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Lets talk about 'Mint'
- Thread starter mr.mow
- Start date
People are claiming the bass has been played to death to the point of wearing through the neck finish and frets. Let's see clear accurate photos of the front of the bass which will either support this notion or negate it.
I just hope the OP is able to get past all this and start just playing and enjoying his new bass!
Yep, and everything I have in my collection is like mint. I found this great fretboard oil that comes in spearmint and peppermint now everything in my collection is mint! In fact most of my gear has been hardly played (or was that played hardly, I can't remember). I even have basses that I believe to be the first ones ever built. If chose to remove the necks and pickups to reveal assembly dates I'm sure it would confirm my beliefs but I choose not to, I'd hate to disturb the mojo that has built up in the neck and pup pockets over the years. I will note that some of the pots are a little scratchy but overall the bass doesn't leave too many marks on my back when I use it for those hard to reach itches. As for the frets, nearly all of my basses have them and they have years of play left before the bass automatically converts to a much rarer and more valuable fretless version.
I ship world wide. All sales are final, no returns allowed for any reason.
Wait......mint? Or "near" mint?
That fretboard oil is prolly artificially flavored, so I suspect you're "taking liberties".
I have sold 7 or 8 1975 to 1979 p basses since 2012, mostly original, they all had more wear then that but some were close and the most I ever got was $1600 and shipping was taken out of that and it was a very clean A neck rosewood board and black bodied '76 a pretty rare combo. The most I ever cleared was on a '78 I got $1500 cash , this was a month ago and it was very clean, the neck was better looking then that ones, it was under 9 pounds and had a original case.
I could maybe fathom seeing a '75 net $2000 if it was oustanding clean but was also a good player, light weight, had every original piece including any dealer paperwork. In reality though I only see '70-'73's clear $2000.
Im not a dealer so I guess I dont pay attention to those absurd prices but if you want a bass to actually sell then my figures are correct. I sold a '76 last week on here for $1499, I cleared $1425 after shipping. It was very worn but original and no case. So the op's is worth more then that.
I could maybe fathom seeing a '75 net $2000 if it was oustanding clean but was also a good player, light weight, had every original piece including any dealer paperwork. In reality though I only see '70-'73's clear $2000.
Im not a dealer so I guess I dont pay attention to those absurd prices but if you want a bass to actually sell then my figures are correct. I sold a '76 last week on here for $1499, I cleared $1425 after shipping. It was very worn but original and no case. So the op's is worth more then that.
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On a personal note, I have dealt with Mr Mow here in Australia and if he says it's mint, you couldn't find a bass in a better condition in an unopened box. His care for his gear is unbelievable and man can the guy take awesome bass photography.
Anywho, I have run into the issue where my definition of mint varied from others in the past which led to some serious issues from sales.
My opinion of mint is a bass that has no scratches, marks, damage. I ran into trouble when selling a Hollowbody Bass which had no marks, scratches or damage however had the unfashionable pick guard removed and received quite the Forum bash regarding it.
So from experience, I would say mint is the exact condition you would get if the bass was from a shop.
I can understand a dealer selling a bass labelled as Mint which is 40 years old and having some wear though. However, the marks that Mr Mow is showing, I would say that's not mint.
Anywho, I have run into the issue where my definition of mint varied from others in the past which led to some serious issues from sales.
My opinion of mint is a bass that has no scratches, marks, damage. I ran into trouble when selling a Hollowbody Bass which had no marks, scratches or damage however had the unfashionable pick guard removed and received quite the Forum bash regarding it.
So from experience, I would say mint is the exact condition you would get if the bass was from a shop.
I can understand a dealer selling a bass labelled as Mint which is 40 years old and having some wear though. However, the marks that Mr Mow is showing, I would say that's not mint.
What anyone pays for a bass is only important if they expect to recover their costs in an eventual sale. What is more important is how well you like the look, feel and sound of the bass. If its a keeper then resale value shouldn't be a big consideration. I'm glad you were able to work it out with the seller and now have a very nice looking bass that you can play proudly.
