What the hell, I'll put this out there and see what happens... if a strange miracle occurs and someone actually knows where I can get one that meets my specific requirements, I'll do whatever it takes to make it happen.
Must haves:
- Ash body... black or natural.
- Prefer original black or tort pickguard... white is acceptable, just not preferred.
- Maple fingerboard with blocks and binding... not sure what came "standard" on maple in '73, but either black or pearl is OK.
- 4-bolt neck... I know the transition wasn't official until '74, but I've heard that some 3-bolt necks were creeping through in '73. Not sure if it's true or not... just thought I'd mention it.
- 70's p'up spacing... I know this change was official in '72, but I've heard that some bass were still produced in '73 with 60's spacing. Not sure if it's true or not... just thought I'd mention it.
- Original ashtray, covers, and thumbrest/tug-bar preferred, but not mandatory.
- Original case preferred, but not mandatory
And finally...
- The bass MUST be a player... overall condition is secondary. I'd much rather have a legitimately road-worn chewed up bass that plays and sounds like a MONSTER, than a museum show-piece that weighs 98 lbs and won't set up properly to save your life.
So, yeah... if you know of anything like this or have one yourself you might want to get rid of, let me know.
I'm willing to pay fair market value for a decent player's bass... that said, I'm not made of money so paying high-market value for an ultra-rare museum quality mint showpiece probably isn't an option either.
I also have some pretty sweet "bouteeky" basses that I'd even be willing to trade + cash, including a lefty USA Lakland Jo Osborn 5-string and a BEAUTIFUL Roscoe SKB3006.
Thanks for looking!
