Looking For Info on a Bass

[Leetm]

I picked up this bass at the weekend for £69 as a bit of a project. I think from the last picture it looks like an Ibanez. According to my research the logo is a post 1975 type. I also discovered that Ibanez stopped making P Bass copies in 1977 0r 1978 so I guess this bass comes from between those years.

 

Does anybody out there have any information on Ibanez basses from this period? I would love to know more about the bass.

 

It actually sounds really good even with the ancient strings on it, although it's a little quiet and noisy. I'm assuming as the pickups are quite low I will need to raise them a bit.

 

But yeah if anyone out there has information of these basses I'd love to hear!

[Reggaebass]

Hi, I can’t tell you anything about it but it looks pretty cool to me , im sure someone will be along soon with info 

[Geek99]

@Bassassin would doubtless know in a heartbeat 

[Jack]

Using my extensive knowledge of vintage instruments I can tell you that the neck plate was made in Japan sometime before 2025.

[bassbiscuits]

I definitely agree re the logo being something put on later. Ibanez logos from that era are sort of weird curly lettering, rather than the late 80s version onward which you've got. It may well be something other than Ibanez.

 

Hard to gauge from those pics - there were a lot of very budget MIJ basses as well as the more legendary ones. As it stands only the neckplate refers to Japan in anyway.

 

Would be handy to see the machine heands, and if there's anything on the pickups or pots which might give its origin away. Glad it sounds cool whatever it may be!

[binky_bass]

To my eyes its not the right bridge, headstock shape, logo positioning or logo style to be a 70's Ibanez. I'd guess its a Westfield or similar with a transfer put on the headstock and a MIJ back plate added. Either way, £60 ain't much dosh! 

[Bassassin]

Fair enough to get a 70s MIJ Precision for £69 (total bargain) but I can tell you in no uncertain terms it's nothing to do with Ibanez. That style of logo was never used on 70s copy-era guitars, and the neck plate style with the MIJ stamp on the upper half of the plate was never used by Fujigen Gakki, the factory which made 70s Ibanez. That neckplate style could point to Chushin Gakki, or possibly the Matsumoto City manufacturer's co-op Matsumoto Gakki Seizou Kumiai.

 

That bridge is not what I'd expect to see on an MIJ P copy, so it's possible it's not the original, or might even hint that the bass is a bitsa. Some clear, detailed pics of hardware might help clarify things, but back then there were a lot of different factories making pretty similar/generic Fender copies, which were frequently sold unbranded, so it's unlikely we'd be able to pin down exactly what it is. Always cool/interesting to see though!