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Double Bass Old German Flatback may be too far gone for me....
- Thread starter boombloom
- Start date
I see two options: Sell it cheap to someone who wants to fix it, or fix it yourself and try selling it for more. It appears to have some potential; it's all a matter of money and desire.
If you do it yourself use hide glue only. Epoxy is for boats, despite ocassional recommendations seen here.
I once restored a bass that had literally imploded under string tension while being stored the way you’re storing this one. You’re not in a bad position at all, but if you don’t like and are not playing it, sell it to an apprentice luthier.
I mean, how much time and money are you prepared to spend moving the thing on? Or rather, how much is it worth to you to free up the closet space?
I’m not *terribly* far from where you’re at and, you’re not wrong, there’s not a much in the way of a proper “bass shop” up in these parts. But I’ll tell you what; I’m up and down between Montreal and NYC a couple times a month, typically. I would be very happy to help you get it to Kieran O’Hara or Zach Lane (for example) and have them ballpark what they think it’d sell for/what work it’d need. If you’d like to go for it, great, if you’d rather nah then I could get it on my next swing through and get it back to you. PM me if you think you might be interested.
I’m not *terribly* far from where you’re at and, you’re not wrong, there’s not a much in the way of a proper “bass shop” up in these parts. But I’ll tell you what; I’m up and down between Montreal and NYC a couple times a month, typically. I would be very happy to help you get it to Kieran O’Hara or Zach Lane (for example) and have them ballpark what they think it’d sell for/what work it’d need. If you’d like to go for it, great, if you’d rather nah then I could get it on my next swing through and get it back to you. PM me if you think you might be interested.
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Bob McBlane in Preble, NY does good work and is easy to talk to. It's about a 4 hour drive for you, but a beautiful one. Maybe worth giving him a call and getting his take on it at least?
McBlane Instruments
McBlane Instruments
That reminds me of my DB -- the "Ship of Theseus" signature model.
1850s German. My one and only.
The sound and feel of my bass inspires me every time I pick it up, and my band-mates say similar things.
I encourage you to think three times before letting that go.
Most of us never find one lifetime keeper. Don't plan on finding a second.
1850s German. My one and only.
The sound and feel of my bass inspires me every time I pick it up, and my band-mates say similar things.
I encourage you to think three times before letting that go.
Most of us never find one lifetime keeper. Don't plan on finding a second.
Attachments
+1 to this! The fact that you prefer a 50’s laminate to this says to me that maybe this bass never had a quality professional set-up, as these old German flatbacks can be wonderful playing/sounding basses when properly rehabbed and set up. It’s hard to tell from the photos, but it doesn’t look that bad to me. I had one of these in FAR worse shape rehabbed and set up by Chuck Traeger 40 years ago that became my go to instrument and garnered praise from all who heard it or played it (George Mraz wanted to trade me his bass + cash for it). Of course, I don’t know how much you’ve already got into it, but somebody’s got to want this. Not sure if it can be a money-maker for you if you sell it, but I think it has potential to be someone’s “forever” bass.
Thanks for the responses everyone! I should have been more clear---I am mostly a bluegrass, swing, blues, honky tonk player. I don't play any concert music. I almost never use a bow. I haven't worked on that much at all. I'm happy with the sound and set up on my laminate. It's my voice. I have no need for another. I had the flatback restored to playability by Robbie McIntosh about 20 years ago. A well known bassist used it on an east coast tour and told me it was fantastic, but after that i stuffed it in a closet where it's stood for a long time. It has new cracks and needs work again after all the seasons and neglect. It's time to pass it along instead of investing more. I would prefer to break even on it or at least come close. I think I need to find someone who has the right kind of eyes and ears and is willing to take it on. This might be easier if i lived in a city or near a conservatory. As it is, I'm way out in the country and I don't expect to find anyone like that around here. How do i find that person?
Robbie's still around doing great work, and his daughter Helen is working with him in his shop now (and she does great work as well). If he knows the bass already, why not ask him about it? He doesn't get a lot of buying traffic in his shop, though. If you want to get people playing it, then Kieran O'Hara (Brewster, NY), Zach Lane (Brooklyn) and Mike Shank (Elizabethtown, PA) are the guys whose shops where I'd start looking for a bass in the northeastern US.
Just try to sell it then. Is that what you are asking? Put an ad on it here.