stu77 Posted November 24, 2017 Share Posted November 24, 2017 not sure if this is the right part of the forum to post this but here goes (moderators, if it would be better seen elsewhere please let me know)? ok, here’s the thing, i mostly play guitar but i recently bought a very interesting bass and wondered if any of you people could assist me with something? When i got home i did some research and i’m pretty sure it’s a Wal custom MK1 and the reason i’m posting on here is because i want to check to see if it was really supposed to have been sold or if the seller made some mistake because it seems to be more valuable than I thought? i have no reason to think the sale was anything but legit but the price i paid for the instrument made me think about it more and I feel a bit uncomfortable that the seller may not have known what they had (after my dad died a while back i sold some paintings that i'm pretty sure sure were a lot more valuable than i thought so it does happen i guess). a friend in the police force told me the best place to start would be on a forum like this (i'm also posting on FB etc) so if anyone has recently (mistakenly) got rid of such an instrument or knows of anyone who has pm me and if they can prove this is their instrument (they’ll know the serial number and details etc i’m sure) i’ll gladly reunite them with it. i’ve already scoured any sites online that have missing or stolen instrument databases as well as searching FB and doing general google searches but not found anything in relation to this instrument at all so i’m hoping (of course) that i have just been lucky with what I’ve bought but please pass this around anywhere you think might be helpful and get back to me with any info. cheers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Urban Bassman Posted November 24, 2017 Share Posted November 24, 2017 Photos and the serial number would be helpful. There is usually some information about the bass on the back of the control cavity cover a clear photo of that would be good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tubbybloke68 Posted November 24, 2017 Share Posted November 24, 2017 If its in good nick,anywhere between 3.5/4 grand on here.more on eBay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stu77 Posted November 24, 2017 Author Share Posted November 24, 2017 Thanks for the replies guys. I can't really put any pictures or details up at the moment because someone could just say "oh yeah that's mine, can I have it back please!" If you see what I mean!!!? I'm really trying to see if someone is missing it for some reason and can send me the spec / serial number etc so I'll know it's definitely theirs and if so connect them back up. It is a fantastic instrument for sure, though it is a bit bashed up! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrevorR Posted November 25, 2017 Share Posted November 25, 2017 Stu, sent you a PM... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrevorR Posted November 25, 2017 Share Posted November 25, 2017 http://walbasshistory.blogspot.co.uk/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beedster Posted November 25, 2017 Share Posted November 25, 2017 16 hours ago, stu77 said: not sure if this is the right part of the forum to post this but here goes (moderators, if it would be better seen elsewhere please let me know)? ok, here’s the thing, i mostly play guitar but i recently bought a very interesting bass and wondered if any of you people could assist me with something? When i got home i did some research and i’m pretty sure it’s a Wal custom MK1 and the reason i’m posting on here is because i want to check to see if it was really supposed to have been sold or if the seller made some mistake because it seems to be more valuable than I thought? i have no reason to think the sale was anything but legit but the price i paid for the instrument made me think about it more and I feel a bit uncomfortable that the seller may not have known what they had (after my dad died a while back i sold some paintings that i'm pretty sure sure were a lot more valuable than i thought so it does happen i guess). a friend in the police force told me the best place to start would be on a forum like this (i'm also posting on FB etc) so if anyone has recently (mistakenly) got rid of such an instrument or knows of anyone who has pm me and if they can prove this is their instrument (they’ll know the serial number and details etc i’m sure) i’ll gladly reunite them with it. i’ve already scoured any sites online that have missing or stolen instrument databases as well as searching FB and doing general google searches but not found anything in relation to this instrument at all so i’m hoping (of course) that i have just been lucky with what I’ve bought but please pass this around anywhere you think might be helpful and get back to me with any info. cheers. I'm not getting this, the cynic in me says there's more to this than is being said above....? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beedster Posted November 25, 2017 Share Posted November 25, 2017 12 hours ago, stu77 said: Thanks for the replies guys. I can't really put any pictures or details up at the moment because someone could just say "oh yeah that's mine, can I have it back please!" If you see what I mean!!!? I'm really trying to see if someone is missing it for some reason and can send me the spec / serial number etc so I'll know it's definitely theirs and if so connect them back up. It is a fantastic instrument for sure, though it is a bit bashed up! Even odder.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dazed Posted November 25, 2017 Share Posted November 25, 2017 How did you come to buy the bass? Was it advertised somewhere? Wasn't it advertised as a Wal? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beedster Posted November 25, 2017 Share Posted November 25, 2017 So, reading cynically between the lines, if the OP wants to reunite a recently acquired bass with its owner and s/he has sufficiently short memory to have already forgotten where they bought it, s/he either knows it's stolen and has pangs of guilt and wants it gone, knows it's stolen and is using this thread as a way of selling it (I bet s/he's already had a few PMs saying "I'll give you a grand"), is trying to get a Chinese Wal faker into circulation etc etc, the permutations are endless. Having said that, I sincerely hope it is what it seems, it would be quite life affirming to think that someone who recently bought a stolen bass was honest enough to want to find its rightful owner. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
