Bassassin

Realistically, used Ibby SRs turn up all the time, I'm confident you could find a tidy SR300 for around £120 or less without too much trouble. Pretty sure if you managed to source a new neck you'd probably be paying that much or more anyway. FWIW I picked up an SR500 for £87 a couple of months ago. The body was pretty rough but the neck was almost like new. Jon.

Definitely related. One of those sold on Ebay last week, a bit more than £117! [url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/JOODEE-PERFORMER-BASS-GUITAR-V-RARE-MADE-IN-JAPAN-TONERIDER-PICKUP-/222004594249"]http://www.ebay.co.u...P-/222004594249[/url] J.

[quote name='Twincam' timestamp='1454343205' post='2968742'] I like it. Good colours, some mojo its good that it has some fret wear so its been played and I'm liking the truss rod adjust system, does it still work?. Worst thing I hate about fenders is the heal truss rod adjustment pain in the ass. Always end up either scratching the plate and or having to take off the neck several times grr. [/quote] Not tried the adjuster yet for a couple of reasons - mainly the cracking around the top of the skunk stripe. I want to clean it up & flow some superglue around the fillet before touching the rod, to make sure everything's solid before subjecting it to tension. Also there's some corrosion visible on the adjuster nut itself, I'll strip, clean & lube the mechanism before tesing it. Will post some pics to satisfy the curious! J.

[quote name='allighatt0r' timestamp='1454327756' post='2968550'] Nice. What's the weight like? Would this be a laminate body, or solid wood under there? [/quote] I'd expect solid timber, and from the edges of the routes it looks like it is. They are painted though, so it could be butcher-block, which is pretty common on MIJ stuff. Not weighed it yet but it's pretty hefty, going to be in the 10lbs region. My back won't thank me... [quote name='Coldflows' timestamp='1454328208' post='2968555'] Looks great, Have you figured out how the truss rod works? Is it a square key or is it just a normal allen key?[/quote] Allen key, looks like 4mm. Not tried it yet, I'm waiting for parts to turn up before it gets a full strip & fettling. J.

Mad. A couple of years ago these were all over the place for about £150 - £175. And £265 is cheap compared to the BINs on Fleabay. Jon.

Delayed NBD thread, due to being away over the weekend. Regulars on the Ebay: Weird & Wonderful topic might know I grabbed a beat-up Daion Performer Precision copy for what seemed (to me) a silly-cheap price. Daion was a fairly short-lived brand built at the Yamaki factory, and are best-known for their boutique-standard original designs and acoustics. Like most other Japanese factories from the 70s era, Yamaki also produced copies, and these are of a similarly high quality to their original builds. The same instruments were also sold under the Yamaki brand, and more common in the UK, JooDee. Anyway before you doze off, this is the thing itself, in all its battered, 70s rock machine glory: [url="http://s1276.photobucket.com/user/LanterneRouge/media/Daion%20Precision%20Copy/daionlfront_zpslzj0ahtn.jpg.html"][/url] [url="http://s1276.photobucket.com/user/LanterneRouge/media/Daion%20Precision%20Copy/daionheadf_zpscvhbpfv9.jpg.html"][/url] [url="http://s1276.photobucket.com/user/LanterneRouge/media/Daion%20Precision%20Copy/daionheadb_zpsqvuk6qiv.jpg.html"][/url] [url="http://s1276.photobucket.com/user/LanterneRouge/media/Daion%20Precision%20Copy/daionback_zps9samozao.jpg.html"][/url] [url="http://s1276.photobucket.com/user/LanterneRouge/media/Daion%20Precision%20Copy/daionplate_zpsrt7rf11d.jpg.html"][/url] It's a minor project, needing a good clean-up, new pots & cap and some cosmetic issues with cracking lacquer addressed. It looks like it's spent time in a damp environment, leading to a bit of peeling & cracking, mostly around screwholes & other places where moisture could get to the wood. The only slightly worrying bit is around the skunk stripe, but fortunately this appears to be cosmetic, not structural. As it arrived, it works (albeit with no volume adjustment) and is perfectly playable. The neck's dead straight, a little fret wear mostly before the 7th position but nothing I think I need to address immediately. One of the reasons I went for this was my assumption that the original pickup had been replaced with a DiMarzio - and it turns out I'm right, it's an early, PAF-stickered DP122 which is probably the same age as the bass. Hardware is nice quality & quite interesting (apart from the bog-standard BBOT) - the tuners have solid, cast bodies and torque-adjustment collars, which was pretty common on MIJ open-gear units at the time. It also has the curious "Epochal" truss rod adjustment which should allow neck-tweaking with a geared system accessible through the neck plate. This is ultimately a high-quality bass of a similar build standard as the Tokais, Fernandes, Grecos & JV Squiers of the same era, and I'm probably going to hang on to it once it's sorted. Jon.

