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What makes a 51' P a 51' P?

#62
johnk_10 said:
hmmmmm? my buddy's '52 is a big V and my '55 is also a chunky V neck.
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This 53 is somewhere between a "Fat U" and a "Fat V" neck -

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-53%20PRECISION%20BASS%20075.jpg
 
#64
johnk_10 said:
i had been working with Dale Hiatt (previously Fender, Randall, Musicman and eventually G&L's head of sales & marketing). he told me to try look for him at the next namm show, so the first day that i met Leo was at a namm show in 1979 (or 1980?). i saw a big crowd of people surrounding someone in the gibson booth. there were about 70-80 people all crowded around him, but Leo pulled his calipers out of his pocket protector, and was measuring the neck width and action on some les pauls. he'd look up and shake someone's hand or give them an autograph and then go back to looking at the gibsons.

i was there with a friend of mine that told me that i should fight my way thru the crowd and at least touch him (shake his hand), since my buddy knew that Leo had a big effect on my life (i started building/designing guitars in '73 in whittier, ca). i told my friend that i would love to, but it looked like all these people were just bugging him, and i was just happy to be in his presence and observe him.

i was about 20 feet away and Leo looked up, and right at me and said, "are you Johnny?". it blew my mind. i just wanted to meet the guy and he already knew my name? later, i realized tha Dale probably previously pointed me out, but i was just awestruck at the time.
i walked over to him, shook his hand, which would have been enough, and then he said, "would you mind metting me at my hotel room at the Hiatt in about an hour?"

i told him that i'd love to. an hour later, my friend and i went to his room (my friend begged me to include him) and Leo, his wife and George and his wife opened the door and greeted us. Dale Hiatt was there too. they were some of the nicest people that i've ever met. so for the next 6 hours Leo and i talked about guitars, amps and basses nonstop, and i had a great relationship with him ever since.

he told me tons of stories about the early days of fender, and ended up giving me a gold L2000 bass. when he gave it to me, he took some pictures of me with me playing. he told me that i was the first person that he ever gave an instrument to, which totally freaked me out.

anyway, i would probably bore alot of you with the stories he told me, but it was just a great thing to experience, and that first day meeting him will always be a memory that i'll always cherish and never forget.
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Awesome story John !

Thanks for sharing.

:)
 
#65
swamp ash is very lightweight ash. my 55 p bass only weighs 7lbs 3 oz. and even the slab bodied earlier ones were usually pretty light considering that they had more mass than then the later contoured versions. Leo chose it because it was very easy on his saw blades and routers, yet was still a very resonant hardwood (although it's alot softer than hard ash).
 
#70
bass-flyer said:
I'll have to dig out some of my Fender books ... sometimes I forget what I've read! :D
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Hey pal,
If you ever find out PLEASE post it here. I'm REALLY curious about this. Thanks. I also apologize for any disruption in this great thread. Keep it going !
B.
PS: Why do we always save the Wrong pieces of paper & neglect the stuff that will ultimately have value. The story of my life. LOL.
 
#72
Edit: I might stand to be corrected here. It may have been stated on the tags that came with my '63 strat. & my buddy's '63 P.
But regardless - I KNOW that at the time we made a note of an address change, that involved Santa Ana.
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I'm still lookin'! :hmm:
I did read Fender bought their water-slide decals from a company in Santa Ana.
 
#73
johnk_10 said:
i vaguely remember that one of my blackface fender amps had a tube chart that said 'Fender Musical Instruments Santa Ana, CA'. CBS may have manufactured some of them in Santa Ana, because i also believe that at one time the sales/marketing dept was located there.
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That sounds like a very logical explanation, John. But this still leaves the question of Santa Monica OR Santa Barbara OR whatever other "Santa..." was involved. Why is this insignificant fact so indelibly marked in my memory I wonder. Go figure.
 
#74
That sounds like a very logical explanation, John. But this still leaves the question of Santa Monica OR Santa Barbara OR whatever other "Santa..." was involved. Why is this insignificant fact so indelibly marked in my memory I wonder. Go figure.
Click to expand...

I did find that in '63, Leo leased a building in Anaheim for the new acoustic guitar operation.
Still can't find mention of Santa Ana.
Going to bed ..... I'll look more later. :help:
 
#77
what a cool thread!!!

some day I'm going to own one of these early P's ... some day :hyper: as a builder who has a passion for this era of P's, it would be soooo great to have an authentic reference for clients to A/B against - not to validate the exactness in cloning, but instead to verify that I've correctly captured the vibe and feel unique to these basses

I came close to owning a '52 once, but I hesitated since my wife wasn't along to give approval to spending that kind of $$$ ... I think about that bass often :(

for me, a slab '51/'52 plus a contoured body '54 early '57 would be the ultimate. wouldn't say no to a museum piece I could afford, but a 'players' bass would be sooo much cooler if you know what I mean :cool:

all the best,

R
 
#79
yeah ive always liked these single pup early p basses. how are the mim ones in terms of originality as far as wood and shape goes? ill most likely just start there, and work my way through changing everything, including finish to make it as original as i can.
 
#80
Even as I type this, I apologize because this won't answer your question, buuuut...

I have a 56, and for the first time, I played a Sting. The good part is that the neck contour, the general body shape was pretty close (the old 56 has much deeper tummy/forearm contours), the weight was even about the same. So if you were judging it with a pair of calipers, you'd be reasonably pleased.

However, it did not feel anything like my bass. Night and day, although the physical dimensions were surprisingly close. I can't really put my finger on it, it was just ...different, thinner sounding, maybe.
 

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