Cort Curbow 5 - Gem or POS?

[andruca]

Owned a fiver some years ago (Mighty Mite pickup). I got it (plus 500€) in exchange for a G&L L-1505 I totally hated. It played GREAT and sounded focused and punchy. Mine smelled funny too, not openly disgusting, just weird (sort of like some solvent smell). Nothing warped nor came off on mine BTW. Good bass.

 

[Rabidhamster]

That actually just convinced me to pull the trigger on one

Save the receipt.

 

[kodiakblair]

@Dels

Congratulations. Had my 4 string model for years,great little bass and I find it comfortable to play. Normally it's a Peavey T-40 for me so the Curbow is polar opposite. Never noticed any smell but if I developed a bass smelling fetish I sure as heck wouldn't be talking about it on the internet

Enjoy your bass,only opinion that counts is your own

 

[nonohmic]

Just saw a 4 at GC, went in to look at a used road worn Flea, as well as matching pair tort/burst Am STD Jazz and P they got in. Those were meh, the Flea had serious need of adjustment. But damn this Curbow got me!

Wondering about neck warp in ABQ though? As I've heard hot climates it's worse, and that is one of the biggest challenges I face with my Matt Freeman sig. Any ideas?

Or another question, could a used bass have already had time to develop the warp it's going to? This thing must be 10-15 years old judging by the battle scars.

 

[nonohmic]

Also as an aside, I still have not played a Fender that can touch my MF sig.

 

[Zooberwerx]

What a coincidence. One just showed up on my local CL for $175 in near-mint condition with a hardshell case. Don't need it but....durn!

Riis

 

[Watchootognbout]

My experiences with the Luthite Cort Curbow.
I don't know anything about the newer wood ones.

It's quite hard to upgrade the electronics
The body is thinner than most basses.
And most replacement preamps are a bit tall.

You have to be careful if you decide to replace the pickups.
A deeper pickup route can breach the electronics cavity.

And last.
Many,including me,could not get the action low enough without grinding an eight of an inch of the bridge saddles.

 

[Ed Dunning]

My experiences with the Luthite Cort Curbow.
I don't know anything about the newer wood ones.

It's quite hard to upgrade the electronics
The body is thinner than most basses.
And most preamps are a bit tall.

You have to be careful if you decide to replace the pickups.
A deeper pickup route can breach the electronics cavity.

And last.
Many,including me,could not get the action low enough without grinding an eight of an inch of the bridge saddles.

I put a new Tusq XL nut on mine to get the action low without fret buzz. It's a little higher than what was on it. Stays in tune very well and had great tone with the Bartolini and 3 band preamp.

 

[Maxdusty]

My experiences with the Luthite Cort Curbow.
I don't know anything about the newer wood ones.

It's quite hard to upgrade the electronics
The body is thinner than most basses.
And most preamps are a bit tall.

You have to be careful if you decide to replace the pickups.
A deeper pickup route can breach the electronics cavity.

And last.
Many,including me,could not get the action low enough without grinding an eight of an inch of the bridge saddles.

I've had 4 or 5 of them in previous years. Had sort of a love/hate thing with the luthite Curbows- I really do like them but ultimately the action was what made me sell the last one, the curved body near the bridge prevented lowering the strings any lower on that end. For me, it's less of an issue on the fretless versions as I don't slap on a fretless and getting the string action lower is not necessary. The smell didn't really bother me- liked the neck, no problem with the body size and playing sitting down. If I see another fretless one today for a good enough price, I'd probably pick it up.