Fender 1972 Telecaster Bass Humbucker Version £1625 Lancaster

[ash]

This is more of a feeler to see if there is any interest.

My old Fender Telecaster Bass dates from 1972. The Basschatter who I got it from had the P bass pickup routed and the body refinished by John Diggins.

When we exchanged it a few years ago it didn’t have the original Fender humbucker however I managed to source an original which I imported from the US. I added an extra original volume pot from the same era and sourced a 70’s Fender knob. It is wired like a Jazz bass two volumes and one tone.

It has the three bolt neck with working micro tilt and a working bullet trussrod. The original finish was natural as there is a stamp under the mudbucker. The tuners, neck , frets and body are all original although I’m not sure of all of the pots and definitely not the wiring. 

The bridge had been swapped for a four saddle top loader job so I got a two saddle through strung with saddles that can be angled. More in keeping with the original but easier to intonate. 

 

The P bass pickup is a cream coloured late 70s vintage Dimarzio DP that sounds fantastic. The big humbucker has real sub bass to it and there are some classic tones to be had between the two. 

The Diggins refinish is intentionally worn with crazing however there are areas where the routing was rough that have been filled and touched up on the front. There is a larger buckle rash area on the back also touched up rather clumsily as the colour match is very poor.  It protected the wood at least! My original intention was to take it back to a natural finish but I’ve not got round to it - as usual….

 

The scratch plate is a copy of some kind, when I got it the bass looked more like a Mike Dirnt Tele. My luthier cut out the area for the Fender humbucker.

The ashtray is original and you can see the remains of the perished rubber mute on the inside of it. The bass plays well and is strung with Elixir coated strings.

It is quite hefty but nothing like some of the Tele basses or other basses of this era I’ve played. It is around 4.7kgs. The bass in an earlier incarnation is pictured and described in the Haynes Fender Bass Manual.

 

It’s a players bass rather than one for the collector. It could be restored to the original spec if you really wanted to but you’d have a one trick - albeit a good trick - pony.

 I’m reluctant to shift it but my P bass isn’t selling and having had some large vets bills recently I need to free up some cash.

It is a rare opportunity to buy one of these old Telecaster basses at a sensible (I hope you think so too) price.

 

Pickup preferred but I can post in the UK at cost. Sorry no trades. 

There isn’t a case with it but I’ll try and source one if you want it posting, otherwise it comes with a Fender gigbag. I’ll be sad to see this one go. I’ll add more pics if required. All the usual ID stamps are on the neck heel and pocket I would rather not remove the neck as they are a faff to set up with the micro tilt. 
Pics added of how it came to me and the mark under the scratchplate before it was cut to accommodate the mudbucker. 

 

Edited 1 hour ago by ash

[three]

Exceptionally cool!  Play that on any stage and freeze the scene

[ScottBass86]

Lovely!

[Beedster]

Love it 👍

[silverfoxnik]

45 minutes ago, Beedster said:

Love it 👍

Me too. 

 

That is an awesome looking bass! 

 

GLWTS 👍 😊