Early 80s Precision Specials

Started by audiorep2, February 21, 2009, 05:44:49 AM

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godofthunder

Nice basses ! there is a red one for sale localy, they want 800 for it seems like a deal to me
Maker of the Badbird Bridge, "intonation without modification" for your vintage Gibson Thunderbird

audiorep2

$ 800.00 for a US made P bass, and a fancy one is a very good price.

Bart!

Nice bass family!
Are these all the colors that were produced?

OldManC

My first good bass was a brand new red '80 Precision Special. I put in on layaway and paid it off $20 at a time in tenth grade. It was a great bass, though it suffered the same finish issues I've seen in most other red specials (the red would flake off in spots, exposing the gold underlayer).

A few months after I finally got the bass, I made the mistake of reading a Gene Simmons interview in (I think) Guitar Player magazine. In it, he expressed his disdain for all things P Bass, and it ended up bothering me so much that I sold the bass later that year. Sounds lame now, but I was an impressionable young KISS nerd. The seller's remorse I felt as my basses new owner drove away is soomething I can still feel when I think about it today! I ended up buying a used '77 BC Rich Eagle with the money I got, and I added a black '76 Thunderbird not long after that, so my GAS exploits started at a young age!


Bastard!

godofthunder

Maker of the Badbird Bridge, "intonation without modification" for your vintage Gibson Thunderbird

eb2

I remember when they were new, and I thought they looked pretty cool.  A lot cooler than the Lead guitars at about the same time.  But I preferred the rosewood board with the painted headstock, and I never saw one with rosewood until years later. 

I could only afford an amp then.  And Kiss Alive II.
Model One and Schallers?  Ish.

Blazer

Quote from: OldManC on February 21, 2009, 12:33:39 PM
Bastard!
It was his back up bass. But to his credit though he sold it to buy the Spector Custom bass he played for YEARS.


Lightyear

 :) Once I proved to my folks that I was going to stick with it, over a year I believe, I dumped my little 5th hand Tiesco and I got new Ripper for Christmas - only because of Mr. Simons - I didn't know crap about basses ;D

ilan

Quote from: Bart! on February 21, 2009, 10:31:18 AM
Nice bass family!
Are these all the colors that were produced?

There was a Walnut P Special. Walnut body, neck and fretboard, b/w/b pickguard and no thumb-rest.

There were some one-offs, I've seen pics of P Specials in Sienna burst and one in Charcoal metallic. But standard colors were CAR, LPB, Arctic White, and Walnut. Most had maple boards but some had rosewood. I owned for a brief period a LPB/rosewood, but sold it back to the original owner because it was too heavy. In '81 high mass was in vogue.

I still have a new old stock P Special PC board and wiring harness, one day I will install it in a light weight P.

OldManC

Quote from: ilan on February 22, 2009, 03:01:17 AM
I still have a new old stock P Special PC board and wiring harness, one day I will install it in a light weight P.

I have one and plan on doing the same thing!

Hutton

I don't think that my 83 is a 'special' edition but it's a great bass all the same.
Gibson IV Bass 1987
Fender Precision American Standard 1983
Fender Precision USA 62 Reissue 2006
Musicman SUB 4 2004

doombass

My second bass wass a Precision Special. Nice bass and quite heavy. I'm not too fond of active electronics but that preamp did well. However I sold it about 4 years ago. An old pic of me playing that bass with a broken wrist. Had to learn playing fingerstyle on short notice because of the injury:



OldManC