Bassassin

[quote name='hagguy' post='822279' date='Apr 28 2010, 06:21 PM']cheers jon good info there, the anniversary one looks ok, but if i'm gonna splash out i think maybe the real deal would be a better option, i'll keep my eye on s/hand stuff and the sticky thread might get lucky cheers ian[/quote] Good plan - if you were considering up to £750 on a Faker then it's not unrealistic to save a few quid more & get a real one - there are still occasional bargains to be had, especially if you'd consider importing. Personally I think Rick copies are a whole other thing to real ones, and not really a substitute. I love 'em both! J.

[quote name='Annoying Twit' post='822392' date='Apr 28 2010, 08:07 PM']Is this likely to be MIJ? [url="http://leicester.gumtree.com/leicester/21/57814821.html"]http://leicester.gumtree.com/leicester/21/57814821.html[/url] Not that I really want it, but I'm curious. I suppose when the value of the SD pickup is factored in (a quarter pounder?), it's a good deal.[/quote] Don't think that'll be MIJ - the old "Hondo II" logo & Fender-shaped headstock is 70s, and I think pretty much all the 70s Hondo copies were Korean. It's a bitsa & not a very good one - look at the scratchplate fit around the heel, and I'd be surprised if it wasn't a Halfords refin. I suppose Glumtree sellers are always open to haggling, though. J.

[quote name='bassmachine2112' post='822108' date='Apr 28 2010, 04:29 PM']you might be lucky n turn up a greco[/quote] Grecos were made by Fujigen & Matsumoku (they sold both versions side-by-side) and was/is a Japanese home-market brand, never officially exported to the West - so you'd be bloody lucky. Grecos are identical to any other brand from the same factories - don't get fooled into paying for a brand name - this isn't a Fender we're talking about! J.

No way is £750 reasonable for a 35-year old JapCrap copy. No way. The Ibanez copies were about the least accurate 4001 clones from that era, and since at least 9 out of 10 Jap Rick copies now have fake Rickenbacker logos, you can usually be pretty confident that the "Ibanez" Rickenfaker some gyppo's trying to fleece you for is nothing of the kind. None of the modern copies are particularly accurate - most tellingly none of them even try to copy the narrow, near-parallel shape of Rick necks - so they will neither play nor sound like the real thing. That said, the [url="http://www.expressmusicstore.co.uk/products.asp?code=80606"]Anniversary-branded example[/url] looks fairly realistic, doesn't cost £500, and a few BCers have had them & been quite impressed. Ask Hooky6stringbass - he's had one of these and various other Fakers, old & new. Some of the Japanese copies were frighteningly accurate, and according to reviewers at the time, better-made than the real thing. I currently have 3 vintage MIJ copies - all of mine have been projects to a greater or lesser extent & I didn't pay much for any of them. The problem with 70s ones is that you can't really pick & choose - they come up on Ebay infrequently, usually with dodgy badges, so if you don't know your stuff it will be hard to tell what you're getting - a plywood Korean Hondo looks pretty much the same as the near-perfect Matsumoku clone that's lived as a real Rickenbacker since 1979. And the scarcity of these things means there's not much difference in price. Anyway, there's a Rickenfaker sticky thread in the Ebay subforum, and keep watching Basses For Sale - quite a few members here own them, meaning they come up for sale with reasonable regularity. And keep your eye on Gumtree, go to your local car boot, & check out any local music shops that still do second-hand - they do come up. Jon.

[quote name='Bilbo' post='821551' date='Apr 28 2010, 09:37 AM']I've only got one bass![/quote] [Godwin] Well, Hitler only had one ball... [/Godwin] Allegedly. Jon.

[quote name='tazza1' post='818430' date='Apr 25 2010, 08:35 PM']And fair play to you, it's good to see someone saving old abused guitars & basses. I'd like to see more pics!![/quote] Well, if you insist: [attachment=48413:l6s1.jpg] Just flung it together this evening, no strings, not wired it up yet - but I'm quite pleased with this, so far. Hope it doesn't play like a pig! Anyway - back to Rickenbuggery! J.

[quote name='Delberthot' post='820316' date='Apr 27 2010, 09:45 AM']That one is run by a former band mate of mine Jon Clark or it may be his son. Same guy that has mijfenders.com[/quote] Small world - I know Jon Clark & have met his son a couple of times. I didn't know he was connected with the Ocean Terminal shop. Not seen Jon for a good few years. J.

[quote name='Linus27' post='820130' date='Apr 26 2010, 11:44 PM']I'm really struggling to think of someone musical who I regard as a genius. I can think of some great songwriters, drummers, guitarists, bass players even who are amazingly talented in there chosen field but a genius I really can't. I guess it depends of ones definition of a genius.[/quote] I don't think "genius" is the right word for what I think we're talking about here. Visionary seems more appropriate - people who have taken music in new & different directions, reinvented & redefined it. Just my perspective, but I don't think instrumental virtuosity has much - if anything - to do with it, except I suppose the broader the vocabulary, the greater the scope for expression. J.

[quote name='LeftyJ' post='819723' date='Apr 26 2010, 05:59 PM']Are you sure that's a Musician you're describing here? Other than the 8-string MC980, there were no Musicians with separate bridge and tailpiece and I don't think there has ever been any Musician with more than 3 Sure Grip knobs. The EQ knobs have always been smaller plastic knobs without the rubber. EDIT: Oh wait, completely missed the word [b]guitar[/b] there Nevermind. Carry on as you were [/quote] Full marks for observation! Yep - it's a silly little toy one, an MC150 to be precise. No wonder it was cheap! J.

