Advice regarding a 2nd-Hand Peavey Foundation Bass vintage USA 1987 for sale

Rotosounds should be fine.

 

Look for fret wear because refretting is expensive.

 

USA Peaveys are great basses and will hold their own against any other “standard” bass. Lefty is worth a premium and prices have gone up both in general and on Peavey’s in particular. If everything functions as it should then it is certainly worth it. Things to check as a beginner: Plug it in and make sure it “sounds” right and all knobs adjust “something” (details can be worked out later). Play each string in each fret all the way up the neck and make sure the note rings out (doesn’t fret out on the neck and mute itself). Make sure the action isn’t TOO high. A little high can be adjusted but too high might be trying to make a bent neck less apparent. If I were a lefty i would jump on that. It will last you a lifetime and from pics seems to be in good shape.

 

Negotiate the price down 10-20%. Then you are approaching a good deal.

 

The Super Ferrite Foundation is the coolest "Jazz Bass" out there. I love mine (and my DynaBasses and Patriot which also have Super Ferrites). This era of Peavey basses are among the best values out there. If it has no issues, I would easily compare this to any $1000 USA Fender. The parts used and the build quality is great. I quit buying Fenders when I came around to Peaveys made from 1983-1991. The Super Ferrite can have an aggressive tone or can be dialed back to sweetness. It's easily my favorite bass pickup.

Technically, this is a Foundation Custom--the matching headstock and rosewood fingerboard were upgrades. It also has the Schaller tuners, nice! The price is a bit steep, but it is a left hand 80s era Peavey in Europe... The going price for a lefty Foundation in really good shape with a case is about $300-400 here in the states. The word is out and the days of $100 Peaveys are pretty much gone. This one seems to have either been well taken care of or not played much.

The things to check on these Peaveys:
--The truss rod--it's a 5/16" hex driver, just like what Gibson uses. All my Peaveys use the Gibson wrench, and it conveniently has the philips screwdriver on it to remove the truss rod cover. Just make sure the truss rod turns freely, not stiff feeling and has enough play to put back bow into the neck. If the bass is properly set up upon arrival with a straight neck, there is a good chance the truss rod is OK, but you still need to check it. A slightly warped neck can be fixed, a broken truss rod is not worth the repair expense on this particular bass. In my experiences, more than 80% of these are OK.
--The 'ski jump' at the heel joint. Overuse of the 1/8" hex screw (to adjust the neck tilt) is to blame for the ski jump, if present. I don't like to use this screw for more than 1mm of protrusion or so, any more than that and it puts stress on the neck and causes this ski jump issue. This is also something that I find OK in over 60-70% of Peaveys.
--The saddles use a 1/16" hex wrench. Just look and see that they are turning freely and not rusted. The screws on the low E and sometimes the A are usually the ones that may be frozen from rust. The bass looks pretty clean and rust free.
You might ask the seller if he has the wrenches before you check it out. If not, get them before you go. A small investment in wrenches to check out the bass can avoid a potential big repair bill later. I'm not sure how easy it is to get ahold of SAE wrenches in Germany, but make sure you have them. Get the proper SAE wrenches and not metric equivalents. A 8mm wrench can strip out the brass truss nut and the 1.5 and 3mm wrenches are too small for the saddles and neck tilt and can spin and strip those nuts, too.
It would also be a good idea to bring someone you trust to check these things since you are not comfortable doing it.

 

Its a decent bass. They do have very skinny necks so you should take that into consideration.
It is way too expensive. As a beginner, you should maybe look into Fender Squiers. Excellent basses for the money. You could probably even get something shipped with that budget. As a beginner, its not so important to try it first.
Look into the classifieds here. Great people to deal with and I do believe there are many european members.
Good luck!

 

Correct. However, options for left handed players are far and few between...and the seller knows that. So it's a "catch 22" situation.

Do you pass on a somewhat over-priced but fairly unique bass given the environment or do you go for a run-of-the-mill instrument that might end up not being to your liking ?

This, of course, makes sense only if you like the bass...so try it, and haggle for it if you end up liking it.

Excellent info from @bigtone23 in the post above mine.

Good luck.

 

Pocket Truss Rod Wrenches | stewmac.com

^This is the thing. It can be hard to find a generic socket that will fit into the slot. I haven't been able to find one for my Patriot, so I'm going to have to bite the bullet and buy one.

You'll just want to make sure it turns relatively easily in both directions. Don't give it a heavy turn in either direction, and you should loosen the strings before turning it.

Edit: looks like I'm late to the game

 

This has everything you need and then some...
https://www.thomann.de/gb/cruztools...2018.htm?sid=f47006253eda3ef210208fd68c91be2f

 

This really should be asked of a local group - USA folks do not know your market conditions.

 

One of my favorite basses! I've had mine for years (paid $125 with case). In the US, Foundations are running in the $400 - $500 range and as most everyone has stated, a lefty is hardly ever seen. If you can get it for 350 euros, that wouldn't be too bad. Used instruments have increase in price this past year and I don't see them returning to the prices we were accustomed to.....Good luck on your purchase!

 

I've sold two USA foundations in the last month, both in good condition, in the 300 to 400 USD range.

But this is a lefty, in great condition, with matching headstock, and is in Europe. It's not surprising it will sell for more.

You will not find a more versatile bass anywhere. With two super ferrite pups you can get anything from thump to growl. And the neck is super thin and fast.

I agree with other posters - if you're buying it for investment, then pass. If you're buying it because you love it, then ok.

But, I would negotiate with the seller. Go to reverb.com and find recent listings for foundations. Use that to negotiate.

 

US Peaveys are great instruments. The Foundation is no exception. If you try it and like it, shoot them an offer that’s 10-15% lower than asking price and see if they bite.
I would imagine that the bass will only continue to go up in value over time. Peaveys will never command Fender money, but more and more people are becoming aware of what awesome basses they are. The prices on both my T40 and T20 have doubled in the 7-8 years I’ve owned them.

 

Great, trouble is Peavey from those days used hex nuts not allen bolts.

Straight away the seller is highlighting his ignorance with regards to the bass.

Have look at Thomann in Germany. Most will have free shipping, all have 3 years warranty, all have a 30 days return should you change your mind.

https://www.thomann.de/gb/4_string_lefthanded_basses.html?ls=100&oa=pra

 

Hello @Ryan the Lion welcome to TB. Congratulations on that amazing find a leftly Foundation in gloss black in clean condition is sweet. The Super Ferrite pickups have a high output and tone for days with quality materials and workmanship throughout. In short you have found a solid instrument that will last as long as you need it to and sound fantastic.

I will admit that to US in the states the pricing may seem high but pay that no mind because 1 you are in EU and even bigger 2 it is a Lefty And even bigger that is an old bass. Everyone of US has tales of cheap basses but those daze are long past I'm afraid. Perhaps @kodiakblair will come along and opine.

 

Already have. I think it's over-priced

 

Back in the 80s we called these "The Poor Man's Fender Jazz".....they are excellent basses with necks even thinner than a Jazz bass...If you like small necks, you will love these

Never seen a Lefty - thats awesome

About 5 years ago, you could find these for about 250-350 US but all Vintage Peaveys have been steadily going up in price in the past 2-3 years (especially in the past year alone!) so I dont know what the going rate is these days