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Just purchased a 1961 Jazz Bass

#22
I'm certainly no Fender expert by any means, but I am holding a '62 Fender Jazz in my lap as I type. Everything in the posted pictures looks identical to my bass, except that mine has been refinished. The knobs are exactly like mine, the pick guard is dead on, so is the decal, the slab board, in short, everything that I can see. You may have won the lottery, or the base you receive may not be the bass in the pictures.
 
#23
I've had '61(See Avatar)refin since '83. Most '61's are stack-knob, but the late '61's had VVT. The slab board puts it at pre-64. If it is real, and that is hard to tell by the picture, the neck alone could be worth $2000. It looks good from the pictures, but there are so many fakes out now it's hard to tell without hands on time. I wish you the best of luck, it is possible you just got an inexperienced seller, but be very careful, and have it checked by a pro as soon as you get it.
 
#28
The serial number is accurate for a 1961 but in my opinion, the bass is a fake. The wear doesn't look natural and is much too aggressive in some areas, especially the back of the body. Looks as if it was done with tools.

There is very little wear in the neck and fretboard. If the bass had been played as much as the body looks to have been, there would be much more wear and discoloration on the neck and fretboard.

Another red flag for me is the logo on the headstock. The area around the sticker is a different color than the rest of the headstock. It looks like the original sticker was removed and replaced with a vintage looking replica.
 
#29
Weird wear patterns. Look forced of embellished. If the bass is that worn, you should see a little wood from the thumb rest. and there doesn't seem to be enough ware on the pickguard near the worn area. Maybe, I'm just being too picky with your $$$$
 
#31
You might have won the bass lottery. He has over 40,000 feedbacks and 1000$ auctions.
It could be the 10 or more is his standard format, that many auctions, your not listing them one by one.
Keep us updated.
I would like to see the original case.
 
#32
Rockmusician said:
The serial number is accurate for a 1961 but in my opinion, the bass is a fake. The wear doesn't look natural and is much too aggressive in some areas, especially the back of the body. Looks as if it was done with tools.

There is very little wear in the neck and fretboard. If the bass had been played as much as the body looks to have been, there would be much more wear and discoloration on the neck and fretboard.

Another red flag for me is the logo on the headstock. The area around the sticker is a different color than the rest of the headstock. It looks like the original sticker was removed and replaced with a vintage looking replica.
Click to expand...

I noticed the lighter logo color too, after my first post, and I agree that it looks a little strange. The position of the logo is also different from my bass. Mine is further from the nut. The nut on the Ebay bass also looks like a replacement. It looks thicker and much whiter than mine. Other than these small details, everything else about the bass looks good. However, I also noticed that he has also already sold one, acording to Ebay, but the auction is still open. Someting ain't right.
 
#40
capnjim said:
Wow..thats quite the elaborate scam. Does that mean all his other auctions and whole profile are a fake for this one item?
Click to expand...

The account selling the Jazz bass has been hacked. Someone figured out his password and is posting items on his page. Since he has excellent feedback, people will trust the auction.
You see how he is saying to contact him at a Yahoo mail account? That is so he can ask you to send him payment directly and not through Paypal or ebay. I am surprised he didn't mention that in the listing. I've seen a lot of these and they all have a very similar description.
I've already reported it to eBay.
 

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