A Precision COPY I'm passing on but can't close the thread ~

[Not Again]

These are all the photos I have of a Precision that I've got my eye on.
Heel trussrod with allenwrench adjustment, no faceplate logo or ghosted/removed image, body has holes for bridge cover & pickup cover. Pickguard middle layer is too thick for vintage Fender. No visible markings on neck heel or cavity. Apparent shim if I'm seeing the picture correctly. Domed knobs not flat top, tuner bases look bigger than typical Mexican-Fender etc., but smaller bases than vintage Fender tuners would be. Rounded pegheads too, not flat.
Owner has had it "a long time" and suggested it's a '60s bass, whereas I'm thinking '70s to maybe early '80s. He's not a bass-savvy guy, from what I can tell, and I had to politely beg him a couple of times to take the neck off to look for marks or dates.

I've owned Fernandes repliFenders in the past and I don't think this is one, but I don't know what it is.
No weight given and owner won't remove the pickguard to show the guts.

Opinions welcome on what you see & think.
It's a 4hour round trip if I decide to get it, at 15mpg too.

It might come down to a coin flip...

 

[matti777]

I dunno....not a lot there to prove its anything. A lot of my decision would depend on the price.

 

[urkel3000]

The way that shim is positioned is kind of a red flag imo. I've never had an FSO where I had to shim the front of the pocket

 

[brianrost]

No dates and no decal? This one looks like ash, so it’s not from the 60s. The neck plate looks blank in the pic and there’s no shot of the tuners either. It’s not likely to be a Fender at all. How much does the seller want?

I had a P like that, even had DiMarzios like this one. It had Fender tuners and neck plate but it probably wasn’t a Fender. I didn’t pay much for it…..only $200 with a Fender HSC in the late 90s and sold it for about the same about ten years later…so it didn’t matter to me if it was legit. It sounded pretty dead compared to my other Ps, so no great loss.

 

[Not Again]

The way that shim is positioned is kind of a red flag imo. I've never had an FSO where I had to shim the front of the pocket

That's the biggest warning to me, too, and I was wondering if anyone else would mention it.
I'm very likely going to pass on it unless it suddenly gets really cheap, which it might. The seller has already offered 50% off in 24 hours if I make the trip, but I think I'd need 90% to motivate me at this point.

 

[Not Again]

The way that shim is positioned is kind of a red flag imo. I've never had an FSO where I had to shim the front of the pocket

That's the biggest warning to me, too, and I was wondering if anyone else would mention it.
I'm very likely going to pass on it unless it suddenly gets really cheap, which it might. The seller has already offered 50% off in 24 hours

No dates and no decal? This one looks like ash, so it’s not from the 60s. The neck plate looks blank in the pic and there’s no shot of the tuners either. It’s not likely to be a Fender at all. How much does the seller want?

I had a P like that, even had DiMarzios like this one. It had Fender tuners and neck plate but it probably wasn’t a Fender. I didn’t pay much for it…..only $200 with a Fender HSC in the late 9

No dates and no decal? This one looks like ash, so it’s not from the 60s. The neck plate looks blank in the pic and there’s no shot of the tuners either. It’s not likely to be a Fender at all. How much does the seller want?

I had a P like that, even had DiMarzios like this one. It had Fender tuners and neck plate but it probably wasn’t a Fender. I didn’t pay much for it…..only $200 with a Fender HSC in the late 90s and sold it for about the same about ten years later…so it didn’t matter to me if it was legit. It sounded pretty dead compared to my other Ps, so no great loss.

The seller is down to 300 at this point.
Still too many not-quites to motivate me to get it. If it had tall nickel tuners & threaded bridge & flattops & accurate pickguard & other perfect-replica details like a couple of Japanese copies I've owned then sold then wanted to find again, I'd probably snag it. For now though it seems I'll be waiting to see what else pops up.

 

[Michael Jewels]

I had a friend who had a 1965 Precision, and I was with him when he took the neck off.

As others have said, the shim and the lack of a stamp on the end of the neck are red flags.

I would say pass, unless you're really in love with the instrument.

Good luck.

Mike

 

[Sharko]

For a $300 price tag you can get a lot of
used fender knockoffs that are quite good and readily available, I wouldn’t be in a rush to scoop this one up

 

[lokikallas]

I see no evidence of any actual Fender parts in those pics. If it's under 300$ I might consider it. Remember old and Vintage do not mean the same thing.

 

[Benji bassman]

Something about it reminds me of some old Matsumoku basses I once owned. My first bass was a Memphis! I also had an Electra at some point. I can't point exactly to anything specific about it.

 

[Fender_Bender]

Looks like “Sen” ash, so Japanese. The DiMarzio type pickups were also commonly used by the Japanese in the 70’s as well. Add in no neck stamp and I’m thinking a Greco, Tokai or other Japanese brand. I don’t think there’s any Fender parts in there at all.

 

[H K]

My thoughts right away were "Maya", or similar. IE a japanese mid 70s mby.

BUT, looking at the body, I say it kinda looks like pine. And the tint on the neck confirmed the suspicion that this might be a Framus...

 

[Topkat13]

What does it smell like? If it’s not a combination of a grandmother’s house and stale vegetables I would have to pass.

 

[PapaBearBass]

With no dates or names in the pocket I don’t think it’s legit. Just my two cents

 

[aprod]

That is not a Fender of any vintage. Headstock and body shape are wrong. The truss rod should be a screwhead type not an allen wrench. And who is going to sell a '60s P bass for $300? Total scam.

 

[MIMike]

As others have said, it’s not a Fender, but it could be a decent bass, especially for $300…but I wouldn’t drive more than 20 minutes to check it out and see if it’s a nice 70’s Japanese instrument that didn’t weigh 10 or 11 lbs.

 

[Not Again]

That is not a Fender of any vintage. Headstock and body shape are wrong. The truss rod should be a screwhead type not an allen wrench. And who is going to sell a '60s P bass for $300? Total scam.

My thread isn't a "is this a real Fender" thread, and I mentioned the same clues you did in my first post.
The seller isn't advertising it as a Fender, either, so not a scam at all.

For replies like yours I guess I should have specified I was open to opinions on this Precision bass COPY.

 

[Sauron_]

If the pickup is an old DiMarzio (looks like one) then the 300$ price tag is ok.

 

[Ricky Rioli]

If the pickup is an old DiMarzio (looks like one) then the 300$ price tag is ok.

Plenty of Dimarzio copies being made in Japan around then

 

[jimmydean]

The only thing you know for sure is the pickups are DiMarzio and it's a 4 hour round trip for a $300.00 bass . Can the guy post a video or play it over the phone so you can hear it ?