Has anyone ever weighed the body of a Harley Benton jazz bass?

[Manny]

I assume the main reason why it’s so heavy is the body? 
 

I really fancy respraying the body with nitro paint as I like how the bass feels and sounds, but wonder if it’s worth buying an eBay JB body and using that instead, based on the heft of the HB.

[Pea Turgh]

The only jazz version I had was ash bodied, and was heavy as hell (sounded awesome though).

 

Had a PB50 that @yorks5stringerhad sprayed LPB nitro and that was ace (just decided single coil Ps weren’t for me).

 

I would summise that the weight is all in the body, but also some of the sound might be, too?

[Manny]

Nice one, thanks @Pea Turgh.

 

Is it worth the gamble (& expense) of making it slightly lighter & improving its looks? Probably not. Will I have a go anyway? Quite possibly. Am I capable? No chance.

[yorks5stringer]

I'll just jump in to say I had a HB Jazz also 4 or 5 years ago and that was quite weighty too.

 

Unsure as to why you'd want to spray yours with nitro, it will still be a HB underneath and you could just celebrate it stock unless it is cosmetically flawed, but then it becomes roadworn!

[Guest]

Being an HB underneath is nothing to be ashamed of.  A decent body is a decent body, and the tree never knew nor cared which brand of bass it would end up in.

[Manny]

On 24/02/2022 at 15:22, Bassfinger said:

Being an HB underneath is nothing to be ashamed of.  A decent body is a decent body, and the tree never knew nor cared which brand of bass it would end up in.

Agreed. No shame here.

[fretmeister]

From what I gather from other forums, the weight of the HB basses varies massively - like by up to 2lb!

 

However, Thomann have excellent service and if you email them and tell them you need a light one they will get them out of the boxes and weigh a couple for you.