Gibson / EB-1 / 1954 / Dark Mahogany / Bass For Sale
This very early violin-shaped "EB-1" bass guitar with painted-on f holes (in black) weighs just 8.40 lbs. and has a nice, fat nut width of just over 1 11/16 inches and a scale length of 30 1/2 inches. Solid (two inch thick) mahogany body with a width of 11 1/2 inches and two black 'pencil' lines around the outline on the top and bottom. One-piece mahogany neck with a wonderful medium-to-thick profile and unbound rosewood fretboard with 20 thin frets and inlaid pearl dot position markers. Headstock with inlaid pearl "Gibson" logo. Black plastic truss-rod cover. Two-on-a-side Kluson banjo-style tuners with rear-facing Keystone plastic keys. Serial number ("4 1991") inked-on in black on the back of the headstock. One Alnico magnetic pickup with a brown Royalite cover and a huge output of 16.28k. Brown plastic pickguard. Two controls (one volume, one tone) on lower treble bout. Brown plastic barrel-shape half-inch "Speed" knobs. Side-mounted jack socket. Combination "wrap-over" bar bridge/tailpiece with two adjustment screws. The pots are dated "134 320" (Centralab May 1953). All hardware nickel-plated. There are a couple of very small surface 'cuts' on the top treble edge of the body (adjacent to the pickup), otherwise this is a spectacular and totally original example in near mint condition, by far the finest we have ever seen, complete with it's original telescoping end-pin and the original hang-tag. Housed in the original brown four-latch hardshell case with pink plush lining (9.25).
"In the late 1930s Gibson took another foray into the low end with the Electric Bass Guitar - the name, if not the instrument itself, proving prophetic. An over-size, 4-string hollowbody guitar made of solid maple, it was equipped with an endpin for stand-up playing and had a magnetic pickup similar to the Charlie Christian-model guitar pickup. The curved fingerboard had 24 inlaid fret markers, making it the first "lined fretless." Scale length was an upright-like 42 3/4". According to Gibson historian Julius Bellson, only two Electric Bass Guitars were made between 1938 and 1940, before World War ll shut down product development. It's interesting to speculate about what might have happened if Gibson had been able to follow this line of thought.
Gibson didn't re-enter the electric bass market until two years after after the introduction of the Fender Precision Bass. The Gibson Electric Bass of 1953, like the Electric Bass Guitar of the late '30s, was equipped with a telescoping endpin for upright playing - but this time the instrument had a small, violin-shaped solid-mahogany body (with painted-on f hole) and a scale length of only 30 1/2". The short scale was intended, apparently, to make it more appealing to guitarists, an impression that would seem to be confirmed by the inclusion of frets and a pickguard. The large single pickup had a brown plastic cover and was mounted at the end of the neck. The tuners were banjo-style, with rear-facing knobs on the back of the peghead. The Electric Bass was renamed the EB-1 in 1958, when Gibson introduced another electric bass, but discontinued within the year. Only 546 were made between 1953 and 1958. Updated with a chrome-covered humbucking pickup and some cosmetic refinements, the EB-1 made a brief comeback in 1970 but was dropped again two years later " (Jim Roberts, American Basses, p. 73).
Fretted Americana , USA 
We specialize in acquiring and offering the finest specimens of American vintage electric guitars with particular attention to those in their complete, original state. We are the only dealer to embrace a written code of ethics (in Terms & Conditions). We encourage you to read it.
HOW WE WORK
We want to inspire and win your trust and confidence. You don't want to have any negative surprises upon receipt of an instrument that you've invested yourself as well as your money into. Nor do you want any untoward surprises should you decide to sell it in the future.
To that end, every guitar that we offer is catalogued to a degree and depth of detail that is fast becoming the standard in the trade. When we declare an instrument to be completely original, it is. If it is not, we tell you exactly in what manner it has been altered.
We photograph each guitar at many angles to provide you with the broadest, clearest sense of its appearance. We will, upon request, provide you with images of all electronic components, inside and out.
Each guitar we acquire is skillfully and painstakingly dissected by David Brass, who is a trained luthier as well as a dealer and collector. All parts, no matter how small, are meticulously examined. We have an enviable reference library of wide breadth and scope that we refer to when necessary for crucial facts. The instrument is put under a black-light: original finish or refin? Even the most skillfully masked ding is uncovered. David then fastidiously reassembles the instrument. It is then cleaned with the finest products available for wood and metal.
An inspection certificate of authenticity signed by David is provided with every guitar you purchase.
We keep our inventory relatively small and highly select. We choose our guitars with extreme care so we can offer you the finest examples of the finest rare guitars in the world.
We are client focused to an extraordinary degree. If you expect or would like to be surprised by courteous, professional client service, we will pleased to accommodate that desire.
It is our fervent wish to establish a long-term relationship with you.
CODE OF ETHICS
We wish to establish an ongoing relationship with you based upon your trust in our knowledge and judgment.
To that end:
We meticulously inspect in detail every guitar that we offer. We check the finish, all of the electrical components, serial numbers, etc. With over thirty years of experience collecting and handling vintage guitars and our enormous reference library, we bring to bear all that is known about guitar manufacturers, models, and annual production.
We provide full, detailed descriptions and specs to each guitar.
We openly disclose any and all flaws we discover in writing. If the instrument is not completely “straight,” we will tell you so and why.
We endeavor to conduct ourselves to the highest standard of professional behavior.
We will deal fairly and ethically; no surprises, flim-flam, dubious business practices or shenanigans.
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We allow a full 48 hour honeymoon period when you buy a guitar from us. If you are not 100% satisfied with it we will refund the purchase price in full, less shipping, upon return of the guitar in the same condition as sold. Please call us before returning the instrument.
Please inspect your new guitar immediately upon receiving it. If any guitar we offer is found to be not as described, we will happily refund the full purchase price, less shipping, upon return of the guitar in the same condition as sold. Please call us before returning the instrument.
