Vintage Fenders

[ped]

11 minutes ago, Burns-bass said:

I’m not so sure. The later 60s and 70s ones aren’t as prone to shrinking as the early ones. Plus if it had shrunk in such an extreme way it would have cracked at the tips like most of the old ones have.

 

Perhaps I’m overly cynical but I don’t like it.

 

Im more inclined to believe it’s a neck swap than anything else.

Maybe. But mine shrunk and pulled the screws instead of cracking. When I had it re fitted I had the choice of having the gap either at the control plate or the neck pocket. If you look closely at the pics maybe you can see a slight ghosting where the plate used to be (I think I can but I’m on my phone and perhaps imagining it). No expert on necks though so who knows, although a neck swap wouldn’t explain the pickguard gap anyway. 

[wateroftyne]

I think there's too much being read into the headstock colour.

 

 

Look at the shadows. It's just being hit with a really bright (and probably quite cool) flash.

 

It looks much more 'normal' here:

 

 

 

Edited April 5 by wateroftyne

[ped]

…and look at the body pics with the scratchplate removed. It’s been repositioned south. Probably because of shrinkage. 

[Belka]

It's far more likely to be a pickguard swap - the ad states there are two sets of holes drilled for two different pickguards - the original probably went bad and it's been replaced with another that didn't quite fit - hence the extra holes and gap at the neck. I may be wrong, but by 1969 Fender's tort was a bit darker - this one is very vibrant/red, it could be from an earlier instrument.

[Burns-bass]

3 minutes ago, wateroftyne said:

I think there's too much being read into the headstock colour.

 

 

Look at the shadows. It's just being hit with a really bright (and probably quite cool) flash.

 

It looks much more 'normal' here:

 

 

 

Yes that would explain it!

 

The gap also looks less extreme.

 

As you were.

[ped]

1 minute ago, Belka said:

It's far more likely to be a pickguard swap - the ad states there are two sets of holes drilled for two different pickguards - the original probably went bad and it's been replaced with another that didn't quite fit - hence the extra holes and gap at the neck. I may be wrong, but by 1969 Fender's tort was a bit darker - this one is very vibrant/red, it could be from an earlier instrument.

Ah I didn’t read that. Sounds right!

[wateroftyne]

 

2 minutes ago, Burns-bass said:

Yes that would explain it!

 

The gap also looks less extreme.

 

As you were.

 

Wait.. you thought that massive shadow was a gap???

 

Crikey. 

[Reggaebass]

13 minutes ago, Burns-bass said:

I don’t know what happened here.

 

Anyway, I think the body, guard etc are all original. To me it looks like a neck swap.

I see what you’re saying, It’s a possibility as there are extra screw holes on the back of the neck , unless they were from the factory, hard to say really 

[Reggaebass]

I actually think it’s quite a nice jazz 

[sprocketflup]

1 hour ago, SurroundedByManatees said:

It surprises me that the ski-jump rarely gets mentioned in the dealers ads. 

Forgive my ignorance what do you mean by the ski jump please?

[ossyrocks]

Just now, Reggaebass said:

I see what you’re saying, It’s a possibility as there are extra screw holes on the back of the neck , unless they were from the factory, hard to say really 

I saw those extra holes. I've never seen that on any original vintage Fender before. It certainly could be the original neck to that body, but it was swapped onto another body at some time previously and then swapped back, or it's a parts bass. I don't think those extra holes would ever have appeared out of the factory.

I bought my '73 Jazz (which looks very similar to this one) from Bass Bros, and they are great to deal with. They are reasonable people trying hard, and they will enter into discussion about aspects of the instruments they are selling if you have any queries.

 

Rob

[Burns-bass]

9 minutes ago, wateroftyne said:

 

 

Wait.. you thought that massive shadow was a gap???

 

Crikey. 

I’m not sure what you mean, but I’m currently cleaning the bathroom so have more pressing matters to attend to.

[Reggaebass]

25 minutes ago, sprocketflup said:

Forgive my ignorance what do you mean by the ski jump please?