As I noted in my prior posts I would have returned it but keep in mind - I didn't buy it, I didn't play it, I didn't pay any import fees for it and I didn't negotiate with the seller for a better deal on it. In other words, I'm not you and my opinion is just that, an opinion. Your opinion is what counts!
So again, very glad to hear you were able to work it out. Now get out there (on a different untainted thread) and post some NBD pics so we can all see some vintage Fender porn!
+1
That is the bottom line, I wrote something similar earlier in the thread.
I've pulled off some amazing purchases in my day, and all told I've probably come out ahead with gear purchases. But I know that feeling of being stung, and it can really spoil the party if you let it. OP has to do like Taylor Swift, shake it off, and rock that amazing bass. Okay, not necessarily like Taylor Swift...
However, and not to beat the dead horse, but I would be intensely curious about the date stamps if it were mine, especially after what the seller tried to pull.
This thread has left a pretty bad taste in my mouth about Talkbass jumping on a negative bandwagon (including a moderator...) and implying sinister intentions, when nobody has held this bass in person...
Same thing happened to me a while back at Gr*hn Guitars. I bought a guitar in very good condition and it was anything but. It looked like it had been left outside during Hurricane Katrina. It sure didn't follow Elderly's grading. I still think that they are one of the premier musical instrument dealers and have a wealth of knowledge. Their grading policy just left me feeling really unimpressed. To be fair, they simply have their own way of grading instruments. I also would add that I really appreciate that Elderly leaves pictures of past sales up for future reference.
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Uh huh, right...
. Is that their subtle way of saying "You don't really want to reduce the value of this bass, do you?"
Uh huh, right...
Yeah, no doubt that portion of the description was for the uninitiated. And I mean no offense to the OP, but he confessed this is his first vintage bass purchase.
It seems almost every eBay auction or vintage Fender thread on TB that I've seen shows the neck off and pickups out to display date stamps.
It doesn't harm or "disturb" the instrument in the least if done with care.
This has helped me more than once. I got a deal on a used Strat, and noticed that the bridge pickup didn't match the others. In the case was the hang tag from Elderly, so I pulled up the old photos (they even photograph each new guitar/bass!). Sure enough, the pickups were mismatched from the factory.
You have to do some careful Googling if it's new, or you can Google the s/n if it's used. Elderly doesn't seem to often pull old descriptions and photos off of their servers.
For example, here's my Strat (you can see the bridge pickup poles are not beveled like the other ones are): [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
Or for a clearer example, first look at this guitar: [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
Pay close attention to the condition.
Now if I Google image-search for "Elderly instruments E273" I get photos that aren't the same. If I view their webpage, they lead me here: [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
This is clearly the same guitar, but in better condition and listed as "no longer available." Looks like the last guy bought it in nice shape, played the snot out of it (but took good care of it), and has recently consigned it again. More importantly, Elderly left the old page on their servers and we can access it.
Sorry if this is too research-y. I am a librarian.
For example, here's my Strat (you can see the bridge pickup poles are not beveled like the other ones are): [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
Or for a clearer example, first look at this guitar: [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
Pay close attention to the condition.
Now if I Google image-search for "Elderly instruments E273" I get photos that aren't the same. If I view their webpage, they lead me here: [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
This is clearly the same guitar, but in better condition and listed as "no longer available." Looks like the last guy bought it in nice shape, played the snot out of it (but took good care of it), and has recently consigned it again. More importantly, Elderly left the old page on their servers and we can access it.
Sorry if this is too research-y. I am a librarian.
Thats great news mate.
It's kinda understandable. I think "mint" when referring to a 40 yo instrument is a different thing to one that's 2 or 5 yo. A true mint vintage instrument is often referred to as "closet queen" or similar. But yeah - a bad word to use by a professional seller. I'm glad they came good.
Despite the fact that I'm sure it's riveting, I can't be bothered. Please give me the Reader's Digest version. Congratulations on your induction into the "Thread Police Force", by the way.
