ET777

I've been poking around online getting more info on the bass. I found an original brass Hi Mass Bridge for sale on Reverb but the seller is asking $231 for it plus $71 for shipping and he is in Europe. So adding tax and probably tarrifs to it, would push this close to $400 so I'm going to pass on it. https://reverb.com/item/92743282-fender-precision-jazz-bass-bridge-vintage-80-s-gold-brass-ultra-rare I will probably just get a new Fender HI Mass Bridge which is about $60 and have it available in case I ever gig with the bass, so it would take 1.5 pounds off of the weight. I was able to set it up perfectly now, its got super low action and is intonated with The Claw in. Ive found a few listings for these 82 Walnut Precision Bass online, and they all have original tweed cases so its safe to say that the tweed case that mine came in is original as well.

I found the 1982 Fender price list online. These were 1250 list, which was Fender's highest priced bass that year. They offered a lot of Walnut across the line that year: https://guitar-compare.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/1982-June-1.pdf

Hello. Thanks for the updates. I am checking the used market for a used Hi Mass bridge from that era. The ones that Ive seen that come original to this bass in 82 say "Fender pat. pending" on them just like The Claw does, however I have yet to find one that is stand alone for sale and I doubt that there are many out there. As Hellzero pointed out, the earlier ones don't have the logo? I like The Claw and it works and sounds fine, however the bass is 11 lbs as it is now, and going to a standard Hi Mass bridge may take 1 pound off of it and make it around 10. My Ibanez Blazer from 81 is 9.5 pounds which is a P Bass style bass, for comparison. I don't mind the 11 lbs on this one, since its a studio bass anyway. Last night I put Flats on it, and spent time dialing in the action and intonation. I got the A, D and G strings dialed in perfectly. Nice low action up and down the neck and intonated perfectly. However the E string is a tiny bit of a struggle. It plays perfectly below the 9th fret, but starts to get a little high action from there. At the 12th fret open, from top of the 12th fret crown to the very bottom of the string, its about 1/8th of an inch, so a little high but not unplayable. I can work with it. That E also has a bit of issues intonating. Its still a bit sharp (fretting the 12th fret) and I have to move the saddle all the way back in order to get it to be perfect. (it did this with both rounds and flats, so its not a "flats" thing). So.... ultimately the bass may need a light "shim" in the neck cavity towards the rear, maybe the width of a business card. That would help with the geometry and angle and get it a closer in intonation too. However as it is, its pretty good so I am going to play it all day today to evaluate exactly how I want to tackle this. This is an old skool, thumpin' P Bass. Its thick, heavy and rich like the best German Chocolate. Its got a deep "nutty" tone. Its got that 70s Pop and Soul P thing down cold. I'm playing along with a top 100 hits from 1979 right now (Blondie, EWF, Bee Gees etc) and it just fits in to the mixes of those classic songs perfectly. Its the sound. It also can do the early 70s Soul and R&B (Stax, Willie Weeks, Chuck Rainey, Gamble/Huff/Philly sound etc). I keep it in the Passive mode most of the time and prefer that over the active, but I could see switching to active for certain more aggressive style songs, or in particular live situations. I really like the neck. Its not too thick and its fairly fast. Its closer to my Fender Jazz bass than it is to my Blazer P. This bass is a beast. I appreciate all of your comments and suggestions.

Here are some gut shots. Likely the first time its been opened since the factory. The preamp appears to be original, and is very quiet and everything is working great. I cleaned the pots with D5, then the switch and jack and reflowed the jack. The ring area had some exposed wire which may have been causing the short. The pots are 2 from 1981 and 1 from 1980 all CTS. Caps all look good. Im not going to "fix" what is not broken by capping it since its all original and working and sounds awesome.

Just put a new 9V in and it works perfectly. I will look under the pickguard but am guessing that this is the original preamp. It sounds great as passive or active. The bass needs a setup, a little cleaning and the output jack needs its solder to be touched up as its a bit shorting when the cable is moved in it. Be back to post gut shots later.

The bass just came in and its a total Time Capsule! It has the original Eveready battery in it from the early 80s...like the Bunny...still going! Union Carbide, Cleveland Ohio. They sold the brand in 1986. The battery compartment and screws appeared to be untouched. The original foam was covering the battery. The battery measured at 5.4 volts. Not bad for 43 years old! The action on the bass is very high. It has round wounds. All of the screws appear to be untouched. The active output was very weak and the tone controls did not work. They do work on the passive side and it sounds good. I am going to continue to look in to that and gently examine the electronics. Here are photos of the unboxing. This bass has not been played much and probably was in someones closet for many years. It could use maybe a bit of polishing. Frets are close to perfect. No marks or gashes on it anywhere.

Thanks for the link Geek99. I just saw a link to one on Reverb that sold for 150 just a few months ago, which seems a good price for something so rare. Could double for playing horseshoes with too.

Thanks very much coco! I did a search for that and immediately turned up a chat from talkbass.com. I am reading it now....

I’ve been doing some deeper digging into the origins of this unusual half-moon brass bridge and whether it was actually factory-installed. One detail that really stood out: the two outer screw holes on the bridge are not drilled into the body—both on the bass I just bought and on the example currently listed in Japan. Only the four inner screws (under the strings) are used. I emailed the Japanese dealer about their bass, and this was their reply: “The bridge you are asking about is the original High-Mass Brass Bridge adopted by Fender for this Precision Bass Special, which was a change from their traditional bridge design. This brass bridge is a high-mass, top-load type. It was a modern feature Fender included to improve sustain and tone, following a popular trend at the time. Unlike the traditional Fender plate bridge, this one has a thicker, heavier design. The increased mass helps transfer string vibration better to the body, which is believed to result in longer sustain. Some players did find the design a bit less comfortable. Thank you, Teeda” I’ll also be emailing Fender on Monday to see if they have any additional info on this bridge. The good news is that, based on the mounting pattern, it appears this bass could accept a standard Hi-Mass brass bridge without having to plug or drill any new holes, since only the four inner screws are used. If so, it would be an easy swap, and I could include the original bridge with the bass if I ever decide to sell it—assuming I even want to change it out at all.

Mo' pics. SN CD115xx

Yes, built in ballast. I have not yet received the bass. If its a boat anchor, then there is a return policy. However the price was good and it appears to be a rare one.

Hello. This is my first post here in the forum. Earlier today, I purchased a 1982 Precision Bass Special in walnut, from an online dealer. I will receive the bass sometime next week. I did research and have found that these are fairly rare basses. This bass appears to be in all original very good/excellent condition. However what has me curious is this very large half moon shaped hi-mass brass bridge. Its engraved "Fender pat. pending" and appears to be original to this bass. Does anyone have any info on this bridge? I searched up and down the web for info on it but came up empty. The only other one that Ive found is on a current listing from Japan on ebay for a 1982 in Alpine white, which has this bridge, although that one is pretty beaten up. Any insight on this? Was this a prototype bridge only in limited production? Thanks in advance. Photo of the body of the bass I bought in walnut, and the alpine white one in Japan below.