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John Wetton Tribute P-Bass Build

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DarkStar90

Guest
Feb 4, 2008
719
793
#1
So, I'm a huge King Crimson fan and my favourite lineups are the ones with John Wetton. That rhythm section was a beast. Anyway, I really dug the P-bass Mr. Wetton was using before he had it refinished, and decided to make one similar in looks. The bass I'm referring to can be seen in this video:



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The specs:

Warmoth Alder Body finished with Tru-Oil
CIJ '62 reissue neck
Pickguardian Pickguard
Fender Original Precision Pickups
Reissue bridge
Flying Saucer Knobs (I can't believe I actually found them)
 
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#4
Awesome!

Just saw Asia 4 times here in Connecticut in the last few years.

Still awesome.

Infinity Hall in Norfolk CT is the collest place, no matter where you sit you its like having the band play in your living room while you sit on the couch!

Wetton and the guys were unbelievable for the Omega tour!!!

Good work!!!
 
#5
Wetton rips!

I gotta still do a little bit of setup on the nut, but afterwards, I'll get a video up. Sounds good, still a little hard to play. Its sounds pretty aggressive, but I haven't heard it through my gigging rig yet.
 
#7
spiritbass said:
I like it. Are you going to call it "The Fire Witch"? Just kidding... The dark board looks very nice. The flying saucer knobs remind me of stove/oven control knobs. You can really turn up the heat, huh? ;)
Click to expand...

Yea man, I looked for them all over the place just for this build to look like Wetton's. I even google searched for "oven" knobs. I ended up finding them at a flea market getting rid of electronic parts. They even fit solid shaft pots.
 
#11
I have this 1970 with '72 neck that was going this way but now I am planning on having JohnK put a nice burst finish on it.

attachment.jpg


That is paint peeking out around the bottom of the control cavity. The body is actually fairly unmolested aside from the strip.

I have another bass in natural but not alder. Now I am second guessing my plans!

Again, that is a real nice job you did there. Thanks for sharing the pics!
 

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#12
9mmMike said:
I have this 1970 with '72 neck that was going this way but now I am planning on having JohnK put a nice burst finish on it.

attachment.jpg


That is paint peeking out around the bottom of the control cavity. The body is actually fairly unmolested aside from the strip.

I have another bass in natural but not alder. Now I am second guessing my plans!

Again, that is a real nice job you did there. Thanks for sharing the pics!
Click to expand...

Nice bass man, JohnK does some serious refinishes as I've seen on this forum. I'm sure whatever you choose will be cool.
 
#18
Yup, that is indeed my video. The bass in question was used during Wetton's entire tenure with Crimson, but it was refinished in 1974, from what I gather, to a pickguard-less white finish with a metal plate over the controls. It was the colour scheme I attempted to copy from 72-73 era Crimson. Also, I believe Wetton himself mentioned that it was a 1961 P-bass that he bought quite cheaply from a pawn shop (don't quote me on that, i'm not exactly sure)
 

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