Eh? Sorry, I’m not following. I wasn’t considering taking that bass to get PLEKed. It was one of the solutions presented to me for the twisted neck, but I was told (as you mention) that it wouldn’t actually fix the neck. That bass is currently listed for sale, I gave up on it.
Separately, I recently got a Carvin 5 string bass that I was considering having PLEKed. It’s a 2009 - so not vintage - and from what I had heard prior to this thread, it would be a Good Thing (c) to do for it. But earlier in this thread some minor negative comments about PLEK made me question if I should get it PLEK’ed or not.
@JustTim, obviously, this thread has taken a deep dive down the old rodent roadway.
PLEK, or not, it is your choice. But don’t be swayed by negative comments not based on fact. Fret dressing is a fact of fretted instrument life. Whether one has a human do it, or a Fancy Dan machine, is a personal choice. Just keep in mind that there are far more variances in human hands, with the talent and experience of the hand owners being a critical factor.
Oh, I’ve kept up with the story. I wasn’t taking a shot at you. I was trying to figure out where anyone got the impression of using PLEK to hide a fault and the only thing I could come up with was where the guy told you he might be able to make it more playable with a PLEK.
From a visitor to the PLEK booth at the NAMM Show:
While I was visiting the PLEK booth at the 2020 NAMM Show in Anaheim, I spoke with several people who told me they would like Fender to offer PLEK as an option. The market seems to view PLEK as a tool to enhance, not replace, the work of experienced and talented craftspeople. Fender fans are curious because Fender has long embraced sophisticated modern CNC technology in their production processes to ensure consistent levels of high quality products. And, although Fender employs a respected workforce of quality-conscious craftspeople to perform several critical guitar building operations by hand, Fender craftspeople have extensive experience in using a diverse array of tools to do their jobs. It is unlikely that Fender leadership and the Fender workforce would prefer to return to a time when they relied upon first generation motorized tools… or, no motorized tools at all.
Well, for what it’s worth, I only have two now. (I mean, there are more in my house, but everything other than these two are staged to sell, so I don’t count them as “mine”). And, IMHO, at least one is bass porn worthy if for nothing else but the craftsmanship. So to bring this thread back on topic, let me share:
Ok, made a (very) lowball offer on the SBV-J2. They probably won’t take it well. But I wouldn’t have been able to forgive myself without trying. There’s only two possible basses I would upgrade my SBV-550 to, and this is one. (The other being the SBV-800MF, Miki Furukawa’s limited run signature model.)
Oh dear. This is turning in to kind of a negotiation. I didn’t expect that.
I initially offered about half what they are asking, they came back with about 4/5ths; I replied I could maybe do 2/3rd’s. We’ll see if they take it (as it really is my budget limit even counting selling my current SBV if he/she goes for it.)
