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Classic Series Lacquer vs. Road Worn

#41
ShoeManiac said:
...I think the Classic lacquer instruments offer up that taste of nitro to the people who aren't into the whole relic thing, or want to wear the instruments finish down on their own. And truth be told, I'm looking forward to wearing down the finish on my project P-Bass really soon!
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rootsnfifths said:
...I heard stories of shops not being able to sell the Road Worns...Fender re-creates the "Classic" with nitro finish...It will wear faster and cooler I think and that is what people seem to like...
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Not to make too verbose a point, but don't forget that all nitro finished basses will "wear faster and cooler," including Road Worn basses! :D
 
#42
Again, I'd love to get my mitts on a laquer Classic 50s without having to order the darn thing (wish they made one in some shade of WHITE). I recently visited LA and was surprised by the lack of these and other Fenders models on the floor at the Hollywood GC and Sam Ash (the new Dimensions were out, though).
I know what to expect shape wise, and if it's pulled off as skillfullly as my Road Worn I'd grab it. Only other stipulation: my Road Worn weighs in at under 8 lbs... and for whatever reason, all the Pre-CBS P's I've owned hovered in the very lightweight zone. I've come to consider this a vintage Fender attribute that's a real litmus test of a bass's appeal for me.
 
#43
I have a Classic 60s Jazz Lacquer and absolutely love it! I played the RW Jazz side by side and took the Classic lacquer because it just felt better and sounded a tad bit better to me. That said I would get a RW jazz in a heart beat! Either way you can't go wrong with either of these. Next is a 50's Classic lacquer P!!
 
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#44
adk teleman said:
I have a Classic 60s Jazz Lacquer and absolutely love it! I played the RW Jazz side by side and took the Classic lacquer because it just felt better and sounded a tad bit better to me. That said I would get a RW jazz in a heart beat! Either way you can't go wrong with either of these. Next is a 50's Classic lacquer P!!
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Very Cool! Pics? Obviously, we have all seen Fender Jazzes, but it might be interesting to see how the finish looks over the wood, especially on the back. :hyper:
 
#45
Lowbrow said:
Again, I'd love to get my mitts on a laquer Classic 50s without having to order the darn thing (wish they made one in some shade of WHITE). I recently visited LA and was surprised by the lack of these and other Fenders models on the floor at the Hollywood GC and Sam Ash (the new Dimensions were out, though).
I know what to expect shape wise, and if it's pulled off as skillfullly as my Road Worn I'd grab it. Only other stipulation: my Road Worn weighs in at under 8 lbs... and for whatever reason, all the Pre-CBS P's I've owned hovered in the very lightweight zone. I've come to consider this a vintage Fender attribute that's a real litmus test of a bass's appeal for me.
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Under 8 lbs ? My RW Jazz weighs in at 8.5, on my digital luggage scale. That is the lightest Jazz I've ever heard of !
 
#47
I ordered a 50s Lacquer Precision sight unseen from Long and McQuade. They have a really good return policy so the risk was low. It arrived about a week and a half later.
The set up was good out of the box (but the action was a little low for me). Frets are dressed well. The bass weighs in at 8lbs 4oz which is lighter than my 57AVRI which is 8lbs 6oz. (I have a kitchen scale that can measure weight in pounds and ounces). It sounds fairly loud acoustically. Plugged in, it sounds like a P. Output is in the same ball park as the 57 and the MF.
The lacquer finish is nice and glossy. The neck tint is more amber than both my 57 and Freeman basses(see pics). There are two small (about 1mm) imperfections in the finish around the upper horn(too small to photograph with my camera). One is a tiny bump and the other looks like a tiny scratch. They don't bother me as I think the bass otherwise is a good value. $899 with tweed case to me is a decent price. The case interior fit is my one minor gripe as the cutout is for a jazz body and doesn't fit the P very well(see pics). It holds it tight however so I guess that's all that matters.
I'm glad I bought it when I did too because the Canadian dollar is being devalued currently and I'm sure there will be price corrections in Canada and we won't get the American prices for much longer.
IMG_2727.jpg

For neck tint comparison: (same lighting and camera)
50s Lacquer P
IMG_2728.jpg

57 AVRI P
IMG_2733.jpg

Matt Freeman P
IMG_2729.jpg

Family pic
IMG_2722.jpg
 
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#49
If you had to sell 3 basses, which one would you keep? Why?
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I think the 57 for purely sentimental reasoning. I've had it the longest of these 4. They're all good basses. 57 is my #1a (strung with chromes), the 50s is my #1b(strung with nickel rounds). The MF is an inexpensive bass to mess around with, although it is a pretty nice sounding bass and good value for the money. I'm going to put heavy gauge strings and tune it to C standard for fun(QOTSA type stuff). The jazz is for a different flavor and it's a pretty bass. I think it might need an aged pearloid guard to bump up the sexy though. ;)

A side note about the finish of the MF, for those who feel that paint thickness affects tone. The body paint is surprisingly thin. Maybe the thickness of photocopy paper(less than 1mm). Not the dipped in poly thick coat that I thought it might have. It has a small chip near the pick guard where I noticed the thickness.
 
#50
Well thanks to all the people here who take the time to post, I went out last week and purchased a rw j bass and a classic 60 j in nitro. I figured I would a/b them against a original 64 j bass I have and keep the one that works the best for me. So far I have a couple hours on the rw and it is without a doubt the best fender I have played. The set up was perfect right out of the box. The classic just arrived today so it will take a few days to get some time on it. The one thing I can say is that they don't sound the same and the classic seems heavier. I will dig out my scale and weigh them and post the results. The finish on the classic is great. I don't mind the relic look but I do like the new and perfect look better. Call me vain I guess.

Okay if anyone is interested I weighted both the rw is 8.1 pounds and the classic is 9.6, you differently feel the difference.
 
#55
By the way, speaking about the differences between the RW and the Classic Lacquer, I have seen a number of folks say that they thought that the RWs have kiln-dried bodies. Has this been confirmed? If so, does the the CL series have it. I'd imagine not.
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I have both now and the only difference between the 2 of them besides the relic part is the rw is a lot lighter and I've been told that is because the wood was kiln-dried. The wt are 8#'s 6 oz to 9#'s 1oz. Also they don't sound the same. They both have a very vintage tone but different. I'm torn trying to decide which one to keep. I think the rw has the a slight edge in the playability factor but not by much and the other has a better tone.imho
 
#59
Sorry to resurrect.

At the moment, I've got a bunch of high $ boutique Jazz basses and a RW Fender.

Man...I keep reaching for the RW Fender. Just feels and sounds great - really fun to play. And I love not having to worry about babying it.

I was super interested in the the 60's Laquer Jazz - but sounds like they are heavy.
 
#60
I received my lacquer 50's P-Bass last week and I'm impressed with the finish, set up was perfect (for me,) intonation - dead on - plays very well - I will be getting a tort and a set of custom shop 62's for it! When I'm an old man it will be as cracked up as me ;^)
 

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