Did 1976 Fretless Ps come with thru-body stringing?

[GretschWretch]

My serial starts with S

Mine just begins with 7. See headstock pic above.

 

[LP Custom]

The holes are janky enough that it could be a homebrew mod on an original body.

 

[PapaBearBass]

Looks like a killer project bass. Bring that thing back to life and you will have a beautiful sounding axe. Go for it

 

[2saddleslab]

But the pickup route is for the split P, which pretty much disqualifies 1951 thru 1955. Both the neck heel and the neck pocket are devoid of any markings whatsoever, which is counter to Fender's practice. Maybe I've just got a mongrel body, with the old-style control route?

If it was a 50's body the ferrules would be larger & countersunk. Those look like ferrules used on the Tele bass.

 

[murphy]

Anyone can drill holes and put in string ferrules ...then replace with a top loading bridge.
Does not mean the body is being incorrectly aged

Tis a truly old and beautiful body

If you care to sell....I would love to own it.....if not heavy?!!

 

[murphy]

Why is there no S before the 76?...I have never seen that!

 

[GretschWretch]

Why is there no S before the 76?...I have never seen that!

This is the kind of nuanced in-the-know that is totally beyond me, which is why in doubt I appeal to the Fender followers, whose expertise far exceeds my pittance. I did not even check the serial against Fender's database. With the exception of oddities like the Multivox Marvel I tend to look at individual instruments as themselves rather than their Ancestry.com.

I do, however, appreciate all the attention given to this thread.

 

[coreyfyfe]

Why is there no S before the 76?...I have never seen that!

This is the kind of nuanced in-the-know that is totally beyond me, which is why in doubt I appeal to the Fender followers, whose expertise far exceeds my pittance. I did not even check the serial against Fender's database. With the exception of oddities like the Multivox Marvel I tend to look at individual instruments as themselves rather than their Ancestry.com.

I do, however, appreciate all the attention given to this thread.

It was specific to the early 76 models, should be a bolded 76 followed by the remaining numbers in a normal font. The first S started later 76 and continued into 77, etc.

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[GretschWretch]

Anyone can drill holes and put in string ferrules ...then replace with a top loading bridge.
Does not mean the body is being incorrectly aged

Tis a truly old and beautiful body

If you care to sell....I would love to own it.....if not heavy?!!

I've not (yet) weighed the body alone. The entire bass postal scales at just over 8.1 pounds.

As to selling . . . the jury's still out. I need to double-check and make sure my PayPal account is fully operational, and I want to check a couple of points regarding Classifieds etiquette/protocol with the mods, and then I hope to begin selling. It will be small stuff at first: necks, bridges, pickups, those sorts of things.

The basses are still in flux. Even instruments that were definitely keepers six months or a year ago are now finding themselves on the "git along little dogie" list. Part of this is related to my growing conviction that long-scale basses really no longer are an acceptable match for me: too much stretching both along and across the fingerboard. This realization has bumped those goofy Orfeus Plovdiv basses well up into the keeper category. Given this, I am giving my quixotophilia full free rein at present, for example adding cheater bridges to my long-scale fretlesses to see how they fare as short-scales.

 

[murphy]

I've not (yet) weighed the body alone. The entire bass postal scales at just over 8.1 pounds.

As to selling . . . the jury's still out. I need to double-check and make sure my PayPal account is fully operational, and I want to check a couple of points regarding Classifieds etiquette/protocol with the mods, and then I hope to begin selling. It will be small stuff at first: necks, bridges, pickups, those sorts of things.

The basses are still in flux. Even instruments that were definitely keepers six months or a year ago are now finding themselves on the "git along little dogie" list. Part of this is related to my growing conviction that long-scale basses really no longer are an acceptable match for me: too much stretching both along and across the fingerboard. This realization has bumped those goofy Orfeus Plovdiv basses well up into the keeper category. Given this, I am giving my quixotophilia full free rein at present, for example adding cheater bridges to my long-scale fretlesses to see how they fare as short-scales.

Well I am in love with the body and hope I get first Dibs? Dib Dib

 

[GretschWretch]

Well I am in love with the body and hope I get first Dibs? Dib Dib

I respect dibs and have claimed on them myself, but right now this bass is in the "keeper queue. Whether it remains there depends largely on what can be done with the neck, which has issues. I suggest you wait until you see me putting small stuff in the classifieds and then get back with me.

 

[JIO]

The holes are janky enough that it could be a homebrew mod on an original body.

This seems likely. Neck is definitely late '70s and the aging/wear on the body looks at least that old. Good thing about a fretless fb neck having issues is you can get it as close as possible (if it's warped, bowed or twisted) and then re-plain the fb. There also is that company mentioned here on tb that deals with correcting necks exclusively. Someone will chime in with details I'm sure.

 

[Wood and Wire]

There also is that company mentioned here on tb that deals with correcting necks exclusively. Someone will chime in with details I'm sure.

Pretty sure they're simply called "WarpedNeck".