I’ve got a pink one and had all the upgrade parts awaiting its arrival as you are correct, they are pretty bad on the onset.
I put a StayTrem bridge and Mastery Vibrato along with Curtis Novak amazing pickups. The stock tuners are ok so I left them. It’s killer now and still way less than the Fender counterparts. Actually needed a bit of fretwork too.
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Like that body. What wood is that?
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there is a thin veneer of spalted maple
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Pretty in pink! I assume you put some Bella Strings on? Did you had to replace or rasp the nut? That is Something I haven’t done yet and I am not keen on doing it anytime soon!
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Yes LaBella’s for sure.
And yes forgot about the nut. I was going to have it replaced as it’s soft as Jell-o but ended up just having it reinforced while it was at the luthier and it’s fine.
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Just picked this up from Reverb- couldn’t resist the color or funky retro vibe! Eastwood Airline Map Bass.
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That’s amazing! I love it.
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Love the pickguard and the color. Delicious!
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Very nice. What does the tone switch do?
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It’s actually the pick up selector. Not sure why they chose to label it as a tone selector. Although, to be fair, the tone is significantly different between the neck and bridge pick ups. It’s been in my possession for less than two days, so I’m still figuring it out!
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NBD!!!
If anyone is familiar with Dragonfly, you will know why I wanted one. Small boutique Japanese luthier. I picked this one as I can’t afford the new ones!! This one is in amazing shape. Needs nothing and listed for about 300,000Yen when new. I think it dates from about 2000. Active electronics. I am currently getting a new tort pickguard installed for it by Harry’s shop in Japan. They are the owners of the Dragonfly brand. I am super stoked and this one will be a lifer for me (famous last words!!)
By the way, I “think” this might be bass #34 in my current collection. I need to do a group picture sometime.
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Interesting pickguard, looks very similar to a Telecasters.
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Actually, while I am here I might as well post about bass #35!!! I just bought this one. It is an amazing Matsumoku era Aria Pro TSB-550. The kicker is that it is in pristine condition for its age. It was made in 1981. There are no dings, scratches or fret wear. That is very unusual. It is also the rarest colour available at the time. I had the guitar version of this bass in the same colour and regret selling it.
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So, I think the pickguard is just a typical Fender Jazz type. Not sure though. I can’t imagine why anyone would put that colour on a custom, handmade bass. This would have been specifically requested. Strange. Different strokes for different folks I guess.
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Ahh, ok. Yeah I think you’re right. The ramp cutout illusion on the back had tele vibes.
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That looks great. Love the matching ramp. Very interesting preamp. You have passive tone? I assume the get the vol/ vol/ tone (passive)
Active/ passive switch the. The bass/ mid/ treble.
Nice forearm carved/ rest area. And thru body sting. This monster can sing for sure.
Can you share the back and the side pictures please. I’d love to see how the sandwich.
Congrats @matt.g.ward.esq
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Thanks. It does have active/passive switch which I like. I get a little annoyed when this is missing. It would be rare but what if the battery died while playing? I like that I can simply play passively if I wish to. Also, I quite like the passive tone on Jazz basses so may not want to play active at all.
So, there isn’t a sandwich thing happening. I also don’t know what the body wood is. I am going to Harry’s shop next week so I am going to ask them all about the bass. I might get Harry to sign it. Lame I know, but he was also heavily involved in the Matsumoku era factory with Aria Pro. He, I understand, was involved in the creation of the Aria SB series. I hope to chat with him about that too when I am there. The shop is in Ome area of Tokyo.
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