Available relic'd basses

[la bam]

Hi all,

 

I never, ever, understood relic'd basses. They didnt make any sense to me at all. I didnt like the look, the idea, the price, or anything about them.

 

Then, I bought a second hand (why not if its relic,d?) Flea jazz bass .....

 

Now, I completely get it!! Absolutely love it!

 

The relic'd look really fits - it doesnt look battered or neglected, more well loved and played to its limits. The playability is superb  it just feels quality, substantial but not heavy, and the sounds from the vintage pups are gorgeous.

 

Couple that with the fact I'm happy to leave it out in the house and pick it up and play it without bashing it (because if I did it wouldnt matter) and it's perfect.

 

So, it got me wondering, now I have a relic jazz, maybe I'd like a relic p bass, so what high quality relic'd basses are out there for sale? What prices, and what specs?

Edited October 20, 2021 by la bam

[Stub Mandrel]

I was a relic sceptic too, but I wanted an jazz, fancied an early 60s spec jazz, tried a Flea and it was awesome.

[tegs07]

19 minutes ago, la bam said:

Hi all,

 

I never, ever, understood relic'd basses. They didnt make any sense to me at all. I didnt like the look, the idea, the price, or anything about them.

 

Then, I bought a second hand (why not if its relic,d?) Flea jazz bass .....

 

Now, I completely get it!! Absolutely love it!

 

The relic'd look really fits - it doesnt look battered or neglected, more well loved and played to its limits. The playability is superb  it just feels quality, substantial but not heavy, and the sounds from the vintage pups are gorgeous.

 

Couple that with the fact I'm happy to leave it out in the house and pick it up and play it without bashing it (because if I did it wouldnt matter) and it's perfect.

 

So, it got me wondering, now I have a relic jazz, maybe I'd like a relic p bass, so what high quality relic'd basses are out there for sale? What prices, and what specs?

The Nate Mendel P’s get a lot of good press. They do a road worn version.

Edited October 20, 2021 by tegs07

[BassApprentice]

Limelight get nothing but good reviews, obviously there's a bit of wait with them though. 

 

Sandberg do aged finishes if you want a Precision with a difference

[Owen]

I belive there is an exceptional Bravewood Jazz on the FS forum. 

[Owen]

Pretty subtle, huh?

[jd56hawk]

Nash is a big favorite, but their prices aren't for the faint of heart.

There's a company called Vintage that makes some reasonably priced relics...I see several for $599 right now.

Jazzmanbass on Ebay will relic a bass for $299 and sells the ones he makes for under $1,000...good-looking stuff I've considered in the past.

For me, however, I'd go with EastGlove for $1,000 or so. I almost bought one last year but I went with a very nice Bacchus Woodline, instead...rare to see them for sale in the US.

Some people might say EastGlove relics are a bit extreme, but I think they're works of art.

[Geek99]

Or do it yourself ?

 

 

[Cuzzie]

For a shop made one - Sandberg, Sandberg, Sandberg.

 

or has been said - get a decent blank body like Mighty Mite, All Parts and create your own relic from scratch - best thing I did for my P

[lownote]

I always thought of relic'ing as pretentious until one day, fed up with the cheap glossy white of my Revelation, I took some sandpaper to the top edge where my plucking arm rests and rubs. It improved the overall look no end, and I'm not worried about any further knocks or scrapes. Where it looks real and subtle I'm now something of a fan.  

[uk_lefty]

It's all down to personal taste, but I'd say make sure you can see and feel one before committing. Some can look good online but up close are pretty poor. Best relic job I had was buying a 90s MIM Fender and just never ever putting it in a case and not being careful when dragging strings out the bridge. 

[la bam]

I love the flea bass, because its quality and has been done with that in mind, rather than just the relic job. I'd love a precision in the same vein.

 

Also, why did the stacked knob dual tone and volume pots die out? It's a far better idea than the now standard v-v-t.

[Hellzero]

The stacked knobs is a great idea, but like the VVT it doesn't allow fast tone or pickups changing, the best being VBT for this purpose.

 

That said, I had a lot of original Fender vintage basses that where naturally reliced, but the best relic I ever owned was the Jaco Pastorius Custom Shop Relic : what an amazing bass on all points !

 

That said the Fender Flea Relic Jazz Bass is also quite amazing, especially considering the price.

[EssentialTension]

If I liked it enough to pay for a refinish, I would buy a pre-damaged bass.

