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Early 70's P bass

rondoc

rondoc

Feb 18, 2013
9
0
NYC area
#1
Hi all,

So I've played a 74' P at a friends and it totally amazed me. I am now all focused on finding me a nice early 70's one but I see many comments about certain characteristics I should be pay attention to.
So my question is (assuming I won't be able to check the bass in person) what should I look out for? I know weight is a known issue in these years but what else?
Where there any material changes in models between 1970-76?

Any help is much appreciated,
 
#3
In general the farther you get into the decade the poorer the QC. A early 70's P bass should be a good player but anytime you are talking 70's Fender the acid test it to play before you buy. Things to look out for? Sloppy neck pocket route, humps in the fingerboard, S curves in the neck are the big problems. Cosmetically wood selection in the body can be less than ideal, finishes thick and wavy, prone to chipping off in large chunks. Bodies are made of Ash or Alder some Ash 70's Ps can be very heavy. I have 4 70's P basses all great playing and sounding but my vintage modified Squire Precision. is built better than any of 'em.:hiding:
maplefretlessPbass003.jpg
73FenderPrecision005.jpg
JOHNNYSMOKEBuffaloNYwaterfront8-19-13102.jpg
74pbass004.jpg
And my Squire.
SquierPbass001_zps0c02eedb.jpg
 
#4
Cosmetically, sometime in '76 the headstock logo changed to smaller lettering. I don't think there were any substantive changes to the design between '70-76, but the QC got sloppier as the years went on, arguably, although I had a terribly heavy '73 and still have a great '74, '76 and '79.
 
#6
I have a 78-ish p-bass. I love it. I played a lot of basses prior to getting it. And I think that I got the best bass I could, that suited me, for the money I spent. And I loooooove the tone.

That said, I would NEVER BUY A 70'S P BASS WITHOUT PLAYING IT FIRST.

There are good ones. There are many bad ones. Please don't buy one without playing it first.
 
#7
I have owned and currently own several 70s era Fenders. The quality was inconsistent but for the most part, I have been happy with them. The Fullerton made basses from the early 80s are better, yet it seems that many players hardly ever mention them. It almost seems that a lot of people want a 70s era because they think it would be cool to own a bass that is 40 years old. I wouldn't buy one without playing it first, but then again, I feel that way about everything I buy. If you can return it, no questions asked, then go for it. Otherwise, make sure you buy it at price that is low enough that you can sell it without losing any money, just in case you don't like it.
 
#8
My 74 P is killer. Sounds amazing, is under 8lbs, plays like a dream, etc.

I played well over a dozen older Fenders before buying mine. I love my P and would put it up against many pre-CBS Fenders. I got lucky and found a great one, but I would NEVER buy a 70's Fender sight unseen. There are more terrible ones out there than good ones by far.
 
#11
I have two 70's P-basses, one is a 73 (alder, with a maple "A" neck, a pretty cool bass) and one is a 78 (maple/ash). The 73 is an excellent quality instrument - fit and finish, and weighs only 8 lbs. My 78 is a pretty sloppy bass, there is run on the fingerboard finish, a huge gap in the neck pocket, and weighs a little over ten lbs. Funny though, the 78 has the killer tone, is still easy to play, and is great in the studio.
My son and I did a comparison of the two basses yesterday, and although both sound great, and are definitely the P bass sound, the nod goes to the 78.
My point is that don't walk away from one because it's a sloppy build, it may be a great player.
AFAIK 80's Fender quality can be sketchy as well, although I read a lot of good things about the Fullerton basses - but they can be pricey.
Just play 'em, and find one that works for you.
 
#14
rondoc said:
So when did Fender get their act together in terms of consistent QC? What's the consensus, early 80's? What's a safer bet?
Click to expand...

I've had this fight here before, but I consider the early 80's to still be a part of the late 70's when it comes to QC. I'd be aiming at the 1985 and later range for consistency, unless you really get a chance to try it in hand before you buy.
 
