Another '51 P-bass unearthed!

[JW56789]

Congratulations, a working piece of history. And for once, no 'Is this a real . . . . .' questions ! !

 

[FishDub]

Fantastic. Would love to hear how it sounds (hint hint)!

Yeah we're gonna need clips for this one

 

[bbh]

I’m jealous. That stuff never happens to me. Enjoy your special find in good health.

 

[57pbass]

Excellent.. congratulations and thank you for sharing.

 

[FantasticFour]

That thing is at least worth a kidney and an arm! Looks like you got yourself a deal!
(It's gorgeous btw)

 

[JKoehler]

It’s cool to know that there still are basses like that in someone’s closet ready to be discovered.

 

[stretch80]

Pretty cool. One of the very first of a new kind of instrument that we all love and play, 69 years later...

 

[Chef]

jeez, that's cool; congrats on that.

 

[SLO Surfer]

Amazing, congrats, and thank you for sharing! I'm curious how the back of the neck looks and feels.

 

[Williethump]

1951 is my birth year but I'm older than Leo's baby by some months. How many players were born before their instrument was invented and produced? You'd need to be older than Joe Biden if your ax was a piano.
Love the small headstock, bet it fights neck dive. Congratulations on owning an historical artefact. Enjoy.

 

[Pdaddy1978]

I'm surprised you didn't have to sell both kidneys!
Unbelievable find!

 

[dan1952]

Beautiful! Congratulations.

 

[TNCreature]

I love the backstory as much as anything else.
Congratulations, and enjoy!
P.S. that bass well obviously played often and loved by its original owner and his family.

 

[electracoyote]

Back of neck wear indicates he was a below the fifth fret man, and buckle rash shows he wore it high.

Man, that is a cool piece. Thanks for sharing.

 

[Silky Johnson]

That's incredible

 

[PWRL]

I wonder, does that "TG" on the neck stand for Tadeo Gomez?

 

[Killing Floor]

Beautiful!! What a find. Thanks for sharing. Enjoy!

 

[dbsfgyd1]

Hi bass players. I have been reluctant to let the cat out of the bag for a few months, but I want to share a very cool find that was brought into the shop where I work, and I ended up scoring. For certain, the coolest bass I will ever have the good fortune to end up with. I didn't realize just how early this one was until after I purchased it, only that it was most likely a 1951. All original down to the gig bag. The owner's daughter has given me the back story, starting in 1956 when her father purchased it from Sam Ash in NY. After joining the Airforce, he decided to play the bass and purchased this P-bass. He played it regularly until 1971, and after that it mostly sat unplayed all these years. He died in 1995, and it has been in his family's possession since then. When they decided they wanted to sell it, the daughter's friend suggested she bring it in to the guitar shop where I work as a luthier. A fair price was agreed upon, I sold a kidney, and... now it's mine. With some help from Bflat, and some digging in these forums, it seems this may be the second known production run Fender bass. Body date of 10/30 and neck date of 11/7, serial # 0301. Other than the extra holes that were once drilled in the headstock (according to the owner's daughter, he did this to reinforce the gears when he put upright bass strings on it), and the bridge cover screws and pickup cover screws, it is completely unmolested and original. It plays pretty good given the original worn frets, and sounds unbelievable! Here is a gallery of shots I took:

Brian Michael Guitars

wow!

 

[drumvsbass]

Normally, I have no love for these types of things. This however is something else. Wow.

 

[yodedude2]

I wonder, does that "TG" on the neck stand for Tadeo Gomez?

yes.