jmstone Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 Hi there, I have been borrowing an Ibanez Roadster (RS800 Sunburst, 1979 model) from a friend of mine for some time now - was my main bass until I bought my lovely Warwick from Gaf here! The Ibanez actually belongs to his Dad's church - they have replaced it now with a "modern lightweight bass" (not sure what) and so apparently have no further need for it. I keep asking him if he wants it back, but he is in no great hurry (mainly 'cos of its weight and the fact he is usually lugging a guitar pedalboard around). So, I have been thinking it might be easier if I just bought it off him/his Dad, but the problem is I have no idea what it is worth. Basically, it is in pretty poor condition - chunks of the finish have been knocked off the body in multiple places, and it has no knobs for the pots (and one of the pots is missing a bolt so it slips inside the body.. All pretty cosmetic stuff - the bass itself works fine, and is pretty nice (but very high action at the moment). I would be grateful if people could give me some kind of idea of what he might realistically expect for it if he was to sell in the current market. I will try to post some photos later. James Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silverfoxnik Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 [quote name='jmstone' post='447492' date='Mar 27 2009, 04:46 PM']Hi there, I have been borrowing an Ibanez Roadster (RS800 Sunburst, 1979 model) from a friend of mine for some time now - was my main bass until I bought my lovely Warwick from Gaf here! The Ibanez actually belongs to his Dad's church - they have replaced it now with a "modern lightweight bass" (not sure what) and so apparently have no further need for it. I keep asking him if he wants it back, but he is in no great hurry (mainly 'cos of its weight and the fact he is usually lugging a guitar pedalboard around). So, I have been thinking it might be easier if I just bought it off him/his Dad, but the problem is I have no idea what it is worth. Basically, it is in pretty poor condition - chunks of the finish have been knocked off the body in multiple places, and it has no knobs for the pots (and one of the pots is missing a bolt so it slips inside the body.. All pretty cosmetic stuff - the bass itself works fine, and is pretty nice (but very high action at the moment). I would be grateful if people could give me some kind of idea of what he might realistically expect for it if he was to sell in the current market. I will try to post some photos later. James[/quote] Need to see some photos to get a better idea really... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmstone Posted March 27, 2009 Author Share Posted March 27, 2009 [quote name='silverfoxnik' post='447785' date='Mar 27 2009, 11:27 PM']Need to see some photos to get a better idea really...[/quote] Yeh.. I realise that.. Tried to take them this evening, but the light wasn't right. I am just off on a trip tomorrow, but will do the photos when I get back (will have to revive this thread then). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bassassin Posted March 29, 2009 Share Posted March 29, 2009 Like any JapCrap these don't really have a specific value, although the brand makes it a bit collectable. I'd probably expect a nice example of an RS800 to go for up to £200 on Ebay, hard to say what this one might get without actually seeing it. Missing parts, tatty condition & potential playability problems (high action) might realistically knock it down to around the £100 - £120 mark. Do you think it needs pro attention to make it properly playable? Have you tried setting it up to see if the action can be lowered, are the frets in decent condition & does the truss rod work? If they really no longer need it they might not be bothered what they get for it - if your conscience can stand it, make a low offer & see! Do post some pics if you can, but there's not really an absolute answer to the value of these things. Jon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmstone Posted April 8, 2009 Author Share Posted April 8, 2009 (edited) [quote name='Bassassin' post='448769' date='Mar 29 2009, 04:55 PM']Like any JapCrap these don't really have a specific value, although the brand makes it a bit collectable. I'd probably expect a nice example of an RS800 to go for up to £200 on Ebay, hard to say what this one might get without actually seeing it. Missing parts, tatty condition & potential playability problems (high action) might realistically knock it down to around the £100 - £120 mark. Do you think it needs pro attention to make it properly playable? Have you tried setting it up to see if the action can be lowered, are the frets in decent condition & does the truss rod work? If they really no longer need it they might not be bothered what they get for it - if your conscience can stand it, make a low offer & see! Do post some pics if you can, but there's not really an absolute answer to the value of these things. Jon.