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Do dings and scratches bother you?

#81
Damn those ceiling fans. At least they are made of soft wood and not maple! Money is hard to come by, so when I got a really nice bass I did all I could to keep it as nice as I could. It's a tool to use, but it also represented hard-earned cash, so it wasn't in me not to baby that thing. When the ceiling fan bit my headstock I came unglued, but what can you do? Realize that stuff will happen the more the bass is exposed to the real world and just keep playin'. I still take care of my baby and it still looks great, but each little blemish now has a story behind it, most of which bring back good memories! (except that damn ceiling fan) The rest of my "lesser" basses are treated the same.
 
#82
as long as there is no major playability damage done , i welcome dings and scratches, like was stated before , each scratch or ding tells a story and shows that the instrument is being used and loved. i love it when I see an ad for a mint bass for cheap , because i know it is a closet queen for the most part and the guy is getting rid of it because of lack of use ( usually pretty cheaply too)
 
#84
I don't deliberately damage anything, but use means things happen. I don't own any perfect instruments, since they all get used how they were meant to be used. Some, like the P-Bass seem to take on more of ragged character faster than others, like the Ric. If the Ric ever gets "reliced" it will be from playing it, and I will be perfectly fine with that happening.
 
#86
SBassman said:
I think every *flaw* is another step towards Unique Perfection.

I truly love when an instrument is different than the rest.
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well put

IMG_6248_zpsa625596a.jpg
 
#87
tmdazed said:
as long as there is no major playability damage done , i welcome dings and scratches, like was stated before , each scratch or ding tells a story and shows that the instrument is being used and loved. i love it when I see an ad for a mint bass for cheap , because i know it is a closet queen for the most part and the guy is getting rid of it because of lack of use ( usually pretty cheaply too)
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But there is so much room to be wrong in that assessment. I have two Alembics (1987 & 2000). There is one scratch on the 2000. I defy anyone to find it without me showing it to you. It has seen more than its share of bar gigs, outdoor festivals, church alters, and club / restaurant stages in the 14 years that I've owned it. I cringed a little when it got its first and only scratch (happened in my basement, by the way). Part of the quality improvements across most major brands in recent years is more durable finishes.

If the crack were truly visible, you'd find it in this shot, near the knobs. Old and played often does not have to mean beat to hell. At the same time, I have no issues with an old bass that shows wear. Just not abuse (gouges).

AlembicSeriesIIendview.jpg
 
#93
snyderz said:
I've had 50 or so basses, NONE of which were bought new. A good percentage were MINT when I got them though. I have always made every effort to keep them that way. Ironically, last week I played a gig with a low ceiling fan. I was playing a parts bass that I only have a couple hundred into. I hit it TWICE taking my bass off for breaks. My guitar player looked at me in horror, wondering how I could just shrug it off. I was fine with it, even though there were a couple chunks of headstock wood on the floor. Little did he know that if it had been my mint SB-2 I would have committed suicide on the spot.
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I've trained myself to keep my bass in a horizontal position when taking it off or putting it on for exactly that reason. I once broke a glass light cover while taking my bass off and a piece of falling glass cut my hand.

I have a big gouge from a falling music stand in one of my basses. Maybe I'll cover it with a band-aid to give it character. I'll tell anyone who asks about it that I don't want it to get infected.
 

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