Basically when a neck does this 

[Steve Browning]

On 02/04/2025 at 08:40, Steve Browning said:

 

Just looked and they're distributed in the UK by Rotosound. Happy days!! I sent my newly delivered 1983 '62 Precision reissue back to Fender because the scratchplate looked so awful. I was put off Spitfire by an extraordinary tale of woe on BC a few years ago.

The pair I ordered yesterday arrived today and they're excellent. Especially for the price. Very happy chap. 

[Alanko]

59 minutes ago, Steve Browning said:

The pair I ordered yesterday arrived today and they're excellent. Especially for the price. Very happy chap. 

Two of the Boston pickguards? Any pics?

[Steve Browning]

Yes. The Boston PB 415 TI.

[ped]

More pickguard chat - what year did Fender start making white pearloid?

[SurroundedByManatees]

31 minutes ago, ped said:

More pickguard chat - what year did Fender start making white pearloid?

I guess '66 on the Mustang?

Edited Monday at 09:38 by SurroundedByManatees

[ped]

3 minutes ago, SurroundedByManatees said:

I guess '66 on the Mustang?

That’s what made me think - was it introduced on the mustang and than made available on the P and J, or was it found on those before 66?

[Beedster]

43 minutes ago, ped said:

…. pickguard chat 

I might just buy that domain 😁

[BassAgent]

49 minutes ago, ped said:

That’s what made me think - was it introduced on the mustang and than made available on the P and J, or was it found on those before 66?

I've only seen tort and white (for custom colours) on pre-CBS Fenders. The transition period introduced pearloid on the Mustang bass, and even then only on red Mustangs, from 1967 on they were also available on the Daphne Blue basses (see JMJ's bass for example). The first Jazzes I've seen with pearloid are from '69 (and even then it's only one so might be custom ordered), on Precisions they don't seem to exist at all before 1992. I've only seen Custom Shop and a Longhorn P from that era with pearloid pickguard.

Edited Monday at 10:32 by BassAgent

[snorkie635]

6 hours ago, Beedster said:

I might just buy that domain 😁

As I recall, we have a member here called John Luke Pickguard?

[ped]

6 hours ago, BassAgent said:

I've only seen tort and white (for custom colours) on pre-CBS Fenders. The transition period introduced pearloid on the Mustang bass, and even then only on red Mustangs, from 1967 on they were also available on the Daphne Blue basses (see JMJ's bass for example). The first Jazzes I've seen with pearloid are from '69 (and even then it's only one so might be custom ordered), on Precisions they don't seem to exist at all before 1992. I've only seen Custom Shop and a Longhorn P from that era with pearloid pickguard.

Interesting, thanks. It suddenly occurred to me that the earliest ones I have seen are on 66 mustangs. What did Daphne blue 66 stands have, plain white?

[Alanko]

6 hours ago, BassAgent said:

I've only seen tort and white (for custom colours) on pre-CBS Fenders. The transition period introduced pearloid on the Mustang bass, and even then only on red Mustangs, from 1967 on they were also available on the Daphne Blue basses (see JMJ's bass for example). The first Jazzes I've seen with pearloid are from '69 (and even then it's only one so might be custom ordered), on Precisions they don't seem to exist at all before 1992. I've only seen Custom Shop and a Longhorn P from that era with pearloid pickguard.

Couple of weird observations I've made over the years.

 

The tortoiseshell used on Mustang basses is different to that used on P and J basses. It was redder from the get-go and only three ply, with a black bottom layer. I think I've seen this used by other manufacturers, so must have been a cheaper source than the premium four ply stuff. 
 

I think pearloid turns up on the rear of '60s Stratocaster pickguards, possibly before it was seen on the front face of Mustang pickguards. There seems to have been a vanishingly rare pink pearloid occasionally used on Competition Mustangs. The slightly later pearloid seen on Comp Mustangs seems to shrink alarmingly. Not unusual to see a Mustang Bass with many additional pickguard screws that appear to be either factory fitted or a dealer mod. This includes in period photos, so wasn't done years after the basses shipped.

[BassAgent]

1 hour ago, ped said:

Interesting, thanks. It suddenly occurred to me that the earliest ones I have seen are on 66 mustangs. What did Daphne blue 66 stands have, plain white?

Oh wait I've misjudged. The 1966 Daphne Blue Mustangs also had pearloid.