NDB - New bass is here - Grass Roots - need info from the TB Hive mind

[Justice]

So, I saw this bass on eBay back in February (pics with white background) and the seller was in Japan. The listing was pretty much "Grass Roots bass by ESP" with pictures. I don't now why but I was kinda drawn to it, like it needed me or something. I made some inquiries about shipping and the seller was very responsive. But in the end, I did not bid on it and it sold for $51.

Fast forward to last week and I got an email from the seller saying they had relisted the bass (pics with yellow background) and I went to look and they had pretty much the same listing description, but different pictures. This time the opening bid was $50 with a BIN of $80. I watched it and decided that if it stayed at $50, I would buy it.

And then I forgot to bid....

And then I remembered that I forgot to bid and went to see if it had been sold. It was not. And it had been relisted with an opening bid of $35 with a BIN of $45.

So I did the dumb thing I do and bought it. First time buying a bass from Japan.

So now the wait begins. I'm looking at it as a project, I know it will need some work just looking at the pics, neck alignment and all that, but that's OK.

But what I would like to know, if anybody knows, is exactly what it is? I have looked at the basses on the ESP/Grass Roots page and there is not one like it, but the is a guitar with the body shape. I reminds me of the Gibson Money Bass except with a bolt on neck.

SO look at the pics and comment below!

 

[Justice]

It finally shipped! Had to wait until Golden Week was over, lol.

Now the waiting begins.

 

[abarson]

Aside from the paint, it looks like a J-TVB-V model. Made in Japan.
ESP | Artist Series | J

I can't tell if it's just something with the photo you posted, but the bridge pickup looks crooked. Or the bridge itself is crooked. Anyways, keep us posted for NBD.

 

[Justice]

Aside from the paint, it looks like a J-TVB-V model. Made in Japan.
ESP | Artist Series | J

I can't tell if it's just something with the photo you posted, but the bridge pickup looks crooked. Or the bridge itself is crooked. Anyways, keep us posted for NBD.

Wow, I had not seen those. This bass is certainly the budget budget version of those. Same body style with same contours, same 24 fret bolt on neck. Same head stock design and control layout. Biggest difference is this one has pickups like the EMG HBs and those have soap bars. Thanks for the link!

 

[Justice]

Finally received the bass I bought from Japan.

I hoped it would be playable, but as it sits It is not

The over all bass is solid, and I do like the look, but there are some things that have to be addressed first.

1. The bridge pickup has come loose from its mount. It looks like the epoxy holding it to the mount has failed. The pickup still works. I'm hoping it will be as simple as applying some fresh epoxy and sticking the pickup backtogether.

2. The nut slots are cut way too low. I put the E string on and it does not clear the first fret. And the frets are small not jumbo. The bass uses a nut similar to Gibson/Epiphone EB series basses so I ordered a new Graftech nut for it.

3. The neck is going to need shims to get the angle for the strings right so the action can be set proper.

 

[abarson]

Hmm, has potential.
I'm not sure if it's a trick of the lighting, but is the scarf joint of the neck and headstock solid? It's quite noticeable in the photo of the back of the headstock.
I'm not seeing how the pickup is supposed to be attached to the ring, either. I don't think the two pieces should be epoxied together, as you wouldn't be able to set the pickup height thereafter.

 

[Justice]

Hmm, has potential.
I'm not sure if it's a trick of the lighting, but is the scarf joint of the neck and headstock solid? It's quite noticeable in the photo of the back of the headstock.
I'm not seeing how the pickup is supposed to be attached to the ring, either. I don't think the two pieces should be epoxied together, as you wouldn't be able to set the pickup height thereafter.

Yeah, the pickup has separated from the bottom part that the adjusters are attached too. I'll have to take a closer look at the neck. It seems solid but who knows. If anything, i'll get it payable and if the neck breaks I'll figure out what to do going forward

 

[Justice]

well, just tool a look scarf joint seems ok but I can see the fret board separating from the neck right at the nut. I will have to do something about that.

 

[Justice]

Emailed the seller and told them, while I knew the bass was used, it was described as being in playable condition. But in fact the loose pickup and damage at the head stock made it unplayable. They apologized and asked for pictures of the damage which i sent to them. Less than an hour later I had a complete refund (including shipping) and was not asked to return the bass. I'm thinking they are going to file a claim with the shipper in Japan, but I dunno. Anyway, I did not expect that. And I'm pretty sure everything is fixable.

 

[abarson]

The scarf joint in the latest photos looks even worse than before! Let us know how the repair comes along.
Glad to hear you got a refund without any hassle.

 

[RobTheRiot]

That’s pretty impressive service.

Congrats on getting a cool project bass, for a pretty unbeatable price($0?!)!!

Sorry it wasn’t playable as described, but glad the seller was very fair, and now you have a cool project bass that, hopefully, without too much work, turns into a real player!!

Enjoy it!

 

[Justice]

The scarf joint in the latest photos looks even worse than before! Let us know how the repair comes along.
Glad to hear you got a refund without any hassle.

That’s pretty impressive service.

Congrats on getting a cool project bass, for a pretty unbeatable price($0?!)!!

Sorry it wasn’t playable as described, but glad the seller was very fair, and now you have a cool project bass that, hopefully, without too much work, turns into a real player!!

Enjoy it!

I was putting some pressure on the head stock to make sure the separation was visible. I wasn't expecting a complete refund but it was very nice of them to do it. In other news, the Graftech nut I ordered arrived and doesn't fit. LOL. I did not play close enough attention when ordering. Oh well. So I took the nut off the bass and measured it properly and found a bone nut that is pretty much an exact replacement. I put it on the bass with one string and tuned it up and it will work!

So now I need to find a little time to pull the neck off again and get some glue under the fretboard and get it clamped, and get the bridge pickup secured back in place. Once that's done I can install the new nut, get some shims in the neck pocket and get the bass setup. Have new strings ready and I know the truss rod works as well.