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Post subject: 1960's Fender V Bridge cover....?
Posted: Thu May 15, 2014 2:30 am
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Hello again Fender Forum....

I got in touch last year about identifying my 1960s Five string which Brother Dave and others confirmed to be a 1967 Fender V with a replacement neck - bit of and odd bod and not original enough to be worth that much except to me. I was looking to sell it but having researched it and got it properly set up, I've now fallen back in love with it and it's staying...!

I'm looking to get a (genuine if possible) bridge cover but 1960's 5 string bridge covers I'm sure are rare.....

From the pictures of the original I have seen, it looks like a Jazz bass style cover but the holes on the covers I've seen are very high up. Old screw holes on the body are 5 inches apart but only about 2 inches from the bottom of the body, which looks a bit more like a precision cover hole spacing..?

I can't find sizes/specs for these covers anywhere, so maybe someone out there can shed some light on what I need and where I might get one from.....?

Many thanks

Bobby


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Post subject: Re: 1960's Fender V Bridge cover....?
Posted: Fri May 16, 2014 2:06 pm
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Man, that's a hard item to find.
The Fender Bass 5 had its own unique set of bridge and pickup covers and everything on that bass was over sized. Remember, it has a high C string, not a low B string.

I suggest ebay, but be prepared to pay some big buck for it.

I have only seen one of those original Fender 5 strings and it was back in the 70's when I was offered one in trade for my '66 Precision. I didn't do the deal, thank God.

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Post subject: Re: 1960's Fender V Bridge cover....?
Posted: Thu May 22, 2014 6:26 am
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Good luck with the search, but I can tell you that I've been looking around the world for probably close on 15 years (dealers & private & ebay) with no success. These covers are indeed unique to the Bass V & nothing like any others made by Fender.

I did find one in Germany perhaps 10 years ago, but by the time the dealer had responded to my enquiry it was sold. I recall that the price was circa £300 ....... that was around 10 years ago!

I have a Bass V in CAR - number 600002 i.e. the 2nd one to be built, & often wonder if 600000 (if this number was ever used) or 600001 are still out there?


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Post subject: Re: 1960's Fender V Bridge cover....?
Posted: Mon Jun 09, 2014 9:12 am
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Yeeah - thought it might be a tricky one, but I didn't realise quite HOW tricky so thanks.

I'll keep looking I guess - if the parts are particular to the bass V then I guess not even a 5 string Jazz cover would do the job/look the part?

Now I'm confused re serial numbers.....

I've got 600182 here, but searches I've done on serial numbers tell me it's a 70's serial number which would indicate a replacement neck? Do you (with original 600002) reckon it's earlier..? I thought numbers 60,000 was 1960's but 600,000 was 1970's.

Thanks guys


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Post subject: Re: 1960's Fender V Bridge cover....?
Posted: Tue Jun 10, 2014 12:46 pm
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The "standard" Fender numbering does not apply to the Bass V, the number used does not relate to a year of production as with other Fender guitars.

All Bass V's have a 6-digit number starting with 600, so 600182 simply indicates that yours was originally built with that number on the neck plate. I suppose a replacement neck could have been obtained any time up to the end of production (see below)?

I am not aware that there is any way of linking the 6-digit number to a production year, but it seems perfectly reasonable for number 600182 to be a 1967 guitar. Somebody else may be able to educate us on this?

Production started in 1965, but it is thought that only about 1000 Fender Bass V models were produced before the guitar was discontinued in 1971. Surplus bodies were then used in the construction of the first Fender Swingers.


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Post subject: Re: 1960's Fender V Bridge cover....?
Posted: Mon Jun 23, 2014 2:11 am
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Thanks for clearing that up. I didn't realise the numbering was different for V's.
My Fender V has a natural coloured headstock - not the same
colour as the body like the originals. When I was researching it, advice seemed to be that it had a replacement neck due to serial number and headstock colour. Maybe it's a bit more original than I thought....
Thanks again
Bobby Hill


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Post subject: Re: 1960's Fender V Bridge cover....?
Posted: Fri Jun 27, 2014 11:36 am
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FYI: Fender Swingers were made from leftover 12 string bodies, not Bass V bodies.
There is no way that a BassV body can be used for any guitar. the neck pocket is too large and the body dimensions are huge compared to any guitar, so they were for basses only or they were trashed.

I would doubt that your bass V has a replacement neck and please don't base that on whether the neck has a matching head stock! There are a lot of custom color instruments made by Fender in the 60's and 70's without matching head stocks.

I would doubt that any replacement neck was needed for your BassV. The necks were too huge and too short to have any problems. They are only 15 frets and the addition of a high C string was no big deal, stress-wise, for a bass neck that huge!

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Post subject: Re: 1960's Fender V Bridge cover....?
Posted: Mon Jul 14, 2014 10:14 am
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Quote:
FYI: Fender Swingers were made from leftover 12 string bodies, not Bass V bodies.
There is no way that a BassV body can be used for any guitar. the neck pocket is too large and the body dimensions are huge compared to any guitar, so they were for basses only or they were trashed.


Sorry, but that's not correct, it was the Custom model that used leftover Electric XII necks & bodies.

The Swinger used heavily modified Musicmaster & Bass V bodies, but those from the Bass V source required more work to achieve the Swinger shape. With these ex-Bass V bodies the larger route is concealed under the pickguard, so the origin of the body can be easily established.


