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 Post subject: Vintage Gibson Lefty EBO Bass - Canada - Ebay
PostPosted: January 29th, 2019, 5:13 pm 
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Joined: March 30th, 2013, 12:58 pm
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Not up on the values on these. Seems like a good starting bid price.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Gibson-EBO-Bas ... 1438.l2649


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 Post subject: Re: Vintage Gibson Lefty EBO Bass - Canada - Ebay
PostPosted: February 3rd, 2019, 11:18 pm 
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Sold Anyone here get it?


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 Post subject: Re: Vintage Gibson Lefty EBO Bass - Canada - Ebay
PostPosted: February 4th, 2019, 1:52 pm 
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Joined: January 29th, 2014, 3:34 pm
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That would be me. Hopefully the seller will deal with the CITES regulations properly as it is shipping from Canada to the US. I sent info on how to do it and it doesn't cost anything except for time, so hopefully there won't be issues.

I've been looking for an EB-0 or EB-3 after a rare slot head EB-3 I bought turned out to be stolen. Long story, but I've been working with the police to return it to its original owner. The the police have a warrant out for the thief!


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 Post subject: Re: Vintage Gibson Lefty EBO Bass - Canada - Ebay
PostPosted: February 5th, 2019, 1:18 am 
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stillcenter wrote:
That would be me. Hopefully the seller will deal with the CITES regulations properly as it is shipping from Canada to the US. I sent info on how to do it and it doesn't cost anything except for time, so hopefully there won't be issues.

I've been looking for an EB-0 or EB-3 after a rare slot head EB-3 I bought turned out to be stolen. Long story, but I've been working with the police to return it to its original owner. The the police have a warrant out for the thief!


Man that sucks!!!!!. Hopefully this purchase works out better. Keep us posted and let us know how you like it once it arrives.
(Thinking positive)


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 Post subject: Re: Vintage Gibson Lefty EBO Bass - Canada - Ebay
PostPosted: February 5th, 2019, 5:50 am 
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Joined: December 20th, 2011, 11:42 am
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Location: Philly Area
On a bright note, so glad to see a stolen bass returned to it's rightful owner.


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 Post subject: Re: Vintage Gibson Lefty EBO Bass - Canada - Ebay
PostPosted: February 5th, 2019, 12:31 pm 
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bobjones2260 wrote:
On a bright note, so glad to see a stolen bass returned to it's rightful owner.


Absolutely. I bought it from a pawn shop via eBay but the thief who sold it to the pawnshop obviously hadn't even looked inside the case, as there were band business cards in it which led me to the original owner. The bass had a signature on the pickguard which had me interested and I reached out to find the guy who owned it previously. Turns out it was Leslie West from Mountain's signature!

Will let y'all know how this EB-0 turns out. Second time's the charm, perhaps?


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 Post subject: Re: Vintage Gibson Lefty EBO Bass - Canada - Ebay
PostPosted: March 13th, 2019, 12:44 pm 
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So the EB-0 arrived. The seller mentioned the bridge and pickup were replaced (and the originals were in the case) so I was aware of that. It plays well and sounds fine (though I'm no expert on how it should sound to be honest). It has some odd transition period features; here's what I've noticed so far:

- ! No serial number visible
- Headstock logo seems to be inlaid and authentic (not a sticker)
- Open gear chrome Kluson 538 tuners consistent with a pre-'69 EB-0
- One-piece body and one-piece neck (with side fins attached to the headstock)
- Neck heel looks consistent with a '66 - early '69 EB-0
- Finish checking all over the guitar seems authentic
- Date code on one of the pots is visible and is a CTS pot that dates to 2nd week of 1969
- Wiring looks old and similar to some pictures I've seen of original EB-0 innards (though it may be missing a cap)
- No electronics cavity shielding
- Thin neck (~39mm or slightly wider than 1.5" wide at the nut)
- 5-ply pickguard (flyguitars.com indicates EB-0s had 3-ply pickguards and EB-3s had the 5-ply)
- Haven't yet removed the aftermarket bridge to see if there are holes for the mute that should've been originally installed.
- The original bridge in the case is a bar bridge (and a lefty one to boot, so I suspect it really is original) which is consistent with a pre-'69 EB-0. No mute came with the bass.
- The chrome handrest is in the middle of the body, consistent with a post-'66 / pre-'69 EB-0
- Fairly new non-original unbranded lefty! hardshell case

