Up for grabs is a really cool piece that has been a staple in my studio for quite some time. This is an amazing, quintessential piece of bass history- the Fender 70’s Jazz Bass. Geddy? Marcus? You get all those vibes and more here. It’s really hard to beat the looks and feel of these great basses, and this one has all the right mojo and playability to make it a true winner.

This bass started its life as a 1973 Natural Fender Jazz Bass. Ash body. TOM R stamp in the pocket. Still has the original neck plate with the ‘73 serial. Per the original owner, the neck suffered a catastrophic failure in ‘78, and Fender sent him a new S8 serial neck. Maple neck and board with pearl blocks. Absolutely gorgeous. Being that JB’s were three bolt tilts at the time, the neck was immediately converted by a tech to a 4 bolt pocket, as the owner said Fender would not do the conversion for him. The bass then suffered the same fate many 70’s jazz basses did in the 80’s- Mod time! The original bridge was replaced with a Badass 1 and the pickups were replaced with Seymour Duncan Hot Stack pickups (More on these later). The two volume pots look like they came along with the pickups, but the tome pot looks original, and seems to be dated to the late 60’s, which was common in early 70’s builds. Those original pickups and bridge are now gone. This is how the bass came to me many moons ago. I have since replaced the BA with a normal style Fender bent plate bridge. The bass is typical of that era and weighs in at just over 11lbs. Overall the bass plays extremely well and sounds absolutely incredible, and would be a solid vintage addition to anyone’s stable. I’m thinning down, and my 70s reissue hasn’t sold, so I figure I’ll offer this one up instead. That’s the only reason I’m listing this.

The Great:
-The ‘73 body is in great shape. It’s been a player for 50+ years, so it’s got some minor battle scars, but nothing crazy or really noticeable at all.
-The ‘78 neck is super clean, with original tuners. It’s a beautiful neck, with no binding issues, pretty straight, and feels incredible. Neck has no twists or warps, but did need a small shim to get setup perfectly. This shouldn’t surprise anyone looking at vintage basses. And with the 4 bolt conversion, it’s sturdier than it ever was with the tilt neck.
-The OHSC is included and in excellent shape for its age compared to the dozens of other vintage Fender cases I’ve owned over the years.
-THE PICKUPS! These are some of the best pickups I’ve ever played in my life. No joke. I almost want to keep them (and might). These are the original run of SD Hot Stacks that have the reddish/maroon covers. These are highly sought after pickups and very rarely come up for sale, especially as a matched pair. They are loud and clear. Very chimey, but with a vintage depth. I’ve tried buying more modern Hot Stacks sets for other basses, and they are nothing like these. I really think these pups are truly a treasure. If they aren’t your thing, I’m happy to swap out for a set of different pickups- your choice of EMG Passive Jazz or Fender 70s. This bass is a wonderful player, but will need a setup to your preferences. This is a vintage instrument, and as such is sold AS-IS.

The Not As Great (But not Bad)-
-Mismatched year body and neck (but do you really care?)
-Not original pickups and bridge.
-The old, maroon pickup cover has bled into the clear coat a bit around the bridge rout. You can’t really see it with the cover on. Looks kinda cool though.
-She heavy.

Always open to trades. Mainly looking for a ‘64 Hofner, Gibson ES & EB-2 basses, or Fender CS. Also looking for guitars- PRS, Gibson, Fender CS. Open to other ideas, so just shoot me a message. The bass is also listed locally, and can be purchased at a much better price for cash in person.

Open to offers, BUT I’m not responding to any lowball offers for $1000 off the original asking price, so stop sending them. Cheers!