Roadworn Basses Opinions

[fuzzychaos]

I like the DIY approach… like setting it on fire and stuff.

Cool. You should do that, set all your basses on fire and stuff...

 

[noeinstein]

Does Fender make a P or J bass like the RW's, but that is not reliced? (Forgive me if this has been asked and answered)

 

[Mudfuzz]

Cool. You should do that, set all your basses on fire and stuff...

that would take too long do correctly, but I'll do any or your's for a good price.

 

[fuzzychaos]

that would take too long do correctly, but I'll do any or your's for a good price.

That's awfully nice of you, but I don't want to waste your time.

Larry Hartke already did it though...http://www.talkbass.com/threads/larry-hartkes-2010-precision-bass-refinish.697824/

 

[Mudfuzz]

I know I saw that and though it was cool.
I'm building strat similar…

difference is I started with fire before the finish went on

 

[hands5]

I think a musical instrument should earn its own stripes.

If you want the bass to feel worn in, take it to a master luthier.

Get the neck professionally dressed and have the sticky glossy finish on the back of the neck buffed lighting fast with 3000 grit wet or dry paper and mineral spirits.

A professional setup might cost you $80.00 which is considerably less expensive than paying for custom shop upgrades.

So what is the difference of a Master luthier doing what Fender has already done as pretaining to the RW P&J basses ?.

 

[Hues]

Memo:
Idea for relicing;...Put the instrument in some container with a bunch of termites for a few months.

Note to self:..Might be best to just do it to the body.Not the neck.

 

[stonewall]

I have a 2010 Fender CS 64 Closet Classic Jazz Relic.It was made to look as if it has been played casually and kept in a case as if it were a real 64.The tones are fabulous. As i understand things the woman who originally wound pickups in the 60,s for Fender still winds to this day and wound the pickups on this bass.I have never played a better bass....Good Luck

 

[OutToPlayJazz]

Whatever you think of the relicing process, yes the RoadWorn basses are excellent. More than anything it's the Nitro Cellulose finish that gives the bass that Classic sound, as well as the pickup placement in the 60's configuration (in the case of the Jazz, anyway.)

 

[cnltb]

I've heard some good ones but would never buy a new bass that just looks old/road worn.
I want the look to reflect my own journey with any specific bass rather the actions of some guy with power tools.

So to me it#s a no no.
.

 

[Tbone76]

Does Fender make a P or J bass like the RW's, but that is not reliced? (Forgive me if this has been asked and answered)

The Fender Classic Series Lacquer basses are as close as you'll find. Comes in P and J models. Another TB'er A/B'd them, and preferred the Road Worn.

 

[noeinstein]

The Fender Classic Series Lacquer basses are as close as you'll find. Comes in P and J models. Another TB'er A/B'd them, and preferred the Road Worn.

Gracias, Tbone... would love to A/B 'em myself, but music store inventory seems pretty hit & miss anymore (I don't live near LA or NYC).

 

[SwitchGear]

I played my RW j for a couple of days and it sure felt like home, after I bought it brand new. Nice and smooth. Like it has been played forever. Then I realized it was basically new out of the box and it took a little time to wrap my head around that thought.

Fender does a good job making the RW's feel like they have some serious playing time logged in. Great tone, playability and light also - 8.4 lbs.

 

[noeinstein]

I traded a RW P for a RW J because I found the neck on the P too big (fat? chunky? baseball bat-ish?). I love the J and wouldn't trade it, but I might've made my move too soon with the P... maybe should have kept it around a little longer... it's always something.

 

[Tbone76]

Gracias, Tbone... would love to A/B 'em myself, but music store inventory seems pretty hit & miss anymore (I don't live near LA or NYC).

No problem. I hear you about shop stock, too. I had a RW Jazz in fiesta red a few years ago and loved it, FWIW. it was a solid, great sounding bass. I bought it before really learning how to set my basses up, and the neck went way out of whack. I traded it in after a tech made sure the neck wasn't damaged. He got the action right back down where it was supposed to be and had me play it again (to make sure I still wanted to trade), but by then GAS took hold and I traded it on. Now I wish I hadn't!

 

[ROOTSnFIFTHS]

I have one and it's amazing! Just played a gig with it, got a lot of comments on sound and look. Usually after a long let my left hand get tired, but somehow this very wide and thin neck just sits in my hand like no other. And it plays like a butter. I really underestimated a "feel" of an instrument until I played Fender CS Relic. RWs are as close to vintage/CS Relic as you could get on budget. And were talking almost 5-time price difference here! Now I seriously want a RW Jazz, because my P feels, plays and sounds so good!

Agree on that RW P neck. I am used to Jazz necks and that worn in thin, fron to back Precision neck feels awesome. I own 2 RW Jazz, 1 RW P, a franken-Jazz with RW body and am building a P with a RW P body at the moment.
....Sold my AVRI Jazz because the Road Worn, to me, smoked it. These basses feel and sound close to actual 'vintage' basses I have played/owned.

 

[Jim Carr]

it's pretentious.

