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Caught me a P-Bass while trollin at Sharky's!
Mon, 06/28/2010 - 10:47am
So I tent to Troll the Pawn shops looking for a good deal. There's a shop called Sharky's here and they have a modest gear section. Long story short, I had planned on getting a used Mexican P-Bass in an effort to find the 'right' bass (rather than buy a US one and find out it wasn't for me). I was in Sharky's Saturday and whaddya know? A Black Mexican P-Bass for $220. It was missing a G string bridge ferrule, the action was crap, the neck was bowed, and the thing was filthy..really filthy...like DDD filthy, only on the outside 
. I talked them down to $183, picked up some new strings, all-parts bridge pieces, Fender Strap Locks, and here's the end result of about 2 hours of cleanign and setting up....
Only two flaws in the bass now: a really small chip in the fretboard around the 5th fret (deosn't effect playability), and a dime shaped chunk of paint missing on the bottom curve. The truss rod took almost 2 full turns to get it back to spec. An odd thing I noticed was that the neck and body were both date stamped '97, when the serial number says it's a '96??
I decided to keep that Ibanez neck thru till I find out exactly what Bass is the one for me. Looking forward to trying this one out at rehearsal in a couple weeks.
Here's to Pawn Shop finds!!!
Mon, 06/28/2010 - 12:04pm
#2
Let us know how it works out!
The closest that I've come to owning a P-bass is an Ibanez Blazer copy of one. It really wasn't my sort of sound (I gave it away to a friend) and Fender P's neck is too big for my tastes. I've come around to the conclusion that the jazz bass works best for my playing style and sound.
All that said, in the right hands, a P-bass can sound awesome.
Mon, 06/28/2010 - 1:01pm
#3
I love pbasses... and I love
I love pbasses... and I love being filthy haha!
the MIMs are pretty nice, the great thing about the pbass is all the parts available for them. Customization is easy that way.
good find man, and a great price
rock.
DDD
Mon, 06/28/2010 - 1:43pm
#4
Nice score Taco. That's
Nice score Taco. That's lookin' good. And if you got DDD style filth off that thing, you must've used a rag dipped in holy water. 
Mon, 06/28/2010 - 2:30pm
#5
That sucker looks brand new,
That sucker looks brand new, great job.
Mon, 06/28/2010 - 4:16pm
#6
never wash a pbass....
now
never wash a pbass....
now you got to go through the whole process of respooge to get that funky grunt back
I assume you used a hatchet to get down to the DDD on that stick
cleaned up well
now rock that beotch
Mon, 06/28/2010 - 6:01pm
#7
pawn shop finds are the
pawn shop finds are the best.
my '79 Ibby Roadster fretless, my GK115T cab, my SC X188 head all came from a pawnshop. its my dad's fault since he always took me when he was lookin' for gun deals. 
nice score and nice cleanup.
Tue, 06/29/2010 - 5:18am
#8
Nice
Nice indeed....
hows she play now with the adjustments?
I still gotta get me a P-bass.
Mine will be white tho.....hopefully.
Nice tho..thanks for pics
T-bag
Tue, 06/29/2010 - 10:28am
#9
It plays phenominally better
It plays phenominally better set up properly. But that's just at home. I won't know how it actually PLAYS till we have band reharsal in a couple weeks. If that goes well, I'll use it at our next gig at the end of July..and I'll be sure to post some gig pics. (Love it when you guys post gig pics!!)
I judge gear by how well it performs in a band setting. Guys I have been in bands with will usually roll their eyes when i show up wih a new piece of gear. That's because 90% of the time it fails my 'test' and I send it back or sell it. But that's just because I have high expectations of my gear.
Thanks for the comments gents! It was really fun cleaning this bass up and getting it ready. BTW - I'm SERIOUSLY itching to build me another JTM45 head, and that one I really gotta fight! (takes 40 hours)
Tue, 06/29/2010 - 10:36pm
#10
The "band test" is it!
I hear ya Taco on using with the band. I've passed along several basses that, for one reason or another, didn't work well in a full-band situation. Played well alone, but not so much with other instruments.
Case in point is the recent Sterling; I thought it sounded heavenly on its own, but I couldn't get it to come out in a full-band mix for anything. The replacement jazz bass fits in quite well and my Clement seems to be present even if I have the volume down low.
I think that we bass players have an ear for choosing tools that make the whole band mix sound good.
Oh, yes, sir! Absolutely. Loves me a Pbass.
B.A.S.K Assault Squad Leader UOF Badge #12 If you ask me to just play root notes again, I'm going to take that guitar off you and shove it down your throat! Don't play what's there, play what's not there. - Miles Davis THORNATUDE shall rule! - Thorn