Where are all the 70s Jazzmasters?

Discussion of vintage Jazzmasters, Jaguars, Bass VIs, Electric XIIs and any other offset-waist instruments.
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tdizzle
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Where are all the 70s Jazzmasters?

Post by tdizzle » Tue Aug 05, 2014 5:14 am

...They don't seem to exist. Who on the forum has one, or more than one? In the past month I have done nothing but look at Jazzmsters on the net. I have seen about a thousand pictures of Jazzmasters from the 50s and 60s, and maybe five from the 70s. I found a 75 for sale and jumped on it. Black and Sunburst are the only colors I have ever seen on a 70s JM. Can the 70s owners step foward and post some photos?

Here is my newly acquired 75. Lightweight at 7lbs 13 ounces. Still in awe of how great it sounds.

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Re: Where are all the 70s Jazzmasters?

Post by øøøøøøø » Tue Aug 05, 2014 5:32 am

Well, there's probably a reason they were discontinued in 1980. I'd imagine that means they weren't exactly hot sellers for several years before that.

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Re: Where are all the 70s Jazzmasters?

Post by tdizzle » Tue Aug 05, 2014 5:44 am

øøøøøøø wrote:Well, there's probably a reason they were discontinued in 1980. I'd imagine that means they weren't exactly hot sellers for several years before that.
Yes, but but what became of all of them? I have seen more '61 stack knob Jazz Basses for sale than 70s Jazzmasters. Did they make THAT few of them in the 70s, to the point where only a hand full of people have them?

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Re: Where are all the 70s Jazzmasters?

Post by øøøøøøø » Tue Aug 05, 2014 7:17 am

If I had to guess, there are probably a few things at work.

The main one has to be that their popularity seriously waned. You see lots of pictures of them in the 60s. In the 70s you very rarely see a jazzmaster in the hands of a prominent player. So their production totals were probably pretty far down.

I'd also imagine that a good many of them have been parted out-- perhaps some even disingenuously sold as 60s parts.

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Re: Where are all the 70s Jazzmasters?

Post by OutRun86 » Tue Aug 05, 2014 10:23 am

I heard that Fender actually stopped producing them in about 1976 and everything sold until 1980 was actually surplus. Dunno if it is true though.

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Re: Where are all the 70s Jazzmasters?

Post by offkeyericdee » Tue Aug 05, 2014 10:38 am

They're out there, though not a whole lot were made. I own a '75 and a '78 myself. Both are brilliant and stock - Jazzmasters of this era are the finest ever made, to be honest. Their sharply-pronounced and powerful pickups are something to behold. Nearly all of them post-1974 were in sunburst. Though Fender took the Jazzmaster off price lists in 1980, they did make one final example in 1982. It is shown here:
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Enjoy your Jazzmaster! :)
"If it's not a Fender, you f**ked up!"
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Re: Where are all the 70s Jazzmasters?

Post by Pacafeliz » Tue Aug 05, 2014 11:02 am

Well i love em. I have a '69/'72 mash, the recently adquired '76 and the all-stock clean '78.
i love delay SO much ...that i procrastinate all the time.

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Re: Where are all the 70s Jazzmasters?

Post by tdizzle » Tue Aug 05, 2014 1:26 pm

Pacafeliz wrote:Well i love em. I have a '69/'72 mash, the recently adquired '76 and the all-stock clean '78.
Yes. I bought the Squier VM on a whim (it was so inexpensive, why not?). After I got it home and started using it, I realized the Jazzmaster was the guitar I'd been looking for all my life. I wish I had known that in the 80s, when they were giving them away.

It started when I bought a Blacktop Strat with the two humbuckers. I wasn't expecting a 5 position, but those coil splits in position 2 & 4 were the business, neither Strat nor Tele. I then went about constructing another Strat with Duncan humbuckers and a 5 position, thinking it would be the ultimate, but it didn't get what I was looking for. Thought I would have to step up to a PRS, but they didn't do it either. Then I got the Squier VM, and that was it. The coil split son the Blacktop Strat are very reminiscent of a Jazzmaster, but a little muddy. The Jazzmaster itself is the perfect solution. I'm hooked.

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Re: Where are all the 70s Jazzmasters?

Post by redchapterjubilee » Wed Aug 06, 2014 5:54 am

I know the 58-66 era is much cooler but I jones hard for a 70s JM.

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Re: Where are all the 70s Jazzmasters?

Post by Fenderguy » Thu Aug 07, 2014 11:08 am

I`ve been wondering about this as well. Would love to see more 70s JMs here :)

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Re: Where are all the 70s Jazzmasters?

Post by adamrobertt » Sat Aug 09, 2014 7:01 am

I've always thought the 70s JMs were some of the coolest looking ones with the black guards, big blocks and binding, and the big black "Jazzmaster" decal on the oversized headstocks.

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Re: Where are all the 70s Jazzmasters?

Post by milkybar » Sun Aug 10, 2014 3:31 am

I'd love to get my hands on one in the UK, the big blocks, and with the binding look wicked. Will fender ever go bat shit crazy and do a mid 70s reissue?

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Re: Where are all the 70s Jazzmasters?

Post by MattK » Sun Aug 10, 2014 3:51 am

They did the silverface amps and the Starcaster - 70s are fair game for reissue now.

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Re: Where are all the 70s Jazzmasters?

Post by milkybar » Sun Aug 10, 2014 3:59 am

True! I wonder if they'd still do them in heavy ash, or more consumer friendly alder.

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Re: Where are all the 70s Jazzmasters?

Post by ultraboreal » Sun Aug 10, 2014 6:30 am

one was for sale here in Belgium some months ago (but it was there for a while!). Price was not bad, 1850 euros/ $2400 in great shape as original... was about to go and test it but asked the weight of the guitar first... a bit less than 5 kg/ 10lbs :bored:
I love the look of those 70' JM but just need to get a "good one " with a "normal" weight!

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