Jump to content
Why become a member? ×
  • advertisement_alt
  • advertisement_alt
  • advertisement_alt

Double Bass Geeks Assemble!


Owen
 Share

Recommended Posts

One of the guys my wife teaches with has a DB to sell. I used to teach him and it turns out that that his father in law is the brother of the owner of the DB. I was in the County Youth orch with this guy 35 years ago. 

The bass has not been played for 30 years. It is stamped Boosey and Hawkes Excelsior. It has it's fair share of relicing. There are numerous cracks but these look to have been properly repaired and patched. It is not ply and was clearly a 3 stringer which at leasr gives us a 100 year old + time frame. It is strung with Spiro and plays really nicely. If I did not crave the B I could be more than happy with it. I polished mine with chrome polish and a buffer wheel on a drill and it came up lovely. I reckon this one would as well.

They want to sell it, and of course the big question is what do we reckon it is worth? They are not expecting to retire on the proceeds. 

 

 

20190317_150935.jpg

20190317_150954.jpg

20190317_151000.jpg

20190317_151006.jpg

20190317_151015.jpg

20190317_151032.jpg

20190317_151039.jpg

20190317_151043.jpg

20190317_151047.jpg

20190317_151055.jpg

20190317_151059.jpg

20190317_151107.jpg

20190317_151110.jpg

20190317_151128.jpg

20190317_150820.jpg

20190317_151139.jpg

20190317_150824.jpg

20190317_151152.jpg

20190317_150829.jpg

20190317_151156.jpg

20190317_150833.jpg

20190317_151207.jpg

20190317_150841.jpg

20190317_151224.jpg

20190317_150908.jpg

20190317_151230.jpg

20190317_150914.jpg

20190317_150926.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Is the bass bar still attached?

The cracks in the top and the f-hole sinkage look like there might be serious work required, and the crack in the back looks like it runs under where the soundpost would be sitting - I think the important information is really what the inside of the instrument looks like, is it stable, does any repair work look well executed or is it a patchwork of bodge jobs.

I would take it to a good DB luthier and get an informed opinion, there is a lot of information that can't be divined by looking at photos.

As it stands, does it sound good pizz/arco?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It has been extensively patched inside to glue up cracks. There is a patch under the soundpost. The bassbar is there. The repair work looks good to me. And they all seem to be sound. 

It sounds good. It is set up with spiros so great for that spiro pizz sound. Arco and spiro is not anything that has ever floated my boat but given a nice set of arco strings I believe it would sound lovely. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

18 hours ago, Beer of the Bass said:

If it's clearly stamped "Boosey & Hawkes", it has to be 30s or later, as it looks like the two companies merged in 1930.  That makes the 3-string aspect puzzling, as it seems a little late for that.  Could it be a 4-string that's had the tuners modified for some other reason?

Where did you run into the B+H/Excelsior info? I cannot find anything out about Excelsior at all.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Finding stuff about "Excelsior" is just too easy ... it was quite widely used as a model name and over a long period.

When I did a quickish Google yesterday I was swamped with relatively modern B+H Excelsior DBs and also with other musical instruments labelled Excelsior.

Couldn't find anything at all about 3-stringers though.

This might actually be one of those rare occasions where old-fashioned reference books are more useful than online searches.

 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, owen said:

Where did you run into the B+H/Excelsior info? I cannot find anything out about Excelsior at all.

I was going by the "Boosey & Hawkes" rather than the Excelsior model name.  I was aware that Hawkes and Boosey had been two separate companies originally, and just googled for the company history. 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Happy Jack said:

......When I did a quickish Google yesterday I was swamped with relatively modern B+H Excelsior DBs and also with other musical instruments labelled Excelsior.

Couldn't find anything at all about 3-stringers though.

This might actually be one of those rare occasions where old-fashioned reference books are more useful than online searches.

 

Just pointing out - other search engines are available Jack ;)

Re the 3 string dilemma - it just occurred to me, I wonder if someone back-dated this bass from a 4 string to a 3 some time ago?
Seems an odd thing to do, but you never know..... as people sometimes do the oddest things
What details are there, that point this bass out to once have been a 3 stringer BTW?

PS. It was actually reading the Who quote legend below Happy Jack's Name - "I look pretty young" that made me think about the back-dating possibility....
So if my suggestion sounds at all daft..... blame HJ :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

21 minutes ago, Marc S said:

What details are there, that point this bass out to once have been a 3 stringer BTW?

There are 3 machine heads which are the same and the D machine head is clearly different - it is an afterthought on the brass faceplate. I could well be wrong on this next bit, but the spacing of the original machines on both sides is also saying 3 stringer - wide apart on one side and the single one being in the center on the other side. I am entirely comfortable with my 3 stringer hypothesis which does put it into older bass territory. My 5 string has a new neck and the original was a 3 string to 4 string conversion.

Here is a 3 stringer I found - with guts as well (for the TONE!)

 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

The bit that puzzles me is that geared wooden pegs were more common in the 3-string era, especially on Germanic basses (which this looks like due to the outside linings among other details).  From the style of tuners I'd have guessed at this being somewhere in the first half of the 20th century (though that's very much a guess), when 4 strings were standard. 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 months later...

It seems as though b&h carried on selling much the same basses after the merger as Hawkes was selling before ... And those are well regarded; BUT most of them now very beat up having spent time in millitary bands ( and in the hands of the army repair shop - hence the weird tuners).  A good Hawkes bass can cost £1000s .. 

My guess is this is a good bass that's had a hard life and which needs £2000 + of work done on it ( my bass had the front off, repairs replaced and a new bass bar in 1999 at a cost - to the insurers - of £1500 - but it been dropped and had started to rattle ).  THEN it might be worth .. £4000 + ?

Worthwhile for a dealer / repairer to buy and do up, but maybe not something you'd buy to play.

Hawk round a few dealers and they will probably tell you it's worthless, restore it and put it up for £7000.  An independent restorer might be more honest if you say you want to keep it and ask about repair costs.

Edited by NickA
spelling
Link to comment
Share on other sites

The owner is going to take it to Sam Wells in Manchester for some grounded real world advice. I will update the thread when I know more. It is a very nice instrument and, although extensively repaired, is structurally sound. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If the repairs are as sound as you say, I'd be tempted to put a nice new set of tuners on it, and a new bridge, and leave the rest well alone. I don't know why, but something about that bass is saying "1930s" to me, very loudly. It might well be absolutely lovely

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Restore formatting

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...