wateroftyne

Holy cr@p!

Areet gang! Is there anyone around Buckinghamshire with a WB100? A pal of mine is interested and I’d be grateful if they could have a look… ta!

Picked it up from Dave's earlier. It was fab before, but now...what a difference. Action now is on a par with my other '71 which is my reference action. In fact, it feels identical. It sounds significantly different though - my other one is much mellower, possibly due in part to the re(over)wound pickup. The new one is more present and acoustically resonant. Different sides of a coin. The foams seem to be in good nick - plenty of height. I've actually asked Dave to lower the pickups 'cos that's what I prefer. Before I forget, here's a pic of some of the bits it came with. The manual (which has the sale details on the back... $315), the original cable (which seem to go for silly money in their own right 😮), the previous owner's strap, the sticker with contact details that was removed from the back (Dave managed to remove it leaving a barely noticeable discolouration), and one of many celluloid tort picks. I feel like I've been passed a torch (and I'm not talking about the flammable picks).

Right... just heard back from Dave. He's quick! The bridge has been moved to where it should be. Setup is done. No refret necessary... the original frets live to fight another day! The board is Brazilian rosewood 😃 He took the guard off and is under the impression it's the first time it's ever been opened up. For that reason he didn't feel the need to dig the pickups out. The pots aren't stamped on the bottom but I suspect they are stamped on the side as is sometimes the case. He didn't check, but if I'm feeling brave in the future, I'll open it back up to confirm. I'm in no hurry, though! The 'burst has barely faded compared to what's under the guard. I definitely think it's lived most - if not all - of its life in the dark. Heading off to pick it up shortly...

Aye, so... I've just been up to drop it off with Dave Wilson. He's had a look at it and... we're still none the wiser as to why the bridge has been moved. It's actually a little crooked in its new location, too - I guess good luthiers were in short supply in Bermuda - so he's going to sort that out. It's a shame the bridge has been drilled, and a couple of new holes have been added to the body, but you can't see the new holes in the bridge. If that's the only major mod in 53 years, I'll take that as a win. In other news, I thought it may have had a refret, but turns out it hasn't. As of now, I still haven't seen under the 'guard, but it looks to all intents and purposes like it's never been opened. We'll see. Dave's going to open it up, take some shots and put it back on before that celluloid gets any time to shrink. Incidentally, when I took the neck off, it felt like it had never been opened. Hard to explain - just the look of the screws, the seal at the joint, etc. I'll never know for sure, though. What we can conclude is that it's spent almost all its life in a dark concert hall. The body has so much colour in it - it's rarely seen sunlight. Best bit is though - I gave it a run out on Saturday night, and even before any tweaks it sounds and plays wonderfully. Not a great showcase for it, but...

That’s part of the mystery - new holes have been drilled in the bridge, between the originals. I’ll find out more soon…

Yep, if you’re 100% sure it’s Will, you’re good to go.

Just soundchecked it. Ooooof.

Cheers! The shadow is actually surface marks at the edge of where the bridge used to be. if you look closely you can see the old holes for the bridge cover adjacent to the new ones (the previous owner used the bridge cover with foam stuffed in it). I can't work out why it's been nudged, as it's actually offset the strings. It's still completely playable, but I'm scratching my head as to why. The neck and weight are almost identical to my other beloved '71, but the 'new' one is definitely more resonant, and brighter. Old one is darker and rounder. Disclaimer: Can't say how that translates into the real world until I gig it.. which is tonight 🙂

Cheers, all! Just made a quick murky vid. It sounds exactly like a P with ancient flats should sound.

Hey gang! Short version: Got a '71 P. It's in amazing condition*. B neck, 8.8lbs, balanced, resonant. It's a stunner. Long version: It's had one owner before me - an ex-pat Glaswegian, and professional bass player, who bought it new from a shop in Hamilton, Bermuda(!) in 1971. He was the resident bassist in the house band at the Princess Hotel on the island, and gigged it for decades. I suspect he may have used it to back some massive stars over the years, as it was a big venue on the circuit (no provenance of this, unfortunately). He returned to Argyll in his twilight years where it remained in its case, until he sadly passed away last year at a ripe old age after living a remarkable life. His family decided to sell it on, and I'm the lucky recipient. As you can see, it's incredibly clean. From talking to his family, it sounds like it never really left the hotel. Also in the case was a manual (with the purchase date, store name and price - $315 - handwritten on it), some REALLY old guitar cables, his strap and a back of old tortoiseshell picks. There's a mark on the back of the neck from a guitar stand, which I think will come off. There's also a sticker on the back with the hotel details on it.. I think I might leave this on, but I'm not sure. One of the tuner screws has been replaced. In addition to that, it looks like it may have had a refret at some point but I won't know for sure until I've taken it to be looked over by the legend that is Dave Wilson. Dave will also be looking at the mystery of why the bridge appears to have been moved to the 'E' side very slightly - I really can't see a reason why. If there isn't one, I'll ask him to shift it back. He's also going to pop the pickguard off to check the wiring, pots and pickups are original. It's been used so much, maybe something has been replaced, but hopefully nothing major. All-in-all, I'm VERY happy with it. It's getting gigged tomorrow night before it goes to Dave's. 🙂

I popped into Merchant City today. The Blonde Decision is lovely... a bit heavier than the bluey-purple one, but sounded more solid. Either of them is a lot of bass for the money (didn't buy it, tho). Staff were great. Very pleasant.

'Twas! So here's the crack. The previous owner was an interesting chap by all accounts... A Glaswegian who originally played double bass in the pit band at The London Palladium throughout the 50s and 60s, backing EVERYONE. He moved to Bermuda in the early 70s, where he bought this new from Music City in Hamilton on the island for... $315. He then gigged it relentlessly as a member of the house band in the Princess Hotel. After he retired, he returned to Glasgow and sadly passed away last year... hence it ending up in auction. We drove up to Glasgow this morning to collect it - we're staying up here for a couple of days so I haven't been able to plug it in yet. That'll have to wait. So far, so very good. Medium weight, resonant, balances perfectly. Original case. Came with bridge cover, manual, some old (proper) tort picks and some really old-school cables. I've popped the neck.. it's a B neck, very clean in the neck cavity. There's a replaced screw on one of the tuners. I suspect it's had a refret - no surprise as it's probably thousands of gigs in. I haven't taken their guard off yet as I don't have decent tools with me, so that'll have to wait. Hopefully no surprises under there. I'll do an NBD thread when I've had more time to tinker...

Fantastic!

What the dickens did that sound like..???

Greetings from Glasgow 🙂

Apologies - was skim reading. ’Issue’ (it’s not really that, but…) is just with the newest variant of the WB. A simple attenuator brings it down to lower levels.

Yep, most decent desks will have enough headroom to cope. Unfortunately my Scarlett interface and one of my band's desks were a bit clippy, but the attenuator sorted it.

Oof..!

Here's my Custom Jake with passive Maruszczyk P & bridge humbucker pups.

Let’s see a pic of the whole thing!

Oh, I see.

There's usually only a buyer's premium, which is - unlike the hammer price - is subject to VAT.

I can also recommend this for more general Fender info… https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3982909-fender