rodney72a

I also saw this when it was at New Kings Road around that time. IIRC they had it up for around £9K - not that bad actually considering the scarcity of the colour! Wonderful bass. Had quite a beefy neck, felt and sounded great. Sat there for at least a couple of years, I think. Definitely went to the right guy!

drT, don't the Sabre pickups have a smaller footprint than the ones for StingRay?

Original finish? Which colour? Got a link?

They do exist. I have a Classic at 8.9 lbs and a Classic 5 at 9.3 lbs. Both my Old Smoothies (essentially Classics with the slab body, albeit alder not ash) are under 9.5 lbs - 8.8 lbs and 9.4 lbs.

A recent experience with the Ebay Global Shipping programme regarding CITES: A few months ago, I bought a bass on Ebay from a seller in the States. It was advertised under the Ebay Global Shipping Programme, meaning you pay all shipping and import costs upfront. Because the bass had a rosewood fingerboard, I got in touch with the UK CITES Management Authority in Bristol prior to shipping. They explained that the seller has to apply for an export permit first, then mail me a copy so I can apply for the import permit over here. I passed the info on to the seller and advised he should get in touch with the people of the Ebay Global Shipping Programme for guidance, thinking they would deal with this kind of stuff all the time. The seller said he did and apparently they told him they would take care of everything. He shipped the bass via USPS, it was quite slow, took almost three weeks to arrive. There was no CITES documentation/paperwork at all with the package. Make of that what you will. I haven't looked into it further but should I still apply for the relevant import certificate in retrospect?

Yes, we do! Agreed on the pictures.

Have tried out the Pure Blues strings (40-120) recently. Less tension than the Nickel Lo Riders, for example. Very comfortable, sound great. Will try the Victor Wooten gauge next (40-55-75-95).

Mid '80s to early '90s. Gloss necks, mute bridges, chrome battery covers, all on a contoured body. The 6-bolt necks with the capstan wheel may be more practical but I'm particularly fond of the 4-bolts (on the SR4) with the adjuster at the headstock. Many necks had amazing figuring, too. Very playable, slim profiles. Great colours like Blueburst, Trans Red or Sunburst plus my all-time favourite EBMM finish - Peach.

Post in this thread and someone from EBMM Customer Service will be along with the information. http://forums.ernieball.com/ernie-ball-music-man-basses/1254-music-serial-database-975.html

Fiesta, nice! (Same year.)

Because!

I think it's not unusual for the Specials anymore. The guide weight on the EBMM website for the SR5 Special is 9 lbs 2 oz, which is about halfway between mine.

Yes, the idea was to get one traditional finish and one that's a bit more flamboyant. Since all my other SR5s have rosewood boards, I wanted to go maple and ebony on these. (Also CITES induced, to a degree.)

Don't know, haven't plugged them in yet. They're in a queue.

Finally joined the club!

Nordy vM5 prototype. Not sure how many vM5s they made altogether but it can't be many.

Have you considered an Old Smoothie? They're essentially a Classic (slab body, 2-band EQ, mute bridge) but with a different pickup. There was one in the Classifieds recently, looks like the seller has just withdrawn it. Maybe try to tempt him - they're gorgeous basses!

Neither. He plays the minor third (A) on the downbeat of the F#m chord. Nice choice!

I'm sure they are! Two SRS5s on order. December/January arrival was the latest estimate.