old Viennese school bass

[Ken Smith]

Originally Posted by Gregory Dale Beasley

I know nothing of basses this old so pardon my ignorance. Do I see repairs to the top and back at some point? Or is that just age?

Yes, many many repairs. This is fairly common with old basses. Depending on how they are built, how that are cared for, how they are repaired and how they travel around the world climate to climate and all combined is what determines how much 'experience' will show on an old bass like this.

Many of the trade basses made later in both France and Germany from the mid to late 19th century thru the 20th were made more robust for travel and export to the USA and around the world. The sound though on these basses will not develop usually in ones lifetime and many have had modifications to achieve a better more pleasing mature type tone.

The bass listed here within is one of those older handmade basses that were built on the lighter side by today's standards. Had it stayed in one place all its life, it might have gone thru much less trauma. Still, the sound is beautiful and the bass is holding up well despite its current looks. Only a full fresh complete restoration could make it look better. If that were to happen, it would take a few years or more for the sound to come back to where it is now.

Usually when I get in an old bass that is in fairly good repair, I only fix what is necessary and then play it. In this case, a few cracks that were previously repaired were re-glued to tighten up, the fingerboard and nut replaced, a new adjustable bridge and tailwire put on to complete the set-up. I left the endpin and the gears alone as they work just fine. If something breaks and the bass has to come apart, then I would consider a full restoration while the bass is apart.

For now, it's set-up and ready to play.