Date code stamp under bridge cover on a 1970 P-Bass?

F

Frederick34

May 12, 2017
96
65
4,586
Texas
#1
Anyone ever seen this before? I have a 100% original, pristine 1970 P-Bass which I've owned for a while. I recently changed my strings and noticed something I'd never seen before. There is a little round, black ink symbol or figure, which I'd seen before, but at just the right angle, I can see the date code exactly as is stamped on the back pickup bobbins is also stamped under the chrome bridge cover. Same 4-digits as on the pickups, and clearly the same font, size, etc. I'm going to look under the chrome pickup cover tonight, now I'm curious if I've missed that before on other basses, or if someone in the assembly line was just messing around... could be a fluke.

It's very hard to spot, until you are looking for it then it's quite obvious.. hard to explain, but has to be at the right angle (black ink stamp on shiny chrome surface, probably would get wiped off easily, but it's still there).

Anyone seen this before on 60's or 70's P-basses?
 
#2
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No one has ever seen this? Under chrome covers?

I’ve attached images.
 
#5
Ghastly said:
No, but interesting. Are you the original owner?
Click to expand...

No, wish I was, but I have been over this bass with a fine tooth comb (had other experienced opinions too), it is as unmolested as a bass can get. I suppose it’s within the realm of possibilty that some previous owner could have put the stamp there, but seems unlikely.

Hoping that someone might look under their chrome covers from this era and spot a stamp. It was certainly early on for this date code style on pickups (I believe they began in late 1969 on the gray bottoms), so I wonder if they may have stamped the chrome at first also. The one thing that seems odd is that, when I picture the Fender assembly line, is that I imagine the pickup winding station (where I assume the stamps were kept) pretty far from the final assembly station, where I would guess the chrome covers were added just before testing and final packaging of the guitars.

I would think this would wipe off pretty easily, so if it was done at the factory, it would only take a few string changes to have it obliterated forever.

If anyone else comes across one on their bass, please let me know.

(Also, I did look under the chrome pickup cover and the same small round stamp is there, but there is no evidence at all of the date code stamp. The round stamp is a bit easier to read; but I have definitely seen the little round stamp on other early 70’s basses, nothing unusual about that.)
 
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