dmckee

@Duroc17 I’ve had that thought myself! That is of course how this one started its life…..

Thanks for chipping in everybody! It is indeed a lovely bass, but I have a GAS problem.... 🙄

Lovely American Special P bass, that was converted to fretless with a thick slab of ebony by a previous owner. Finish is the ‘hand-rubbed’ nitro satin honeyburst, that I believe there was only a short run of for Guitar Center in the US. The fretless mod was done (I think) by Brook guitars in Devon (that’s from memory - could be wrong). It was done really nicely, onto the original neck, even preserving the original nut. As well as that mod, I’ve done a bunch of upgrades, to try and get it close the Tony Franklin signature fretless. It now has a Hipshot Kickass bridge, Hipshot USA Ultralite tuners, a Jazz pickup, DiMarzio DP126 pickup set (that’s the Model P and Model J - Tony has the Model J in his original I think) and Dunlop strap locks. It has the original volume and tone (tone is Greasebucket as far as I know, which I really like), plus a 3 way switch for either pickup or both - again functionally the same as the 3 way slider on the TF. All work done by Chris McIntyre here in Edinburgh, so top quality. I don’t have the weight right now - will add later - but it’s not heavy. Around 9lbs I think. I’m told the body is 1.8” thinner than a usual P, plus obviously I have the Ultralites on there, which also means it balances perfectly on a strap now. Good opportunity to get something very close to the Tony Franklin signature fretless P bass, for a fraction of the price, in a great finish. It has a few little marks on the body (that finish makes it a bit easier for that to happen - can do closeups for anyone interested, plus a bit of wear and 1 scratch on the scratchplate (that is what they’re for eh?) - but condition excellent other than that. Neck is immaculate. Only selling as I have a case of GAS for something else. In an ideal world I’d have both!

How’s the balance? I had one ages ago and regret selling it but had to swap the tuners to ultralites to fix a bit of neck dive.

Is this still available?

Yes. It’s the only hollow body I’ve played that has no neck dive.

Yeah, 34”. It IS completely hollow, mahogany I think. 9lbs 4oz or thereabouts.

Bit of a feeler this one as not sure I want to sell….. I’d been chasing one of these basses for ages and finally found a second hand one (2011 I think) earlier this year. When I got it though, it needed a bit of work. The electrics weren’t working well - it was all a bit noisy and to be honest, I didn’t really like the 2 volumes, 2 tones and pickup selector switch arrangement that it came with. In conversation with my local tech (Chris McIntyre in Edinburgh), we decided that he’d replace all the wiring with a custom John East Uni-Pre, which he’s installed really neatly as you can see from the pics. (His integration of the battery into the cavity cover is brilliant). The pre-amp is flat response so it doesn’t change the core tone, but what the bass now has is master volume, master blend, bass, treble and passive tone with a push/pull on that knob to switch between active and passive. (Obviously it has all the internal config stuff that you get on a John East, like treble and bass frequency settings, pre-shape options etc). The frets also needed stoned, so Chris did that too. It plays beautifully now. Despite all this work, I’m just finding the tone a little too ‘soft’ for me. I’ve tried many times to find the perfect hollow body actually, but I’ve yet to find one that really does it for me tonally. I’ve been looking into custom pickups, but I’ve already spent quite a bit and I think I’m just realising that the hollow body sound is just not for me. In terms of condition, you’ll see there are 2 small dings on the body, one front and one back but otherwise it’s great. Lovely translucent burgundy colour. The neck is perfect. The balance of the bass is also perfect. (I did try one once that was neck heavy – this one is not). I bought it second hand for £800 and I’ve spent another £400 on it, on the pre-amp, installation and fret stone, so I’m losing money here obviously. I think they retailed at £1399 although they’re not for sale now. It comes with its own hard case (I haven’t got round to adding pics of that yet) plus I have a Warwick Starline Hollow Body gigbag that I can also sell with the bass, or I’ll do that separately if necessary. I’m sure it’ll make a lovely bass for someone, and the changes I’ve made are a genuine upgrade I think. It’s just not for me. Also, not really interested in trades, other than maybe a Fender Dimension HH that I've quite fancied trying for a while....

What’s the nut width? Cheers.

Reluctantly selling my American G&L 2000. Fantastic bass. Has the #12 neck, like a modern P, which feels perfect to me. (I've had Tributes in the past and always found them to be a bit too chunky). Great range of tones, but if you know about the L2000 then you know that already. Bass is in excellent condition - rarely gigged and only very light surface scratches below the strings. No buckle marks on the back. Finish is like glass! Only changes from stock are the addition of Dunlop strap locks and I had to have the nut replaced. (I popped it when I put nylon tapewounds on it). It now has a nut installed by Chris McIntyre (have a look at his basses online if you haven't already. Stunning. I have one). Not too sure what he uses - something and aluminium - but it's what he normally puts on his own basses, so no problem with quality. Strung with Cobalt flats at the moment. Comes with the original case (it's a tiny bit scuffed in places, but almost ever used) plus certificate / spec sheet etc. This is a great price for a classic, premium (and hugely underrated) USA made bass. I'll be sorry to see it go as I love the feel of it - neck and body shape, and it balances perfectly on a strap - but I only seem to be using my P basses these days so someone should get to play it. In Edinburgh, pickup ideal, but can ship at cost.

Also, if you don’t mind since we’re on the topic, what did the refinish cost you?

Great bass head. Lots of clean power, totally reliable. I've had it from new for about 6 years and it's been rock solid. Just fancy trying something different. Will sell with a good quality Gator bag (see pic). You can see from the pics too that the outer casing is a bit scuffed here and there, just from going in and out of the bag, pedals sitting on top of it etc, but other than that it's in really good condition. Price reduced to £300.

Unwanted gift. Totally unused, still in packet. £25 new. See photo for details of gauge etc. Postage included in my price.