Help Evaluating Vintage Fender

[matti777]

I saw that add ($8500 Cdn) and wondered if that was a good price or not as I know nothing about the value of these early P basses. Interesting bass though but without the original pup the value must surely be diminished. The guy has also had a Series 1 Alembic for sale for quite some time. According to the postal code he lives in my neighborhood.

 

[wvbass]

I've never seen anything like the copper ground bars before. Is that, or was it, a thing?

I didn't even notice that! That is definitely not a thing. It looks like the ground wires from a piece of Romex.

 

[PhatBottomBass1]

Quick conversion: CAD 8500 = USD $6700

This is a personal opinion; Don't Do It!

Unless...

Well, I walk into the room
Passing out hundred dollar bills
And it kills and it thrills like the horns on my Silverado grill
And I buy the bar a double round of crown
And everybody's getting down
An' this town ain't never gonna be the same.

Cause I saddle up my horse
And I ride into the city
I make a lot of noise
Cause the girls
They are so pretty
Riding up and down Broadway
On my old stud Leroy
And the girls say
Save a horse, ride a cowboy.
Everybody says
Save a horse, Ride a cowboy

 

[truand85]

Huh?

Apologies, I edited my post to remove the wrong information.

 

[babsobass]

I didn't even notice that! That is definitely not a thing. It looks like the ground wires from a piece of Romex.

Yeah, that is what it looks like. Nice neat job, though, even if it's a little weird and unnecessary.

 

[wvbass]

Apologies, I edited my post to remove the wrong information.

Same. I share your concern regarding those cracks that look to be more than lacquer checking. But, like the possible extra rout under the pickguard, they would be fixable if an issue.

This could be a great restoration project, or a great player, if it checks out and if the price is right. Although, I'm not sure what I mean by "price is right." Even needing work and being not-all-original, these basses fall into the rare/collectible category. Too much for me, but this could be a great find for somebody else.

 

[Honkey tonk]

instrument to play or a less boring Way too store wealth ?

 

[Mike Marshall]

Hi, all -

I’ve got a chance to purchase an early 50s P bass from a city about three hours away and I was hoping some of the experts here could help me evaluate the bass a bit.

The seller says it’s a 54 and definitely has a replacement pick up and pick guard. Apparently it was used by a prominent local musician through the 70s and was modified somewhat at the time. I’m not sure what was modified, but there are clearly some weird holes in the neck and in the upper part of the body.

Thoughts?
View attachment 4534122 View attachment 4534125 View attachment 4534126 View attachment 4534128 View attachment 4534129 View attachment 4534130

It looks as though the body has rounded edges and been refinished or its a repro. The bridge is original the rest of the body and pickguard and pickup are all parts. I bought a 53 precision that had a 70 telecaster bass body. The neck, tuners, bridge, and control plate were original 53. The bass had been put together by Jay Black and the body had a light relic finish. Jay made a Bakelite pickguard. I bought it through Heritage Auctions when they had numerous pieces from the estate of Kurt Linhoff for $2500. This bass you are looking at would be worth parting out the bridges are very hard to find almost impossible. I don't think this bass is worth much.

 

[matti777]

It looks as though the body has rounded edges and been refinished or its a repro. ...

I thought these were available with slab or rounded bodies?

 

[PhatBottomBass1]

1952 Fender Precision Bass

"The P bass pictured this month dates from July of 1952. It shares the characteristics common to basses made between 1951 and 1954. The most prominent of these are a flat, slab ash body like the Telecaster’s with elongated horns for better balance (the body became contoured to match the Stratocaster’s in ’54)" - Premier Guitar

The Bass under consideration has a Slab body and looks to be Ash under the finish, has radiused edges BUT no forearm contouring and other "Strat-style" sculpting ('54 as seller advised the OP) and the decal on the headstock is not in what I would consider to be the period correct location for the date stamp on a heavily worn neck.

What it is not is all original, not a 1954 Fender P Bass, not been expertly appraised to our knowledge, not in exceptional condition, not offering a peek under the pickguard, not priced correctly by any stretch of the imagination and not being offered for sale by a reputable vintage dealer.

Beyond that, I would need this Bass to be in a good shop, on the bench and there with the owner to get the low-down on this "piece of 70's Canadian Rock and Roll history!"

Let the buyer beware...

Good luck!!

 

[dbsfgyd1]

More photos:

View attachment 4534133 View attachment 4534134

If you are looking for a bit of history, a bass to play you enjoy, at the fight price, buy it, If you looking to flip, or sell it in the future for big bucks, that ship has passed. JMO.

 

[littlebun]

The pickup looks newer, as does the cap, and the pots look off. I wouldn't give 4k for it, personally, unless it sounded amazing. With the original pickup it would be something to acquire. As it sits it's only about the original wood.

 

[Honkey tonk]

Even If it is only mostly legitimate? They aren't getting any easier to find

 

[Ric Vice]

When I bought my 1959 Precision, I played a 51 P Bass and a 56 along with the 59. The 51 was a very simple instrument, nice enough but intonation is very touchy and the tone is very bass forward, the reason I picked the 59 was the body contour and the split coil pickup. Just my take of course. I’d want to be very sure that the truss rod is in good order.

 

[Stefan4001]

Hey, all -

I just wanted to provide an update.

First, a huge thank you to everyone who weighed in and helped out. A special thanks to TalkBass user “bflat” who was generous with his time and expertise over the course of countless private messages.

In short: the seller and I were able to come to a deal that we were both happy with and the bass has come home with me!

Over the course of a great deal of investigation, we were able to determine the neck, tuners, bridge and body are almost certainly all legit. There are a handful of small details that don’t pop up on reproductions and we’re unique to this period that give us a high degree of certainty.

The neck is dated 52 and seems to match that period in a handful of ways. The body’s date isn’t visible due to - as many of you suggested - a refinish or two in the bass’s history. We are going to try to remove some of the paint from the neck pocket in hopes of uncovering the truth.

As many of you thought, the body was routed under the pickguard to fit a larger pick up in the 70s. That will be restored.

The pots aren’t original. One dates from ‘58 and was likely an early repair and still features the early cloth wiring. The other is much later and has newer wiring, etc. No luck with dating the body that way.

The plan from here is to collect as many original replacement parts as possible and restore it as best as possible. Hint hint: anyone have anything?!

In the meantime, I’ll probably replace some of the offending bits (the pickguard, lack of tug bar, probably the pick up and those saddles) with new reissue Fender parts and enjoy it during the restoration process.

Thanks again, friends.