1971 Fender Precision – original neck and body, black, maple, modded - *SOLD* £1500 Southampton

[Mylkinut]

If you’re after a collector’s item, turn back now. This is also a feeler since it’s hard to judge interest in this sort of thing, and I’m not convinced I want to sell.

 

This is essentially a bitsa using vintage parts (body, neck, three tuner bushings and the string tree are all from 1971). It sounds great and plays well – I've now weighed it on some kitchen scales and it's just under 9lb. I got the body in 2019 and started building it from there.

 

 

 

 

 

The body

The body has seen a fair few mods typical of the late 70s/80s. It’s been routed for a J pickup in the 60s position, and had the tugbar moved to the late-70s position at some point. It’s also been drilled for a Schaller roller bridge. Early 70s Ps had their bridges mounted too far back at the factory, and whoever fitted the Schaller wisely compensated for this – a nice side effect is the Schaller holes are covered by a BBOT bridge when fitted. The jack was relocated to the side, but this wasn’t done very well and has left a crack in the wood heading up to one of the pickguard screws – it’s not moved in the years I’ve had this body and appears to be cosmetic, but still needs mentioning.

 

The finish is original as far as I’m aware, and some research into the green ‘special’ stamp in the neck pocket suggests it’s to do with custom colours (of which black was one in the early 70s). There’s some decent wear as you’d expect, with bumps, chips, scratches and even some checking - I think it looks lovely.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The neck

The neck stamp isn’t very readable, but parts of a ‘1’ indicating 1971 are just about visible. It’s a big, chunky profile with a B width nut – I find it comfortable, but I’ve got big hands. The truss rod turns fine and is doing what it’s supposed to do.

 

There are a couple of chips to the back of the neck, none of which have ever bothered me. Lots of lovely lacquer checking to the headstock, and the logo’s perfectly intact. Plenty of life in the frets. The string tree and three of the bushings are original, the last one being from the Gotoh FB30 tuners I’ve installed. I’ll include the other three Gotohs should you want them.

 

The neck has two issues: a high 12th fret I haven’t yet sorted, and a very, very slight clockwise twist when viewed from the headstock. None of the people who have played this bass have noticed either of these problems, but they’re there so you should know about them. The neck’s not moved in the time I’ve had it, and even with these two issues it’s still capable of an action I’d expect most players would be happy with – about 2mm at the 12th fret. I’ve thought about straightening it, but frankly it’s happy where it is and plays as well as my other basses!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Other parts

When building this I’ve aimed to get parts as close to the originals as possible, so it looks like a ’71 P Bass that went through some typical 70s/80s mods. Here’s a list:

• Tuners: Gotoh FB30 aged nickel
• Neck pickup: Seymour Duncan SPB1
• Bridge pickup: Dimarzio Ultra Jazz (99% sure that’s what it is, definitely a Dimarzio at any rate – it came with the body)
• Bridge: Generic BBOT
• Pickguard: Fender (from a 20 year old MIM so it’s nicely yellowed – this came with tugbar and pickup cover holes drilled slightly wrong, but I’ve corrected them)
• Neck plate: Fender Vintage Style
• Strap buttons: Fender Road Worn
• Tugbar: Fender
• Knobs: Generic chrome flat tops, poorly reliced by yours truly 😎
• Pots: CTS 250K
• Strings: Fender 7250ML
• Screws: I’ve aged all the screws, using my ’77 P for reference. They match up decently.

 

Why I’m thinking about selling

I don’t really need it - I’ve currently got two other P Basses, and one of them has the same mods as this one. I also have a two year old and a four week old, and barely enough time to play let alone endlessly tinker with this bass (unfortunately there’s something about me that won’t leave a bitsa alone - they’re never finished!) On top of this some basses I’ve seen for sale have piqued my interest, so I guess it’s time for a change.

 

Why I don’t want to sell

It plays well, sounds great and looks sexy – basically a vintage bass I’m not worried about gigging with. Also, while I don’t really buy into the vintage Fender hoodoo, I think they look cool and I love the feel of an old bass. With prices shooting up as they are, I know I won’t be able to afford the parts I’ve got here once they’re gone.

 

Pricing & trades

This has been hard to price for obvious reasons - hopefully I've got it right? I’m sure I could get more if parted out, but given I’m not totally convinced on selling I’ve opted to keep things as they are for now. With the caveat that this is just a feeler, I am open to trades – things I’d be interested in are a MM Sabre, a Fender Elite (potentially the 2010s PJ in the right finish, but especially the 80s PP), maybe even a vintage Yamaha BB. I tend to like Fender-ish four strings.

 

Postage within the UK is potentially an option, but I’d much prefer the buyer look it over first so they know exactly what they’re getting. I’m based in Southampton but can travel within reason.

 

Bonus pic

Gratuitous picture of how I’ve typically had the bass set up – black pickguard, thumbrest above the strings and an 80s Schaller 3D fitted. I call it ’75 mode.

 

 

Edited April 3, 2023 by Mylkinut

[Beedster]

'75 Mode is rather nice 👍

[Burns-bass]

What an excellent description!

[Woody1957]

Loving the radiogram mate!

Glwts too.

[Mylkinut]

12 minutes ago, Woody1957 said:

Loving the radiogram mate!

Glwts too.

Cheers - still works too!