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Post subject: Tony Franklin Fretted
Posted: Thu Aug 21, 2008 6:41 pm
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hey, im been wondering why i cant find a tony franklin FRETTED p bass.
Ive been looking to buy my first fender and saw that one and loved it.
i just cant seem to find it. :x


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Post subject: Sorry
Posted: Sat Aug 23, 2008 12:45 pm
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It is a beauty. Sorry, the Tony Franklin P-bass also appears to me to be available in fretless only as far as I can tell.

The American Deluxe Precision in Sunburst would give you a very similar look in a fretted bass but you would need to change out the pickguard to brown tortoise. The controls are very different but in general you'd have the same "look." You would be ahead soundwise because the Deluxe has a three band active EQ.

I suggest trying some fretted basses and especially the Deluxes and P-Bass Specials which have a similar pickup arrangement. You may find you like one just fine that isn't a signature model. "Artist" models are usually a little pricier than a comparable non-artist model and can be converted to very similar or even identical features easily.


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Post subject:
Posted: Sat Aug 23, 2008 2:16 pm
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thanx, i actually have been checking other basses as well like, American standard jazz and p bass,marcus miller jazz, and also the 51 p bass. thanx again for your help.


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Post subject: OH the '51!
Posted: Sun Aug 24, 2008 6:24 pm
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BassTrippin wrote:
thanx, i actually have been checking other basses as well like....the 51 p bass. thanx again for your help.


Quite a selection there!

I'm a real fan of the first generation P-basses. The '51 looks like first generation however it is really more of a reproduction than a pure reissue. Some liberties were taked with the neck radius, electronics and pickguard. Some of these changes are improvements while others are puzzling..

Important things to know before buying a '51 Reissue are:
1. While the original '51 didn't have a truss rods, you can adjust the truss rod on a '51 reissue by removing the neck from the body. This can be a pain if you are used to the handy headstock truss rod access point on a modern Fender bass. But my '51 neck seems really stable, so in my opinion unless you change string tensions you can possibly get by without adjusting it very often once it settles in. The '51 has a really nice neck but it is not nearly as fat as the real first generation P-basses. This makes it faster and way easier to play. The fretboard shaping is very comfortable.
2. The pots are MINI-pots. So while you can upgrade the pickup and capacitor, you can't put full size USA CTS pots in it without some routing of the control cavity.
3. It has reverse tuners, meaning they operate backwards from modern day tuners on other Fender basses. These are pre-CBS era type tuners..
4. A recommended upgrade almost immediately is a four saddle Fender Deluxe bridge which is an exact replacement requiring no drilling and uses are the original string and screw holes. The Deluxe bridge not only allows precise intonation of each string but also adds the luxury of being able to top load the strings instead of only having the option for body through stringing. This might be of value to people planning to use strings like Labella 760 flats which do not recommend body through stringing. I've broken Labella 760's and similar flats or nylon coated strings that were set up body-through over the years on a Telecaster Bass.
5. There are many excellent aftermarket pickups available which make the '51 more versatile. Which one you choose should depend on what you want. I chose Lindy Fralin's custom wound split coil slightly overwound.
6. The '51 is available in Sunburst at no additional charge. Most online dealers and the national chains only carry the Butterscotch Blonde ones. The Fender list price is the same for either Butterscotch Blonde or Sunburst. I had one big national chain location try to jack the price way up for the Sunburst by nearly 300 dollars. Some people say that Sunburst was not an available color in '51, but neither was that shade of school bus yellow they call Butterscotch Blonde. I prefer the 2-color Sunburst as it looks better to me.

No single bass is right for everyone or even every style of music, I certainly would buy the '51 Reissue again as it fits into most of what I do. While primal in appearance when playing one you realize it is a modernized version of the '51 and not an exact copy. It has been said in this forum and elsewhere that if you can play a first generation P-bass well that you can play any other bass. I say instead that if you can play a '51 Reissue P-bass well you may not WANT to play any other bass! They are a neat, simple, light, well balanced instrument that with a few simple mods can be tremendously improved to be superior to the original in most ways.


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Post subject:
Posted: Sun Aug 24, 2008 6:39 pm
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Quote:
1. While the original '51 didn't have a truss rods, you can adjust the truss rod on a '51 reissue by removing the neck from the body. This can be a pain if you are used to the handy headstock truss rod access point on a modern Fender bass. But my '51 neck seems really stable, so in my opinion unless you change string tensions you can possibly get by without adjusting it very often once it settles in. The '51 has a really nice neck but it is not nearly as fat as the real first generation P-basses. This makes it faster and way easier to play. The fretboard shaping is very comfortable.


I removed the neck from my 51 and routed a little wood from the body in order to make neck adjustments without removing it . check it out !

Image

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1996 50th Anniversary Jazz 5 (012 0f 500)
1997 '51 P Bass Reissue
2012 American Standard Precision V
2013 Squier Vintage Modified Jazz Fretless


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Post subject:
Posted: Mon Aug 25, 2008 5:47 pm
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jlarocho wrote:

I removed the neck from my 51 and routed a little wood from the body in order to make neck adjustments without removing it . check it out !

Image


First one I've seen like that. Maybe you invented something good!


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Post subject:
Posted: Mon Aug 25, 2008 8:05 pm
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My jazz bass has that for the neck adjustments and I figured that I can do the same to the 51 bass , so I did and it works great ! You can even use a wood file and file enough wood to make the adjustment .You have to cut the pickguard as well . I painted the wood black with a permanent marker to make it look like it was original .

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1996 50th Anniversary Jazz 5 (012 0f 500)
1997 '51 P Bass Reissue
2012 American Standard Precision V
2013 Squier Vintage Modified Jazz Fretless


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Post subject: hmmm. Black marker...
Posted: Mon Aug 25, 2008 8:11 pm
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With a black pickguard it would look much less obvious too. I've been trying to find an excuse to put a black guard on my sunburst '51. I really want a tortoise guard like on the '62 P-bass reissue, but can't find one anywhere.


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Post subject:
Posted: Mon Aug 25, 2008 8:38 pm
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I think it was WD music products that I saw those tortoise pickguards for the 51 p bass , but I dont know if it is for the slab body or the contoured body .

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1996 50th Anniversary Jazz 5 (012 0f 500)
1997 '51 P Bass Reissue
2012 American Standard Precision V
2013 Squier Vintage Modified Jazz Fretless


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Post subject: Tony Franklin fretted p bass sweetwater.com should have one
Posted: Sun Nov 02, 2008 3:21 pm
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The Tony Franklin fretted p bass is hard to find, but try sweetwater.com and they might have one in stock and if not can probably order you one. They had one in stock about 3 months ago. You could probably do the same with musiciansfriend.com or any of the other internet sellers to order you one. What I don't like is that they put a maple fretted neck vs going with an ebony fretted neck.

Also, just try googling it and I'm sure other retailers will show up as having it. Good luck in your search.

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