Fender Jazz Bass Solid Body Electric Bass Guitar (1962)

Fender  Jazz Bass Solid Body Electric Bass Guitar  (1962)
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Item # 8987
Prices subject to change without notice.
Fender Jazz Bass Model Solid Body Electric Bass Guitar (1962), made in Fullerton, California, serial # 90889, sunburst lacquer re- finish, alder body, maple neck with rosewood fingerboard, original brown tolex hard shell case.

This is a truly superb player's example of true pre-CBS Jazz bass, perfectly restored to excellent playing condition. The body has had a thorough expert refinish to the original style 3-color sunburst by J. Black, former Fender Custom Shop Master Builder and one of the world's foremost experts on the restoration of old Fenders. Everything is done to the highest standard, and this is a beautiful-looking and fantastic-sounding bass.

The introduction of the Jazz Bass represented a major step for Fender, and for the electric bass in general. By 1959 the Precision Bass had been on the market for eight years or so, and Fender was seeing increasing competition in a market they had pretty much created. The Jazz Bass was designed as an upgrade model, the hot rod of the electric bass world. With the sleeker "offset" body adapted from the Jazzmaster and a much slimmer 1 1/2" nut width, it had a racier look and sleeker feel than the Precision. The two slimmer-cased, multi-pole pickups offered a wider range of sounds, with a sharper attack and more definition to the tone. While always a successful model, the Jazz Bass was rather more expensive than the Precision and in the pre-CBS period was built in smaller numbers.

This bass was built in late 1962, several years before the CBS takeover of Fender. At 9.66 lbs. with the covers installed, this is a medium weight for a 1960s Fender bass and quite resonant. The slim tapered neck is marked 7 OCT 1962 A and has a very dark clay dot thin-lam rosewood fingerboard with no binding. The headstock sports what looks to be a NOS gold Fender logo decal, installed over an older refinish on the headstock long ago. It sports the original Kluson tuners wit a bit of clear overspray visible on the ferrules. The alder body is finished in a beautifully recreated blended 3-color sunburst lacquer finish with the original tortoise plastic pickguard. This bass still has the original felt mutes on little brass strips under the rear cover, a feature discontinued shortly after it was made.

This is a wonderful-playing and sounding true vintage Fender Jazz Bass offering somewhat more low/midrange emphasis to the tone compared to typical Jazz Basses from 1965 and beyond. While not a completely original instrument it both looks and sounds wonderful at far lower price than a clean all-original example.
 
Overall length is 46 1/2 in. (118.1 cm.), 14 in. (35.6 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 1 5/8 in. (4.1 cm.) in depth, measured at side of rim. Scale length is 34 in. (864 mm.). Width of nut is 1 1/2 in. (38 mm.).

This bass has been restored to the original specs by one of the world's best Fender master builder/restorers, J. Black. The body finish is a beautifully recreated and very lightly aged 3-color sunburst. This finish has a very light checking pattern but no additional "relic" treatments. The body itself has no additional routs or repair work other than the refinish, and retains some original finish in the cavities. ALL hardware and fittings including pickups and electronics are original and in excellent condition, down to the last screw. The solder joints were redone for purposes of the refinish, but nothing else has been altered.

The back of the neck has some of the original finish underneath a light clear overspray. The headstock appears to have bee re-finished long ago and had the decal replaced; the Fender logo decal itself appears to be a NOS original applied over the second finish, which in the '70's and even early '80's was still possible to procure. If not, it is the best repro we have ever seen, and the only one that has the correct raised elements and blacklights as original! J. Black refinished the body but elected to leave the neck as it had been for decades as the effect is quite authentic, and NOS 1960's Fender decals are unobtainable today. The frets and fingerboard show very little wear.

This bass is set up in the original 1962 style, with flatwound strings and the original felt mutes installed. This of course could be altered as desired, but currently it feels very much like it did when new in late 1962. We think it feels and sounds really cool this way, ready for your surf band, frat band or chitlin' circuit gig. It includes a very nice original Brown Fender HSC with documentation on the restoration from J. Black and an autographed copy of his book THE FENDER BASS. As nice a Fender restoration as it is possible to find, and a truly great bass by any standard. Excellent Condition.