Help With 75 Fender Jazz Bass Research Please ...

harryphunk · #1 03-23-2013, 10:18 AM

All,

new to the forum but been a bass player for about 23 years now.

My friend recently acquired a 75 Fender Jazz Bass. It is a Frankenstein of sorts but I am trying to restore it for him and had a few questions.

1) Under the top pickup there looks to be 2 stamps which I can't read very well but I will post a picture. In red it looks to say BLUID and in black it looks to say NATUD, No clue what this means...

2) I know the serial number is a legit 75 with 642424

3) The pots are legit with manufacturer info as
03267 250K-A 1377438 (CTS pots made in the 38th week of 74)

4) The neck is aftermarket unfortunately and the pickguard is too.

So basically what I am wondering is, is the body legit? Is it worth investing to restore if possible?

Thanks for your help!

lowphatbass · #2 03-23-2013, 10:51 AM

I think the stamp in the pickup route says, "NATURAL", the red stamp over the top says, "BLOND". I've seen both stamps before, but I can't say I've seen one on top of the other. A photo or two showing the whole body probably wouldn't hurt.

Bone · #3 03-23-2013, 11:51 AM

4 bolt neck that could be a 74 or early 75. Pickup wires don't look original to me.

TomB · #4 03-23-2013, 12:35 PM

...not sure what you mean by "restoration". Given the pickguard, you already know it's not "all-original" so that ship has sailed. Why not make it the best "close to original" player it can be? What would a "restoration" imply otherwise? ...just curious. Thanks.

harryphunk · #5 03-23-2013, 01:06 PM

Thanks for all the help guys!

By restoration, I mean finding a 75 neck and pickguard

It does seem the pots are original by the wiring may not be.

Here is a pic of the body.

InternetAlias · #6 03-23-2013, 05:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TomB

...not sure what you mean by "restoration". Given the pickguard, you already know it's not "all-original" so that ship has sailed. Why not make it the best "close to original" player it can be? What would a "restoration" imply otherwise? ...just curious. Thanks.

+1
Even if you could restore it to original state, it's possible that some parts would work better, what's the point in getting it to be all original? For all we've seen here, pots are rusty too, so you might want to 'unoriginalize' this fender a step further...

harryphunk · #7 03-23-2013, 06:01 PM

For one vintage is vintage. Having a frankenstein takes a little out of Having something old. I am a firm believer in the genuine tone of an instrument. I would rather have a 75 neck on it than a generic reproduced neck like what's on it now. This is not for selling, it's strictly for tone. The pick guard I could care less about. The tuners and neck are important to me and obviously the body was the reason why i posted in the first place. Not knowing how I could confirm the age of the body was bugging me. Anyways, that's why...

TomB · #8 03-24-2013, 07:46 AM

You asked if it was worth restoring, so that's what I was responding to. "Worth" is a subjective term; everybody defines it differently. You didn't say at first whether you were in it to maximize dollar-value. Since you're not, then I'd say do whatever feels right to you and your friend. But I will point out from my own experience that necks are very individual, and some of the best-sounding and most even-playing ones I've owned were made by Warmoth. Then again, my '71 Jazz neck is phenomenal-sounding right down to the low-E, the main reason I bought the bass way back when. My point is that you can't generalize about necks and the link to tone, and mid-70's can be a particular crap shoot. As for the body, nobody but Fender would make such a mess with ink stamps in my experience

. Good luck with your search and enjoy your friend's bass!

harryphunk · #9 03-24-2013, 08:26 AM

Thanks man! Appreciate the insight.

godofthunder59 · #10 03-24-2013, 08:38 AM

It would be fun to but probably not worth "restoring" from a profit point of view. A vintage 70's J neck is going to cost you and without up close inspection you may end up with a lemon, s curves, humps in the finger board etc. What I would do is put a correct bridge on it, same for the pg. Warmoth necks are nice but very heavy and stiff due to the two rails in the neck, very stable though. All Parts makes VERY nice Jazz bass necks with blocks and binding I would order one of those and a set of vintage style Fender logo tuners. Having said all that if you have your heart set on a "real" vintage neck go for it. Oh yeah and a TV logo decal for the headstock.

godofthunder59 · #11 03-24-2013, 09:06 AM

One of these would also be a good choice very close to the look and feel of a real 70's neck. The price seems a bit high to me if look around I bet oyu could get it cheaper. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-70s-...item53f6a09ca3

FranF · #12 03-24-2013, 09:09 AM

And yes, the body is 100% original. Stamped NAT from the factory because it was deemed pretty enough to be natural finish, not 4 pieces of crap glued together and painted a solid color!

