What kind of Tobias is this?

renegade

 

Has GIBSON written all over it...

 

I thought that the renegade had two different size pickups and was a bolt-on. The Bartolini website shows what I remember:
http://www.bartolini.net/special_instruments/mfgs_tn.htm

Dan K.

 

I bet if you sent that link to Mike Tobias he would give you an answer. He's a very nice guy.

 

The first thought that came into my head was that it's either a "Model T" or "Standard", which were pre-Gibson basses built to Tobias specs by outside builders (the former in New England, the latter Japan) in the early '90s to try and catch up on the backlog of orders at the time. However, I'm not sure what the electronics were and if they match up to this. A employee-built model also isn't unheard of - members here own non-typical models that were constructed in that method.

I agree - Mr. Tobias is our best bet on an answer.

 

Those are the only production models I think it could be also. I have a Renegade and it's not one of those.

 

If the auction is correct, and it is US made, it would be a Model T. It looks to be a neckthrough, with perhaps a 2 piece maple neck. The Standard was made in Japan, and clearly labeled as such. Also, the 24th fret position markers were 2 dots, unless customs were made, which I haven't heard. The model T was IIRC made by Pedulla, and if you look at a Pedulla you will note the same arrangement of dots for position markers. Either way, not Gibson, doubtless a nice bass if the condition is as good as it appears, and worth more than $400.

 

Interesting you mentioned Pedulla, it looks like a 3 piece neck to me and with the maple wings and neck blank that isn't much wider than the fingerboard I was thinking it looked very Pedulla.

 

...

 

If it was a 5 string I'd be looking for stuff to sell, I love the smaller thin neck Tobias designs.

 

220 as is $220? that doesn't sound right.

 

probably $2200...

 

I don't know how he finds the time, but Mr Tobias has the quickest email turnaround I've ever seen. I don't think he sleeps. I like that he is so helpful, even about basses he hasn't produced in decades (or ever!). His basses aren't cheap, but they're great, with service to match. Unfortunately in my case my Tobias had no serial number, so I couldn't get an exact date for it, but i had an answer instantly.

 

My 1992 Bass Player Buyer's Guide has the list price of the Standards at $1,849, so I think Mr. Tobias might have confused the price with the list of the Killer-B and left off a zero. The Standards were the "Starter" Tobias' back in the day, but nowhere near the MusicYo Toby range and more to simply have a more "basic" model as well as to take some production pressure off his shop, which I believe had an 18-24 month wait at the time. I don't think the idea of selling at that pricepoint came around until the MTD years with the Kingston/Heir models.

If in good condition, this could be a steal of massive proportions.

 

From I have no idea what this is to slamming it on the same page. Lot of that going around these days