Fender Masterbuilt - What does that entail exactly

[Kmrumedy]

I was just reading a thread about a 2006 1966 Kendrick Masterbuilt Jazz bass. Members were talking the rarity due to it being a 1 of 100 build. Then this question came up which I thought was really interesting and I didn't know the answer.

".....I'm wondering how one guy can build 100 basses in a year... That's like 2 a week! I assume that he has all the parts ready to go and is responsible for bolting them together and fine tuning the setup? Is that what Masterbuilt means? I'm not putting Masterbuilt basses down at all, but I thought it would mean more than final assembly and tweaks. Anybody know for sure what Masterbuilt actually entails?"

Anyone know the answer? I did a search on Masterbuilt but nothing came up on the subject.

JUST TO BE CLEAR - This is NOT a Fender bash thread. I love Fender instruments. No bashing please.

I am just curious about the process. 100 instruments by a single builder in a year baffles me.

 

[pacojas]

it means "don't believe the hype". imo.

 

[GODSBASSMAN]

I would think it is one of 100 builds to date not just in one year. The article probably was primarily about that particular 2006 Jazz bass not that all 100 had been built in that same year. How long has Mr. Kendrick been commissioned by Fender as a "Master Builder"?

 

[BearCave]

Here's a video that kind of explains it. The Fender rep in this video is a personal friend of mine.

 

[DiabolusInMusic]

A Masterbuilt CS is one that has been built by one person. He handles the build from start to finish, just like any small shop would. (I didn't use gender neutral language because I have never heard of a female master builder at Fender, I would love to be proven wrong.) If you actually pay for a Masterbuilt custom the guy will call you up after he pulls your order. You will be asked a series of questions about what you like in a bass and who you listen to as a player.

The upcharge for "Masterbuilt" is $2,300 and certain things can only be done by using a master builder, such as custom colour matching.

 

[MrRobert]

A Masterbuilt CS is one that has been built by one person. He handles the build from start to finish, just like any small shop would. (I didn't use gender neutral language because I have never heard of a female master builder at Fender, I would love to be proven wrong.) If you actually pay for a Masterbuilt custom the guy will call you up after he pulls your order. You will be asked a series of questions about what you like in a bass and who you listen to as a player.

The upcharge for "Masterbuilt" is $2,300 and certain things can only be done by using a master builder, such as custom colour matching.

Right, but what does 'built by one person' mean? Does he select the wood for the body, cut it, shape it, paint it, select the woods for the neck, build the neck, shape it, lacquer it, install and finish the frets, add the tuners, wire up the electronics, put it all together, and do a final setup? Or does he place an order for the parts from the factory and bolt all the finished pieces together? And if he's doing say 100 basses, what's the advantage of having one person do it rather than a team built bass where each member specializes in one or more aspect of creating a bass? To me, custom builders do it all, from cutting and shaping the body and neck, doing the painting, and putting it all together.

 

[Gravedigger Dav]

Right, but what does 'built by one person' mean? Does he select the wood for the body, cut it, shape it, paint it, select the woods for the neck, build the neck, shape it, lacquer it, install and finish the frets, add the tuners, wire up the electronics, put it all together, and do a final setup? Or does he place an order for the parts from the factory and bolt all the finished pieces together? And if he's doing say 100 basses, what's the advantage of having one person do it rather than a team built bass where each member specializes in one or more aspect of creating a bass? To me, custom builders do it all, from cutting and shaping the body and neck, doing the painting, and putting it all together.

According to the video, the master builder does everything except paint. They even talk about him selecting the wood.

 

[MrRobert]

Nice!

 

[DiabolusInMusic]

Right, but what does 'built by one person' mean? Does he select the wood for the body, cut it, shape it, paint it, select the woods for the neck, build the neck, shape it, lacquer it, install and finish the frets, add the tuners, wire up the electronics, put it all together, and do a final setup? Or does he place an order for the parts from the factory and bolt all the finished pieces together? And if he's doing say 100 basses, what's the advantage of having one person do it rather than a team built bass where each member specializes in one or more aspect of creating a bass? To me, custom builders do it all, from cutting and shaping the body and neck, doing the painting, and putting it all together.

They handle your build from start to finish. I thought this included paint as well but apparently not. And yes, they do select your wood through a "tapping" process if I remember correctly. I cannot watch the video right now so I don't know what it covers. I believe the pickups are also hand wound but not by the master builder, Abigail Ybarra used to handle all master builds (I thought.)

 

[DiabolusInMusic]

I should add that if you want to get a fancy paint job, wood carving, or leather/raw hide top then you would still need a master builder but they send all that stuff out. They seem to have a couple guys on their Rolodex. I can only imagine what that upcharge is, however.