Gotz screwed?

[Rickengeezer]

Well, now that I am brimming with overconfidence from my home handyman setup of my Antigua, I find myself strangely tempted by this one:

"3/4 size upright string bass. 1965 Conrad Gotz, made in West Germany. This bass makes a full sound and easy to play, ideal for bluegrass or for a practice bass for a highschool student. This bass does have some problems, the end pen is stuck, there is a 6 inch crack on the top, and the previous owner repaired a massive rib crack that is now stable but made a messy repair."

Messy may be an understatement, take a look at the pictures below; it appears that braces were inserted through holes cut in the back of the bass and then screwed to the bout.

Question: From my searching around here, it seems as thought the Gotz name was put onto some pretty nice instruments. If I could get this thing for a couple of hundred dollars, any thoughts about whether it would be worth it to try to get this thing back into some semblence of original shape? I haven't seen it in person yet, but don't want to drive 200 miles to look at it if the pros here think it is a lost cause.

[sonicvi]

I saw that bass yesterday and was thinking about the same thing since it's not very far from here. I just bought a bass though so I reckoned I'd let it go. It it least looks playable as is, but also looks like it'll need quite a few bucks worth of work. I wonder if it's carved or laminate?

[Jake deVilliers]

Kinda depends on the price, doesn't it?

[AndreasH]

My luthier told me that my Conrad Götz from 1957 could be worth about 40 000 SEK(Swedish), That's about $6600.

[txstatebass]

I saw the CL post, I'd say go for it if you have the bread to fix it up. The price is pretty well unbeatable. If there wasn't a tropical storm on the way to the area, I'd go check it out myself.

[Matthew Tucker]

OMG. This forum is taking me places ...

[sonicvi]

I got an email from the seller today. He says it has a carved top with laminate back and sides and they replaced the stuck endpin.
Here are more pics:

[Rickengeezer]

Originally Posted by sonicvi

I got an email from the seller today. He says it has a carved top with laminate back and sides and they replaced the stuck endpin.

I'm still tempted, but haven't heard any estimates from anyone on what the cost might be to pop the top on this and do the patching, etc. involved in trying to get this back in some semblance of original condition. Seems like if it were under $1k it might be worth it, but I have no idea what repairs of that scope would cost.

Do laminate sides normally develop splits like the one "repaired"? I thought they were pretty resistant to that sort of damage.

[Uncletoad]

You can't seriously be considering that hunk of junk.

It' a rats nest of bad repair work. That's just what we can see, imagine what they hid.

I'd run screaming from the room.

[drurb]

Originally Posted by Rickengeezer

Do laminate sides normally develop splits like the one "repaired"?

Yes, if you slam something into them or visa versa.

[Jake deVilliers]

Doctor, I'm shocked! That's 'vice versa', nothing to do with passports and immigration or credit cards!

[Jake deVilliers]

Well RICKY, since you wouldn't tell us the asking price, I did my own legwork.

http://houston.craigslist.org/msg/781396773.html

The seller is asking $500.00, so its not priced way out of line. If you got it for $400.00 you could put a couple grand into it without going backwards....

I wish it was closer - I'd pick it up myself.

[Don Higdon]

You can't be serious.
There are 15 metal screws visible in that thing. Totally horse$hit repairs.
God only knows what the hell is going on inside.
It's your money.

[Rickengeezer]

Originally Posted by Rickengeezer

If I could get this thing for a couple of hundred dollars

Jake--see previous post. There still does seem to be a mixture of opinions here, but the more positive ones seem to be coming from those who could do the work themselves.

[Uncletoad]

I don't know any repairman near me that would pull that top, fix all that crap, put it back together, do the rest of the setup work under $3K. Probably way more.

There's no way your getting out of that for a grand or even two.


You really think you'd get that thing running for under $2K Jake? That seems really underpriced.

[MR PC]

Isn't that the bass Peter Sellers used on the set of "The Party"?

[MR PC]

Originally Posted by Rickengeezer

Jake--see previous post. There still does seem to be a mixture of opinions here, but the more positive ones seem to be coming from those who could do the work themselves.

++1 Could be a contender as a nice bass in that case.

[Jake deVilliers]

Well, I wouldn't know without seeing it in the flesh, but it seems to have everything it needs ie fingerboard, tuners etc. so all you need to buy are a bridge and some strings.

If the bass bar was cooked or the heel broken or the neck block cracked it would obviously alter things but that crack in the lower bout looks like impact damage, not a bass bar crack.

Including the bridge and the strings it should be doable for $2500 - $3000 and if it cost $400 that would be a '64 Gotz for $3500 or so. Maybe not a beautiful one that would command top price at auction but I bet it would sound pretty good. I'm not talking museum quality restoration here, just a day-to-day player's instrument.

I may need to up my rates from what you're saying Phil. ;D Thanks, I'll keep that in mind.

[MR PC]

So it will cost at least $3500, then you can decide if you like the bass. After some time, if you like it, great. If it isn't the one for you, you'll have to find a way to charm that money back. Your time, on the other hand.....

Good luck!

[Uncletoad]

Originally Posted by Jake deVilliers

I may need to up my rates from what you're saying Phil. ;D Thanks, I'll keep that in mind.

That's never a bad idea.