1976 Fender P Bass Value?

[georgestrings]

Georgestrings - Looks great! & thanks for your perspective on the 76 model year.

Thanks, and you're welcome... I go back and forth between this look and the black PG and covers that look like the orginals... I'll probably end up with black pup covers and a tort PG, though - I really dig that look on natural ash/maple board Fenders...


- georgestrings

 

[Don41_2]

9lbs is light for a bass of that era, and that counts for something, that sure is true. But I just can't see someone paying 75% of retail value for a bass that has no collectability. You can buy period correct tuners and bridges, but you can't buy the original finish.

The main reason to pay big dollars for vintage basses is collectability. When that aspect is removed from the equation, it makes much more sense to buy a brand new Fender. But, if this refinned bass speaks to you that strongly, then money really isn't the issue, I suppose.

Gentlemen, I really appreciate this debate - it is very helpful to me and probably many others on TB.

My thoughts on this bass would be to buy actual vintage parts and restore to a true 76 vintage, but that would still leave the paint issue. I have 2 thoughts, first is to leave the paint alone and play it as is and enjoy it for what it is - a mature p with a great sound. 2nd is to have it restored to a period correct color at some point. I'm interested in pros and cons of these options too.

Editing to note that I would still leave the brass nut, it sounded great with it.

 

[Don41_2]

I'll just throw in another case for verification. I bought my 76-P brand-new in 1976 from the local music store, got the full factory warranty. It has the 76+5 serial number on the headstock.

What's interesting about mine is that it's also one of the 76 P that came with the narrow/jazz neck.

What kind of neck is on that bass you're looking at? P or J?

Interesting - my reaction was that it was a classic J neck, but I didn't have a ruler with me to measure the nut width. However, the guy selling it said it was a classic P neck. Lately, my frame of reference is messed up since I've been playing both my GL Jazz and my new L2000 with a #7 neck (1 3/4 inch). It wasn't GL thin and it didn't feel as wide as my L2000. It felt about mid-way in between.

 

[Don41_2]

I half agree. The refin and replacement parts are going to kill the collectability, same as they did for my '63 (which made it affordable), but if it weighs 9 pounds, plays great, sounds great, and the finish looks good, it should be worth 1000-1200 pretty easily, possibly a little more to the right buyer. At $850 I'd expect a brick.

Re-fin is not a quality one. It is a basic black and it covers all the nicks, etc. There are no runs or anything, but i think the previous owner just painted over the top of the original . . . which means i might be able to strip it off and possibly save what's underneath?

Did the 76 P have a poly finish? If so, it is a possibility.

 

[Webtroll]

Gentlemen, I really appreciate this debate - it is very helpful to me and probably many others on TB.

My thoughts on this bass would be to buy actual vintage parts and restore to a true 76 vintage, but that would still leave the paint issue. I have 2 thoughts, first is to leave the paint alone and play it as is and enjoy it for what it is - a mature p with a great sound. 2nd is to have it restored to a period correct color at some point. I'm interested in pros and cons of these options too.

I'll give you my opinion as well as what I've done. I bought a '63 refin with replacement tuners, bridge and knobs for 2200. I had JohnK do a setup, put on a white pickguard slightly aged to match, and add a period correct decal so now we're looking at 2500. The bass was refinished natural with nitro lacquer, so while not the common sunburst it does look good. I swapped the repro knobs with knobs from a mid 70s P I had in a toolbox. I left the repro bridge and tuners alone; they look right and function perfectly. I could buy period correct parts, but the bass would still be a refin, and nothing can change that short of a body replacement. Not happening.

Without inspecting your bass if the black was applied properly and looks good, whether intact or naturally worn, I'd leav it alone unless I wanted a different solid color. Going to a natural or burst would require stripping the finish, and that would be expensive. You could put all period correct parts on it and refinish it and end up with a bass that cost you $500+ more than you could sell it for. If you want it to look right then reproduction parts are fine and a lot cheaper than actual replacement parts. I did search for a '63 bridge, and that ain't happenin.

If you can get the bass for a good price and like it as is, leave it alone and maybe replace one part or another as time goes on.

 

[Webtroll]

Re-fin is not a quality one. It is a basic black and it covers all the nicks, etc. There are no runs or anything, but i think the previous owner just painted over the top of the original . . . which means i might be able to strip it off and possibly save what's underneath?

Did the 76 P have a poly finish? If so, it is a possibility.

I believe '76 is poly, wasn't it introduced in the mid to late 60s? Sand it, fill the divots, and spray it with whatever color you like. I wonder what colors were available in '76? You don't see many sherwood green basses.

 

[Webtroll]

* I think stripping it and saving what's underneath is a dream, if he sanded it at all there's going to be a good bond between the old paint and the new.

 

[georgestrings]

first is to leave the paint alone and play it as is and enjoy it for what it is - a mature p with a great sound.

That's what I would do - otherwise, you're just throwing money away...

Interesting - my reaction was that it was a classic J neck, but I didn't have a ruler with me to measure the nut width. However, the guy selling it said it was a classic P neck. Lately, my frame of reference is messed up since I've been playing both my GL Jazz and my new L2000 with a #7 neck (1 3/4 inch). It wasn't GL thin and it didn't feel as wide as my L2000. It felt about mid-way in between.

