I play my first vintage Fender tonight.....

The bass is a '68 jazz bass in sunburst with what I was told was a '71 neck, blocked and bound in rosewood. My local GC has it for sale. The sales associate which I've been dealing with lately encouraged me to take it for a test drive, me being a bit of a Fender fanboy I was delighted by the opportunity.

The tone was a knockout, exactly what I expected a vintage jazz to sound like.

The appearance was an authentically worn instrument, no contrived factory distressing. Dents, dings, scratches, and a cracked finish. The back of the neck and headstock were nicely tanned.

The playability left much to be desired though. However this aspect relies heavily on setup. I must have been so overwhelmed by the mojo of the bass that failed to do what I do to every other bass I play which is site the relief of the neck. The frets felt wrong and the bass was strung with steel rounds, I would've loved to have played it strung with flats.

All in all I'd say that the bass didn't play great, it was a great experience to play it.