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Pat Wilkins Club

#41
Arcane are very high quality . Everyone I have ever heard was outstanding . Better known for their gitfiddle pickups they also have several bass pups in their productions . Another excellent S. Cal company and not surprised at all Pat uses them . Pat is very good at sourcing very high quality local guys for parts and supplies it's like a commune of artists that help each other , I don't think he lives in the shop though but he is always there :D
 
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#42
I have posted a picture or 2 of my Wilkins bass. i want to get a new one i'am not a jazz Bass fan I'am either going to get one with dual split coils or the one he has P/J configuration with j pick up being position closer to the split coils. This Wilkins jazz is pat at his best he was starting out he only made 10 for Namm 92 and sold all 10 for 3.850. it is very high quality and it is very comfortable. It has 1.6 nut slightly wider then the normal jazz. it has Bartolimi pre amp and single coil active. It sounds much better then any Fender jazz i ever heard. Ebony fret board and you know he will make like new again once i get it back. I would even look to trade for a Wilkins Music Man Stingray Stealth or nice color HH fender nos Custom Shop.you can call him and confirm it with him.
 
#43
diamondsplit said:
Pat is a real nice guy I have a 1992 Wilkins Namm show bass he is doing some little odds and ends on it. He seems real happy to see it he made 10 that year and sold them out at a price of 3,850. This bass is a top notch bass Pat is well known in refinishing and building and i have played some high end boutique basses and this is tops. He told me he put a lot of time and effort in this bass and you can see he went above and beyond it is my best bass. It will be super sweet and special once he is done
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this is the bass i'am looking to possibly sell or trade for this a special bass. pat will confirm everything I mentioned. This bass has a 1.6 nut vs 1.5 on standard jazz i know when he sends it back it will be like new. I know he put a lot of thought and time into it. i owned mike lull bass custom Shop Fender and this is the best built out of them all. i just want a newer p style or something different. I'am open top other basses like music Man Stingray Classic El Darado Gold Stealth HH or an older fender Elite !! p bass Wilkins RD test nice color combo possibly p/j configuration. It actually comes with its original case
 
#44
Anybody have any experience with the Roadtested basses? I am loving my VRB P/J more and more each day and its growly tone, but would love to get a Roadtested P with a roasted J neck someday for that traditional all passive thump. Here are some videos of the roadtested basses on the tube:





Bonus Phil Chen Content!
 
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#45
dinodino said:
Anybody have any experience with the Roadtested basses? I am loving my VRB P/J more and more each day and its growly tone, but would love to get a Roadtested P with a roasted J neck someday for that traditional all passive thump. Here are some videos of the roadtested basses on the tube:
Click to expand...
My Shoreline bass pictured earlier in this thread is a Roasted, Roadtested PJ5. It is usually strung with flats and I love it.
 
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#47
dinodino said:
The neck on that bass looks PHENOMENAL. Shoreline Gold and P/J on top of it... you may actually own my dream bass drool
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Pat has a rack of my dream basses at his shop, I am just lucky enough to own 2 of them already. The neck is indeed phenomenal, and looks cool too. Everyone has their tastes, but hands down it is the most comfortable, natural feeling neck I have ever held. Did I mention in the last 10 seconds that it also weighs less than 8 pounds yet is still perfectly balanced?:thumbsup:
 
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#48
dinodino said:
Anybody have any experience with the Roadtested basses? I am loving my VRB P/J more and more each day and its growly tone, but would love to get a Roadtested P with a roasted J neck someday for that traditional all passive thump. Here are some videos of the roadtested basses on the tube:





Bonus Phil Chen Content!
Click to expand...

I has one of those
IMG_1064.gif


sounds like
 
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#49
dinodino said:
Hi All,
I've seen a lot of small threads here and there about Pat's handiwork, whether it be his refinishes or custom basses. I wanted one place where we can all show off our beautiful basses! I have no idea why Pat's customs fly under the radar, but here is my submission!

Early VRB in a reverse PJ configuration with a heavily figured Birdseye neck. It's also chambered and comes in under 8.2 lbs! Lightweight but sounds massive! I might send it in for a refin for a metallic color soon once I decide what I want. I'm excited to see your custom Wilkins and refinishes and give Pat the props he deserves!
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What a good idea. Last October I posted my glowing account of the first refinish that Pat did for me, the body of my 1973 Fender Precision Bass as P/J. By chance I was playing that bass today. It looks great in changing daylight. And of course the body finish doesn't melt onto my clothes anymore. :D

Speaking of daylight, though I have yet to correctly capture this finish in photos, here are ones that are a bit better than those in my earlier post. My thanks go to Pat once more: Thank you, Pat!

1.jpg

2.jpg
 
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#50
dinodino said:
Hi All,
I've seen a lot of small threads here and there about Pat's handiwork, whether it be his refinishes or custom basses. I wanted one place where we can all show off our beautiful basses! I have no idea why Pat's customs fly under the radar, but here is my submission!

Early VRB in a reverse PJ configuration with a heavily figured Birdseye neck. It's also chambered and comes in under 8.2 lbs! Lightweight but sounds massive! I might send it in for a refin for a metallic color soon once I decide what I want. I'm excited to see your custom Wilkins and refinishes and give Pat the props he deserves!

View attachment 866419 View attachment 866420 View attachment 866421 View attachment 866398
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I just got of the phone with Pat 5 minutes ago he thinks.this one of the 8 1992 Namm Show basses he sold. i have one that's 2 John Mellencamp's bass player bought 2 of them which were stolen and i'am wondering if he is right
 
#54
9mmMike said:
Here a couple pics of a body that Pat did for me a few years ago in vintage oly white.
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Very soon I'm going to have Pat paint a bass uke mod I'm doing Olympic white because I like how well it matches a tortoise pickguard (the white is not quite right in my mock up).

Jaguarlele mod w SB 700.jpg
 
#55
I have done business with Pat many times over the last 5 to 10 years and it's always been a pleasure. The quality of his work is outstanding and he's just a great "down to earth" kind of guy.

A few years back I bought this amazingly beautiful Wilkins VRB5 that he built for the 2012 Winter NAMM show. It now sports an Aguilar OBP-3 preamp, a pair of Reed James Neo pickups and custom made Mango knobs that match the top. It's been my first call 5 string since I got it and I doubt it will be replaced any time soon.

Here is a short video where he talks about my bass:



And here are some photos:

custom knobs 2.jpg
custom knobs 3.jpg
custom knobs 4.jpg
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#57
swpyne said:
I have done business with Pat many times over the last 5 to 10 years and it's always been a pleasure. The quality of his work is outstanding and he's just a great "down to earth" kind of guy.

A few years back I bought this amazingly beautiful Wilkins VRB5 that he built for the 2012 Winter NAMM show. It now sports an Aguilar OBP-3 preamp, a pair of Reed James Neo pickups and custom made Mango knobs that match the top. It's been my first call 5 string since I got it and I doubt it will be replaced any time soon.
Click to expand...

So glad to see you still have that one!
 
#60
FYI: We just got word that Pat lost his son a day or so ago. A tough difficult situation that I won't go into here. So, if any of you are trying desperately to reach him about a bass or a paint job, please give him a break. Pat's a good strong man, but this is a hard time for him. I've known him for 20+ years.
 
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