• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Basses kept in smoky rooms

commonplayer

commonplayer

Mar 7, 2006
756
2,096
#1
I'm looking at a bass today to potentially buy, and the owner said it was kept in a smoky place -- ie, he had to febreeze the inside of the case. Does this actually impact the playability or value of the instrument? Or is it just a peace of mind thing? It's a great deal, and I'm wondering if that's why. Thanks!
 
#2
allanmac00 said:
I'm looking at a bass today to potentially buy, and the owner said it was kept in a smoky place -- ie, he had to febreeze the inside of the case. Does this actually impact the playability or value of the instrument? Or is it just a peace of mind thing? It's a great deal, and I'm wondering if that's why. Thanks!
Click to expand...

Playability? Not at all.

If the bass was left out of the case in the room, over time the smoke can actually stain the finish just like it does the walls, ceilings and smokers' teeth. If left in the case, it's probably just an odor issue.

As for value, it's hard to say. There is certainly a group people out there, myself included, that would not buy a bass if it smelled like smoke. So, any time something eliminates a part of the buying pool, but I would think it is minimal. If the bass is in otherwise good shape, you can sell it if you choose. Plus, you already stated that you are getting it for a good price.
 
#3
I like a bass that has been exposed to tons of smoke, player's sweat, and the occasional beer spilled on it, all occurring over many years of someone who earned a living or at least supplemented his living playing bass in clubs for years. Adds tons of tone by altering the molecular structure of the bass's dna.

I'm not kidding.
 
#4
two years ago i bought a very nice S7XXXXX precision with a natural ash body and maple neck. the seller was a nice guy but a very heavy smoker. he has earned his living as a musician. the place on the wall where the bass was hanging before i bought it was noticeable brighter than the surrounding walls.

the bass still smells like smoke, even after two years. in some way the laquer seems to have reacted with the smoke .... i like this bass though, it is a very good player, very light and resonant and cool looking (the natural colour has become quite dark and yellowish).

the seller has died of cancer 3 months after i bought the bass.
 
#6
I bought a used Wishbass a couple of years ago. It had the original sprayed on minimal lacquer finish. It reeked of cigarette smoke. The smoke appeared to have bonded with the lacquer.

Fortunately, i chose to completely strip and refinish the bass. The smell left with the old lacquer.

If its a glossy poly finish, I bet you can buff the smell out of that thing.

JBY
 
#7
Chasarms said:
Playability? Not at all.

If the bass was left out of the case in the room, over time the smoke can actually stain the finish just like it does the walls, ceilings and smokers' teeth. If left in the case, it's probably just an odor issue.

As for value, it's hard to say. There is certainly a group people out there, myself included, that would not buy a bass if it smelled like smoke. So, any time something eliminates a part of the buying pool, but I would think it is minimal. If the bass is in otherwise good shape, you can sell it if you choose. Plus, you already stated that you are getting it for a good price.
Click to expand...

+1

Having bought a few "smoked" basses, I know that it would have to be a screaming deal for me to do it again - the work involved with cleaning the thing to get the vile stench off of it is pretty involved. And I'll never buy another "Smoked" amp - the ones that I've had always reek when they warm up.
 
#8
No offense, but not buying a guitar because it smells like smoke? Sounds a bit dainty, don't you think?


I mean, can you imagine Chester Burnett walking into a music store, picking up a guitar, and then putting it back complaining about cigarette odor??
 
#9
smcd said:
No offense, but not buying a guitar because it smells like smoke? Sounds a bit dainty, don't you think?


I mean, can you imagine Chester Burnett walking into a music store, picking up a guitar, and then putting it back complaining about cigarette odor??
Click to expand...

It's an unpleasant smell. Would you buy a bass that smelt of ****?
 
#12
Leave the case open in direct sunlight on a hot day. Vacuum the interior of the case. If it still smells of smoke, then some chemical intervention may be needed.

As for Smokey The Bass, I bought one of those. I cleaned every surface of it I could get to. Guitar polish and cleaner worked best. Doesn't smell of smoke anymore. I think the rosewood fretboard is darker than if the owner wasn't a smoker, but that's it.

I guess it depends on how much smoke for how many years.
 
#15
My first bass was a Peavey T-40 from a pawn shop back in 1988. The previous owned played in a country band. The case absolutely reeked of cigarette smoke. The headstock even had the telltale cigarette burns in two places in the headstock.

This was 10 years before the advent of Febreeze too. I sat both the bass & the case out in the winter sun for a couple of hours a day. The smell eventually went away.

I'd be more worried about the case being smelly than the bass. But now we have Febreeze!

On a side note, I got a TurboRat a while back that smelled like it was used as an ashtray. I took the casing off, wiped it with Febreeze, and let it sit out in the sun for a day. No more smell. YMMV.
 
#16
CDweller said:
Adds tons of tone by altering the molecular structure of the bass's dna.
Click to expand...

I prefer genetic engineering. You know, use the DNA of frogs to fill in gaps of a resurrected 60's-era P that eventually becomes hemaphroditic and reproduces on its own, eventually taking over the bass-themed amusement park that I own and killing a bunch of people before finally being taken down by a genetically resurrected octobass that roars its booming fundamentals as the "Grand opening" banner falls down in front of it.

I should totally make a movie out of that...
 
#18
Webtroll said:
New step to artificial relicing: After using a belt sander put it in a hickory smoker for a few weeks...
Click to expand...

I actually remember reading an *old* interview with a bassist of a hair metal band who actually did that - he's have his endorsed basses sprayed white, then take them into he shed where he hung them above racks of lit cigarettes to get that "classic yellowed" look. :eek:

...I have no clue why he simply didn't have them sprayed that color in the *first* place, but credit where credit is due: he beat "the relicers" to the punch by about a decade. :D

As for removing the smell of smoke, I've always heard that putting a bass and/or case in a closet with one of those "Ionic" air purifiers and leaving it running for a weekend is pretty effective in removing the stench. Thank goodness the last bunch of states I've traveled to see shows in have banned smoking in venues.
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back