There were a few "A width" P Bass necks, which would be 1.5" at the nut - most common by far are 1 and 5/8" at the nut, like mine is...

Did the 76 P have a poly finish?

Yes...


- georgestrings

 

[smcd]

Gentlemen, I really appreciate this debate - it is very helpful to me and probably many others on TB.

My thoughts on this bass would be to buy actual vintage parts and restore to a true 76 vintage, but that would still leave the paint issue. I have 2 thoughts, first is to leave the paint alone and play it as is and enjoy it for what it is - a mature p with a great sound. 2nd is to have it restored to a period correct color at some point. I'm interested in pros and cons of these options too.

You can buy high quality reproductions of the bridge and tuners for 1/6th the price of the originals. There's no point in paying crazy money for vintage parts when they're going on a refinished bass. The refin pretty much permanently spoils the collectability. In fact, unless the tuners and bridge are nonfunctional eyesores, it's probably best to leave them alone.

Sinking money into a refin of a refin is also folly. You're buying a bass at market value, sinking $400 into refinishing it, and ending up with not increasing the value of the bass one dime. There's also a widely held view that refinishing a bass changes the tone of the instrument. Unless the existing paint job is atrocious, or you hate the color, it's best to leave it there.

If this bass is light, plays and sounds great, there really isn't any justification for making any changes to it. Especially if you're paying over top dollar for it.

 

[portlandguy]

Not all original, would not go over 1k but thats just me. Good luck

 

[smcd]

i think the previous owner just painted over the top of the original . . . which means i might be able to strip it off and possibly save what's underneath?

Did the 76 P have a poly finish? If so, it is a possibility.

It can be done, but don't count on it. Depends on how the refinish was applied. A friend of mine removed a bad refin from a 60's Strat by scraping off the top coat of paint with a razor blade. Had I not seen him do it (it took a long time), I'd have said it couldn't be done. In fact, I've tried to remove a top coat of paint from a refinished bass in the same manner, and it proved impossible.

 

[Don41_2]

Great points. So far, my take away is that this is essentially a great "player's bass".

Any other perspectives?

BTW, attached is the pic of the headstock s/n

 

[Webtroll]

You can buy high quality reproductions of the bridge and tuners for 1/6th the price of the originals. There's no point in paying crazy money for vintage parts when they're going on a refinished bass. The refin pretty much permanently spoils the collectability. In fact, unless the tuners and bridge are nonfunctional eyesores, it's probably best to leave them alone.

Sinking money into a refin of a refin is also folly. You're buying a bass at market value, sinking $400 into refinishing it, and ending up with not increasing the value of the bass one dime. There's also a widely held view that refinishing a bass changes the tone of the instrument. Unless the existing paint job is atrocious, or you hate the color, it's best to leave it there.

If this bass is light, plays and sounds great, there really isn't any justification for making any changes to it. Especially if you're paying over top dollar for it.

That's what I said. Except in a way that makes more sense. +1

 

[smcd]

That's what I said. Except in a way that makes more sense. +1

LOL!

I thought that as I was reading your post. Except for the "makes more sense" part!

 

[Don41_2]

Thanks, and you're welcome... I go back and forth between this look and the black PG and covers that look like the orginals... I'll probably end up with black pup covers and a tort PG, though - I really dig that look on natural ash/maple board Fenders...


- georgestrings

yours looks great as is, but FWIW & IMOO tort looks awesome on natural ash

 

[Don41_2]

There were a few "A width" P Bass necks, which would be 1.5" at the nut - most common by far are 1 and 5/8" at the nut, like mine is...

- georgestrings

That's probably it, 1 5/8" at the nut

 

[Webtroll]

yours looks great as is, but FWIW & IMOO tort looks awesome on natural ash

I prefer white on natural, but to each their own

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[Kmonk]

Headstocks did not have serial numbers then. They are on the neckplate. So if your headstock has a serial number it is not a '76, it is a parts bass.

Sorry but you are wrong. I have owned 3 1976 Precisions, each of which had serial numbers on the headstock. It was right around that time that they started the transition from serial numbers on the neck plate to the headstock.

 

[Webtroll]

Sorry but you are wrong. I have owned 3 1976 Precisions, each of which had serial numbers on the headstock. It was right around that time that they started the transition from serial numbers on the neck plate to the headstock.

I had a mid 70s P bass with a SN# likely to be 75 that had an SN# on the headstock and on the neck plate. I'd gotten it used so I make no claim that the parts were originally on the same bass. SN#s were poorly documented at the time so it's easy to get some of that mixed up. I'm assuming this '76 could be a '75, or it could be a '77, or who knows what. It's easier to pick the year the bass was likely made and stick with it rather than label it a '74-81 because then it sounds like a parts bass, and you have to go into an explanation of the SN#s and a lot of crap that just isn't worth getting into.

Just what I've gathered over the years, I make no claim to be an expert (because I'm often wrong)

 

[9mmMike]

I have a '76 and I absolutely love it. Bought here on TB on impulse and it has become my number two.

It is closer to 8 than 9 lbs. I put TI's (JF344's) on it and it is simply perfect. Nice tight neck pocket and a really nice neck. Not too fat, not to slim with a B width nut...maybe just a skosh under a B but not A for sure.

I had stayed away from middle/late 70's basses because of all of the horror stories about the quality but I certainly cannot complain about mine.