post='113766' date='Jan 4 2008, 09:22 PM']Look out.. Dood is posting his '67 alike ;o) (It's a very good example of a non-export CIJ - I love the TV era script and the pups aint bad either.)[/quote] Still wanting that one off of you.... grrrr...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deep Thought Posted January 5, 2008 Share Posted January 5, 2008 [quote name='dood' post='113972' date='Jan 5 2008, 11:56 AM']Excellent post a +1 here. You did a better job of explaining what I wanted to say![/quote] Aw Shucks...t'wern't nuthin'. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul, the Posted January 5, 2008 Share Posted January 5, 2008 [quote name='Muppet' post='113757' date='Jan 4 2008, 09:08 PM']It's the stuff you can't quite put your finger on that makes them, not the physical things themselves. Japanese models, no matter how good quality wise will never have it. They will always be Japanese. You can get a custom shop issue that feels and sounds like a 70s Fender and will be of much better physical quality but it still won't have it. It's a heart thing not a head thing and that's what makes them great.[/quote] +1 I have a moderately modern Precision that makes me smile when I pick it up but I know it doesn't have the soul and simplicity of an old, experienced instrument. I think a nice '60s instrument is the only thing that could justify the kind of price they fetch. An adequate bass is pretty cheap, soul is expensive and rare. Maybe I'll get one handed down to me one day. Here's to hopin'. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rockinrayduke Posted January 5, 2008 Share Posted January 5, 2008 I took a Squier Modified P-Bass, found a lightly played Mexican Squier neck on ebay for fairly cheap (looks and feels more like a US Fender neck) changed the pickups to what I was told are DiMarzios, tort pickguard, new wiring harness, knobs, Badass II bridge, Schaller straplocks and it's the only "Fender" I own now. I did keep the Squier neckplate. It does a job a P-Bass is suppoed to do, and though its pedigree is varied that's really all a Fender bass is in the end, various parts thrown together to make a product. I drool just as much looking at 50 year old basses and guitars (and cars for that matter) but its nostalgia mixed with reality. With all the aftermarket parts and relicing techniques around now you can put together a bass that looks and feels just as worn out, played and mojoed as a '58 P-Bass for a tenth of the money. Now if I won the lottery all this is moot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wateroftyne Posted January 5, 2008 Share Posted January 5, 2008 (edited) It's worth emphasising that there aren't many instruments out there that will, in the long run, increase in value. It's far more fun than putting your money in the bank. Edited January 5, 2008 by wateroftyne Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Burpster Posted January 5, 2008 Share Posted January 5, 2008 To me, a beat up 30yr old bass is just that....... Now a mint 30yr old untouched collectors piece is, well just that..... Value is relative, I have what I was advised is an 'investment' Fender, but I am seriously thinking of selling it on as it just sits there, immaculate in its case. My being 5hit scared of using it incase I ding it and therefore reduce its value..... So unless you can afford to own them, just for the sake of it ----- to some degree I cant now see the point. So why do some have the WOW factor and others make folks wanna puke........ Fashion, and personal taste......... Just like clothes, cars, watches..... the list is endless.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_b Posted January 5, 2008 Share Posted January 5, 2008 [quote name='The Burpster' post='114346' date='Jan 5 2008, 09:09 PM']I have what I was advised is an 'investment' Fender, but I am seriously thinking of selling it on as it just sits there, immaculate in its case. My being 5hit scared of using it incase I ding it and therefore reduce its value.....[/quote] I'm assuming that you're not an "oldie", so the only sensible thing to do with this bass is to keep it. Put it in its case, an original hopefully, put it under the bed and leave it alone. That is probably going to be its fate if you sell it on, so why shouldn't you get the value of it in the future. You wouldn't commute to work in an original Bugatti or Model T Ford, so keep your investment for when you really need it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wateroftyne Posted January 5, 2008 Share Posted January 5, 2008 My basses are gigged all the time. That's what insurance is for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rockinrayduke Posted January 5, 2008 Share Posted January 5, 2008 [quote name='wateroftyne' post='114381' date='Jan 5 2008, 03:38 PM']My basses are gigged all the time. That's what insurance is for.[/quote] Right on!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elom Posted January 6, 2008 Share Posted January 6, 2008 [quote name='dood' post='113861' date='Jan 5 2008, 12:03 AM']HA HA HA HA!!!!! You thought of that song... not me! ;o) However, yes.. if she stood far enough forward I could get a good swing at the back on her head with a few pounds of Ash.[/quote] and she'd bounce back up like a pneumatic weeble Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dood Posted January 6, 2008 Share Posted January 6, 2008 [quote name='cetera' post='114134' date='Jan 5 2008, 04:31 PM']Still wanting that one off of you.... grrrr...... [/quote] Heh heh... There's still a lot of love in that one... I so nearly parted with it!! [quote name='Deep Thought' post='114268' date='Jan 5 2008, 07:11 PM']Aw Shucks...t'wern't nuthin'. [/quote] ;o) [quote name='elom' post='114460' date='Jan 6 2008, 12:07 AM']and she'd bounce back up like a pneumatic weeble[/quote] Thankfully her songs didn't Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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