#15
Pet Sounds said:
Cosmetically, sometime in '76 the headstock logo changed to smaller lettering. I don't think there were any substantive changes to the design between '70-76, but the QC got sloppier as the years went on, arguably, although I had a terribly heavy '73 and still have a great '74, '76 and '79.
Click to expand...

In the early 70s, the bridge was placed further back, and the G string intonation screw was elongated to compensate rather than put the bridge where it's supposed to be. Luckily that only lasted a year. Other than that, they moved the finger rest to the E string side (making it a thumb rest I guess). Other than that, no design changes were made. Quality control was indeed a major issue, though.
 
#16
Lownote38 said:
In the early 70s, the bridge was placed further back, and the G string intonation screw was elongated to compensate rather than put the bridge where it's supposed to be. Luckily that only lasted a year. Other than that, they moved the finger rest to the E string side (making it a thumb rest I guess). Other than that, no design changes were made. Quality control was indeed a major issue, though.
Click to expand...

At the same time as the thumbrest move, Fender also moved to using black pickguards over the faux tortoise shell guards. There's also a change in the routing underneath the pickguard around that time.
 
#17
Welcome to the club. I have a double handful of '70's basses now. In addition to the weight variance that is mentioned often is the neck inconsistency. They vary wildly between thin and baseball-bat-round.
My two best (for me) basses are a '76 natural ash with maple neck and the '74 "mocha" that I built from all 70's parts. Both of these are near to 8 lbs. and have thinner profile necks that are B widths.
I moved from '60's basses to '70's mostly because of the necks. I just love the B width necks on the '70's. Not too wide and not too (Jazz) narrow.
I have collected a bunch-o-70's necks and often shop for bodies on which they will fit. I hate neck pocket gaps. Regardless of how the bass might sound, I always end up taking the bass apart and trying some other combination.
I also like the pups from this era although I have had a couple that were a little too dark and difficult to extract the highs that I need to cut through in my three guitar band.
I have bought all of mine online but not all have been gems.
When I head out to gigs now, I always take the '74 and then either my '76 natural or a parts bass (most recently my LPB with 70's neck and Aguilar pups).
I have a bass due any day now from John K that is a 70 body with a 72 neck (slimmed by John) and a set of '76 pups which is probably not a bad way to get what you want as well. Get some bits that get you close and send them to a builder if you are not hung-up on "all original".
My '76 was 100% original when I got it but a very busy gigging schedule took its toll and I had to replace pretty much everything electronic it eventually. Still love that bass though!
 
#18
IMO, the last year of the 'original type' p basses was 1973. they had the tug bar on the treble side and it was the last year that did not have a top route in the body for the pickup wiring. IME, '74's can be very nice (as can later years) but the '73 and earlier were generally lighter weight ( 90% of them were alder) and a better fitting neck pocket. mid to late 70's ones also had a heavier poly finish than the earlier ones.
 
#19
9mmMike said:
Welcome to the club. I have a double handful of '70's basses now. In addition to the weight variance that is mentioned often is the neck inconsistency. They vary wildly between thin and baseball-bat-round.
Click to expand...

Apparently they do: my '75 P-Bass (natural ash, 2-piece body + maple neck) has a big, chunky baseball bat neck, B width at nut, but I like it a lot. As for weight, mine is one of the heavy ones at 11.5 lbs, but I'm OK with that as it sounds really good.
 
#20
Great thread, loving the replies. I'm also in the market for a '70's P-Bass and pretty much the only way I can buy one is online, except for maybe 3 weeks during next year when I'll be in Canada.

I've got one that I'm interested in at the moment and as far as I know, one factor to look for is wear in the finish. Is that true? A lot of wear (the "mojo" that I love in old Fenders), should indicate that it sounds good enough that somebody played it every day and gigged it alot for the last 40 years or so.

What do you guys think?

(attached pic: the P-Bass I'm interested in; nevermind the changed pup, bridge and modified electronics - I would take care of that anyway (get rid of the switch, Badass II, Seymour Duncan Quarter Pound))
 

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