"look how cool i seem with this purposely-damaged thing i paid 20% more than the RRP for. look how experienced i appear despite me paying a craftsman extra for it."

...and can you disagree?

Oh Philip, you must be a very young person. I am 64 and have played bass since 1963. I can assure you that "Look how cool I seem" has always been the Sine Qua Non of all popular music.

Does the audience pay attention to the dings on your bass?
Dare I lift from an old post of mine for the answer? Oh why not!

"Never had anyone from the audience comment on my instrument, unless they were a bassist.
In which case, the conversation goes like this:

Patron: Is that an XYZ? It sounds great.
Me: Yes, it was built in ABCD. Thanks.
Patron: Cool, I have a LMNOP, which rules for playing ZED.
Me: Great.
Patron: My rig's a big ol' QRST, it kills.
Me: Nice.

Much more likely is this:

Female Patron: How did you get such great hair?
Me: I picked the right Scottish grandmothers.
Female Patron: Oh. Ha Ha...
Me: Thanks for the compliment. Is the band too loud?
Female Patron: No, I love it. Do you play "Size Matters," by little ol' Joe Nichols?
Me: No, sorry, we are doing pretty much all originals. Did you get our CD?...

...Absolutely no one but other bass players care about what my bass looks like."

However, there is no doubt that an attractive COOL looking front person is an asset, regardless of age, gender, lavishness of costume, or vintage/condition of instrument.

 

[Jim Carr]

What is your opinion of these basses? Not sure if I even heard one. They look so vintage yet not sure if they replicate the tone nor the feel. Went to a few stores yet never seen one available to try. The P bass caught my interest, but would like to hear a few opinions.

I have a high opinion of the RW Jazzes and P-basses. For the money, it is as close as you can get to vintage Fender sound and feel. The finish enrages a certain segment of the Talkbass community, as you may have noticed.

I was one of the first to report in detail here on Talkbass about playing a half-dozen or so road worn Jazzes and P-basses when they first appeared in local Fender dealers shops—in this case Willcutt guitars in Lexington and Richmond, Kentucky.

Here is a link to that review: http://www.talkbass.com/threads/show-us-your-road-worn-fender-basses.530883/page-9#post-7245513

I have since owned two Road Worn Jazzes, and still have them. They both get played, though my CS Jazz early '60s Relic is my favorite of my 3 Jazzes. One RW Jazz (pictured below) is now in Hawaii, and gets used for a couple of months every year. It had been my #1 passive Jazz for 2 years in Texas, replacing a '60s classic I had, which I sold for $550 with Lindy Fralin single-coils and a BA ll bridge (that kid got a great deal). When I stumbled upon a 2008 RW Jazz in a local Mom and Pop store in Denton, TX (Sky Guitars), I A/B'd it with my first RW Jazz. The second one was more even more resonant that the one I already had. I bought it.

While the 1st Jazz had cost me only $675 used, the second was new and cost ~$850.

I could go on, but suffice it to say that yes, the wood in the RW basses is of a better lighter grade than that of the Classic and standard series. The RW basses sound and feel like vintage instruments. New Fender basses do not, IMHO. The new MIA basses are terrific, but they are an updated take on pre-cbs fenders, where as RW basses are their own thing—very much an attempt to give the bassist a vintage bass-like experience at a low price.

Do they sound like vintage basses? To me, yes, and I have owned several, and own one even now. But don't trust me, listen to Ed Friedland, who has a review here:

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

and a description of a RW Jazz in his gear list here:
http://www.talkbass.com/threads/show-us-your-road-worn-fender-basses.530883/page-9#post-7245513

The bodies are thinner than current MIM and MIA basses, but the same as vintage instruments. These basses are light, and while I love the necks and vintage frets, they are not perfect. For that we have the Custom Shop and Sadowsky.


About real wear vs. fake wear—Yes, the faux mojo is fake, and you sure can't tell by listening. The real mojo is in the player, not the bass. Finally, I found that in two years of constant use, my fiesta red Jazz wore down almost as much as the factory wear (see below). Try that with a polyester wonder from the the last 35 years.

This is me with my first RW Jazz:

 

[Jim Carr]

Does Fender make a P or J bass like the RW's, but that is not reliced?...

Sort of. You can get a Classic Jazz with a nitro finish. Is it the same as a RW? So far, the jury is still out, except that I have read that the body is thicker, like the poly-coated '60s Classic. This seems to indicate the body blanks are not produced from the same process, and possibly not the same wood as the Road Worn—though we will probably never know. The necks don't have the same worn in feel as the RW. Sound? Similar, but I really like both my RW Jazzes better than the classics I have compared them to.

BTW, I've generally used Fender SS round wound strings .045-.100 on my RW Jazzes when comparing, which were also on my CS Jazz relic when I bought it.

Classic Lacquer: Invalid Link Removed
Road Worn: Invalid Link Removed

They both have the "Standard Vintage Alnico Magnet Single-Coil Jazz Bass" pick-ups.

 

[Muttleybass]

If it's a great bass, that's fine. Everyone has their own taste.

My personal feeling is that scars are EARNED, not bought.