1974 Precision bass - am I paying too much?

[Misowaki]

So the saxophonist in 2 of my bands has had a '74 P bass kicking around for years and I bought it (or am slowly buying it) off him.

I obviously tried to get it at a steal but in the end we agreed on £1200.  I've seen some go for less, I've seen some go for more but it's not in exemplary condition and no hard case.
Did I just diddle myself or is that a fair price?

Sorry if this is the wrong place to post this.

[dmccombe7]

Bass looks ok to me in the photo. If its a genuine American 74P bass i would have thought £1200 wasn't too bad. I'm no expert in them to be fair so i'll be curious to see what comes back on this thread. Like a nice maple neck 

You can pick up a decent case for not a lot anyways.

Dave

[Lozz196]

If all original that`s a great price.

[wateroftyne]

That's a very good price indeed. Well done.

[T-Bay]

If you are happy it’s a good price, you can always find a cheaper one somewhere so it’s not worth looking.

[Misowaki]

17 minutes ago, dmccombe7 said:

Bass looks ok to me in the photo. If its a genuine American 74P bass i would have thought £1200 wasn't too bad. I'm no expert in them to be fair so i'll be curious to see what comes back on this thread. Like a nice maple neck 

You can pick up a decent case for not a lot anyways.

Dave

Oh, the case isn't an issue, I've got a nice tweed case for it but I did see a very similar bass with a flight case go on ebay for £3 less haha

And you can't see the condition from that pic.  There are a couple of tiny holes in the fretboard behind a couple of frets and there is a weird depression beneath the A string.
Most curious though is a kind of dot pattern on the body in certain lights, like old comics or a Roy Lichtenstein pic.  Maybe it's just a mark on the lacquer from storage?  My paranoia thought at first "oh my god, this wood finish is printed on, it's a fake!" but that's a bit extreme.  Especially as you can see the joins in the wood and the less than smooth neck pocket on the underside is concurrent with other Ps I've seen of the same age and everything looks legit otherwise.

[Misowaki]

18 minutes ago, T-Bay said:

If you are happy it’s a good price, you can always find a cheaper one somewhere so it’s not worth looking.

Yeah, I know, you're right, and it sounds amazing.  Plays great too but just wanted to check =)

Thanks all for your wisdom.

[dmccombe7]

Tiny holes behind some of the frets. Is it possible its been refretted at some point. Is it that kind of hole.

What do you mean by a depression behind the A. ?

Any chance of a close up of the body and neck holes you are talking about ?

Dave

 

[Misowaki]

Yeah, will try get some pics.  I reckon it has been refretted as some are a little sharp.

[Misdee]

From the photo, its difficult to tell if the bass has it's original finish, or if it has been stripped and refinished as natural. If it has been refinished then that will approximately halve the value of the instrument as a vintage piece.

How fair a price you paid depends entirely on how original the bass is and it's overall structural condition. To be honest with you, it is impossible to tell that just looking at the photo. I'm not trying to sound negative at all - if you enjoy playing this bass then great - but accurately assessing vintage Fenders is a bit of a "detective" job at the best of times.

[wateroftyne]

£1200 is reasonable even if it was stripped.

it looks like ash. Coupled with the black guard (if original) this suggests it might well have been natural at birth.

[Misowaki]

Fairly certain it came as natural, plenty of marks on the body to suggest that.

 

[TheGreek]

Nothing in the photos I couldn't live with....it is nearly 44 years old and built when the QC at Fender was going down hill.

I think you did better than OK

[Lozz196]

Well imo it`s a beaut, great looking bass. It`s inevitable there will be some wear on a 40+ year old bass, don`t let that bother you unless it affects playability, in which case a luthier can sort. Genuine road-wear on a vintage instrumet = yum.

[JapanAxe]

Good buy - I paid a fair bit more for my near-identical '73, but that was from a dealer.

[ZilchWoolham]

Nothing about it suggests you payed even nearly too much. Congrats! 

[walshy]

On 3 March 2018 at 13:04, Misowaki said:

Oh, the case isn't an issue, I've got a nice tweed case for it but I did see a very similar bass with a flight case go on ebay for £3 less haha

 Was it a white one, all original '77 P?

Edited March 4, 2018 by walshy

[King Tut]

Great price. I've got a similar 76 that I payed £1100 for a few years ago and i  reckon i got a bargain as it's so nice to play and sounds lush!!

[discreet]

Don't worry - it's practically a bargain. If it were for sale in a retail environment it would be around 30% more expensive at least.

[obbm]

1 hour ago, JapanAxe said:

Good buy - I paid a fair bit more for my near-identical '73, but that was from a dealer.

Same here.

[wateroftyne]

BTW.. those marks on the back? Classic example of 'left in a case, lying on a curly lead'.

[zranyard]

If you're happy with how it plays and sounds, I think that was more than a fair price, especially when you look at how much second hand fenders of any age are being advertised at currently.  

[Misowaki]

Yeah I'm beyond happy with it, otherwise I wouldn't have sold my AVRI. Just wondered if I should have convinced him to go lower. Cheers guys.

[spencer.b]

Bargain

[Dood]

Wunjo have a 73 for £3k..