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Post subject: Re: 1960's Fender V Bridge cover....?
Posted: Mon Jul 14, 2014 10:59 am
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I disagree.

The BASS V had tool large of a neck routing to hide under a pick guard. The large scale of the body would've required more work than a blank piece of wood to shape into a Swinger.
It wouldn't be practical.

I think they used the Bass V pickup routing template on the Fender 12 bodies to make the wiring more accessible for the single pickup configuration.
I know that they used BASS V control plates and bridge parts on the Swinger but lets get real. The Swinger had to be quick and easy to make-a couple of cuts off of a 12 string body and you're done!

They also didn't use Musicmaster bodies to make Swingers - Wrong shape and too small!

Please don't quote Wikipedia on this board. It is factually wrong on this subject!
As are many sources on the Internet.

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Post subject: Re: 1960's Fender V Bridge cover....?
Posted: Mon Jul 14, 2014 11:32 am
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Quote:
I disagree.

The BASS V had tool large of a neck routing to hide under a pick guard. The large scale of the body would've required more work than a blank piece of wood to shape into a Swinger.
It wouldn't be practical.

I think they used the Bass V pickup routing template on the Fender 12 bodies to make the wiring more accessible for the single pickup configuration.
I know that they used BASS V control plates and bridge parts on the Swinger but lets get real. The Swinger had to be quick and easy to make-a couple of cuts off of a 12 string body and you're done!

They also didn't use Musicmaster bodies to make Swingers - Wrong shape and too small!


I'm apologise again, but you are incorrect & I have no idea what Wikipedia says about these guitars.

The neck routing of the Bass V body disappeared completely when the Swinger body was worked from it, the neck route formed no part at all of the finished Swinger profile - it was simply cut off. Give me a while & I will post a pic of a Swinger body laid over the top of a Bass V body to show you. I've not done this before, but it shows very well how the transition can be made (& the amount of work involved) I don't have a Musicmaster, but I do have Mustangs (the body shapes are similar but not identical) & it is perfectly possible to make a Swinger out of a Mustang body, so why not a Musicmaster?


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Post subject: Re: 1960's Fender V Bridge cover....?
Posted: Mon Jul 14, 2014 12:04 pm
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Here you are :-

Image

Image

Image

If you don't accept that I give up & suggest that you read through some "expert written" reference books - at least I would guess that we've given the other guys something to smile at!

Edit - only allowed 3 pics will put the 4th in another post


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Post subject: Re: 1960's Fender V Bridge cover....?
Posted: Mon Jul 14, 2014 12:05 pm
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Here's the 4th pic :-

Image


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Post subject: Re: 1960's Fender V Bridge cover....?
Posted: Tue Jul 15, 2014 3:27 pm
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Those are some very cool pictures. You have made your case.

I will accept that it could've and probably did happen, but it still seems like a very large amount of work to make a Swinger out of a Bass V body.

That's a lot of work compared to making a !2 string body into a Swinger.

I don't think that a Swinger body can be made from a Mustang or Musicmaster.
It would be interesting to see a comparison of those body shapes.

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Post subject: Re: 1960's Fender V Bridge cover....?
Posted: Wed Jul 16, 2014 1:07 am
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BCbassman wrote:
That's a lot of work compared to making a 12 string body into a Swinger.


Many of the surplus Electric XII bodies and necks were recycled to become these......

Image

As goofy-looking a guitar as Fullerton ever built!

:lol:

Arjay

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Post subject: Re: 1960's Fender V Bridge cover....?
Posted: Wed Jul 16, 2014 3:12 am
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Thanks for the two posts above .....”a picture tells a thousand words”!

As you correctly say .... a lot of work, but the Bass V bodies had already been written off by the CBS bean counters in the Fender accounts, so effectively came for free & the only cost as far as the Swinger was concerned was labour.

The following pics also provide definitive proof that the Swinger body was not made from anything related to the Electric XII, with explanations as follows :-

1. The neck pocket of the Electric XII does overlap that on the Swinger, but is 5cms wider & this cannot be / is not hidden by the Swinger scratch plate.
2. When you match the bottom end of the Swinger body with the Electric X!! Body the lower horn of the Swinger sticks out a significant distance beyond the profile of the XII i.e. it is not possible to make a Swinger body profile from a XII profile.
3. Look at the back of the two guitars, where is the string retaining plate hole etc of the XII on the back of the Swinger? (I could of course dismantle the Swinger to show that this is not visible under the scratch plate & simply filled in on the back but I do not think that this is necessary in order to prove my case)

As I mentioned before, I do not have a Musicmaster to compare body profiles, & the Swinger profile is indeed very tight on a Mustang shape at the bottom end of the body. However, I do believe that the Musicmaster body has a slightly different profile compared to the Mustang, & is indeed wider at this point. Perhaps somebody else can comment on this?

Also as I mentioned before, I think that you are confusing the Swinger & Custom guitars, & all Fender reference books that I have read state that the Custom was indeed made out of leftover Electric XII parts. Aren’t the whole neck / headstock / pu’s / controls of the Custom certain proof of this? Add a Mustang trem / bridge 6-string assembly, fill in the string string retaining hole on the back & paint it black to conceal, & voila .... The Custom (which was once again basically produced to please the CBS accountants)

Pics follow :-

Image

Image

Image

More in next post


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