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Elias Bass guitar.

#23
The Monk said:
Hi there, I was searching on the internet for some info on my Elias bass and came across this thread. I have ser#032 a koa and birds eye maple fretless jazz style with an ebony fingerboard, maple inlayed fret markers, and dimarzio pups. I've had this bass a long time, I bought it used at Guitarworks in Calgary in the early '90s. I actually traded a worn out '68 strat for it. At the time I was getting into Jaco's stuff and this bass fit the bill. Ive been toying with the idea of selling it for a while now. Does anyone know what they are worth?
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I own #033, exactly the same model. I bought it in '90 used for $1100 at Vintage Axe, I think, in Calgary. I always wanted to know more about it and I too have been thinking of selling it. I don't often play any more but when I do it's always my beat up Rickenbacker.
 
#24
Nice to run into this thread, and see many other owners of these fine basses. I own an AP-1 #99 solid padouk. It started as a 4 string fretted, and evolved into a 5 string fretless. It is a long story for another day, but for now here is a photo of my baby. I have had this bass since 1983, when I bought it brand new.

002-1.jpg
 
#26
OK, here is the story of going from 4 string fretted to 4 string fretless. I decided I was going to "go for it". Now I had never attempted this before,but I was brave. LOL
I had "homemade tools" ie: nailclippers for a fret puller. Of course the first one came out pretty easy, and I thought "this won't be that hard. Well they came out a little tougher after that. With all the care and attention you would have giving yourself a home circumscision... 23 more times!!.
I finally pulled the last fret about 18 hours after starting the procedure. With no damage to the fingerboard I might add. Filled the fret slots with a combo of wood glue and sawdust, with a capping of crazy glue. Then carefully sanded back to smooth.
I would never attempt this again... ever. One of the most nerve racking events of my life. hahahahaha. But in the end, it turned out very good. About a year later I added the 5 string. And I played it like that for about 8 years until 1998, when I had the ebony fingerboard installed.
 
#27
bungalowbill said:
I have a couple of other basses that are koa, and after seeing #032 (sweet!), I'm pretty sure #015 is something else... I seem to remember something vaguely, from way back when, about it being walnut... does that sound right?

It really is a lovely instrument... looking forward to getting it back from the shop!
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The dark bodied one, the AP-1 is made out of Padouk.
 
#28
As I mentioned in an earlier post, #015 has been in the shop for quite a while, undergoing repairs to fix the "repairs" done by a shop in Edmonton who shall remain nameless. I just got it back today.

The current state is that the truss rod and fingerboard have been replaced, and the area between the truss rod and fingerboard has been re-engineered to provide better stress distribution, as the original fingerboard had split there.

The body has been touched up, sanded, and re-oiled, and I must say, I couldn't be happier with it. There's nothing like a brand-new fretless ebony fingerboard! It plays and sounds fabulous, as it always has, and is ready for another few decades.

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#32
I think the problem is that they're very rare but equally unknown... Anyone seen one outside of Canada? Or with a serial number over 200?

With so few out there, and even fewer on the market, it's tough to value them.

I think a club is a great idea.

I've also been thinking that a registry would be a great idea, so I put one together this morning. It's pretty basic (FileMaker) and lightly populated (just my two), but feel free to check it out and contribute whatever information you want! It's read-only access, but you can email your information to the address listed.

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Suggestions are also welcome... this was a pretty quick and dirty project, so I'd like to hear what other people would find valuable in such a resource!
 
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#33
I have been hunting for an article I had, that talked about Peter Elias, and was showing and talking about his bass building and his electric upright basses. I haven't seen any good photos of the EUBs, just a couple shots from a newspaper. Has anyone else seen them?? Knows of anyone with one??
 
#35
I forgot to mention, but looking at the picture now I remembered that I had changed the pickups out. Originally, bass #015 came with the white dimarzio pickups, but I think I put Seymour Duncans in there. I keep looking at it, longingly. . .
: )
 
#36
LM Bass said:
I forgot to mention, but looking at the picture now I remembered that I had changed the pickups out. Originally, bass #015 came with the white dimarzio pickups, but I think I put Seymour Duncans in there. I keep looking at it, longingly. . .
: )
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I changed them out too :-) I had some trouble with the ones it had, so I put in the black Dimarzios. I guess I should have got the white ones!
 
#38
OK, this is a bit strange... I stopped by Not Just Another Music Shop on Main in Vancouver on the way home from work today, looking for something completely unrelated, and they had two Elias basses in stock. #026 and #060. They said they just got them in; an estate looking for a good home.

#026 is a standard lined fretless (rosewood fingerboard) with jazz pickups. #060 is a custom electric upright. I've seen some Elias electric uprights back in the day, but nothing like this.

#026 is tagged at $1,500
#060 is tagged at $2,000

And no, I didn't buy them... :D

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