Fender Precision Bass Sunburst 1964
Fender Precision Bass, two color sunburst, made in USA December 1964. One fine day in early 1965 in Melbourne, a busy young bass player approached the manager of the recording studio with a request: can you please order me a new Precision Bass on your Fender wholesale account? The answer was yes, and a few weeks later, this gorgeous creation arrived from the warehouse in Sydney. The proud new owner of this bass was the on-call bass player for Melbourne's three busiest recording studios at the time, as well as working with a bunch of touring and local rock, pop and jazz acts, including international legends like Dizzy Gillespie and Barney Kessel. This bass was used in a number of live telecasts and an extremely long list of commercial records, including songs for Australian legends Renee Geyer and John Farnham. This is a true one-owner bass, and the proud new owner will receive a detailed musical resume for the original owner, although in the interests of privacy, we're keeping the full details off the internet. The two-color sunburst finish and white celluloid guard are factory original, even though a three-color burst with a tort guard was the more common standard option at the time. Save for the missing bridge and pickup chrome covers, this bass is all original: original tuners, frets, pots, wire, capacitor, finger rest, knobs, strap buttons, case... the whole lot is all there. It's been kept in incredible functional condition: the tuners are greased and unbent, the saddle screws all work, the pots are clean and functional; it's really quite remarkable, given how much work the bass has done. Obviously, all that play comes with some play wear: there's bald spots, checking lines, chips, dents and scuffs, as described in detail below and as pictured. The bass wore flatwound strings almost all it's life, which has minimised the wear on the frets, so after a deep clean they've come up looking fantastic, and the neck is nice and straight to match. The neck has a slight V to the profile: it's almost a rounded C, but with a slight natural apex that tapers off as you get higher up the neck, and it feels superb in the hands. The lightweight body is well balanced and extremely resonant; all that play on the clock means the wood is singing very truly. As such, the tone is really wonderful. It's woody and warm, with a round and deep fundamental note, gooey rich mids with a brimming harmonic complexity and a talkative top end that ranges from smooth and sweet to snarly and snappy depending on how much gusto you provide. It sounds like a beautifully mixed and mastered vintage recording straight out of the box, it's very satisfying. If you've been wanting to invest in a pre-CBS golden era Fender instrument, and you want something that's not only a truly excellent collector's piece but also an inspiring player blessed with considerable provenance, this is pretty unique opportunity. Long live the P.
Model: Fender Precision Bass
Made: USA, neck date 5 Dec 1964, Fullerton factory
Serial: L53890
Finish: two color sunburst, gloss nitro, original finish, original white celluloid guard
Body: alder
Neck: maple, Brazilian rosewood radius laminate fretboard, 34" scale, 7.25" scale, very soft V profile, original frets
Weight: 4.025kg
Mods: bridge and pickup covers removed and missing, otherwise all original
Pickups: Fender split-coil pickup, original
Accessories: original Fender case, playing resume and pictures from original owner
Cosmetic condition notes: minor finish wear. The headstock has dimples and scuffs on the end and both edges, a sticker fade mark on the back near the E tuner as well as some scuffs near the top edge, some scuffs and paint mark on the front near the end as well as a cigarette burn mark near the nut. There's also significant fading and rub wear over the whole headstock. The neck is clean and smooth in the hands, the board is in good order, and the back has some minor dimples and significant rub wear on the back. The back has a decent bald patch down from the neck plate and on the top horn, as well as a bunch of paint chips along the bottom, back and top edges. The back also has widespread scuffs and dimples all over. The sides have a bald patch and some paint chips and scuffs on the top horn, extensive rub wear inc a bald patch, dents and scuffs in the elbow area, a bald patch and a bunch of dents and scuffs near the jack and some chips, rub wear and scuffs on the bottom horn and around the pocket. The front has a bald patch in the elbow area, chips and dimples along the back edge, elbow area and top horn, scuffs and dimples around the bridge, dent up from the pickup and some rub wear along the top horn. There's checking and hazing in several spots all over the front. There's hole from the since removed covers, and the original guard has significant shrinkage and doesn't sit perfectly flat, although it's pretty good overall.
Overall: good condition (7/10)
Playing condition notes: Action is low, neck is straight, intonation is good, truss rod works. All electronics tested and working properly. Wearing fresh 45/105 Moonshiners strings.
Fret life: 8/10, minor wear only, no neck 'ramping'