[quote name='Happy Jack' post='819660' date='Apr 26 2010, 05:08 PM']You'd hardly notice the re-fin really. [/quote] As it happens I didn't - I was too busy choking at the £200 starting price! I'd give him a tenner for the J-pup, though, looks like an old DiMarzio Model J - I'm after one of these for my CSL Jazz. J.

[quote name='Mr. Foxen' post='818751' date='Apr 26 2010, 12:37 AM']I'll give you £50 for it. Posted.[/quote] Gone, long gone. And so's the astronomical profit... J.

He's been discussed on here before a few years ago, in relation to the massive number of Peavey T40s he had for sale - he seemed to be grabbing every one that came up on Ebay & reselling them. Presumably successfully, because he doesn't seem to have any now. The Ibby Roadster (a passive RS824) that he currently has on is about £150 - £200 more than it would generally sell for, and the Warwick Fortress Flashback (the only Warwick I've ever had vestigial GAS for!), while very rare in this country, is over twice what I've seen them sell for on German Ebay! He's got a list of sold instruments that's as long as a giant squid's tentacle - so it's obviously working for him though. Which is a good thing, from my materialistic gyppo perspective. Jon.

[quote name='Metalmoore' post='818760' date='Apr 26 2010, 12:59 AM']The stock hardware and PUP are included, its mentioned in the listing somewhere. Tbh i like it, one of the few natural finishs i have seen and not wanted to cover it in paint, bit pricey for me though [/quote] There's this one: [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Vintage-1960s-Kay-Precision-bass-guitar-Japan_W0QQitemZ190387307904"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Vintage-1960s-Kay-Pr...emZ190387307904[/url] Although it's still at least £80 too much. And it's 1970s, made in Taiwan, not what the ad says. Go to a few car boots & you'll probably find one for £20. I've had two. J.

[quote name='Musky' post='818542' date='Apr 25 2010, 10:04 PM']Yeah, sorry Jon. I wasn't trying to put you into the same bracket as Mr Digits as I know that your purchases are a labour of love and you buy what interests you rather than something you could just turn a profit on. Is that a copy of an L6 you've got there? I didn't think it was in the Gibson catalogue long enough for anyone to copy![/quote] Indeed it is an L6S - mine's a Kimbara brand, which, if other Kimbara electrics are anything to go on means it's probably a Matsumoku. You'd be surprised though - there are L6 copies from most major JapCrap brands in various different flavours, some of them frighteningly accurate, right down to the weird Bill Lawrence electronics. Only one pup left from the originals of this one & no fancy circuitry, so I'll be wiring it with a 3-way rotary switch basically working like an LP. At least it'll look right! And no need to apologise - I'm not averse to making a quick quid or two when the chance arises - finding an MIJ Squier Precision for £25 was amazing, but well - I didn't [i]need[/i] it... J.

[quote name='Mr. Foxen' post='818421' date='Apr 25 2010, 08:26 PM']Amazing flame top under there?[/quote] Nowt that exotic - just a pretty 3-piece sen ash (presumably) front. Looks a lot like a real L6S. That DiMarzio Super Distortion was a nice bonus too. J.

Fuxake! I thought I was gyppo-ing it to the max when I got £80 for one of them! Plus he should've left it stock - at least the pup - the stock pickup on these is surprisingly good. Jon.

[quote name='bartelby' post='818174' date='Apr 25 2010, 04:34 PM']TOOL's Lateralus changes from 9/8 to 8/8 to 7/8...[/quote] Exactly what I was going to post: [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EDlC7oG_2W4"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EDlC7oG_2W4[/url] Jon.

[quote name='Musky' post='817931' date='Apr 25 2010, 11:12 AM']Something Jon would probably attest to. [/quote] Hell yeah - I wouldn't deny it for an instant. However a good part of what I do aside from buyin' & sellin' is renovation & refurbishment - and I absolutely [i]love[/i] pulling some horrific old relic apart, finding out what makes it tick, and doing my best to get it back to the way it used to be 35 years earlier. I'm currently pretty close to finishing some light cleaning & buffing to this (excuse guitar content): [attachment=48236:l6sorigcond.jpg] And I have to say I'm quite happy with how it's looking now - pics to follow if anyone cares. This will go back on Ebay (probably) when it's done - I doubt the original seller would recognise it, and any profit I make won't reflect the hours & hours I've spent on it. I really wouldn't feel happy about picking something up & just trying to flip it the next week for a lot more than I paid - I'd at least wait until the listing I bought it from had expired! J.

I love 'em - I think they're the perfect good-for-everything bass & they look great. If (heaven forbid) I had to have just the one bass, it would be a Jazz. Jon.

[quote name='JD1' post='817640' date='Apr 24 2010, 10:07 PM']...its just a load of Queen songs with a story line similar to the Rush 2112 concept...[/quote] You must be gagging to get cracking on this, Wayne! Jon.

[quote name='redstriper' post='817554' date='Apr 24 2010, 08:33 PM']I was offered this for less than the selling price recently - [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Ibanez-Musician-Bass_W0QQitemZ250612409394QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_Musical_Instruments_Guitars_CV?hash=item3a59a9e432"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Ibanez-Musician-Bass...=item3a59a9e432[/url][/quote] Maybe you should have taken it - this is the same bass that's being flipped for £700 in Beedster's post! Shameless gyppos! Jon.

I came really close to buying a Superfly a few months back. So glad I didn't. Jon.

[quote name='Musicman69' post='817155' date='Apr 24 2010, 12:51 PM']And I was just going to suggest raising the action.. Spoilsports! [/quote] Ain't too daft an idea - pop a shim in the neck pocket and raise the saddles to compensate. Jon.

While I'd agree that this is a well-crafted, well-constructed & produced piece of music - and it is a rare skill to be able to write music of this type - it does not touch me or move me on any level. There is a specifically targeted market demographic for this type of product, and I am not it. Jon.