What do you all think? Is it the real deal? I'm most concerned about the fact there's no evidence of a serial number.


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 Post subject: Re: Vintage Gibson Lefty EBO Bass - Canada - Ebay
PostPosted: March 14th, 2019, 12:03 am 
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I'm a Fender guy, not up on Gibsons. Looks to be vintage to me, but with changes made that you point out. No serial # seems odd. Any Gibson guys able to help out?


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 Post subject: Re: Vintage Gibson Lefty EBO Bass - Canada - Ebay
PostPosted: March 14th, 2019, 4:31 am 
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Joined: December 20th, 2011, 11:42 am
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My 1969 Les Paul has the SN imprinted on the back of the headstock however is almost invisible, I would have to take a picture of it and blow it up to faintly see the SN.


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 Post subject: Re: Vintage Gibson Lefty EBO Bass - Canada - Ebay
PostPosted: March 14th, 2019, 10:13 am 
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As someone who owns 4 lefty 60’s EBs (an EBO, EB2, EB3, and EB3L), I’ve spent a lot of time researching them. Judging solely from the photos in the listing, I’d definitely lean toward it being a legitimate Gibson. Given the level of detail and aging visible in those photos, frankly why would anyone capable of investing the skill, time and effort to make that good of a fake back then pick of all things a lefty EBO to do? lol!

Virtually all the 60’s Gibson lefty basses were special orders, and no one really knows how few of which models were made. Since they weren’t part of a regular production run, some mixing and matching of options/ features across models may be indicative of stories I’ve heard that back in the 60's- 70's, in addition to customer special orders, there were guys at the Gibson plant that would build "employee order" lefties and sometimes mark them as '2' and 'BGN' to indicate a cosmetic (non-structural) flaw so that they could buy them at a factory discount... clever.

You’re right, the lack of a serial number is the most troubling issue. I’ve never heard of one without ANY visible evidence of a serial number at all- but given all the above, I suppose even that isn’t outside the realm of possibility. As Bob pointed out, sometimes the serial numbers can be faint and/ or difficult to impossible to read accurately.


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 Post subject: Re: Vintage Gibson Lefty EBO Bass - Canada - Ebay
PostPosted: March 14th, 2019, 2:26 pm 
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Thanks all. I agree it's very unlikely someone went to the trouble of such carefully recreating a lefty EB-0. The seller claims a known guitar shop in Canada and sources online say that the lack of serial number is not necessarily odd for this time period. I'm not sure which sources he's talking about because all the posts online seem to indicate that a lack of serial number is very odd indeed.


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 Post subject: Re: Vintage Gibson Lefty EBO Bass - Canada - Ebay
PostPosted: March 14th, 2019, 7:10 pm 
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stillcenter wrote:
The seller claims a known guitar shop in Canada and sources online say that the lack of serial number is not necessarily odd for this time period.
I’ve personally never heard that. I’d ask the seller for names and links for follow up.

It’s frustrating that some of these explanations regarding lefty Gibsons of this era lack supporting documentation, and as more years pass it will only get more difficult to find anyone who can credibly validate them. In your case I would think that having no serial number or other traceable provenance would make it all but impossible to completely verify its authenticity absent an in-hand inspection by Gibson (and I don’t know if there’s still anyone there that would or could do it). That’s always gonna make valuation challenging for an investment driven buyer- but as a real Gibson to keep and enjoy for yourself, the subjective value is totally up to you.


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