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Gibson Basses / 53 EB Day
« on: February 17, 2018, 02:42:41 PM »
Iv always wanted one of these and couldn't believe it when it popped up on Guitar Centers site last week at a great price. According to them it came in from a construction worker who was gutting a building before it was razed. It was left in the basement in a pile of stuff that mostly got thrown in a dumpster. Luckily he decided to make a buck off it rather that throw it in too.
The case hadn't been opened in at least 30 years I'd bet. As you can see the metal bits were fairly corroded and case was covered in a light mildew. Unfortunately no post, instead the case contained all the last owners tools, fuses, notes, some rusty razor blades, tape and cable that was being consumed by growing green grime.
As far as the bass itself it was well played but also cared for. Some buckle rash through the finish but the frets don't show a bit of wear from the rotosounds it had on it. Two of the tuners are missing the plastic buttons but the owner had a nifty little key that could be used to turn the bare posts. The output jack plate had been replaced with a piece of white plastic that was spray painted brown. It crumbled to pieces when I tried to remove it. The great thing is the pickup is in perfect condition and the original electronics all worked great after a little cleanup.
The bass was built prior to the introduction serial numbers in 1953 so with the help of some early LP gurus we were able to estimate that it was probably assembled in sometime in March/April. Unlike the later models with inlay logos these early ones got the same silkscreen logo (with the dot connected to the G) that various acoustics got.
& After about 6-7 hours of inspection, cleanup, testing and tuning it's back to its former glory...Minus two peg buttons and post...
The case hadn't been opened in at least 30 years I'd bet. As you can see the metal bits were fairly corroded and case was covered in a light mildew. Unfortunately no post, instead the case contained all the last owners tools, fuses, notes, some rusty razor blades, tape and cable that was being consumed by growing green grime.
As far as the bass itself it was well played but also cared for. Some buckle rash through the finish but the frets don't show a bit of wear from the rotosounds it had on it. Two of the tuners are missing the plastic buttons but the owner had a nifty little key that could be used to turn the bare posts. The output jack plate had been replaced with a piece of white plastic that was spray painted brown. It crumbled to pieces when I tried to remove it. The great thing is the pickup is in perfect condition and the original electronics all worked great after a little cleanup.
The bass was built prior to the introduction serial numbers in 1953 so with the help of some early LP gurus we were able to estimate that it was probably assembled in sometime in March/April. Unlike the later models with inlay logos these early ones got the same silkscreen logo (with the dot connected to the G) that various acoustics got.
& After about 6-7 hours of inspection, cleanup, testing and tuning it's back to its former glory...Minus two peg buttons and post...
