#1
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Bass Oddity- Swanson DB.
Hey Everybody,
Been reading, but haven't had much time or anything to post about... until now. I have in my possesion a Swanson double bass made in Pittsburg, PA in 1974. It is a bass belonging to a colleague in the Asheville Symphony. She purchased this bass on Ebay and when it arrived it was MUCH too big for her to play. She knew it was in bad shape, and was planning on restoring it. She has asked me to either sell as is or do some work to make it playable and sell. I am at a crossroads here and I want to get some opinions on this bass. I am also contacting Bruce Wallace as I am told that he is the Swanson expert. I just wanted to share this piece of American History with you guys, especially Ken Smith and let me know what you think of this strange bass. BTW, it sounds pretty good when I actually bring it up to tension to show it. The measurements: Overall length- 76" Top table- 46" Back table to button- 47" Bottom bout- 27.25" C- bout- 17.75" Uppper bout- 23" Bottom ribs- 9" C bout- 9.25" Upper ribs taper to- 7.25" Mensure- 41.5" See pictures at: http://s424.photobucket.com/albums/pp322/bgencare/ BG |
#2
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yes..
I have seen a few of these pictured and about a year or two ago a Girl had one for sale maybe on Ebay. She was possibly going to bring it by but we never hooked up.
They are big, crudely made and expensive to fix. I thought that the one she had was a long mensur like 43" or so. Very 'homemade' looking basses. |
#3
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Wow, I had forgotten about this maker! I saw one at a place of previous employ and for a few weeks it was thought by the boss that it was Italian. Turned out to be plywood. Wonder if this one is. Authentic crudite.
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#4
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To paraphrase Theodore Geisel's great American classic, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, "The three words I would use to describe this are as follows: 'Sink . . . sank . . . sunk!' "
I'd be dubious that the chase is worth the quarry. |
#5
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lol..
Quote:
Usually I'm 'THE' Party pooper. This time, I just pointed out the stink.. |
#6
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Quote:
I feel the same way about this bass as another classic cartoon, "Charlie Brown Christmas". It seems like the poor little tree that he picks out and tries to decorate. I don't know whether to crack this baby open (morbid curiosity) or run away screaming. I am pretty confident in my abilities- I am no Arnold or Jeff, but I am not a complete "crudite" either. (Can you tell I like that word?) If I decide to approach this as a "Six million dollar bass" I plan on documenting the whole thing for all to see, ala Matthew Tucker. Obviously, I don't plan on making any money on this bass... just a test of skill. Any and all opinions are valued. BG |
#7
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Oh.. Swanson..
Yes, now I remember...
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#8
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Ha Ha, Ken! You know that's Talkbass style humor there!
I would love to know more about this Swanson dude. The one I saw at kolsteins was actually very convincing as something much older than it was. I wonder if it was just a happy coincidental byproduct of a very crude maker or was he actually up to something? |
#9
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Brian-
Without knowing what is "wrong" with the bass it is of course difficult to proffer any thoughts on whether it is worth tackling. jeffb |
#10
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Jeff,
Where do I start? Well positives... the tailpiece, tuners, strings, and bridge are in pretty good shape. If I were to take this bass and do everything I think it needs: 1) Open the top and "clean up" all the shabby repair work to the back... there are these awful "patches" to reinforce the flat back. Really thick and I can't tell exactly what kind of glue... probably alpharetic resin. 2) Try to reshape and patch the top to relieve the sinkage and deformity. (Get rid of the second sound post. ) 3) New fingerboard, saddle, nut, endpin. Setup and hope for the best. It will be a long and expensive process. Who knows what I will find when I crack the top? I am also going to have to be really careful and patient with glue removal, etc... Hard to tell what multitudes of sins have been committed here. Thanks, BG |
#11
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Brian-
Why not just set it up without taking it apart? Unless you are looking for a learning experience a restoration on a plywood is almost always a losing proposition. jeffb |
#12
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Quote:
BG |
#13
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while bass-surfing i found this:
http://www.holmesbassviol.com/photos_and_prices a shop that has THREE of these basses... what happend with yours brian? |
#14
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run away
Brian,
That thing is haunted, get it out of your house! LOL! It's a frustrating, dirty afternoon just waiting to happen without reward. You'll have a hard time getting it apart without the wood cracking from all that slathered top coating. Save yourself now! |
#15
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Or...
Or...mount a trolling motor on that bad boy and take it bass fishing .
__________________
Tim Bishop |
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