LeftyBassist.com

what would be the best route for this?

I want a pbass with a jazz neck and a maple fingerboard. What am I look at price wise? Is Warmoth a better route? Will fender custom shop even do this? I almost never see lefty fenders with maple necks....

the other route is a G&L SB-2 but everyone says they are heavy as hell, something I'm trying to avoid.

if you were to go the DIY parts path, here's about what you'd be looking at

* Alder top route body - $200
* solid color finish for body - $225
* Maple/Maple 21-fret neck - $255
* satin finish for neck - $100
* Hipshot Ultralight tuners - $100
* Hipshot Vintage bridge - $75
* Tortoise pickguard - $75
* Nordstrand NP-4 split-coil pickup - $100
* Misc electronics, knobs, wires, solder, shielding, screws, strings - $150
* soft case - $100
* shipping - $100+

If you don't mis-order a part or fudge one up while assembling everything, you're a little under $1500 so far. If you need to have assistance with cutting the nut, assembly, and/or set-up you could easily add $200+ for the shop time from a local tech ... and you'd still be without any real kind of warranty for the overall bass.

and sure, you could find cheaper parts by shopping eBay, but why risk it?

FYI - the examples I quote are in-line with what new parts from Warmoth/USACG would cost you. the cost could also be more depending on the exact options you chose for your parts and if you incur any local sales taxes. I also assume you wouldn't need to purchase any special tools for tasks like cutting the nut, levelling the frets, soldering the electronics, etc ...

all the best,

R

I hear you!

I have a G&L "p-bass", and despite it's great great sound, I can't come to grips (pun intended) with the neck. At one point I had a righty SB-2 when I purchased someone's entire gear (bass+head+cab), and I thought the neck was fantastic. I didn't play the bass since it was a righty, but the P+J pickup combination seemed like a great combo.

I played a friend's paisley p-bass with a glossy maple neck, and I thought it was incredible. Hard to believe it was a p-bass neck.

Or you could buy a MIM Fender P bass and get a maple/maple Jazz neck from Warmoth. That will get you in under $1000, maybe a little less if you finished the neck yourself.

I slapped an MIJ Jazz neck onto a MIA P body. I'm in heaven.

I'm not familiar with a "G&L p-bass", uless you are referring to the SB-2 (which it doesn't sound like you are).

I really like the SB-2, I know they offer great neck options on USA models. My concern is that the bass overall would be heavier than a p-bass, something many have reported.

I used to own an SB-2. It had a slim alder body and was really light; one of the lightest bassist I've ever owned. I'm surprised at the "heavy" comments regarding the SB-2.

Generally speaking, G&Ls do have a reputation for being boat anchors, though I think it pertains to the L2000 and ASAT series, specifically due to the weight of the innards. But I also suspect this stigma goes way back to the earlier 80's originals and it's not so much an issue as it used to be. Nearly every early 80's G&L I've tried was very heavy, including the later '97 ASAT I used to own. The Tribute L2000 I own now is surprisingly light though.

Oh, yeah, I had a '97 L2K with ash body. Very heavy. But the SB-2 body is generally alder and much slimmer. Huge sound, too.

My bass is a G&L LB-100, which is a discontinued model.