[/quote] Thanks for the suggestions. I have attached some photos (still looks quite dusty!!). Basically, it is very tatty. The guitarist who owns it says he doesn't like it as it has fret buzz when he plays it (I didn't notice any problems with that though) and it is heavy. The strap button is falling out of the end, but I reattached it a couple of cm away from its original place. The action is high, but I reckon it would come down quite a bit. Frets are good, and neck is straight. Not touched the truss rod as it doesn't need it at the moment. Not sure whether this increases or decreases the value, but it used to belong to the keyboard player from m-people! The way I look at it is I'm not particularly attached to it, but I think it's a nice guitar, has a nice tone, and it is a shame not to spruce it up a bit considering that the main problems with it are cosmetic. However, I don't want to spend time/money on it unless I can buy it off my friend... So I wanted to make a reasonable/low offer.. if he takes it then fine, if he doesn't, that's fine too. James Edited April 8, 2009 by jmstone Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bassassin Posted April 8, 2009 Share Posted April 8, 2009 I can't see that you'd need to spend much money on it - it looks like it needs a couple of knobs and a nut & washer for one of the pots. Otherwise it looks pretty tidy for a largely neglected 30 year-old bass - the serial tells us it's August 1979. The bass looks in fair cosmetic condition for its age, and I'm confident it would clean up very nicely - to be honest most of the basses I gig with came to me looking far more dilapidated than this one. It's worth taking some time & care to do the work well and properly - these are rare & collectable basses and bodges (like your strap button fix, unfortunately) will have a negative effect on its value. On the other hand, allegedly having once been owned by an obscure member of a band that most people won't remember too well probably doesn't affect its value! It might be interesting to watch this auction to see what these are doing at the moment: [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Ibanez-Roadster-Bass-Series-Rare-Vintage_W0QQitemZ110374262550"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Ibanez-Roadster-Bass...emZ110374262550[/url] Have you asked your mate for a ballpark idea of how much he's looking for? Jon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmstone Posted April 8, 2009 Author Share Posted April 8, 2009 [quote name='Bassassin' post='457241' date='Apr 8 2009, 12:00 PM']I can't see that you'd need to spend much money on it - it looks like it needs a couple of knobs and a nut & washer for one of the pots. Otherwise it looks pretty tidy for a largely neglected 30 year-old bass - the serial tells us it's August 1979. The bass looks in fair cosmetic condition for its age, and I'm confident it would clean up very nicely - to be honest most of the basses I gig with came to me looking far more dilapidated than this one. It's worth taking some time & care to do the work well and properly - these are rare & collectable basses and bodges (like your strap button fix, unfortunately) will have a negative effect on its value. On the other hand, allegedly having once been owned by an obscure member of a band that most people won't remember too well probably doesn't affect its value! It might be interesting to watch this auction to see what these are doing at the moment: [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Ibanez-Roadster-Bass-Series-Rare-Vintage_W0QQitemZ110374262550"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Ibanez-Roadster-Bass...emZ110374262550[/url] Have you asked your mate for a ballpark idea of how much he's looking for? Jon.[/quote] He hasn't really said a price. He said they would be happy with whatever the "going rate" would be. I will definitely keep an eye on the ebay auction. Take your point about "bodges". In my defence, something much nastier seemed to have happened to the place where the strap button is supposed to go - there is a gaping hole about 1cm across, which won't hold anything.. next to it is the snapped off end of a screw (not sure when this happened), then the place where I sited the button (which fortunately covers all the nasty looking mess underneath). As a matter of interest, what would be the proper way to fix this? Fill the hole with something? What other things would you advise fixing? I would quite like to add some non-ibanez knobs (although I know it would make it less collectible). Any suggestions about this? James Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bassassin Posted April 8, 2009 Share Posted April 8, 2009 [quote name='jmstone' post='457309' date='Apr 8 2009, 12:47 PM']He hasn't really said a price. He said they would be happy with whatever the "going rate" would be. I will definitely keep an eye on the ebay auction. Take your point about "bodges". In my defence, something much nastier seemed to have happened to the place where the strap button is supposed to go - there is a gaping hole about 1cm across, which won't hold anything.. next to it is the snapped off end of a screw (not sure when this happened), then the place where I sited the button (which fortunately covers all the nasty looking mess underneath). As a matter of interest, what would be the proper way to fix this? Fill the hole with something? What other things would you advise fixing? I would quite like to add some non-ibanez knobs (although I know it would make it less collectible). Any suggestions about this? James[/quote] Personally I'd plug a hole like that with cocktail sticks (several if it's a big hole) & epoxy adhesive - sets in no time and easy to trim flush. You can then re-drill & the strap button will likely cover the repair. Although it does sound like there'd been a previous repair anyway. The original Ibanez knobs would probably have been Sure-Grips: Black on this bass, as far as I can tell. These things are ridiculously rare & Ibby anoraks pay a fortune for them if & when they ever come up. I'd think bog-standard speed knobs or LP-type bell knobs would be an OK compromise. Other than that, a stripdown & thorough clean-up should sort it out - I recommend T-cut for the lacquer, & I like to soak hardware & screws in WD40 for a day or two & then scrub with an old toothbrush. Quite likely it might need a bit of solder on that loose pot, but that's no big deal. That could be a lovely bass over the course of a weekend. J. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmstone Posted April 8, 2009 Author Share Posted April 8, 2009 [quote name='Bassassin' post='457345' date='Apr 8 2009, 01:16 PM']Personally I'd plug a hole like that with cocktail sticks (several if it's a big hole) & epoxy adhesive - sets in no time and easy to trim flush. You can then re-drill & the strap button will likely cover the repair. Although it does sound like there'd been a previous repair anyway. The original Ibanez knobs would probably have been Sure-Grips: Black on this bass, as far as I can tell. These things are ridiculously rare & Ibby anoraks pay a fortune for them if & when they ever come up. I'd think bog-standard speed knobs or LP-type bell knobs would be an OK compromise. Other than that, a stripdown & thorough clean-up should sort it out - I recommend T-cut for the lacquer, & I like to soak hardware & screws in WD40 for a day or two & then scrub with an old toothbrush. Quite likely it might need a bit of solder on that loose pot, but that's no big deal. That could be a lovely bass over the course of a weekend. J.[/quote] Fantastic info. Thanks! Any suggestions of a good place to buy knobs from!? James Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sgt-pluck Posted April 8, 2009 Share Posted April 8, 2009 (edited) I've seen good examples of Roadster's with the 'Blazer' shaped headstock fetch well north of £300 on eBay - certainly the TOTR models. The Bass Cellar on Denmark Street has/had one in - admittedly in really nice shape but ( typically for them ) were after £400 for it, which is too much IMO - for now at least. I'm actually in the market for one myself, although I'm looking the natural version and in great condition - and will pay fairly decent money for it when I find it. Take Jon's advice: I'd offer him £100 - £150 quid for it, spend some time on it and fix it up ( needn't cost much ) and then be happy with what will be/is a [i]really[/i] nice bass Pluck Edited April 8, 2009 by sgt-pluck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bassassin Posted April 8, 2009 Share Posted April 8, 2009 [quote name='jmstone' post='457593' date='Apr 8 2009, 04:52 PM']Fantastic info. Thanks! Any suggestions of a good place to buy knobs from!? James[/quote] Big fan of [url="http://www.axesrus.com"]http://www.axesrus.com[/url] here - good range, good prices, free postage, very fast & efficient. If they don't have what you want, try [url="http://stores.ebay.co.uk/CH-GUITARS"]CH Guitars[/url] on Ebay. Sterling advice from Sgt Pluck too - except I'm a pikey and my opening offer would be £60. J. