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Thoughts on Roadworn Fenders
- Thread starter bassgod76
- Start date
The Classic 50's Precision is only available in a black nitro finish thus far.
If a bass gets "road worn" due to actual road wear and play that's fine and can add character.
I just don't get why someone would pay for a "new" bass that's been beat to hell at the factory to look "relic'd".
If you want a road worn instrument, do it yourself...
Why do ladies buy jeans with holes in them? Why do some guys buy watch straps that have that worn look? Why do some furniture makers, build furniture with worn looks?
Why do you like things that i dont? Why do some painters use a flake type of paint that makes the painting look old and cracked? How come some guys like their hair messy like they just woke up? But obviously didnt just wake up.
You seem to be the guy thats got it figured out, so im asking ya.
Why do some people buy OEM type panerai knock offs? Maybe they love the real thing but cant pull the trigger financially, so a close replica calms that gas.. Maybe like myself...a lefty who would love a vinatge bass, but not for 4-8k. Maybe just maybe having a relic'd bass would put that hankering to bed? Think a little more outside the box.
Played a few Fender Road Worn's in stores and everyone felt great and sounded awesome. Seriously thinking about getting one but not so crazy about the relic job.
Probably would go for the Precision....we'll see.
http://fenderbassplayer.com/component/content/article/80-article/158-fender-road-worn-basses-review
Probably would go for the Precision....we'll see.
http://fenderbassplayer.com/component/content/article/80-article/158-fender-road-worn-basses-review
just wanted to share this with you, the guy at my local store said that road worns aren't cool anymore and nobody wants them, i really respect his opinion, because 66% of the fender p basses he had were almost unplayable and had non resonant bodies, weird
The road worn Jazz is the only MIM jazz that I have fallen in love with. They feel nice and have a great sound.
edmidlifecrisis
Registered mediocre bass player
That means this is the perfect time to find a deal on one!!Maybe I'll get another one now. I still love mine.
Jim Carr
Dr. Jim
- Jan 21, 2006
- 16,223
- 7,613
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- Disclosures
- fEARful Kool-Aid dispensing liberal academic card-carrying union member Musicians Local 72-147
I picked up a used Fiesta Red RW Jazz a few weeks ago. All I can say is - wow! I don't mind the relic finish ( I play often, it will get it's own nicks and dings soon enough) and the neck is to die for. My other Jazz basses are my '69 and a CS 64 NOS. This bass holds its own in this company very well indeed.
I was surprised at the neck construction. My 64 CS is a veneered rosewood fingerboard, and the RW appears to be a slab. Not only that, but the truss rod seems to be in the same place as the original slab necks, (partially bored through the rosewood, verses bored only through the maple, as in many reissues and aftermarket necks). This is a cool feature.
I will be keeping this bass, it is very good.
I was surprised at the neck construction. My 64 CS is a veneered rosewood fingerboard, and the RW appears to be a slab. Not only that, but the truss rod seems to be in the same place as the original slab necks, (partially bored through the rosewood, verses bored only through the maple, as in many reissues and aftermarket necks). This is a cool feature.
I will be keeping this bass, it is very good.
I´m telling you, what you like about this bass is the frets. The RW basses uses vintage frets, which is smaller than the normal medium jumbo. The frets have a huge impact in tone and feel
It's more than the frets -my 64 has the vintage frets too, and doesn't have the feel of the road worn. Mind you, the 64 is a great bass, just doesn't have that worn in feel - yet.
So, I bought a used 50's RW Sunburst P Bass on TalkBass in September. It resonates, the neck feels comfy, and it just has this tone that separates it from my MIM 50's Classic P. They are supposed to be the same bass- but they don't play that way, trust me. Kiln drying the RW body and using nitro instead of poly paint seems to be a major reason.
I didn't care for the relic job much either. So here's what I did. I read where another fella on TB used black sharpie to color in the worn areas but I didn't want to mess with permanent marker over the wood (although even the "worn" areas seem to have a dirty, aged varnish on them to avoid looking like freshly sanded wood).
So I ordered some nitrocellulose ink pens from ReRanch.com and filled in most of the (way too many) relic'ed nicks all over the edge of the body. The pens are messy so I used a fine paintbrush instead and let it dry. A light buff with 0000 steel wool and then a polishing rag and it looks pretty darn good, even in bright light and close up. The dings took out (or compressed) a little wood so they are not flat after painting, but you can apply multiple coats of nitro paint to level it a bit. I tried the steam/soldering iron method to expand the wood fibers, but it is not kind to the surrounding nitro paint.
But it looks better! And way less obvious.
My 74 Tele bass was two slabs of ash with one very visible seam. I would not worry about seeing it, in fact, it's more authentic if you can.
On the other hand... the thing that bothers me about factory RW is this: it's all the same RW. Every single one I've ever seen has had the same "wear" pattern. In real life this does not occur. I'd rather play the crap out of it for a few years and see how beat it gets that way.
On the other hand... the thing that bothers me about factory RW is this: it's all the same RW. Every single one I've ever seen has had the same "wear" pattern. In real life this does not occur. I'd rather play the crap out of it for a few years and see how beat it gets that way.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't the Road Worn P basses all "worn" in the same places and not random? If that's the case, they are just another Fender production bass. Don't get me wrong, I think they are a cool looking bass, but if they all look alike then what is the point of being Road Worn finishes?
I bought a RW 60's Jazz neck for my Jaco build, and it looks and feels perfect.
I was lurking on MF and taking a look at the RW P Bass in Sunburst.
Am I being a snob by saying that I would be less than pleased if I recieved a $1,000 bass with this many seams in the body?
I have the RWPbass. I love it
I played various MIA, MIM, and clones. The RW Pbass blew them away, in my opinion. The maple neck is chunky and easy to play. The pups bring the true classic Pbass tone. I changed the stock roundwound strings for LaBella Jamerson Flats. Awesome!
