Saw this in a pawn shop near me. Asking $700 which is a great price for a used Bongo, but... there are some things about the bass that have me concerned.
Here is the headstock
View attachment 2901821
and here is the body
View attachment 2901822
Here is where I think something is off:
1) To me the whole headstock looks too long.
2) Stealth Black body but everything else not so much - the paint looks "flat" not glossy but I think (but am not sure) that the "stealth black" comes only with black hardware and this one has chrome tuners, knobs, pup mags and bridge. The neck is black too on Stealth Black builds I think, but not here.
3) Lastly, the logo looks shorter in height and also less long in length than on Bongo 5's I see in stores an on line, such as this one on Musiciansfriend and this one on Sweetwater, where the logo extends from the right edge of the B tuner to the left edge of the D tuner. The logo is what first made me think something was off, as the word "BONGO" looks compressed.
Which leads me to think it's a either knock off or a frankenstein of Bongo parts. I'm in CT so lets assume a pristine "stealth black" prototype is unlikely to show up in a pawn shop around here. There are no nicks or dings so I'm thinking brand new knock off pretending to be used real deal. But I'm not confident in this judgement. Maybe it's normal for some model years? What does the Talkbass hive mind have to say?
Here is the headstock
View attachment 2901821
and here is the body
View attachment 2901822
Here is where I think something is off:
1) To me the whole headstock looks too long.
2) Stealth Black body but everything else not so much - the paint looks "flat" not glossy but I think (but am not sure) that the "stealth black" comes only with black hardware and this one has chrome tuners, knobs, pup mags and bridge. The neck is black too on Stealth Black builds I think, but not here.
3) Lastly, the logo looks shorter in height and also less long in length than on Bongo 5's I see in stores an on line, such as this one on Musiciansfriend and this one on Sweetwater, where the logo extends from the right edge of the B tuner to the left edge of the D tuner. The logo is what first made me think something was off, as the word "BONGO" looks compressed.
Which leads me to think it's a either knock off or a frankenstein of Bongo parts. I'm in CT so lets assume a pristine "stealth black" prototype is unlikely to show up in a pawn shop around here. There are no nicks or dings so I'm thinking brand new knock off pretending to be used real deal. But I'm not confident in this judgement. Maybe it's normal for some model years? What does the Talkbass hive mind have to say?