RBrownBass · #13 03-24-2013, 09:15 AM

Do you have any side views of the neck? Any images of the headstock? I ask only because it seems like just last week I saw a Fender on eBay or somewhere with a blocked (and formerly bound) neck that had been reprofiled to miss the binding. What kind of neck does it appear to be?

Salamenster · #14 03-24-2013, 09:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by harryphunk

Thanks for all the help guys!

By restoration, I mean finding a 75 neck and pickguard

It does seem the pots are original by the wiring may not be.

Here is a pic of the body.

That thing's gorgeous.

RBrownBass · #15 03-24-2013, 09:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by godofthunder59

Probably not worth "restoring" A vintage 70's J neck is going to cost you and without up close inspection you may end up with a lemon, s curves, humps in the finger board etc. What I would do is put a correct bridge on it, same for the pg. Warmoth necks are nice but very heavy and stiff due to the two rails in the neck, very stable though. All Parts makes VERY nice Jazz bass necks with blocks and binding I would order one of those and a set of vintage style Fender logo tuners. Having said all that if you have your heart set on a "real" vintage neck go for it. Oh yeah and a TV logo decal for the headstock.

Love the Allparts B&B necks, but I don't think the logo decal is a good idea. My reasons are: 1) You cannot fool yourself, and 2) if a lot of people are going to be holding the bass or looking at the bass in person or here at TB --which is probably the only reason you'd want to put the logo on, because, again, you cannot fool yourself-- at some point the guy who can tell it isn't a Fender neck will show up and say so.

OP, there are some Fender B&B necks on Ebay almost all the time, and one of them that shows up frequently is an MIM 70s Classic Precision neck. Maple board with black blocks/binding. You can defend the logo replacement to anyone in that case because it IS a Fender neck and because it's a Precision neck that's going to be attached to a Jazz body. Plus, that particular neck (like the Allparts versions) has the heel truss adjust, which is correct for your four-bolt neck pocket.

harryphunk · #16 03-24-2013, 09:56 AM

Deductive reasoning makes me think the neck and the pickguard may have been purchased at the same time from warmoth.

One of these may be the neck on it http://www.warmoth.com/Pages/Classic...JBass,Finished

The action on this thing sucks which I want to fix.

Here are some pics of the neck fitting into the bass. It's obviously not a perfect fit.

As a bonus you get to see my bloodhound Daisy

RBrownBass · #17 03-24-2013, 10:45 AM

I don't know what Warmoth necks looked like from more than 15 years ago or so, but the fingerboard has always extended past the nut on every Warmoth neck I've ever seen. What's more, the Warmoth fingerboard usually makes part of the curve on the bass side edge before it blends into the maple neck. Fender doesn't do that- their boards are cut off before the headstock starts to curve toward the tuner. Is there a stamp or brand on the heel saying Warmoth?

lowphatbass · #18 03-24-2013, 11:21 AM

I've never seen a Warmoth neck like that either, although it does look to have a thick fretboard on it which I remember seeing on Warmoth necks 20+ years ago.

I would slap a 90's MIJ Precision neck on there, grab a BWB pickguard and call it good.

The good news is the finish on the body looks original.

RBrownBass · #19 03-24-2013, 12:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lowphatbass

I've never seen a Warmoth neck like that either, although it does look to have a thick fretboard on it which I remember seeing on Warmoth necks 20+ years ago.

I would slap a 90's MIJ Precision neck on there, grab a BWB pickguard and call it good.

The good news is the finish on the body looks original.

What's really weird is the black binding on rosewood. It's almost pointless, because you don't see it until you're up close. In fact, my earlier post missed the binding entirely.

I've once seen an actual Fender neck that was black bound and pearloid blocked, but the board was maple.

Luckydog · #20 03-24-2013, 12:32 PM

[quote=harryphunk;14080221]Deductive reasoning makes me think the neck and the pickguard may have been purchased at the same time from warmoth.

One of these may be the neck on it http://www.warmoth.com/Pages/Classic...JBass,Finished

Looks like Warmouth did a very accurate repro of a 70's Fender jazz neck, complete with the bad fit at the neck heel! You buy a new Fender neck it will not be as authentic!