totorbass Posted November 25, 2017 Share Posted November 25, 2017 Each time this topic is bumped my heart jumps and I connect to Paypal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrevorR Posted November 25, 2017 Share Posted November 25, 2017 Now now now chaps. Before jumping to conspiracy theories you might try finding some facts. Been chatting to Stu by PM and to be honest if you want to label him as anything you can accuse him of being a “lucky bu£&er”. I know that every time I walk by a junk shop or go to a car boot sale I imagine I’m going to come home with a 59 Les Paul that I paid the princely sum of £100 for. And if I did I’d probably wonder if I’d just unwittingly done a shonky deal, because I’m pretty sure I’m not that lucky! Once in a while someone is... and the worst you can accuse them of being is a “lucky bu£&er” and you can hardly blame them for being a bit bewildered! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrevorR Posted November 26, 2017 Share Posted November 26, 2017 (edited) 5 hours ago, hiram.k.hackenbacker said: It's not beholden on us to establish the facts. Stu started the thread, requested assistance and gave the BC community very limited information to work with. Coupled with his recent registration and the flavour of his subsequent thread, I don't think it's unreasonable to suggest there may be something afoot. It may all be quite innocent, but I don't think you can hold us to account on what has been offered thus far. Fair enough, but the tone (from some) went from 0 to “He’s a troll/con artist” in under three seconds. I reckon there’s a really interesting bit of Basschattery to be had here if we’re all a bit more open and welcoming to a noob and dial down the “a$$hattery” a smidge. Edited November 26, 2017 by TrevorR 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrevorR Posted November 26, 2017 Share Posted November 26, 2017 William ploppedner Sorry, totally random and OT but fascinated to see what the profanity filter did, having just had to re-edit “ass-hat”... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beedster Posted November 26, 2017 Share Posted November 26, 2017 43 minutes ago, TrevorR said: Fair enough, but the tone (from some) went from 0 to “He’s a troll/con artist” in under three seconds. I reckon there’s a really interesting bit of Basschattery to be had here if we’re all a bit more open and welcoming to a noob and dial down the “a$$hattery” a smidge. There was a thread on here a few years ago that was really similar; "found this old bass in my Uncle's loft, says 'Fender' on the end and I don't know anything about basses but a friend of mine said it was about 50 years old and pre-CBS or something.......". It was just a way of selling through the back door - that is loads of people contacted her re buying the bass without it ever being offered for sale and open to the scrutiny of the BC collective* - what was a quite convincing at first glance bitsa that had been deliberately made to look like a pre-CBS. The bass - a Lake Placid Blue Precision - did the rounds on eBay under various descriptions for months afterwards, being repeatedly bought and sold by people who'd fallen for the hype and who were just dishonestly passing the hype on to recoup their costs. It ended up with one of those eBay sellers who sells 'vintage' instruments at an extortionate price. * I know this because I was one of them. I went to visit the seller to check out the bass, and she was correct about one thing, she certainly knew nothing about bass guitars :) As I said in a post above, I'd love it if this thread was the real deal and I'll happily apologise to the OP if so. But despite the several posts above, we still don't have the story re the Wal...........? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stu77 Posted November 26, 2017 Author Share Posted November 26, 2017 Hi guys, woah, there's really no need for this kind of conjecture! I'm sorry my original posting may have seemed so cryptic, I just really had no idea how to go about doing this. First up I have no intention of selling this bass nor am I a scam artist / Chinese infiltrator i am a guitarist (i know, sorry about that) who also enjoys playing bass who seemingly got some amazing luck and I'm just trying to estabslh ownership of a fantastic instrument so I can feel comfortable abut enjoying it, or if I discover that this actually wasn't meant for me then I shall gladly return it to whoever it should rightfully belong to. It really is that simple. It was bought at a Bootsale of all places so you can probably see my thoughts about its origin. After getting it home and realising it actually wasn't the Chinese fake I first thought I went, uh oh, has some poor son / daughter, neice / nephew sold this on without realising what it is they had? I have searched for any reference to the instrument having gone missing / been stolen and there is absolutely nothing I can find so I'm hoping I am, as Trevor so eloquently put it in a p.m., the luckiest bu*^er around, haha. but until i've done my very best establish that I shall keep this thread active in the hope that someone may make a connection somewhere and get in touch. I can say that once this is resolved either way I shall post full pictures and details up as it is an interesting instrument and one of those OMG moments and maybe then you'll realise why I'm unable to do so at the moment (sorry again if that seems rather cryptic!!!!). 