Help ID a Stingray

[vincbt]

Hi all!

 

I’ve been on the hunt for a fretless Stingray for a while now and one came up which may tick most boxes (except it seems priced a bit too high). It is local to me so I will go check it out in person but there are a couple of details I can’t square.

 

The seller, who is a pro, doesn’t know what material the fretboard is made of. I would think it’s pau ferro, would anyone with more experience with this MM era be able to confirm?

 

Also, the Serial comes up as Sunburst but it doesn’t look like a refin, am I missing anything there?

 

 

[drTStingray]

29 minutes ago, vincbt said:

Hi all!

 

I’ve been on the hunt for a fretless Stingray for a while now and one came up which may tick most boxes (except it seems priced a bit too high). It is local to me so I will go check it out in person but there are a couple of details I can’t square.

 

The seller, who is a pro, doesn’t know what material the fretboard is made of. I would think it’s pau ferro, would anyone with more experience with this MM era be able to confirm?

 

Also, the Serial comes up as Sunburst but it doesn’t look like a refin, am I missing anything there?

 

 

It’s sunburst - they changed the name to honeyburst around 2000 and started producing a three tone sunburst as a standard colour - previously 3TS had been a custom colour at extra cost and is thus extremely rare from the late 80s/90s.

 

The board is almost certainly pau ferro although that one looks a little dry - but a wipe over with lemon oil will deal with that! As they’re so rare, Stingray fretless basses command a premium over a similar bass but fretted version. 
 

I have an earlier (93) one in a similar colour but with the three band EQ. I bought it about 15 yrs ago off EBay for around £750…… I don’t plan to part with it but if I did I’d be looking for upwards of £2k.

 

EBMM occasionally produce fretless basses these days but sell them via their on line shop, and are often £3k. In days gone by you could specify a fretless but as with lefties, they didn’t make that many. You may wish to consider the price being asked accordingly!!

 

Here’s mine for interest. It goes without saying it sounds superb - the owner of a Wal fretless, no less, was waxing lyrical to me about it at a jam session, commenting on how mellow it sounds - of course, it can do more in yer face if desired!! Needless to say I’m totally green with envy of any Wal bass as well……. 

 

Edited January 21, 2023 by drTStingray

[vincbt]

7 minutes ago, drTStingray said:

It’s sunburst - they changed the name to honeyburst around 2000 and started producing a three tone sunburst as a standard colour - previously 3TS had been a custom colour at extra cost and is thus extremely rare from the late 80s/90s.

 

The board is almost certainly pau ferro although that one looks a little dry - but a wipe over with lemon oil will deal with that! As they’re so rare, Stingray fretless basses command a premium over a similar bass but fretted version. 
 

I have an earlier (93) one in a similar colour but with the three band EQ. I bought it about 15 yrs ago off EBay for around £750…… I don’t plan to part with it but if I did I’d be looking for upwards of £2k.

 

EBMM occasionally produce fretless basses but sell them via their on line shop, and are often £3k. You may wish to consider the price being asked accordingly!!

 

Here’s mine for interest. It goes without saying it sounds superb - the owner of a Wal fretless, no less, was waxing lyrical to me about it at a jam session, commenting on how mellow it sounds - of course, it can do more in yer face if desired!! Needless to say I’m totally green with envy of any Wal bass as well……. 

 

Thanks! I didn’t know about 3TS being a custom colour so that would explain it.

 

Yes, the price context you mention does fit with the ask roughly, I guess being a pro there is also an additional mark-up to factor in.

 

I’ll go try it out and see if it comes home with me, it’s good to see the board can pick a darker tone cause fretless 2-band seems to be otherwise hard to come by. I did find a BFR 2019 fretless in the US but at more than double the price…

[White Cloud]

That looks like a beautiful example. If you can make it happen I'd snap it up!

[rodney72a]

3 hours ago, drTStingray said:

It’s sunburst - they changed the name to honeyburst around 2000 and started producing a three tone sunburst as a standard colour - previously 3TS had been a custom colour at extra cost and is thus extremely rare from the late 80s/90s.

 

 

3 Tone Vintage Sunburst as a colour option first appeared in the 1990 EBMM catalogue - "at an additional charge", along with Translucent White and Butterscotch Ash.

Edited January 21, 2023 by rodney72a

[drTStingray]

1 hour ago, rodney72a said:

 

3 Tone Vintage Sunburst as a colour option first appeared in the 1990 EBMM catalogue - "at an additional charge", along with Translucent White and Butterscotch Ash.

