Tired Of 80's metal

[lonewolf]

2 questions that are (sorry)off-topic...

I'd have to find a Flying V bass

My son's first bass was a flying V, and people told him these are rare, is that true? He found that bass very uncomfortable (top-heavy) to hold and hated it.

They aren't the most plentiful basses out there. Gibson does have a Korina model (with a matching Explorer version too) that I remember you could order out of Musician's Friend. I could be wrong, but I think the latest Korinas were a limited edition run.

I would imagine that they would be uncomfortable to play though, especially pizzicato. I'd imagine the slanting body would be very strange.

Gibson only made V basses sparingly in certain years and special models. I see late '70s mahogany Silverbursts on eBay once in awhile for between $1200 and $2000. Most of the rest are custom shop.

Until recently, Epiphone made a Korina V Bass pretty cheap--like $350. From what I hear QC at Epiphone isn't consistant and you could snag a really good one (like Gibson) or a really BAD one.

Mike Mazur (bass player and bandmate in Forces) played a Precision Fretless and on occasion, a 1978 Gibson Silverburst V-Bass. He reserved the V for earthquake and other concussion music. You can't hold a V the same way you hold a Fender and the classic way is to put the inside of the V on your thigh and hold the neck at about 60 degrees. On occasion, you can then move the V to your crotch and hold the neck straight out for extra fan approval......

[bassist_25]

Oh okay, I wasn't sure if it was Gibson, Epiphone, or both that put out the Korinas.

I remember Dana Strum's Flying V (Slaughter's bassist that I was making reference to) had the longer top point, almost like a Jackson-style V. I don't know if his was a Gibson or not.

What country was Mike's Precision made in? I ask because for some reason, the only way to get a fretless Fender without the fretlines is to get a Japanese-made one. All MIM and MIA fretless Fenders have fretlines. I almost bought a nice fretless Fender J from K&S in Williamsport, but decided to buy an Ibanez instead (I had to go for the active electronics). I'm jonesing to pull it out, but it needs a new set of strings and reintonated. To intonate it, I have to place a piece of tape where the 12th fret would be, measure the distance between the nut and bridge, mark the halfway point on the tape with a pencil, and then use a capo to hold down the string. I've taken it to a music store, and they couldn't even get it setup properly. *LOL*

[lonewolf]

It was a Fullerton, CA, USA model--they weren't making them anywhere else yet. He bought the Precision Fretless new in 1975. It only had small dot markers on the side of the natural maple neck...no fretlines. He bought the V new in 1978.

Heres a freakin' deal:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... eName=WDVW

[bassist_25]

That's a sweet bass. It was a good idea to go with the P/J configuration, a P for a more upright sound and a J for a more defined "Jaco" sound. I also like the ashtray over the bridge.