Russian brand? Not familiar with it, but, if it's a decent maker and known to others, might help resale a smidgen. But it being a Fodera copy will probably be the smallest influence on price, there is simply no equivalency.
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How do I price a custom bass?
- Thread starter Axtman
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Custom requires finding the right buyer because it wasn’t made for someone else. It may be a really sweet bass but it might be difficult to recover the cost.
When you say "custom made with quality parts" do you mean "found a cheap knockoff bass for $100 at a pawnshop?"
The Russian guy/company that makes these knockoff instruments has an active page on what appears to be Russian Facebook.
Of course, there are tons of Chinese crap basses made to look exactly like this one, so you'd have to do some digging to even trace it back to the original builder. Sounds like the pawnshop was where it belonged!
The Russian guy/company that makes these knockoff instruments has an active page on what appears to be Russian Facebook.
Of course, there are tons of Chinese crap basses made to look exactly like this one, so you'd have to do some digging to even trace it back to the original builder. Sounds like the pawnshop was where it belonged!
There are really cheap copies available and that is going to be what everyone thinks this is. You can get the real thing for about $4,500 used. Anything close to that and I'm going to buy the real thing. The other factor is that is a copy, this wouldn't technically be a counterfeit because it doesn't use Fodera's name or Butterfly logo. I couldn't find a trademark claim for the Yin Yang look on the USPTO.gov site, but it's a pretty complex site and it's easy to miss something.
So, it won't be flagged as a counterfeit as long as you don't call it a Fodera-like or attach Victor Wooten's name to it. Now how much is it worth? That's difficult because I couldn't find any comps out there on "Hard Guitars" so, unfortunately if you get an offer from a store it's probably only going to be a few hundred dollars.
So, it won't be flagged as a counterfeit as long as you don't call it a Fodera-like or attach Victor Wooten's name to it. Now how much is it worth? That's difficult because I couldn't find any comps out there on "Hard Guitars" so, unfortunately if you get an offer from a store it's probably only going to be a few hundred dollars.
The thing about custom basses is that, at one time, You had this idea that that would be your dream bass. To do that, you altered a bunch of things from what's popular to your idea of what's ideal. So, you paid a premium to have a one off made. Now, we're at the point where it turns out your were wrong - it's not your ideal bass (if it were, you'd never sell it). So, you have a bass that's been altered from what most people want. You're convinced it's worth more than a production bass, because you paid more. The buyer thinks it's not as good as a production instrument, because odd choices have been made.
Translation: You took a risk; it didn't work out. You're gonna take a bit of a financial bath as a result. The fact that it's a Russian made copy of something else is gonna make it extra painful. There's just no way to spin "Russian copy of a Fodera" to make it seem like a high end bass to a buyer.
Translation: You took a risk; it didn't work out. You're gonna take a bit of a financial bath as a result. The fact that it's a Russian made copy of something else is gonna make it extra painful. There's just no way to spin "Russian copy of a Fodera" to make it seem like a high end bass to a buyer.
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About to find out that paying for the name is 90% of the game
You might find a buyer who will pay for something a little different but you’re going to have to provide a lot more detail on why it’s a quality bass IMHO. What material ? Does it have high quality name brand hardware and electronic? Is there a build sheet? Recently I saw a custom bass go for just under $1000.
Personally I wouldn’t pay more than 300 for a no name copy/paste bass. Maybe slightly more if the parts are quality. But a sucker is born every day, so might as well ask for more. As for a strategy, be honest with yourself and ask yourself how much you would realistically pay for it today.
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I would think the consignment shop would help with the value. They are in the business of moving gear so they are going to want to price it so it actually sells. They also know what their traffic is like and what they are buying / not buying. I recently had interactions with a consignment shop and their main thing was that I needed to be realistic about what I expected to get for my basses. They explained all options to me including Reverb, etc and were pretty straight up about everything. I ended up selling them the basses outright for less than a consignment deal and it worked out OK for me. At face value it seemed like I got clobbered but at the end of the day it was a fair deal for all involved.
Unfortunately for you, anybody that recognizes a Yin-Yan bass also knows that imposters are available online from China for sub-$500. Since yours ISN'T a Fodera, it is an imposter and will be regarded in the same group as the Chinese basses. I know that's not the case but that will be the reaction to it since your builder is publicly an unknown. Get ready for that and consider just keeping it. You will likely be offended by the offers you / the store receives.
Unfortunately for you, anybody that recognizes a Yin-Yan bass also knows that imposters are available online from China for sub-$500. Since yours ISN'T a Fodera, it is an imposter and will be regarded in the same group as the Chinese basses. I know that's not the case but that will be the reaction to it since your builder is publicly an unknown. Get ready for that and consider just keeping it. You will likely be offended by the offers you / the store receives.
Start with the cost of the bass, then it's a judgement call. Age, condition, format, hardware electronics, uniqueness all factor in.
At the end of the day it's a Precision bass.
I have no special insight into this, but my guess is you're going to be lucky to get 50% of the initial cost of this bass.
At the end of the day it's a Precision bass.
I have no special insight into this, but my guess is you're going to be lucky to get 50% of the initial cost of this bass.
Five figures for a Fodera. I'm still trying to come to grips with the idea that so many companies these days are selling Jazz bass copies for $5K plus.
Of course, I remember being in a sunglass shop in St. Thomas in the 90's and saying to the woman behind the counter: "So why would anyone spend 4 times as much for these REVO's when these knockoffs look just like them." Her response was simply: "Try them on."
Needless to say, I left with the REVO's and never regretted it.
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That's probably a good starting point -
You might lose points for not being a REAL Fodera, but gain points for being a custom, one of a kind.
And you can lower it from there if there's no bites.
If you want to get more than 1/3 of what you paid for it (1/2 is wildly optimistic), or more than 1/20 of what the Fodor costs, you'd better list out ALL the specs, show tons of pics, name the luthier, and post a few well-played sound examples. But you'll still probably only get at best 1/3.
The problem is 1/3 of what? I can't find any comps out there for the brand.
Not to be harsh but unless it is a known luthier, it's worth what a no name PJ is worth 
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