Offset joint on a 2-piece body?

[Madcity Fats]

Just curious if anyone has seen this. My '81 L-1000 has an ash body with a natural finish. It's a 2-piece body but the joint does not run down the center as it does on all my other G&Ls (well, the burst ones anyway). Rather, if you look down the neck at the body, you see the joint smack in the middle of the upper horn right where the strap button is inserted, which then runs straight along the length of the bass.

Just thought this was sort of odd for a clear finish, however, the grain (on the front especially) is so well matched that if you don't look closely, you'd swear it's a single slab. (Sorry, no pics handy, but I don't think it would show up anyway).

My first thought when I got it (from the west coast) was that maybe it was a refin. However, the place I bought it from is a reputable dealer and assured me it was all original and the bass is in near pristine condition (as is the original tolex case) which makes it hard to fathom that a refin would have been warranted. No sign of color in the neck pocket either and the finish is totally pro. Also, there's a little bit of checking here and there to suggest that the finish is original (i.e., old).

Just curious if anyone's ever seen something like this. It's not an issue to me at all, because the bass is gorgeous (like I said, the grain is a beautiful match) and a tone monster. Just a curiosity because I've never seen anything quite like it on a G&L or any other brand, for that matter.

Again, I'm pretty convinced the finish is original, but are there ways to determine this other than checking the neck pocket? Does G&L keep records of this stuff by serial number? Seems to me I've heard of others contacting the factory for an instrument's "history" but I can't seem to find a thread to that effect.

Just another of those early G&L production oddities? Anyone?

[Ken Baker]

Originally Posted by Madcity Fats

Just curious if anyone has seen this. My '81 L-1000 has an ash body with a natural finish. It's a 2-piece body but the joint does not run down the center as it does on all my other G&Ls (well, the burst ones anyway). Rather, if you look down the neck at the body, you see the joint smack in the middle of the upper horn right where the strap button is inserted, which then runs straight along the length of the bass.

Odd, to be sure. But with G&L, anything is possible.

Again, I'm pretty convinced the finish is original, but are there ways to determine this other than checking the neck pocket? Does G&L keep records of this stuff by serial number? Seems to me I've heard of others contacting the factory for an instrument's "history" but I can't seem to find a thread to that effect.

G&L never published their production logs. The early logs (hand-written in a spiral notebook) came into the possession of one Dale Hyatt, the guy (now retired) who ran G&L sales during the Leo era. For a price, Mr. Hyatt will gaze into G&L's early production logs and give you a reading on your instrument. It's all very mystical, of course.

G&L still does not make the logs available, so a call to Fullerton won't help with new instruments. Sorry.

Pulling the neck is still the best way to tell if it's a refin, as well as show the dates.

Ken...

[TDR1138]

Agree w/ Ken...

I had heard that G&L might know the history of my L2k (all I know is that it was a factory promo), so I called G&L once to see what I could scrounge up. I was politely told that they really didn't have any records of the pre-BBE days. I never tried chasing down Dale, though.

As for the joint location, that is an odd place for it. Both my US G&Ls (even the solid black one) have 2 piece bodies with the seams right down the middle. But hey, if it looks good, sounds good and plays well, I wouldn't worry...

[Madcity Fats]

Originally Posted by Ken Baker

Odd, to be sure. But with G&L, anything is possible.

Yeah, that was pretty much my reaction when I first noticed it.

I actually think it's a cool anomaly (at least I did once I determined I hadn't been unknowingly sold a refin). Hey, if I were one of those eBay jerks, I could sell this as a rare one of a kind design with a BIN price of $2499!

What?!