I wish I had all my old really EXPENSIVE guitars/basses back ! 1964 Tele thinline maybe $12k now just to name one.
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Pre CBS '63' P Bass Help
- Thread starter ChetChetney
- Start date
Actually I sold the ‘63 several years later for about double what I paid for it. I didn’t keep it because it wasn’t an especially great one. I did get a similar deal in the mid ‘90’s on the ‘64 Jazz that I still own, and that was a case of always keeping an eye out.
Not trying to rip you here. (really) But I'm curious..... How accomplished a player are you? I know a good number of guys who are older, have a lot of excess funds laying around and are mediocre at best as musicians. They couldn't tell the difference between a new (aged) Mexican bass and the real thing. More of owning a trophy bass. I have a friend who buys ridiculously expensive wines but cant really tell the difference between a bottle of 2 Buck Chuck, and a really special wine. I'd rather have a newer bass that plays and sounds amazing than a bass just because it's old. Again.. No judgment, just curious.
You can try and rip me all you want. Have played for 24 years since I was 12 - and studied hard. I’d say I’m a very good amateur bass player. It’s been a fun journey
Yeah, but that's in Canadian pesos, so it's more like $5500. Still, a beat to
'60's Fender isn't worth as much as a killer Squier to a player. What good is it if you can't use it? The refin in the OP looks great. Clean, clay dots, everything in order except for the finish (which is beautiful in itself). $8775 seems like a lot of money for a refin, but if it the holy grail P in this kind of shape and you have the scratch... The return policy is a bit of a stonewall, though. Who else out there is going to pay that much if you choose to flip it? In all fairness to the seller, you can't blame any surprises on blurry pics. These are the best pics of an instrument for sale that I've seen in a looooong time. Good for them. The '65 burst P is $400 less and is original. Did you consider that one?
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I like to be able to play them and take them apart, and the local seller left it with me to play and check out. My '63 is a refin, that I thought I would reshoot at some time in the future, but for now just buffed it up and play it. It had the original pick guard which had gotten all gnarly....
The neck was right (feels amazing), frets original (took one more dressing, now it's super smooth), the pots were right, pick ups original with the sponge turned to goo....one piece body and the assembled bass comes in at 8lbs 2 oz.....wonderfully balanced.
She feels like an old friend, perfect for composing. Maybe you can telepathically transport yourself to get up close and personal and vibe it out. Good luck and happy hunting. 
The neck was right (feels amazing), frets original (took one more dressing, now it's super smooth), the pots were right, pick ups original with the sponge turned to goo....one piece body and the assembled bass comes in at 8lbs 2 oz.....wonderfully balanced.
She feels like an old friend, perfect for composing. Maybe you can telepathically transport yourself to get up close and personal and vibe it out. Good luck and happy hunting.
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There is no way I would spend that much money on just about anything without flying there to see it before the purchase.
Spending $800 on air fare to avoid making an $8000 mistake makes logical and mathematical sense.
I understand the aesthetic appeal, but I have a 1963 P that my parents bought for me in 1967. It's also a refin and I had to replace the neck in 1972. Aside from that it's original down to the screws.
And I can't say it sounds any better than another 4 or 5 basses I own. However, my parents have passed and it's a keeper for me.
Even so, I don't think the price is rational. Too high.
Spending $800 on air fare to avoid making an $8000 mistake makes logical and mathematical sense.
I understand the aesthetic appeal, but I have a 1963 P that my parents bought for me in 1967. It's also a refin and I had to replace the neck in 1972. Aside from that it's original down to the screws.
And I can't say it sounds any better than another 4 or 5 basses I own. However, my parents have passed and it's a keeper for me.
Even so, I don't think the price is rational. Too high.
Refinish is fine, it doesn’t really hurt value that much unless it’s an extreme rarity, 63s fall into that category. I’ve see. 63 refinishes go for 6 or 7k. Try to talk him down a little. Other than that I think you should do it cause those pots and electronics are original! But as said earlier if you got 8gs to throw at this bass go check it out in person if it’s safe to, just cause age can do stuff to how the neck heel meets the body over time, and a refinish can change that a lot too, and a clever seller who is trying to fool someone can just loosen up the strings to make the action look normal(not likely here though I think). Especially if the service you’re buying it through has no guarantees
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Which means that even if it turns out to be a fake (I don't think the neck but the body and the pickup could not be original) you COULD NOT RETURN IT
love that store, those guys will let you play anything there too, was so cool to see and play a cliff Williams bass in person there, and a working ampeg devil
Bought almost all my basses without being able to play them before the purchase, including some mighty fine axes like my Wal MK1. Which is a keeper, like some others. Going this way makes it important, at least for me, to get nice deals when purchasing, as re-sale value might be something to consider more often. $8K for a refin & refret 63 Precision ? Honestly i don't know as it's a player bass, and players market.
Made recently an exception to my online purchase habits. Just traded my close to original (except 2 vol pots and some wires) oct 1965 jazz bass with this 1963 Precision (and some cash my way, $2.8K or so). Think it's a fair deal. The 1963 is refin and (medium-jumbo) refretted. Refin is from the 70s, not full-nitro but aged beautifully, looks legit/consistent imo. Neck is stiff, trussrod has almost no effort to do, pickups and electronics are original, as the rest of the bass (minus pickup screws), low action, and best Pbass i ever played - and i played quite a few.
Long story short i'm super-happy, the guy i traded with is super happy. Would i've'd sealed the deal if purchased online ? It's former owner drove almost 500 miles to make the deal happen, so i think it was pretty clear for me and him we'd trade our bass if there was no major issue with them. What surprised me though is how amazing this 1963 Precision is. Nice surprises are the best ones for sure !
Made recently an exception to my online purchase habits. Just traded my close to original (except 2 vol pots and some wires) oct 1965 jazz bass with this 1963 Precision (and some cash my way, $2.8K or so). Think it's a fair deal. The 1963 is refin and (medium-jumbo) refretted. Refin is from the 70s, not full-nitro but aged beautifully, looks legit/consistent imo. Neck is stiff, trussrod has almost no effort to do, pickups and electronics are original, as the rest of the bass (minus pickup screws), low action, and best Pbass i ever played - and i played quite a few.
Long story short i'm super-happy, the guy i traded with is super happy. Would i've'd sealed the deal if purchased online ? It's former owner drove almost 500 miles to make the deal happen, so i think it was pretty clear for me and him we'd trade our bass if there was no major issue with them. What surprised me though is how amazing this 1963 Precision is. Nice surprises are the best ones for sure !
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Indeed, you might have seen this one popping up a few weeks ago on a 2nd-hand instruments French website ?
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No actually, I’m not on the hunt for that sort of big game. I sold my AVRI ‘62 P a few months back just because I only play five-strings now. I had owned it for 10 years and, because it’s a faithful copy of a vintage instrument, I could get some good feelings while being closer to the real thing.
Besides I got a 2017 G&L JB-5 last month and also travelled one full day to test it in hands… very happy, worth spending an extra 10% and being sure.
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Nope. Typical pre CBS “bump” on the lower cutaway. Genuine. Nobody copied that detail.
Pot codes check out. Neck date.
It’s real.
