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fyziqs

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Jan 19, 2007
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25
Location
Boulder, Colorado
This past week, my Stingray and I passed a major milestone - my bass has been with me for 1/2 of my life! I'm not going to tell you how old I am, but my bass just turned 20 :cool:. My SR4 has been loyal, through college and moving around the country, through relationships, through the best and worst times of my life.

As a birthday gift, my bass got a fresh fretboard lemon oil treatment, a new set of strings and a new battery. It's the least I could do.

Anyone care to share their milestone stories?
 

CW Zing

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May 5, 2004
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Lake Forest Park, WA
I've had my SR5 when Sugar Ray was still in the basement jamming heavy tunes... when Snoop became a frat-boy main stay... when Soundgarden was felling pretty noose. Before Beck got the devil's haircut...

It's been through several ep's, a few full lengths, a career change, a marriage (still going strong), arrival of my daughter, new home...

Sheeoot, it's been through quite a bit. I'm 46, so not quite 1/2 my life, but awful close.
 

CW Zing

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May 5, 2004
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Lake Forest Park, WA
Btw congrats on the milestone! I guess when I'm 52 it'll have been 1/2 my life then. I'll play all mid to late nineties music to commemorate.
 
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fyziqs

Active member
Joined
Jan 19, 2007
Messages
25
Location
Boulder, Colorado
Btw congrats on the milestone! I guess when I'm 52 it'll have been 1/2 my life then. I'll play all mid to late nineties music to commemorate.

Thanks! I think we had some similar musical influences during the formative years of our bass playing. I'm going to jam along with some Mother's Milk for old times' sake.

Best of luck on your way to 52!
 

OldManMusic

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Apr 13, 2008
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Centennial, CO
I bought my first bass, a black and maple MM SR4, in 1978 at the ripe old age of 20. It's still with me 38 years later (I'm 57).
 

sanderhermans

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Nov 5, 2013
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1,091
Location
belgium
I am only 27 years of age myself, so i have much to learn and not nearly as experienced as you guys.

I recently got this notification of a memory on facebook showing a picture i posted 3 years ago, it was a picture i took of my first ebmm bass (the sterling 4). Back then i had 2 other basses and 4 other guitars. In the 3 years i have sold em all, never regretted this. as you can see in my signature i found a few ebmm's. Only difference is that the musicmans are all keepers, never sold 1 and i'm not planning to do so.
 

Paco Maraca

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Mar 5, 2014
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Location
Germany
Almost half of my life. Got my first Stingray 24 years ago at the age of 27 and it was love at first sight.
 

fyziqs

Active member
Joined
Jan 19, 2007
Messages
25
Location
Boulder, Colorado
OldManMusic said:
I bought my first bass, a black and maple MM SR4, in 1978 at the ripe old age of 20. It's still with me 38 years later (I'm 57).

You've got me beat! 2/3 of your life, if you don't mind me saying. Nice to hear you still have your first bass.

Almost half of my life. Got my first Stingray 24 years ago at the age of 27 and it was love at first sight.

Almost there! :cool:

Maybe we can add some pictures to the thread - it would be great to see these basses.
 

Paco Maraca

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Mar 5, 2014
Messages
39
Location
Germany
Sure, here's my light-weight classic 1989 Ray next to my other love, a 2012 honey-roasted PDN

PDN_19.jpg

I replaced the transparent pickguard 10 years ago by a white-pearl one, because a Ray has to look like a Ray - although the ash body is really pretty. Here's a shot of the original configuration

Stingray_25.jpg
 

1powersm3

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May 1, 2016
Messages
2
Interesting assessment.....never thought about that before.

I have had a lot of basses for a long time, however the 2nd one I ever owned makes for the most interesting math.

A 1973 Rickenb@cker 4001....acquired in 1977 for the sum of $350 (in 1977!!!!) has been with me for 74% of my lifetime. WOW!
 

fyziqs

Active member
Joined
Jan 19, 2007
Messages
25
Location
Boulder, Colorado
I have had a lot of basses for a long time, however the 2nd one I ever owned makes for the most interesting math.

A 1973 Rickenb@cker 4001....acquired in 1977 for the sum of $350 (in 1977!!!!) has been with me for 74% of my lifetime. WOW!

Wow is right! Thanks for sharing!

At what point do these instruments go to the 'next in line'? I can imagine passing mine on to a next generation bassist at some point, but not yet!
 

1powersm3

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May 1, 2016
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2
passing of the basses

Wow is right! Thanks for sharing!

At what point do these instruments go to the 'next in line'? I can imagine passing mine on to a next generation bassist at some point, but not yet!


Yes, I agree - passing of them is important.

Of all my basses - I do have four (4) with specific instructions. The '73 4001 and '84 Explorer explicitly go to my daughter and a mid '90s Hamer B12A and my '07 Dargie Delight Sterling HS go to my wife.

The others, some more Gibson's, Fender's and a Stingray SLO HH (and entire wall of Trace Elliot) get lumped in with all the rest of my estate, monetized and distributed.

But the four mentioned have special value to me - so I want them to stay in the family.

On the lighter side...."My greatest fear is upon my death my wife will sell my bass collection for what I told her it cost!"
 

CW Zing

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May 5, 2004
Messages
121
Location
Lake Forest Park, WA
Ha ha I always think "who's going to get what?" about all my axes. I have to wait awhile, Indy's not ready to let Shia LeBouf get his hat just yet.
 

Bryan

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Feb 2, 2010
Messages
292
Location
Youngsville, LA
I just realized a while back that I've spent half of my life gigging in bands. It was kind of a surreal moment.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Retrobass

Member
Joined
May 3, 2016
Messages
7
Location
Netherlands
In 1994 I gathered all of my savings and ordered a Stingray 5 in Translucent Red. 3 moths later I got it, wow what a bass, I played ONLY on this bass, it was my Swiss Army Knife. In 1999, when I didn`t play in a band anymore, I stupidly sold it...
I bought an sold A LOT of basses after this one, they could not measure up to the SR5 I sold, I was so frustrated for all of these years that I sold it. Then last year, March 2016 I found a similar used one on the Internet, from 1999 it read. I traveled to the store, took it from the wall, I recognized my own bass again, after 16 years of absence it is now again in my posession and will NEVER EVER leave me again.
 
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