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Burpster Posted April 8, 2009 Share Posted April 8, 2009 [quote name='sgt-pluck' post='457731' date='Apr 8 2009, 07:20 PM']I've seen good examples of Roadster's with the 'Blazer' shaped headstock fetch well north of £300 on eBay - certainly the TOTR models. The Bass Cellar on Denmark Street has/had one in - admittedly in really nice shape but ( typically for them ) were after £400 for it, which is too much IMO - for now at least. I'm actually in the market for one myself, although I'm looking the natural version and in great condition - and will pay fairly decent money for it when I find it. Take Jon's advice: I'd offer him £100 - £150 quid for it, spend some time on it and fix it up ( needn't cost much ) and then be happy with what will be/is a [i]really[/i] nice bass Pluck[/quote] You'll be hard pushed to find that matches the Blazer that you've got........ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sgt-pluck Posted April 8, 2009 Share Posted April 8, 2009 (edited) [quote name='The Burpster' post='457762' date='Apr 8 2009, 08:00 PM']You'll be hard pushed to find that matches the Blazer that you've got........ [/quote] I know, and it's not going anywhere! The Roadsters have a fatter neck though, and I like a fat neck - so there's room for one in the collection I actually think that - nostalia/collectability/mojo/voodoo etc aside - Ibanez in that era put their name to some genuinely great basses. Pluck Edited April 8, 2009 by sgt-pluck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Burpster Posted April 8, 2009 Share Posted April 8, 2009 [quote name='sgt-pluck' post='457776' date='Apr 8 2009, 08:18 PM']I know, and it's not going anywhere! The Roadsters have a fatter neck though, and I like a fat neck - so there's room for one in the collection I actually think that - nostalia/collectability/mojo/voodoo etc aside - Ibanez in that era put their name to some genuinely great basses. Pluck[/quote] ...... and guitars......! It was an era when they were trying Sooooo hard to be accepted as luthiers in their own right as opposed to 'copiers'...... they used some stonking bits of wood and were (and still are!) very good at what they do..... Their QC is loads better than the big 2 US makers..... (I actually think its about where the Koreans are getting to now...... watch them as they will be turnig out some cracking stuff soon.......!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kdphysio Posted April 8, 2009 Share Posted April 8, 2009 [quote name='sgt-pluck' post='457731' date='Apr 8 2009, 07:20 PM']I'd offer him £100 - £150 quid for it[/quote] i bought an identical model bass a couple of months ago, but the ivory coloured version. it was on ebay, but i managed to get a deal with the seller direct. it's pretty much in great overall condition (a couple of knocks here & there, but that adds to its mojo!), & it is all original & complete. i paid £170 (included postage). [attachment=23507:roadsterfull.jpg][attachment=23506:roadsterhead.jpg][attachment=23505:roadserclose .jpg] [attachment=23509:ibanez79_2.jpg] [attachment=23508:ibanez79.jpg] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hubrad Posted April 8, 2009 Share Posted April 8, 2009 [quote name='sgt-pluck' post='457776' date='Apr 8 2009, 08:18 PM']Ibanez in that era put their name to some genuinely great basses. Pluck[/quote] +1.. I have what used to be one! [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=44673&hl="]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=44673&hl=[/url] [quote name='The Burpster' post='457801' date='Apr 8 2009, 08:45 PM']...... and guitars......! It was an era when they were trying Sooooo hard to be accepted as luthiers in their own right as opposed to 'copiers'...... they used some stonking bits of wood and were (and still are!) very good at what they do..... Their QC is loads better than the big 2 US makers.....[/quote] It was those stonking bits of wood that kept me going all this time. Keep hold of that bass, JMS, and enjoy it.. That's my ha'penn'orth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-L-B Posted April 8, 2009 Share Posted April 8, 2009 Mine, I sold it on here last year. Went for a steal of a price and probably a superior bass to the one you're talking about. [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=28420&hl=ibanez+roadster"]IBANEZ ROADSTER[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve-soar Posted April 8, 2009 Share Posted April 8, 2009 I miss mine, my first bass, £99. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bassassin Posted April 8, 2009 Share Posted April 8, 2009 [quote name='D-L-B' post='457889' date='Apr 8 2009, 10:20 PM']Mine, I sold it on here last year. Went for a steal of a price and probably a superior bass to the one you're talking about. [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=28420&hl=ibanez+roadster"]IBANEZ ROADSTER[/url][/quote] Only in terms of kit - the RS924 is active & has 2 pups whereas the RS800 is based on the Precision template. Construction & materials will be equal quality, Fujigen was incredibly consistent across the board quality-wise. The guitarse in my band still favours his ancient Roadstar II - his first guitar from 1980-something - despite having a vintage Gibson SG & Telecaster & all that stuff. J. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmstone Posted April 9, 2009 Author Share Posted April 9, 2009 [quote name='Bassassin' post='458016' date='Apr 9 2009, 12:29 AM']Only in terms of kit - the RS924 is active & has 2 pups whereas the RS800 is based on the Precision template. Construction & materials will be equal quality, Fujigen was incredibly consistent across the board quality-wise. The guitarse in my band still favours his ancient Roadstar II - his first guitar from 1980-something - despite having a vintage Gibson SG & Telecaster & all that stuff. J.[/quote] That's interesting. With the placement of the pup on the RS800, I would have thought it might sound more like a MM Stingray than a precision (although it is a single coil), but I haven't actually played either. It does have a very nice sound though - nice and solid but not too boomy. James Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bassassin Posted April 9, 2009 Share Posted April 9, 2009 [quote name='jmstone' post='458065' date='Apr 9 2009, 08:09 AM']That's interesting. With the placement of the pup on the RS800, I would have thought it might sound more like a MM Stingray than a precision (although it is a single coil), but I haven't actually played either. It does have a very nice sound though - nice and solid but not too boomy. James[/quote] I wasn't suggesting it would sound like a P - just that the basic design (passive, single pup, 20-fret bolt neck) is derived from the Precision template. I've never played an RS800 so I couldn't make a comparison as far as tone's concerned - but for the reasons you state it probably doesn't sound like one. J. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-L-B Posted April 10, 2009 Share Posted April 10, 2009 [quote name='Bassassin' post='458016' date='Apr 9 2009, 12:29 AM']Only in terms of kit - the RS924 is active & has 2 pups whereas the RS800 is based on the Precision template. Construction & materials will be equal quality, Fujigen was incredibly consistent across the board quality-wise. The guitarse in my band still favours his ancient Roadstar II - his first guitar from 1980-something - despite having a vintage Gibson SG & Telecaster & all that stuff. J.[/quote] My comment was intended to influence him to offer even lower for the bass in question by showing him the price 'better' versions have sold for. You could hardly argue that the RS924 was an inferior bass. Somehow you've turned it into some sort of misguided nit-picking, point-scoring opportunity, interesting that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mr pablo Posted April 10, 2009 Share Posted April 10, 2009 [quote name='D-L-B' post='457889' date='Apr 8 2009, 10:20 PM']Mine, I sold it on here last year. Went for a steal of a price and probably a superior bass to the one you're talking about. [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=28420&hl=ibanez+roadster"]IBANEZ ROADSTER[/url][/quote] Tis all mine now and I can say its going nowhere anytime soon I would like to give an r800 a bash if i could get a hold of one Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bassassin Posted April 10, 2009 Share Posted April 10, 2009 [quote name='D-L-B' post='459114' date='Apr 10 2009, 10:44 AM']My comment was intended to influence him to offer even lower for the bass in question by showing him the price 'better' versions have sold for. You could hardly argue that the RS924 was an inferior bass. Somehow you've turned it into some sort of misguided nit-picking, point-scoring opportunity, interesting that.[/quote] What? I simply pointed out that it was different in terms of specification, not "quality". I'm a collector, restorer & general enthusiast about vintage Japanese basses & guitars and have a little bit of knowledge of the instruments. Most people on this board (who have an opinion) tend to consider that a useful contribution, as far as I can tell. I'm not remotely interested in "misguided nit-picking & point-scoring", and don't consider pointing out that this is [i]not[/i] a lower specification instrument - simply different, to be either. However if you're spoiling for a scrap, which you appear to be, I suggest you do this: go stand in front of the nearest mirror, & then you can scream and flail away all day. Jon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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