[Paddy515]

5 hours ago, lownote said:

I always thought of relic'ing as pretentious until one day, fed up with the cheap glossy white of my Revelation, I took some sandpaper to the top edge where my plucking arm rests and rubs. It improved the overall look no end, and I'm not worried about any further knocks or scrapes. Where it looks real and subtle I'm now something of a fan.  

Ive a red Revelation P. Can you post a pic of yours reliced please.

 

Regards.

[Lw.]

Fender Custom Shop do some incredibly nice relics - I've played 5 or 6 of their Precisions (admittedly most of them only for a few minutes) and every one of them has been great (vastly better than the actual vintage basses I've played). The new price is pretty brutal but the used prices are actually not too far away from new Roadworn's or Limelight's so could bring them into contention. 

 

Not played an Olinto but I've been snared by the hype - my next bass will probably be an Olinto relic. 

[lownote]

3 hours ago, Paddy515 said:

Ive a red Revelation P. Can you post a pic of yours reliced please.

 

Regards.

 

Here ya go @Paddy515

 

Edited October 21, 2021 by lownote

[sky]

for me with the road worn ones, is that within about a month it would look like that with me from brand new 😆

Edited October 21, 2021 by leojb23

[NancyJohnson]

Do it yourself, take your time, be creative.

 

I've got an old beater-P, it was in a sorry condition when I got it, but I bought it back to life.  Decided that every time I took it out of the house I'd put another ding in it.

 

[Bassfinger]

On 20/10/2021 at 23:10, jd56hawk said:

Nash is a big favorite, but their prices aren't for the faint of heart.

There's a company called Vintage that makes some reasonably priced relics...I see several for $599 right now.

Jazzmanbass on Ebay will relic a bass for $299 and sells the ones he makes for under $1,000...good-looking stuff I've considered in the past.

For me, however, I'd go with EastGlove for $1,000 or so. I almost bought one last year but I went with a very nice Bacchus Woodline, instead...rare to see them for sale in the US.

Some people might say EastGlove relics are a bit extreme, but I think they're works of art.

They look so artificial, just awful. 

 

Few relics look truly worn and aged, but some pull it off better than others (Limelight ususlly look fairly convincing) but these look pith poor.

 

A pickguard is supposed to look UV aged, faded and full of ingrained dirt, not like its been under the grill for 10 minutes.

 

Still, they're  marginally better than the DIY jobs you see where someone has simply taken a bit of wet and dry to the comfort contours.

[Duarte]

1 hour ago, NancyJohnson said:

Do it yourself, take your time, be creative.

 

I've got an old beater-P, it was in a sorry condition when I got it, but I bought it back to life.  Decided that every time I took it out of the house I'd put another ding in it.

 

 

This is the only way to do it if you have a thick poly finish. Looks punk as hell, and infinitely better than sandpaper.

 

I really don't understand those Sandberg relics. For a bass to look so modern, and to have wear and tear only achievable through heavy use over 10x the number of years that such designs have even existed, is bizarre to me. 

Edited October 22, 2021 by Duarte

[la bam]

It's not so much that I want a relic bass as such - ie any bass with a relic look - it's more that I'd want a relic bass that is also a great bass in it's own right. ie the flea bass is so nice to play and hear and looks naturally relic'd too. Is there a fender p equivalent of that?

[Muzz]

I played a Fender Roadworn P a while back and really liked it on the playing front (other than the biiiig chunky neck, but that's just me; anything over a toothpick and I'm out), tho I'm not a fan of relicing at all. They seem to hold their value really well, tho, so you'll pay pretty much what they cost when new for one. I suppose dings don't affect their resale value... 🙂

[Hellzero]

Try to find an old original Mexican roadworn Fender Precision Bass, they are excellent instruments and remember that your Flea bass has been made by the same (or similar) trained people. 😉 

 

Otherwise, there is the Custom Shop 1961 Fender Precision Bass Relic : it costs a lot, but less than most of the real vintage models (and vintage is certainly not better...).

[la bam]

Just now, Hellzero said:

Try to find an old original Mexican roadworn Fender Precision Bass, they are excellent instruments and remember that your Flea bass has been made by the same (or similar) trained people. 😉 

 

Otherwise, there is the Custom Shop 1961 Fender Precision Bass Relic : it costs a lot, but less than most of the real vintage models (and vintage is certainly not better...).

 

Cheers I've been looking for one of those this morning, quite rare at the moment.