Vintage Fenders

[Reggaebass]

I seem to remember someone here selling 2 of their jazzes to the bass gallery, I can’t remember who, was this one of them , also does the G string look close to the edge of the fretboard or is it the picture angle .

https://thebassgallery.com/products/fender-1972-jazz-bass

[Chiliwailer]

7 minutes ago, Reggaebass said:

I seem to remember someone here selling 2 of their jazzes to the bass gallery, I can’t remember who, was this one of them , also does the G string look close to the edge of the fretboard or is it the picture angle .

https://thebassgallery.com/products/fender-1972-jazz-bass

If you trace the string back to the bridge saddles, it looks like it’s perhaps had a restring but they haven’t lined up the strings properly on the saddle slots. Could be a bit of camera angle too 👍

[Reggaebass]

1 minute ago, Chiliwailer said:

If you trace the string back to the bridge saddles, it looks like it’s perhaps had a restring but they haven’t lined up the strings properly on the saddle slots. Could be a bit of camera angle too 👍

I didn’t notice that, thanks Chili 👍

[Bassfingers]

On 02/08/2020 at 22:12, ead said:

Here's my '66P

Woof! I covet that bass! 

 

66 is my birth year and a 66P is right at the top of my Bucket list.  It is a thing of beauty. I can only imagine how it sounds.

 

Pass me a swatch of kitchen roll - I'm drooling. 😬

[Doctor J]

3 hours ago, Reggaebass said:

I seem to remember someone here selling 2 of their jazzes to the bass gallery, I can’t remember who, was this one of them , also does the G string look close to the edge of the fretboard or is it the picture angle .

https://thebassgallery.com/products/fender-1972-jazz-bass

 It's a 70's Fender, there's room in the pocket. This kind of thing is very, very common and you can see the E string looks massively towards the treble side too and isn't aligned over the pickup poles. The neck bolts just need to be loosened, centre the neck and tighten the bolts again.

[kevin_lindsay]

Yup, that's what I do with my 73 Jazz.

[Reggaebass]

Even though I usually play jazzes  I fancy an early 70’s precision, while browsing I came across this, it’s a bit pricey for me because someone famous owned it , but what a beautiful precision , it won’t let me post the link 

 

[Velarian]

Looks like the name adds about a £5k premium. 

[Reggaebass]

5 minutes ago, Velarian said:

Looks like the name adds about a £5k premium. 

Yeah that’s what I thought, looks like a really nice 63 though , not many around 🙂

[Velarian]

1 minute ago, Reggaebass said:

Yeah that’s what I thought, looks like a really nice 63 though , not many around 🙂

Yeah, it’s lovely.

 

it’s a dangerous thing looking at vintage stuff on Reverb. Whilst I was having a look I saw an immaculate 1960 sunburst for just short of £15k. Fortunately it’s out of my league both financially and on the “I don’t deserve it” fronts. 😂

[Reggaebass]

Looking at the pictures of this one and I can’t say I’ve ever seen a neck pocket like this 😁  

https://www.andybaxterbass.com/collections/bass-guitars/products/1966-fender-precision-bass-olympic-white

[Reggaebass]

I normally play jazzes and I only like 100% original fenders, but I’ve seen a 72 precision and  it’s had a re-fret, do you think this devalues it if I was to re sell it 

[ezbass]

Just now, Reggaebass said:

I normally play jazzes and I only like 100% original fenders, but I’ve seen a 72 precision and  it’s had a re-fret, do you think this devalues it if I was to re sell it 

Tough one from a purist’s perspective. However, from my POV, if a bass has had a refret, that means it has been played a lot and, therefore, should be really good (would you play a bass that wasn’t any good so much that you’d wear the frets out?). When I bought my old ‘63 P, it wasn’t all original, but had been played to within an inch of its life and was a stunning instrument. It had more than enough vintage vibe to give you that old Fender glow and I still made a few £s when I moved it on. YMMV.

[wateroftyne]

Popped to Denmark St. yesterday and there’s an absolute banger of a 72P in one of the shops. A grand or so less and I would have had it.

[Reggaebass]

Thanks very much ez, great perspective 👍

[Reggaebass]

14 minutes ago, wateroftyne said:

Popped to Denmark St. yesterday and there’s an absolute banger of a 72P in one of the shops. A grand or so less and I would have had it.

What was it up for wot , I haven’t been up there for a while, I might have to have a wander 

Edited October 29, 2021 by Reggaebass

[wateroftyne]

33 minutes ago, Reggaebass said:

What was it up for wot , I haven’t been up there for a while, I might have to have a wander 

£3.5k - non-original case. Not an outrageous price for Denmark Street, I guess. 
 

Absolutely gorgeous though - burst & maple, light and tidy as anything. 

[Mokl]

1 hour ago, Reggaebass said:

I normally play jazzes and I only like 100% original fenders, but I’ve seen a 72 precision and  it’s had a re-fret, do you think this devalues it if I was to re sell it 

 

I see refretting as a necessary part of maintaining an instrument as it gets older, so if done well it wouldn't bother me. As suggested ime it can be a good sign that the bass is a real "player". From a collector's perspective I can see how it might affect value though. 

[Mokl]

Just to add my 70s Jazz is now very close to needing a refret - it's a great example of the type!

[Woodinblack]

1 hour ago, wateroftyne said:

Popped to Denmark St. yesterday and there’s an absolute banger of a 72P in one of the shops. A grand or so less and I would have had it.

 

They got to pay for that fancy new station somehow

[Velarian]

3 hours ago, Reggaebass said:

I normally play jazzes and I only like 100% original fenders, but I’ve seen a 72 precision and  it’s had a re-fret, do you think this devalues it if I was to re sell it 

You could view it in the same way as vintage cars that need new tyres from time to time. As long as the replacements are period and specification correct and prevents it from becoming dysfunctional, then that has to be a good thing I would say. 

[mowf]

I had a '78 Jazz refretted, ended up with stainless steel jumbo frets and the fingerboard being re-lacquered. It looked absolutely stunning afterwards, although I do also love the look of a neck that's been used hard. I don't think it affected the value either way, (I subsequently sold it for about what I'd paid for it a year earlier). I think a refret is part of wear and tear and it wouldn't put me off buying a vintage bass that's otherwise 100% original.

[chris_b]

My 68 P bass needed the bridge realigning as soon as I bought it and a refret after 3 years!! I know there were good ones, but it was a lottery buying a Fender back then.

 

The only vintage Fenders that haven't been worked on probably spent most of their time in the case.

[Burns-bass]

2 hours ago, chris_b said:

My 68 P bass needed the bridge realigning as soon as I bought it and a refret after 3 years!! I know there were good ones, but it was a lottery buying a Fender back then.

 

The only vintage Fenders that haven't been worked on probably spent most of their time in the case.

This ks a good point. My 66 jazz needed the jack socket replacing. I kept the original for the completists (although I’ll be dead before I sell it…)

[Reggaebass]

I hadn’t really thought of things going wrong, I suppose that’s one of the hazards that go with owning vintage instruments 🙂