Help me date my Greco EB-3

[P Cheen]

Hey all, I recently bought an old beat-up Japanese Greco EB-3, which I assume is from the lawsuit era. It's been converted into a fretless and the bridge is no longer stock. Other than those, I think the bass is relatively stock. I was hoping if some experts from here can help me date this baby. I got it for a mere 5,500 Philippine pesos (around 130 American).
It has no serial numbers anywhere; and

its logo doesn't look like "Gneco."

 

[bholder]

I can't help, but that bridge is likely quite an improvement, I'm guessing.

 

[Musky]

Fuji Gen started adding serial numbers in '75 if I remember correctly, so it's before that. That also ties in with the bridge pickup, which was used in all manner of Fuji Gens from the early to mid 70s.

 

[Thornton Davis]

The last Greco bass I owned had the serial number located on the back of the headstock. The first two digits in it are the year of manufacture.

TD

 

[P Cheen]

Fuji Gen started adding serial numbers in '75 if I remember correctly, so it's before that. That also ties in with the bridge pickup, which was used in all manner of Fuji Gens from the early to mid 70s.

Saw this off jvguitars(dot)com and I based some hypotheses on these statements. You really think it's pre-75? But the logo doesn't look like the "Gneco" they're talking about. Of course I can be wrong. Haha!

 

[Musky]

Saw this off jvguitars(dot)com and I based some hypotheses on these statements. You really think it's pre-75? But the logo doesn't look like the "Gneco" they're talking about. Of course I can be wrong. Haha! View attachment 591453

I really don't know, but the neck plate with 'made in Japan' stamped a third of the way up is consistent with Fuji Gen builds prior to 1975. Perhaps yours was built in 75 and had the mixture of Greco logo and the older neck plate, or it was built later and they found one of the no serial plates which went on there.

You could always check the pickups for a serial - I think on Maxxons the second digit was the year. You'll then know that it couldn't have been made before that date.

 

[Basshappi]

I can't help with any date info but I just wanted to say congrats on aquiring a cool bass!
Be sure to post it in the SG & EB bass club thread.

 

[P Cheen]

I really don't know, but the neck plate with 'made in Japan' stamped a third of the way up is consistent with Fuji Gen builds prior to 1975. Perhaps yours was built in 75 and had the mixture of Greco logo and the older neck plate, or it was built later and they found one of the no serial plates which went on there.

You could always check the pickups for a serial - I think on Maxxons the second digit was the year. You'll then know that it couldn't have been made before that date.

I FOUND THIS A FEW HOURS AGO from an obscure Russian buy-and-sell website. It's EXACTLY what my bass looks like. No serial number, bolt-on neck with the same neckplate, even the Greco logo and tuners are consistent. I don't speak Russian but I can read Cyrillic and it says the model is 1970-ish (exact year unspecified) and they labeled it as an EB-420. But I'll do your advice and check pickup serial numbers.

 

[P Cheen]

I can't help with any date info but I just wanted to say congrats on aquiring a cool bass!
Be sure to post it in the SG & EB bass club thread.

Thanks, man! Yeah already expressed my interest in joining the SG & EB bass club. Lovin' this bass, definitely. Although I can't believe I'm gonna play rock with a fretless and flatwound-equipped beaut. Haha!

 

[Musky]

Yeah, you'll find the exact model number reflects the price in Yen so this would have cost 42,000 back in the day. A few years earlier it was the EB-350 and by '77 it was the EB-500!

 

[Reynoldbot]

Take the Greco out to a nice restaurant, be a good listener, don't talk about yourself too much, and go on a nice walk through a pretty part of town.

 

[Basshappi]

Oh I don't know, many of the EB's I've known like to be treated kinda rough!

 

[Marcelo Bertozzo]

Hello everybody. I found this Greco bass and I wonder if you can help me find out more details about it. It seems to me that the decal was changed (the owner wanted to put "Fender" on it), they told me that before was "Greco Electric Bass". I think they changed the tuners, pickguard and knobs as well. What do you think?

 

[otep82]

SAME ISSUE BRO NO SN: AND IT ALSO SAYS GNECO