Today, I picked up the used Fender Road Worn Bass I ordered from Guitar Center. I came across the used listing a few nights ago while surfing (specifically for a used Road Worn). Unfortunately, the listing was so new, they hadn't put a pic of it up yet. But the price was right in the range I wanted to spend and with GC's 30 day return policy, I decided to roll the dice.
I had it shipped to my local GC because I didn't feel like playing tag with the UPS guy, or having it sit at my front door for however many hours (and I had a theory it would get to them sooner than if I had it shipped to me because of the way this area works.)
I've been playing it for the last 4 hours, and haven't been able to put it down. But there were some minor negatives about - an after market pickguard and knobs. The bass arrived with a brown tort pg on it (which is fine and classic in its own right) but the allparts pg the former owner put on it didn't fit it correctly... It buckled at the control cavity (and in many other places around the bass) and the bottom tip was broken off of the guard because the cavity was too short for way it was spaced with the jack, which left the input jack flapping around rather precariously.
I pulled out my spare pickguards when I got home, and only one actually matched up well with the controls, and that was an ugly red one that came on another used MIM Fender that I got a few years back. It'll do until I can get around to ordering a good 10/11 hole replacement but it looks ugly as sin.
I left the knobs off because I didn't like the ones the former owner put on. Unfortunately, the spare knobs I have are all for split shaft, so I'm going knobless for a few days until nice dome replacements come in.
Otherwise... The bass is freaking fantastic! It's a Road Worn, and every one of them that I've tried (except for one particularly lifeless one at the local GC) have just sang and sang. The neck totally feels like home. I actually like it a hell of a lot better than the neck on my AmStandard - But that's probably because the AmSt neck is basically in a brick of thick poly. I do need to knock some gloss off the back though. I can take or leave the relicing on the body (my wife thinks it's ghastly though), and I don't know how much extra relic came from the previous owner(s), but it works.
There was a total bonus with the bass to make up for the pickguard, which is one reason I didn't really complain about it (the other being that I ordered it from another store and of course -according to them - it wasn't the local GC's problem). It came with a Hipshot D-Tuner... I've always wanted to try one out but never got around to picking one up... I've always had enough basses to just leave one tuned Drop-D. I did find a downside to the D-Tuner though.. Darn thing blocks my view on my Planet Waves Tuner.
Don't say that I didn't warn you that it's ugly as sin with the (TEMPORARY) red pg but it plays like a total dream.
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