Fender Bassman 135 Silver/Black Model

MiCK.GaSM · #1 02-16-2011, 08:10 AM

Does anyone know what production years a silverface with black lettering bassman 135 is from? OR any information on them really.

I've searched and searched on google and can only find info on black/silver and silver/blue models.

Any help would be super appreciated.

waleross · #2 02-16-2011, 09:04 AM

Did you search on the Fender site? You should be able to find out what you are looking for there.

chi-town_mike · #3 02-16-2011, 09:06 AM

Might be a transitional. I used to see those things for 100 bucks.

MiCK.GaSM · #4 02-16-2011, 09:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by waleross

Did you search on the Fender site? You should be able to find out what you are looking for there.

Yes and found nothing but dating with Serial Number, which I don't have.

billfitzmaurice · #5 02-16-2011, 12:13 PM

http://www.ampwares.com/

jimbilly · #6 02-16-2011, 05:08 PM

If you have it in front of you, pull the chassis out (4 screws with nuts on the bottom) and one screw for the power cord retainer. DON'T TOUCH ANYTHING!! and take a close look at the back of the volume and tone pots. There will be a code starting with 137, the next two numbers will be the year, the following two the week of that year, 1377234 would mean that those pots were built the 34th week of 1972. The amps were usually build close to the same date as the pots, so dating the amp by the date code on the pots is generally accepted.

MiCK.GaSM · #7 02-16-2011, 07:15 PM

Let me be a little more clear: I do not have access to one of these. I am researching the 135s because I want to get one, and I stumbled on this oddity that isn't referenced anywhere.

will33 · #8 02-16-2011, 08:59 PM

I have a silverface 135, haven't bothered to date every little thing but they were generally made late 70's to early 80's, mines probably a 80-82, somewhere in there. I used it for bass for quite a while but have since had a couple power tubes pulled from it and had it re-biased to run at half power and it's my guitar amp now. Still like to play bass through it at lowish volumes.

This is coming from a guy who loves tube heads for their "warm but sorta clean" fullness/fatness/responsiveness and vibe, not looking for crunch here. That was my main problem with it as a bass head, you could get about 85% of the way there volumewise but that last 10-15% you needed resulted in too much dirt and not enough sweet.

FWIW, put a Holy Grail reverb pedal and a couple of dirt pedals in front of that thing and you've got yourself a Marshall killer when it comes to our tiny 6-string bretheren.

JTE · #9 02-17-2011, 08:24 AM

I've looked at that picture for a long time, and it's fuzzy and unclear, but that doesn't look like black lettering to me. It looks like the same blue they always used on the silver faced amps.

I was a Fender dealer from '77-'88 and don't recall anything with silver/black.

John

mndean · #10 02-17-2011, 10:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by billfitzmaurice

http://www.ampwares.com/

To follow up, this is the specific page:
http://www.ampwares.com/amp.asp?id=29

Tube amp, late '70s/early '80s. Never saw a bassist using one, but have seen a couple on CL in my area being sold as guitar amps. Fender amps of that era aren't too highly thought of (can you say Master Volume and Pull Boost?), so their prices don't soar. I don't think they ever came with black lettering on silver, and the one here looks the same as a Bassman 135 I saw up for sale near me a few months ago.

hennessybass · #11 02-17-2011, 10:29 AM

http://www.ampwares.com/amp.asp?id=29

fender amp field guide... bassman 135s were in production from 1977 - 1983.

MiCK.GaSM · #12 02-21-2011, 08:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JTE

I've looked at that picture for a long time, and it's fuzzy and unclear, but that doesn't look like black lettering to me. It looks like the same blue they always used on the silver faced amps.

I have seen one of these in person, I know they exist, it was used for bass and was enormously loud. I also know Bassmans were made from 77-83.

Not trying to be rude, but seriously, I'm just asking if anyone knows anything about this particular variant. Thanks.

Also, obviously black:

will33 · #13 02-21-2011, 09:06 AM

Only ones I've ever seen have turquoise blue lettering. As far as I know, that's the only way they were made. Perhaps somebody "customized" it somewhere along the way.

MiCK.GaSM · #14 03-22-2011, 11:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by will33

Only ones I've ever seen have turquoise blue lettering. As far as I know, that's the only way they were made. Perhaps somebody "customized" it somewhere along the way.

Nope. I've seen one of these played first-hand, as well as finding a picture of one.

Just in case anyone else comes looking for an answer to this at some point...

I was able to get the SN for the one I've seen in person, and according to Superior Music - Fender Amp, Amplifier Serial Numbers it is an '81 head with an F1##### SN.

What's interesting is mine is also an '81, but with the "blackface" appearance. According to other sites, the "blackface" appearance returned for the end of the run.

So, the black on silver was definitely an 1981 thing, maybe 1980 & 1981. In regards to hardware and components of the head, I'm assuming the two are the same.

DENNIS536 · #15 09-23-2011, 06:09 PM

I CAN'T BELIEVE NO ONE HAS SEEN OR HEARD OF A 135 BLACKFACE, I HAVE LOOKED AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE ON THE INTERNET ,,,, HAS ANYONE ON THIS SITE SEEN ONE OR KNOW SOMTHING ABOUT IT,, IT WAS OWNED BY MY NEIGHBOR WHO GOT ME STARTED IN BASS IN 1966,I WAS 16 AT THE TIME, I DON'T KNOW IF HE HAD IT AT THAT TIME, BUT IN LATER YEARS, ABOUT 10, WHEN I WENT TO VISIT HIM HE GAVE IT TO ME, BEFORE MOVING
TO FLA,, HE WAS ABOUT 20 YEARS OLDER THAN ME, I HAD THE AMP SERVICED AND CLEANED, IT HAS 2 VENTS WINDOWS ON BOTH SIDE WALLS, I PLAY IT THROUGH 2 FENDER CABINETS, 1 HAS 4 X12 DIAMOND SET UP AND THE OTHER IS 2X15, I CAN KNOCK DOWN WALLS IF I WANT TO,LOL,, PLEASE LET ME KNOW,,,,DENNIS

johnk_10 · #16 09-23-2011, 06:55 PM

i've definitely seen blackface ones with white writing. they were the last of them, however the one that the OP's showing looks to me like it's just a case of bad lighting. every single silverfaced one that i've seen has a turquoise "Bassman 135" on it.

like this:

if it really is black, then i think that someone 'colored it in', since i used to be a fender dealer from 1972-1998 and sold them brand new.

rodl2005 · #17 09-23-2011, 08:42 PM

What are the diff's between this 135 & the Bassman 100? Apart from 35w....... Different tube set up? Trannies? Please enlighten me!

johnk_10 · #18 09-23-2011, 09:17 PM

the bassman 100 was based on the showman/twin poweramp/output amp. the bassman 135 used different transformers with a full wave rectifier on the power tranny. the 100 watters had a 1/2 wave rectifier. IIRC, the 135's also had an ultralinear output tranny/amplifier, whereas the 100w's didn't.
personally, i prefer the sound of the 100w ones, and the 35 extra watts in the 135 is neglible.
i believe that both the 100 and 135 had the same preamps, or at least they were very close. IME, the 135 sounds a bit 'stiffer' between the two models, but they're both nice amps.

JTE · #19 09-23-2011, 09:26 PM

The blackfaced ones were originally a limited edition run. If we ordered enough guitars/basses in certain combinations, then we could order amps with black face plates. Later, around '83 all amps were black.

John

rodl2005 · #20 09-23-2011, 10:17 PM

Thanx guys. Appreciated