Here's one that's not been suggested - Cort Headless, mid 80s: These are closely related to the Hohner B2s and Jacks of the same era, using the same hardware - Cort made the Hohners & presumably held the license to use the hardware. Construction's through-neck like the B2 but the neck's more of a conventional P shape, a bit chunkier & 42mm at the nut. Obviously the big difference is the P/J setup, which might offer a bit more flexibility to chop & change pickups & get the sound you want. I also have a B2A, and far prefer the sound of this. They do turn up from time to time and because they're not as well-known as the Hohners, tend to go a fair bit cheaper. I got mine from a BCer 4 or 5 years back (fro shame, I can't remember who! ) and I think it was about £100. Cosmetically it was fairly rough so I stripped the original black finish - the wood was actually clear-coated underneath, so that was all I did. I made the little thumbrest/ramp thingy meself. Jon.

Fascinating reading - I've just had my first go at a Danish oil refin & by complete coincidence, my method was near-identical to yours. From what I'd read I had expected the final result to be a fairly low-key satin finish - and was surprised that the two final coats post-sanding actually left me with a gloss I can pretty much see my ghastly mug in. I was quite taken aback by the quality. So I did find myself wondering if this method of application would work as well for other types of finish. Having read this, I'm quite inspired to have a crack at a thinned varnish or solid colour finish now. Jon.

Can't. Need to stop spending money, I have massive car repair bills incoming. And it's not even my car! J.

Does look like a VS600B to me. Bo'ness is just down the road from me. If I hadn't just had a Daion Performer P copy drop through the door, I'd ask her if she'd let me have the bass on its own for £50... Jon.

Assume no-one else will have noticed. It therefore becomes expedient to silence the guitarist at the appropriate point. If he uses a volume pedal, it's simple, and needs no recourse to violence, unless chastisement is deemed necessary. Otherwise, a smack in the gob with your headstock should do the trick. Jon.

Ooooh! That's a work of art, that is. I was talking about high-end PRSes with a guitarist on another forum yesterday - who's considering dropping £3500 on one. What I said applies here - if I had something like that, I'd be terrified to take it out of its case, never mind gig it. I'll stick with my cheap, bashed-up tat. For the sake of my sanity. Jon.

[quote name='Annoying Twit' timestamp='1454024460' post='2965674'] Congrats on the purchase. [/quote] Cheers! It arrived this morning, beautifully packed and perfectly playable despite the bits that need attention.The cracking around the skunk stripe seems minor and is stable as far as I can tell. I think it's more related to very minor damp damage, where condenation's entered a lacquer crack, caused lifting and spread a bit. There's minor damage of this sort around the tuner screws too. Will get some pics sorted and start a NBD thread - but on first impressions I'm delighted with it - it's a proper, replica-standard, genuinely mojo'd 70s rock machine, and far more interesting than anything with "Fender" on the end! J.

[quote name='Mykesbass' timestamp='1454003040' post='2965304'] That has got to be the worst name for a colour description ever!! Nice looking bass though [url="http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Montezuma%27s+revenge"]http://www.urbandict...uma%27s+revenge[/url] [/quote] [i]And[/i] historically inaccurate! Moctezuma, or maybe Motecuzoma, surely? Lovely, lovely Rick. Jon.

Last 5 seconds snipe for me, with my absolute, no-questions maximum bid. You win a few - and in my experience, you lose a lot fewer. And if you do lose - so what, it's Ebay, whatever it was, another one'll be along sooner or later. [i]Whatever[/i] it was. Jon.