I think Butterscotch Ash replaced Peach as an ‘additional charge’ colour - I didn’t know EBMM didn’t offer 3TS until 1990 - it was always a standard colour pre EB. 

Edited January 21, 2023 by drTStingray

[Linus27]

For reference, this is mine which also has a Pau Ferro board and I paid £1800 for it about a year or so ago.

 

Edited January 22, 2023 by Linus27

[vincbt]

38 minutes ago, Linus27 said:

For reference, this is mine which also has a Pau Ferro board and I paid £1800 for it about a year or so ago.

 

That’s lush, I really like that finish 

[Linus27]

7 minutes ago, vincbt said:

That’s lush, I really like that finish 

Thank you, you should see the back and the fretboard, its stunning 😍

 

 

[rodney72a]

 

On 21/01/2023 at 23:56, drTStingray said:

I think Butterscotch Ash replaced Peach as an ‘additional charge’ colour - I didn’t know EBMM didn’t offer 3TS until 1990 - it was always a standard colour pre EB. 

 

Going by the catalogues from the era, I think the 'Special "Feature" colors' weren't necessarily the ones that commanded an upcharge. Take the 1990 catalogue, for example: 3 Tone Vintage Sunburst, Translucent White and Butterscotch Ash are listed as available at an additional charge, whereas the Special Feature Colors - like Peach - generally weren't named. It's not clear whether they cost extra. (1990 is a bit late for Peach though, 1989 might have been the last year that colour was available.)

 

This is a page from the 1990 catalogue:

 

Edited March 11, 2023 by rodney72a

[rodney72a]

As for Sunburst vs. Vintage Sunburst from the era:

 

1989 Sunburst, 1990 Vintage Sunburst

 

[drTStingray]

On 22/01/2023 at 11:45, Linus27 said:

Thank you, you should see the back and the fretboard, its stunning 😍

 

 

Fabulous - EBMM go the extra mile with their basses.

[drTStingray]

12 hours ago, rodney72a said:

As for Sunburst vs. Vintage Sunburst from the era:

 

1989 Sunburst, 1990 Vintage Sunburst

 

These look great, as always, @rodney72a. Both with highly figured necks? As I said above, EBMM have always gone the extra mile with their basses. Great value for the price. 

[vincbt]

Well, the bass is sitting next to me at work now...

 

I'll take some photos once I have a chance to give it a good clean and setup but it looks great, highly figured neck and all.

 

Now I just need to figure out if the set of LaBella white nylon flats I have at home suits it well and get a black or perloid pickguard.

 

Thanks for helping out!

 

 

[vincbt]

It took ages but I finally found the time to clean it up, set it up with nylons and test a few different pickguards. The neck may still need a bit of lemon oil but it’s a good start. Just can’t decide what guard to leave on!

 

 

[cocco]

Pearloid all day for me. 

[neepheid]

When I saw the title of this thread, I was hoping I could come in, see a picture of a Stingray and write "yup, it's a Stingray"

[bartelby]

Black pickguard looks best IMO

[itu]

I had an unlined fretless 5 in pau ferro and it was pretty light in colour. Good feel but not wide enough for me, I like 19 mm string width.

 

How does that look without the pickguard?

[Waddo Soqable]

Black of the two options, but no pg is good too... 

[vincbt]

It does actually look pretty good without, I’d need to buy a clear pg

[Waddo Soqable]

50 minutes ago, vincbt said:

It does actually look pretty good without, I’d need to buy a clear pg

The first stingray I had circa 1980 I thought the egg shape pg was hideous, so just took it off, it was a natch colour body so the lil' screw holes didn't really show. 

There was an evilbay seller doing pg's for stingrays that were a good dead fit.. 

[Lfalex v1.1]

I had a '90 fretless SR5.

Pau Ferro 'board on that, too.

 

Kinda wish I hadn't sold it. 

[vincbt]

38 minutes ago, Waddo Soqable said:

The first stingray I had circa 1980 I thought the egg shape pg was hideous, so just took it off, it was a natch colour body so the lil' screw holes didn't really show. 

There was an evilbay seller doing pg's for stingrays that were a good dead fit.. 

 

I had a look while I was swapping guards and thought it does look good naked. This one would need a proper clean to go without guard or I think a clear one should do well

[vincbt]

2 minutes ago, Lfalex v1.1 said:

I had a '90 fretless SR5.

Pau Ferro 'board on that, too.

 

Kinda wish I hadn't sold it. 

I know the feeling…