Bassassin

This was J. E. Dallas & Sons' top-end bass, from the same brochure: I'm sure it's still possible to pay £1100 for a Jazz knockoff, but these days it would have "Limelight" on the headstock an would look like someone had chucked it in the road and backed a bulldozer over it. I'm struggling to find RRP for a real Fender J for '71 (ish), the closest I can find is an old Bell's catalogue from 1974, which lists a sunburst/rosewood/blocks Jazz at £288. Assuming the same bass might've been around £250 in '71 (ish), that would be £3471 today.

I'm in the unenviable position of knowing more about this sort of thing that anyone reasonably ought to. Most of that knowledge is so crushingly dull that I'd probably be risking a ban by sharing it uninvited, so I'll excercise uncharacteristic self-restraint and keep it largely to myself. However, I'll leave this here: The number at the bottom is what this cost new, in 1971-ish, but happily, despite these basses being utter, utter rubbish, this sort of thing really does happen these days: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Vintage-1970s-Tele-Telecaster-Bass-Guitar-MADE-IN-JAPAN-Teisco-Jedson-Zenta-/273901924005 So get it sold, and buy something that will make you want to play, not kill yourself with frustration!

One of the first songs I learned to play when I was 16, along with the rest of the album.

I've lived in and just outside Edinburgh for 30 years - never seen any requests for unpaid workers during the month when the city's population increases by over a million, and clubs & pubs profits go through the roof. I'd guess the hostelries & venues are missing a trick here, I'm sure thousands of people would be falling over themselves for the chance of getting paid sod-all for cleaning up after festival w@nkers.

If you look closely, it's a 3-part neck without a separate fretboard. So I think the board's correct but the body's a refin. Lots of pics on Google images, numerous variations including plain fretboards - but no solid colours. Inclined to think after looking at a few pics that this is an original US Curlee, not a licensed version. Would be fascinated to see more pics.

That's an S. D. Curlee. It's probably (as they're more common) a licensed Hondo (probably Korean) version, but could be a US original, as they were aesthetically very close. I don't know them well enough to tell off the top of my head. Either way, very cool and rare as hen's teeth!

Seem to remember the fee for each certificate being about £50 - admittedly that was when this first became relevant & I was trying to estimate full cost of a potential Japanese import at the time. It's likely the export certificate fee differs between countries. Hopefully it shouldn't matter for much longer - apparently the revised proposal was due to be considered in May, and if agreed, enacted 90 days later. Can't find any info on what the outcome was, though.

Which is fine, as long as that happens - if it doesn't, customs will confiscate the instrument and destroy it, and the buyer will be unlikely to be entitled to a refund. I've heard enough horror stories to be wary - and even if the documentation is obtained, it's not cheap, it'd likely add another £100 or so to the cost of this bass. I think CITES regs as applied to instruments is up for review at some point soon but until then, personally I'd avoid rosewood.

He is a visitor from a Time Before Shims.

Likely it's the standard unit - lots of early 80s MIJ stuff (including Westone) had DiM copies with hex poles. Easy way to check is whether the poles are metric or imperial. There were Schaller hex-pole pickups too - had a dud one in a used bass a few years back.

Very, very pretty. This might be of interest: https://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/Bass-Guitars/4713/m.html?item=202609398256&_ssn=swingshop Downside with the green quilty one is that the fretboard looks very like rosewood, and it doesn't say it's not, so CITES would be a concern. Quite glad I'm not prone to impulse purchases because this is making me come over all impulsey...

It's a very nice example and looks in superb condition for its age. Leaving aside the spurious sleb connection, this is a passive MC824, not the active (and higher value) MC924, so on that basis it's not exactly a fantastic bargain - we had one for sale on BC last year for around £300. The condition of this one, and the attendant JJ tat (I suppose) probably adds a couple of hundred to that. The asking price of £800+ delivered for this is a bit eye-watering, particularly considering that won't include CITES paperwork, without which it'll be confiscated and destroyed by UK customs...

Buy it. Lots of reasons, primarily - you wanted it enough to bid on it. You got a bargain, it's gorgeous, you might surprise yourself & really take to a 6, and if not you will easily be able to get your money back, might even make a small profit. Just pay the dude & post the NBD thread already!

I think you'd be wrong, considering it's fitted with a Schaller 3D bridge that would be at least £60 new. Westone Thunder 1A body & electronics means it's £100+ worth of parts, even if the neck's junk.

To be honest, at first I saw the "scratchplate" and thought, OK, the lad's doing his bit for the planet, that's one takeaway lid that's not going in a landfill. But then I saw this: Oh god... 🤢

You'll know by this time next week. Looks lovely right now though.

This is interesting. The reason they've done this is that pickups that would actually fit will be tricky to come by. It's an early 70s MIJ jazz copy (Matsumoku, if you care) which pre-dates the existence/availability of accurate copies of J-type units. Can't be sure but this probably had chrome covered 8-pole Maxons, like these: Or possibly like this: Various inaccurate types of pickups were used on early 70s J copies, as they all would've been sold with ashtray covers - the lowest-end MIJ Jazzes had little chrome units under the covers, the same as those fitted to Telecaster copies. This might be a cool restoration or project, if it stays cheap, but would require some modification to fit standard J pickups.

That's because for a long time, the Basses For Sale folder has been populated by a lot of high-end sellers who likely make their living this way, and for whom the subscription fee makes sense. Don't think I'm alone in thinking a separate folder for basses of £1000 & over might help to democratise the For Sale listings.

Just racking my brains over this - didn't a batch of NOS Hayman necks come up comparitively recently, like within the last 5 years or so? I remember the headstocks drilled for the (absent) clear insert badge. Might have to use the "search" function... Edit - just did a search and I might just be hallucinating, unless it's longer ago than I thought - search results didn't go much further back than 2014.

Giving myself a brisk slapping for not having noticed the F-holes & not registering having seen that bridge before - which I have. Best of luck if you have a punt!

It's an odd bitsa - the neck & tuners are from an old MIJ bass, I'm guessing a shortscale EB0 copy, likely Matsumoku trom the trc shape. The body, and I think, the bridge, are home-made and the pickups & surrounds are the same as those used on Italian-made Melody EB copies. The cracking to the finish is similar to damp damage but possibly the result of applying finish over very unseasoned wood - there's no evidence I can see on the neck. I had an old Watkins Rapier guitar with very similar finish issues - turned out that was common to many of them, the result of a thick, plasticky poly lacquer on top of untreated wood. Probably worth about £30 for some interesting parts that would stay in the spares box for ever...

I like that. Body could be a bit more sculpted perhaps, but looks like someone's made a serious attempt at a decent quality midrange headless.