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Highway 1 or Highway One
- Thread starter rudy2010
- Start date
What is the difference between the Highway 1 with the Fender Vintage Sytle - 4 style bridge and the
Highway One with the badass bridge?
Which is better bridge?
AFAIK, the Highway One w/ the BA II bridge also have the powerflex rods in the neck - that was a major selling point for me... To me, no rods equals MIM, regardless of the label on the headstock...
- georgestrings
- Oct 7, 2000
- 18,619
- 38,939
- Disclosures
- Endorsing artist: Musicman basses
The highway one is supposedly an upgrade. A lot of people put badass bridges on their fenders. Whichever one you like better, is better. 
as far as the bridge goes it is really a matter of personal preference. I had one with the vintage style bridges. Other differences are color choice. 70's logo on the newer ones. If i remember correctly the early highway one basses had a finish that was just described as lacquer.( I don't know if they were nitro) The ones with the BA bridge have a nitro. The basses with the BA bridge have a graphite reinforced neck and the older ones do not. Other than those few things I don't think they are very different. I certainly miss mine though I like my american standard better. Based on they ones I played I like the vintage bridge better but thats just me. I just don't see the problem with them and why people replace them but a lot of people like the badass II.
Yeah, I definitely dig my '06 Highway One P Bass - IMO, it's as good as any P Bass out there... Also, I feel that removing the greasebucket circuit and installing a standard capacitor made an improvement over the OEM circuit...
- georgestrings
... actually, the bodies are different, the finish is different, pick-ups are different, tone circuitry is different, bridge is different from Hwy 1 to MIM Standard ... etc .
what is the same on MIM Standard and Hwy 1 are the tuners (and Hwy One also), and the truss rod adjusts at the headstock instead of the heel ...
FWIW, the earliest Hwy 1's were selling under $500 when new, used for $3-400 (I just saw a used 05 Hwy 1 sell for $650 on Ebay, thats more than it was new) ... BTW, the very first Hwy 1's, also did not use Greasebucket circuitry ...
yeah i have been noticing that people are asking rediculous prices for the old highway ones on ebay... the ones they had up two days ago were more money than a brand new one...we're talking like 800 to 1000 dollars
Woah, I didn't even know that there was a difference between Highway ONE and Highway 1! So I'm guessing the Highway One's are the older model? Does this also apply to their electric guitars?
... thats because a VAST majority of the people dont understand the difference, in fact the majority of those WITH basses from the Highway Series do NOT know the differences, they just see the prices going up, and figure what they have is the same thing ... I saw the same basses you were seeing, and yes, I just grimaced to see people paying almost TWICE the new (street) price for very basic instruments, thinking that they are all the same as the 'upgraded' ...
... the Highway 1 (number) is the original series, from 2003 to the 'upgrade' change which took place DURING the 2006 model year .. you will find Hwy's with a 2006 serial # that are either way (earliest were 1's) ... after that 2006 'upgrade', all basses are referred to as Highway ONE (word) ...
... it has become so distorted, seeing all the ads, posts, and discussions with errant usage of the terms, that I just chuckle and have pretty much made it a personal thing that whenever I see it screwed up, I mention the correction ... some may not take it cordially, but I certainly mean no disrespect, and there are several that have actually thanked me for the clarification, as it saved them some money, or at the very least helped their understanding ... so, when I see it mis-used, I say something ... I must have 20-30 posts made on here clarifying ... and I am sure there will be more ... JMHO
Edit to add for touji: sorry, I dont follow the guitars ... I have enough trouble keeping up with Fender's basses ...
thats what I was talking about the headstock truss adjustment , lack of graphite rods lack of grease bucket on the very early hwy 1's gloss finish (different paint) , is what IMHO makes it similar to a mexi , btw I have a hwy one neck from '03 on a parts bass and its great so dont want to confuse the OP anymore and say the early ones are no good , but it is very confusing navigating the highway one , and highway 1 line , now with the addition of the american specials it should make things less confusing for everyone looking for basses
what drives me insane about all the 2000's- fenders, (and it may even be the 90s im not sure) are the tuning keys. i just dont like them compared to the older ones of the the seventies. They just seem cheap to me. how do you guys feel about it? can anyone maybe explain to me why, or pluses regarding the newer keys?
btw i bought a highway one honeyblonde nitro finished body and replaced the body on my brand new fender jazz with it and i love it! it feels good and looks good
btw i bought a highway one honeyblonde nitro finished body and replaced the body on my brand new fender jazz with it and i love it! it feels good and looks good
thats what I was talking about the headstock truss adjustment , lack of graphite rods lack of grease bucket on the very early hwy 1's gloss finish (different paint) , is what IMHO makes it similar to a mexi , btw I have a hwy one neck from '03 on a parts bass and its great so dont want to confuse the OP anymore and say the early ones are no good , but it is very confusing navigating the highway one , and highway 1 line , now with the addition of the american specials it should make things less confusing for everyone looking for basses
... Just for clarification, my point was just the opposite of yours ... there is a lot more NOT like the MIM Standards, than LIKE the MIM Standards ... and, the very short time that the early Hwy 1's were without the Greasebucket circuitry was so short that it is not indicitive of the entire Hwy 1 run, and the paint was not different, the finish was, as one was laquer and one poly ...
and most importantly, I think my earlier post should make the whole deal very UNconfusing for the OP, and if it was taken that I implied that the earlier series, the Highway 1 (number) was 'no good', the implication was taken incorrectly ... I actually prefer the earlier (Hwy 1), but at the price point it was at in '04 ... and yes, I have owned both ... but for the current price of the Hwy One series, they are dangerously close to the American Standards, which IMHO are a superior instrument that justifies the price difference (with case, etc), especially when they are showing up a year or two old, for the price of a new Hwy One ...
... we can agree to disagree, its ok ... but saying any Hwy Series is like a MIM Standard, is like saying a CV or VM Squier is like a Squier Standard ... and yes, every bass needs to be taken case by case, because each bass is different ... some lines just seem to run more consistent ... and MIM Standards are not one of them, whereas every Highway Series have been quite consistent ... JMHO
