70s Japan ash bodies

[DavidEdenAria]

I have this 70s Masada Japan P bass and its ash wings with a maple w walnut straps center block bolt neck.

Maple w RW board neck.

I can't post pics but I'm curious if anyone knows anything about the ash used on 70s Japan guitars?

I've tried to figure out the factory to no avail.

I refinned the body in tru oil and the ash is a bit softer than the maple w walnut straps....not different than typical ash I have worked with in the past.

The bass has a lot of deep clean tone with a new import underwound A5 P pickup at like 8.7k and roundwounds and what seems like quite a bit of top end from a new set of GHS Bassics RW.

It's a non typical underwound P pickup for sure but it's not lacking for volume or punch.

It seems way more low mids but a lot of clarity that is where it differs to my ears than a lot of P basses I've played nit pronounced upper mids.

Curious if any of the builder/repair types have worked with Japan ash or have any information on type?

Thanks in advance!

 

[rockear]

I don't know a whole bunch about it, but a lot of '70s Japanese guitars are made of Sen, which is often referred to as Japanese ash. Maybe that's what you've got.

Sen | Woodworking Network

Sen may be popular in Japan, but it is not yet widely used in the United States.

www.woodworkingnetwork.com

 

[Fondsdale]

It's usually pretty heavy compared to swamp ash.

Your bass was likely made by Matsumoko. They made some Ibanez, Aria Pro ii, Greco stuff in the 70s/early 80s.

 

[DavidEdenAria]

I don't know a whole bunch about it, but a lot of '70s Japanese guitars are made of Sen, which is often referred to as Japanese ash. Maybe that's what you've got.

Sen | Woodworking Network

Sen may be popular in Japan, but it is not yet widely used in the United States.

www.woodworkingnetwork.com

Thanks I've seen that wood and it is finer grain than what I have I'm fairly positive but there may be variations in species.

 

[DavidEdenAria]

It's usually pretty heavy compared to swamp ash.

Your bass was likely made by Matsumoko. They made some Ibanez, Aria Pro ii, Greco stuff in the 70s/early 80s.

I was guessing Matsumoko ...I think the bass is around 9 lbs which certainly is somewhat lighter than a lot of 70's Fender P bass I've played and seen.

 

[Matt Liebenau]

Sen and the Matsumoku factory would have been my guess also.

 

[BGroovy]

Most of the 70s MIJ basses I've had are Sen.

 

[iqi616]

Thanks I've seen that wood and it is finer grain than what I have I'm fairly positive but there may be variations in species.

My Matsumoku-made Kimbara jazz does have very fine grain.

 

[rojo412]

I've had sen come in very light and very heavy. It's a nice wood though!

 

[DavidEdenAria]

I've had sen come in very light and very heavy. It's a nice wood though!

What was the grain like?

My Masada is very open grain typical of a lot of USA ash I've seen and worked with.

When I sanded the original finish off it was a thin finish but hard to remove sanding and there it was, a typical looking USA ash.

The sen ash I've seen is fine grain compared to this which is why I posted.

 

[rojo412]

@DavidEdenAria The one that comes to mind for me mainly is a Fender Prophecy from the early 90s I had briefly.

I wish I could find a closer pic of the body, but the figuring/grain was very tight, straight and uniform. The bass was super light, too.
Never altered the finish, so I couldn't tell you what it felt like to work with it, but it was a very nice looking wood.

The heavier stuff I've taken any mental notes of also seemed to have a tight grain to it, compared to the swamp ash I've seen elsewhere.

 

[DavidEdenAria]

@DavidEdenAria The one that comes to mind for me mainly is a Fender Prophecy from the early 90s I had briefly.
View attachment 7466876
I wish I could find a closer pic of the body, but the figuring/grain was very tight, straight and uniform. The bass was super light, too.
Never altered the finish, so I couldn't tell you what it felt like to work with it, but it was a very nice looking wood.

The heavier stuff I've taken any mental notes of also seemed to have a tight grain to it, compared to the swamp ash I've seen elsewhere.

Thanks I zoomed in the photo your bass looks like sen I have seen no doubt....nothing like what I have on my Masada bass which from the factory had a filler and then stained.

Once I finally got it sanded I was kind of shocked because the filler and stain hid the open grain.

I debated filling it but I thought the wood is too stunning to cover.

It's probably been 6 years since I finished it in Tru oil and and the ash and maple have yellowed nicely!