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skybone Posted November 26, 2017 Share Posted November 26, 2017 TBH, I think the first port of call for finding out about the bass would be to head over to the Wal website. http://walbasses.co.uk/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Highfox Posted November 26, 2017 Share Posted November 26, 2017 You bought it in good faith Stu, If it was me I wouldn't try hide it or feel guilty about it. if someone contacted me about it being stolen or ripped off I'd take it from there. You lucky bugger 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stu77 Posted November 26, 2017 Author Share Posted November 26, 2017 Hi Skybone, yeah, going to try them tomorrow, see if anything has been reported but I reckon this forum probably has a wider reach overall and surely such a rare Instrument would have flagged up somewhere by now which makes me think whoever had it really didn't know what it was and so isn't actually looking for it? Highfox, that's exactly it. And yeah, what a find if it's all cool!!!! By the way, I'm not sure what I'm doing here, with replies I mean? if I want to reply to individual posts how do I do that (I told you I was new to this, haha)? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickeyboro Posted November 26, 2017 Share Posted November 26, 2017 Fair play to you mate! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beedster Posted November 26, 2017 Share Posted November 26, 2017 1 hour ago, stu77 said: Hi guys, woah, there's really no need for this kind of conjecture! I'm sorry my original posting may have seemed so cryptic, I just really had no idea how to go about doing this. First up I have no intention of selling this bass nor am I a scam artist / Chinese infiltrator i am a guitarist (i know, sorry about that) who also enjoys playing bass who seemingly got some amazing luck and I'm just trying to estabslh ownership of a fantastic instrument so I can feel comfortable abut enjoying it, or if I discover that this actually wasn't meant for me then I shall gladly return it to whoever it should rightfully belong to. It really is that simple. It was bought at a Bootsale of all places so you can probably see my thoughts about its origin. After getting it home and realising it actually wasn't the Chinese fake I first thought I went, uh oh, has some poor son / daughter, neice / nephew sold this on without realising what it is they had? I have searched for any reference to the instrument having gone missing / been stolen and there is absolutely nothing I can find so I'm hoping I am, as Trevor so eloquently put it in a p.m., the luckiest bu*^er around, haha. but until i've done my very best establish that I shall keep this thread active in the hope that someone may make a connection somewhere and get in touch. I can say that once this is resolved either way I shall post full pictures and details up as it is an interesting instrument and one of those OMG moments and maybe then you'll realise why I'm unable to do so at the moment (sorry again if that seems rather cryptic!!!!). Stu, if this story results in a Wal being returned to long-lost owner or similar I'll happily donate £100 to a charity of your choice. If it turns to out to have been a noble attempt at the above - which it's looking like is the case - I'll still donate £50 to the same charity. I'll let TrevorR be the judge of the outcome. Either way, my apologies for the scepticism and thanks for your public spirited attitude, a rare thing on the internet. Chris 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stu77 Posted November 26, 2017 Author Share Posted November 26, 2017 Hi Chris, that would be a brilliant gesture whatever and no worries, I can understand the scepticism (possibly not helped by my first "mysterious" post but I'm getting there!). Please put the word out to anyone you think might help the search. My main thoughts are that someone has died and their relatives don't know what it was, or maybe someone died intestate and the landlord cleared the house / flat so if anyone knows of someone recently deceased who owned a wal, maybe this could be it? Let's see if we can find out one way or another, Cheers, stu. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tubbybloke68 Posted November 27, 2017 Share Posted November 27, 2017 Well played stu,good luck with things and whatever happens in the meantime,enjoy the Wal! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CamdenRob Posted November 27, 2017 Share Posted November 27, 2017 Just stick the details up... The reluctance to do so makes no sense to me. If anything it'll give you peace of mind it's not stolen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stu77 Posted November 27, 2017 Author Share Posted November 27, 2017 Thanks Tubbybloke68, I'm trying my best. CamdenRob, That's the whole thing, it definitely would have flagged up somewhere but there's nothing, and it's obviously a pretty specific item and would be hard to miss!!! You're not the first mention it but if I put up the details anyone can just come along and say, "hey that's mine, blah blah blah" (though they'd still have have to prove it I guess) but that's not the idea. If someone PM's me with the details then I'll be absolutely certain they know this instrument intimately. I got in touch with Paul at wal basses this morning but there were no reports of any missing wals there so I still think this forum may well be the best way to go. If the seller just didn't have a clue, as it appears, then there will be no report anywhere anyway and this may be the only way to let them know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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