Fender Precision Bass Model Solid Body Electric Bass Guitar (1963), made in Fullerton, California, serial # L10356, sunburst lacquer finish, alder body, maple neck with rosewood fingerboard, rigid foam case.
This late 1963 Precision bass is about as real as relics get, with scads of finish wear that is the product not of artificial ageing but actual gigging over six decades. Beneath this wear this is a truly lovely pre-CBS Precision, one of the lighter and handier we have had with the look, feel, and sound that defines the classic 1960s Fender bass. The features particular to this period include a thin-lam rosewood fingerboard with clay dot inlay, "Transition" silver Fender logo decal, "L" serial number plate, tortoiseshell pattern nitrocellulose pickguard and Kluson bass tuners. The neck and body are finished with the thin Pre-CBS style lacquer in a blended sunburst finish just a bit mellower than the "target" bursts of 1965 and after.
The bass would have been assembled in fall 1963, just over a year before the CBS takeover. The neck heel is stamped 5 OCT63C, the visible pot date is to the 40th week of that year. It has obviously seen a lot of use over nearly six decades but remains more original and in that way at least better preserved than many old Fender basses that have been stripped, modified or heavily rebuilt. It has the classic Precision sound with a bright midrange growl that warms up nicely when the tone knob is rolled off a bit. At under 9 Lbs. (with both covers ON) this is fairly light for a Precision Bass from ANY era, with a superbly resonant sound even unplugged.
This is simply a great player's example of the world's premier electric bass, still ruler of the roost 60+ years on and ready for the next half-century of low end action. This era's Precision Bass is an absolute classic, played by the majority of the great electric bassists of the 1960s and '70s heard on literally thousands of recordings since then. This bass is a true relic, worn by decades of use, not hammers and sandpaper. It remains a wonderful instrument for any style of music, an absolute joy to play and a prime example of glory days of the Fullerton, California Fender factory.
Overall length is 45 3/4 in. (116.2 cm.), 13 in. (33 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 3/4 in. (44 mm.)., 8.72 lbs.
Obviously this bass has been heavily played, and with good reason! It must be a veteran of decades of gigs; there is finish wear literally everywhere, with some thumb and finger wear going into the body wood above the top edge of the pickguard. All finish remains original; some of the small dings on the face have had just neat topical touch up but there is no overspray or added lacquer. The face is actually cleaner than some, with the wear concentrated in a couple of spots and less between the bridge and pickup than many. The back has a great deal of buckle wear down to the wood with chips and rub wear to the edges; the lower back edge is heavily worn through.
There is no structural damage or visible repair to the instrument. The only alteration is the front lower tip of the pickguard must have cracked off long ago and someone rounded down the tip to make it less obvious! That original Celluloid pickguard has a decent amount of the typical shrinkage with several other cracked screw holes and the upper forward corner popped off as well. There is only minimal scarring by the truss rod from adjustments. The pickup, wiring and hardware are all original and correct including the original threaded-saddle bridge, plastic fingerrest/"Tug Bar" and both chrome covers.
The neck is in excellent playing condition, with most of the finish on the back worn away giving that much coveted super played-in Fender feel. The bass still carries the original narrow frets with just some light wear; it must have been played with flatwound strings all these years. The bone nut is original, and the headstock decal has survived with only a couple of tiny chips.
This is simply a superb 1960s Fender bass, a "Real Relic" played but never modified with the classic warm but clear sound and an effortless player. This true veteran remains as it has been from the beginning a superb player's bass, currently living in a later hard foam gigging case, the original now long gone. Overall Very Good + Condition.
