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Fender pre-CBS Club: pics mandatory!
- Thread starter Mastermold
- Start date
Mine was already refinished...twice.
Thanks for the nice replies!
Tweaked the bass tonight and it almost plays it self!
Thanks for the nice replies!
Tweaked the bass tonight and it almost plays it self!
Refinished pre-CBS Fenders are great, much more affordable to begin with and you can play them all you want without worrying you'll devalue them by wearing off an original finish. They're still expensive so hard to call them a "good value" but for players (as opposed to collectors) they are usually a great choice.
Concur. Any refinish makes a good value. My '72 A-neck was a refinish. Otherwise a perfect bass (for me) and affordable due to the non-collectible status from the refin. My '64 is a refin. Another awesome bass. My '62 is a heavily modded refin but still dang cool (IMHO). 
The tort guard is gorgeous 
I'm in - played at my first rehearsal last night and it was perfect!
It is a January 1958 build that was on consignment through Gruhn Guitars in Nashville. Interestingly, about a week after I got it, the President of Gruhn emailed me and said the previous owner offered to talk with me about it's history. I, of course picked up the phone and a 72 year old man named Tommie picked up the phone - we chatted for about an hour. He told me the original owner bought it new at a mom & pop guitar store in a small town in South Carolina, in 1959. He was a country-western bassist, who kept it until 1969. He took it into a local pawn shop to trade it for something else and Tommie just happened to be there. They did a deal for it right there on the spot (which apparently ticked off the pawn shop owner!). He's kept it ever since and told me it had been his "friend for fifty years". Though in more-or-less perfect functional condition, the bass has some battle scars. Tommie was very clear that most of the wear occurred under the previous owner's watch and that he's taken good care of it. Apparently, it hasn't had much playing time recently (i.e. last twenty years or so) as Tommie switched over the keyboards. He told me how he's played with the same band every weekend for over 40 years. I hope I'm still going when I hit his age!
This is the exact bass I've always wanted - they only made the two-tone burst with maple neck for a very short time (mid 57 through May 58, from what I understand). I'd always gone into Gruhn when I was in Nashville, but never bought anything but picks and a t-shirt. I've been in Seattle now since 2000 and occasionally will take a look at their website to drool over all the cool stuff they get in that place. I saw this bass at a price I could (for really the first time in my life) pay for without regrets. I did some checking and found that it was a really good price too. The other 4-5 57/58s I saw for sale at the time went for $2500-5000 more. I felt it was a great deal on an all-original, never repaired vintage Precision.
Mike Lull did the setup work and man, did he do an amazing job. The neck is straight and has a really low action on it - between that and the small frets, it plays incredibly well. And the tone is truly unbelievable. Perfect string-string balance, very fat tone that sits in the mix just right and an amazing blend of being very warm sounding, yet bright and present at the same time. I've has Precision basses off and on throughout my life, but this one is way ahead of any other I've tried in sheer tone. Very happy camper here!
Hey, if you are going to leave it in the front seat like that, please let me know where and when you plan to leave the vehicle unattended.
Just kidding..... Congratulations on the new addition. I know I shouldn't care, but somehow I feel better knowing instruments like this are being PLAYED.
Yes, it will get played. Mike asked me when I picked up the bass from his shop if I was going to gig it or not. He had the same sentiment - basses are meant to be played. The answer for me though is both. I have some of my nicer instruments hanging in the living room alongside a Jim Marshall picture of Hendrix. They come down when it is time to play. Not a day goes by I don't take something off that wall!Hey, if you are going to leave it in the front seat like that, please let me know where and when you plan to leave the vehicle unattended.
Just kidding..... Congratulations on the new addition. I know I shouldn't care, but somehow I feel better knowing instruments like this are being PLAYED.
+1
Vintage guitars don't stop being guitars, just take care of them and be selective when/where you play. Playing a nice music hall? Bring it. Playing an outdoor summer show? Bring something else.
Right - I have a CS55 Single Coil PBass as a back-up. I might try to find an AVRI 57 as a back-up.
To each their own. I've played many, many large outdoor summer events with vintage basses as well as toured with them. No issues beyond a little more UV exposure, no regrets. Some of the seedier bars however...
