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Obscure Musical Backwaters - The Great SGC Nanyo Thread


Happy Jack

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This brilliant thread was responsible for this purchase a number of years ago, so it's only fair to give back and expand the information on these interesting basses.

Being a 1988 model, my SB301 is an early one.
As in other cases of the early units that I've seen there is no mention of Made In Japan on the bass (besides the Gotoh tuners).
The Pearl White finish has aged / yellowed through UV damage over time (note where some stickers [presumably] have been removed and the finish is not so faded in certain areas) and there are a couple of knocks through the paintwork here and there. However, this all just adds to the patina of the instrument for me and it's generally in good condition for 30 years old.

 

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Edited by optimus
Speeeling
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7 hours ago, optimus said:

This brilliant thread was responsible for this purchase a number of years ago, so it's only fair to give back and expand the information on these interesting basses.

Being a 1988 model, my SB301 is an early one.
As in other cases of the early units that I've seen there is no mention of Made In Japan on the bass (besides the Gotoh tuners).
The Pearl White finish has aged / yellowed through UV damage over time (note where some stickers [presumably] have been removed and the finish is not so faded in certain areas) and there are a couple of knocks through the paintwork here and there. However, this all just adds to the patina of the instrument for me and it's generally in good condition for 30 years old.

 

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Nice! Is that BBOT bridge standard on the 301, or because it is an early model it was a forerunner to the chunky version?

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  • 3 weeks later...

Hi All,

New member and pretty much a new bass player - at least since briefly owning a massive Guild semi in my Uni years, longer ago than I care to remember. So I recently decided the bass-shaped gap in my music room needed filling, ideally with something original, interesting and well made, and ideally cheap, assuming I'd end up meeting 3 at best of those criteria. Short version: a bit of lurking here & elsewhere put me on the trail of these creatures and I've just got my hands on a Fleabay 1988 SB301, for well under £200 delivered with a decent hard case. As a guitarist I find it comfortable and playable and much less of a lump than eg Squier J or Sub Stingrays that I've borrowed lately. Need a decent small bass combo before taking a view on the noisemaking side of things but even through a wee Vox practice amp there seems to be a decent tonal range. (Not sure of controls: is it V, mix, hi- and lo-cut?).

So a couple of questions: 1) It's got a scratchplate and the P/U is reversed, I assume this is all non-stock? I quite like the look and I'll leave it on for now while I ponder whether or not to take the slightly dinged tobacco burst back to oiled wood (if the state of the body under the guard allows.....) 2) Were active models routed differently for preamp & batt or did they just jam 'em in the same size hole? Not planning an immediate upgrade but handy to know either way.

More generally, who actually designed these originally, one of the Bass Centre guys?

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Edited by Richard T
Typos corrected
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Hi Richard, welcome to Basschat. Looks like a very interesting example.

You're right about the controls. You're also right about the pickguard and the reversed P pickup not being original. Neither are the dots in the fingerboard. I'd be a bit worried that the pickguard is covering up some routing holes where the original P pickup would have sat. I can't tell whether the pickups have 'SGC' on them, but if not they may also be replacements.

The cavities are more or less the same size. Some of the active basses had little channels routed out to take the battery, but the cover plates are all the same size.

Not sure whether the Bass Centre had any input to the design or whether it came from Sexton Guitar Company, sorry.

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Hi Pete, thanks for the input

P/ups are indeed marked SGC, now had the plate off and it has indeed been (very neatly) routed for the reversed P, so there's a single large-ish rectangular cutout and the (or at least a) plate will be staying. Immaculately cut 3-ply BWB, so if a DIY rather than shop job it was a good one. Hadn't really twigged the fret marker thing but on close exam they do indeed look like a retrofit - again, nicely done in MoP so someone spent a bit of time &/or £ on it at some point . Clean apart from a couple of dings, nice weight, size  & neck feel for a guitar player, I think I could get attached to this one!

Off soon to give my publican bassman pal a look at it over a pint or two and maybe leave it for him to play with intonation &c, as he will happily do for hours at a stretch. Strictly a MusicMan & G&L player but he does like arcane 80s stuff....

 

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  • 2 months later...

I've got The Greek's old purple SB100 and there's no way he's having it back (sorry... not sorry :D).

I did have his fretless too... but that is now elsewhere... somewhere near Trowbridge when last sighted (I realise I am just so crap at fretless :D)

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9 hours ago, Happy Jack said:

I thought you'd only just sold one, Mick?

I've been without a Nanyo for what seems like ages.....over a year at least. I think the last one I had I sold to Anzoid above.

We all know how (surprisingly?) good and under-rated they are and I do love it when I plug one in after not playing one for a while. When Andy built my Psilos bass I deliberately used the neck profile and weight as a guide. 

I'd still like to get my hands on one of the high end 5 or 6 series...that I wouldn't (well try not to) sell. Unfortunately I have many "I won't sell" basses.

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Hi guys nice site, first post here. We don't see these much in the US. I'd like to try this one out it's pricey at $550 total with shipping & tax in US dollars. Original case. Claims it a late 80's. It's returnable if it doesn't work out. How do you Nanyo experts feel about it.

 

 

Bass Collection Fretless.png

Edited by VincentYGB
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Looks nice and clean, original bridge and controls with no visible damage as far as I can see. I can't tell which model it is but I suspect it's a 310/320 (active models) or better because of the natural finish. Those with a solid finish are generally the entry models.

I think you'll be pleasantly surprised with the build quality and tonal palette, however even though you'll be getting a bass that's easily comparable with other basses worth $550, you could pick one up for significantly less by shopping about. 

These are currently available:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/The-Bass-Collection-SGC-Nanyo-MIJ-Precision-Bass/152733587556?hash=item238fa19864:g:ZWkAAOSw1aVZ2PDp

Entry model 301 (passive) - https://www.gumtree.com/p/guitar-instrument/bass-collection-sb301-bass-guitar/1312334215

I'd also keep an eye on the "Basses For Sale" thread here. BC owners between us have some really nice examples.

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Thanks for the info. I need unlined fretless. I think its a good $200 US too high but will probably not find another over here. Since I'm in the USA shipping is too much hassle from overseas now due to the CITES act affecting all International shipping of rosewood. Also adds $75 to the cost for paperwork and takes 2-3 months. Same thing in reverse with any of you buying from the USA. What REALLY sucks is I have a friend working in Japan who could buy and ship but it has to be basses with maple or ebony fingerboards.

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10 minutes ago, TheGreek said:

The grey one? Good bass that...another one I shouldn't have sold but it wasn't getting the use it deserved.

Yep the grey one, it was suffering fingerboard lift - the glue had degraded to the point that I was able to pull the whole thing off with my bare hands! A good dose of Titebond and many clamps have returned it to life :)

Edit - I am now thinking of stripping it as the finish is a little battered!

Edited by BreadBin
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  • 2 months later...

Just spent the morning stripping the paint from the body of a 310...man, it was hard work.

Immune to paint stripper even though this being left over night, I was forced to use a heat gun and paint scraper - even with this the paint wouldn't crackle/lift. I think that under the heat from the paint gun the body may have dried out and the 3 piece body has acquired a couple of hair line splits. Looks like I may need to pull out some Titebond/PVA and give the splits some help in staying together.

None of this will be seen once I've laminated front and back with some marquetry.

Does anybody know what the indestructible paint these are painted with is?

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