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Could be considered what Sting's PB-50 basses might have looked like when they arrived to be hung up for sale in their first shop?
This is primarily a bass to be played, not for wall hanging, but it has the head-shape and some other aspects of Sting's PB-50 basses.
I have a jazz bass here as well, and this PB-50 has a neck with a rounder feel than the jazzer; and in the playing I would say that the single coil Roswell on the PB-50 Harley Benton has a stronger sound than the jazz bass.
(I see also, that having today re set the neck angle and re adjusted the truss-rod, that the string action is almost twice as low as it was when I took these photos... a high action gives you superb clarity, but a lower action is so much nicer to play and just means a bit more growl off the frets when you twang it hard!)
The bass has what many would call a thumb-rest; it is though mounted below the strings where you cannot rest your thumb on it, and I am reliably informed that they were called thumb-pulls, and thumb bassists would hook their middle finger round it to pluck the strings with their thumbs.
This particular thumb-pull is made of African teak... not the usual hollow black plastic type they usually have.
You will see in several of my photos that the front of the body has two areas beyond a line where the tone of the coating is different; this is just what it is and I cannot see any reason for it except half of it is where the scratch plate has dulled the varnish... it was of course covered by the scratch plate when it came off the production line.
In my set-up I had to back-pedal slightly or go negative on the truss-rod to get a bit of relief into the neck; it has a double acting one on this guitar and after a day and a night in the cold workshop I have now been able to go forward-pedal again and keep a tadge of positive relief.
I reckon after a week of cold nights and warm days the truss rod will be at a good positive setting.
When the neck has settled down I might drop the bridge saddles a little lower.
Straight after I got the strings on it I had a run through Master-Blaster in the studio with my foot drums, and it both sounded and felt pretty good.
Thanks for reading, and if any questions come to mind send me an eBay message and we can chew it over!
Thanks,
Mark.......... (Marcp guitars)