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1453842482' post='2963407'] That's what YOU think. [/quote] Well, I did say "as far as I know". Gratifying to succeed without even trying though. J.

I have buggered off before (bad real-life stuff about 5 years ago got too much for me so I pretty much backed off from everything) but came back when my life/head etc was in a better place. No intention of doing so again. I've been around since the BW days, I come on pretty much every day but I'm not an incredibly regular or controversial poster, so (as far as I know) I don't get many backs up & don't get annoyed by others too often. I do miss the posts of many of those who have left and stayed gone. Bring back TBBC! Jon.

Will do. There are dozens of detailed pics linked from the ad, and apart from a bit of cracking around the skunk stripe (which is mildly alarming!) it looks very, very tidy, with just a few bits & bobs needing fixed. I will have to move something on to accomodate this - probably going to be my Ibanez 2366B P copy, as I really don't need 2 MIJ Precisions. I'm quite excited about this - never had a Daion before! J.

Actually, no, don't. Too late, I bought it. J.

[quote name='Paul S' timestamp='1453828510' post='2963214'] Daion Performer black/black/maple £110 BIN. Aren't these supposed to be quite nice? [url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Vintage-DAION-Yamaki-Performer-BASS-ELECTRIC-GUITAR-Black-Made-in-Japan-/201512152847?hash=item2eeb0f6f0f:g:gZkAAOSwoydWp3bT"]http://www.ebay.co.u...ZkAAOSwoydWp3bT[/url] [/quote] Errrr - yes, yes they are. This is one of the later examples with the unusual truss rod adjustment (through the neckplate) and is Yamaki-built. The (almost certainly anyway) DiMarzio Model P alone is worth a fair whack of the asking price. Someone buy this before I do something rash! J.

Actually, I think it's offensive. It offends left-handed Christians and right-handed Satanists. J.

If you scroll down, they do a range of idiotic stop-bars. Not sure which is the most hilarious - possibly the skull & crossbones-meets-dogturd. Jon.

MEKer - as always your contributions are interesting and informative, and I in no way mean to dismiss any of the conclusions you draw from your research. However I try to derive my own speculative theories from a broader awareness of the (often inexplicable!) vagaries of 70s & 80s Japanese guitar manufacture, rather than a specific interest in one particular brand. I'd find it very difficult to conclude that an unusual, possibly uncatalogued model (such as this Force 30) was some sort of fake, rather than a short-run, factory-built rarity. Particularly considering that the two - or three, if FlatEric's link is discussing the same model - have turned up as widely spread as South Africa, Bosnia and (possibly) Brooklyn! Thanks to DUPS' excellent photos and description, it's obvious that his bass is not modified (apart from the addition of DiMarzios) and the routing, screwholes, scratchplate & controls are as they left the factory. The fact that it has Washburn-specific MIJ hardware makes it immensely probable that it came from the same factory (Chushin Gakki or Matsumoku) as other Washburns of the same era, rather than being a knockoff built elsewhere. The decals on both basses we have pics of could have been amended but I think I'd need to see one with my own eyes to be certain. I'd speculate, based on the design & pickup choice, that this bass was intended to be a 4-string variant of the Force 30 guitar. As I've said numerous times in more discussions of MIJ basses & guitars than I can remember, this is basically like archaeology, and good research needs to be conducted with that in mind, constructing theories from evidence, and tying that in with established facts, where possible, to draw firm conclusions. I don't have any "beliefs" here to justify or any opinions that I want to be right about - I'm just (bizarrely) interested in this stuff, and my theories are just what seems most probable to me. And when more & better info comes along, then my conclusions change to fit that new knowledge. Washburn is an interesting brand, being a well-established US property at the time licenced for Japanese manufacture, but I don't know if there's any record of how much direct control the brand owners had over specific model production, and how much leeway the actual manufacturer had regarding model development, variations and ranges. The only direct (ish) parallel I can think of is Fender Japan - where Fender's Japanese partners Kanda Shokai had considerable influence over the range. This is largely because many models (the interesting ones!) were Japanese-market specific - but I wonder if something similar could have been the case for Washburn also, as they were sold into a variety of different global markets - including Japan, if the listings on Ishibashi & the like are anything to go by. Jon.