Alembic Guitars Club

Connecting => Swap Shop and Wish Lists => Seen on craigslist, eBay, and elsewhere => Topic started by: bassplayer2106 on June 21, 2005, 09:28:01 AM

Title: Olympic Stanley Clarke bass
Post by: bassplayer2106 on June 21, 2005, 09:28:01 AM

Hi have you seen this on ebay - an Alembic Stanley Clarke copy that you have to finish yourself.A bargain at about ?60.

Title: Olympic Stanley Clarke bass
Post by: stoney on June 21, 2005, 11:49:51 AM

Looks like it left the factory just a bit prematurely. Hey Mica, you guys missing something there?
 
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=2384&item=7331467521&rd=1&ssPageName=WDVW (http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=2384&item=7331467521&rd=1&ssPageName=WDVW)

Title: Olympic Stanley Clarke bass
Post by: lbpesq on June 21, 2005, 12:44:34 PM

Very interesting.  It appears to be a lefty to boot.  And it does look like it fell off the Alembic truck prior to completion.  The only part that looks non-Alembic to me is the point at the bottom.  I'm guessing the Olympic factory does this part a little different?  This one certainly is a curiousity.  I smell a good story comin' down the line.
 
Bill, tgo

Title: Olympic Stanley Clarke bass
Post by: mica on June 21, 2005, 12:52:49 PM

This is a real nightmare: kludged together out of obviously scrap parts. Since the location is somewhat local to us (within 20 minutes), I'll guess a former employee took some souvenirs with them.  Here's what I can tell from the pictures:
 
1. The neck is a reject. Note that it was once on a bass (finish and bridgeblock mounting holes are a dead giveaway). We cut this off another bass and deemed it substandard.
 
2. The body is from a lefthanded 20th Anniversary model. It was rejected before the back was routed (the back routing was not done here). I suspect it was mistakenly routed for a short scale, since the pickup holes and bridgeblock holes line up pretty good.  
 
3. Nice block to fill in the short scale neck gap!  
 
Yoinks, this is a heap. I'm really sad someone would do this. This isn't even a shop night instrument, it's a failed resurrection.

Title: Olympic Stanley Clarke bass
Post by: sfnic on June 21, 2005, 01:02:11 PM

(If I was rolling in money, I'd be tempted to buy it, just to carve it into something else.)

Title: Olympic Stanley Clarke bass
Post by: keith_h on June 21, 2005, 02:20:30 PM

I thought something was suspicious with the bass when I first saw this thread. It is a real hack job. However someone does deserve some type punishment for for the deception that Stanley would ever play or endorse such a travesty. The only saving grace is they didn't use the correct company name.  
 
If I recall isn't it creditted to your favorite bass manufacturer Stoney? :-)
 
Keith

Title: Olympic Stanley Clarke bass
Post by: kungfusheriff on June 21, 2005, 02:28:02 PM

He called it a base in the description; what else do you need to know? ;)

Title: Olympic Stanley Clarke bass
Post by: mica on June 21, 2005, 03:43:17 PM

The seller returned my email and said they purchased it from a storage unit auction.

Title: Olympic Stanley Clarke bass
Post by: bassplayer2106 on June 21, 2005, 03:54:03 PM

Hi - it actually comes up as an Alembic unfinished guitar if you send an email to the seller.

Title: Olympic Stanley Clarke bass
Post by: stoney on June 22, 2005, 05:34:01 AM

Hey Keith, O yea, that's them alright.  
 
A storage unit auction??......say, don't storage units and dumpsters look a lot alike????

Title: Olympic Stanley Clarke bass
Post by: keith_h on June 22, 2005, 06:18:21 AM

Look at site today and it is now listed as an unfinished Alembic.

Title: Olympic Stanley Clarke bass
Post by: adriaan on June 22, 2005, 06:54:38 AM

Then again unfinished has two meanings, both of which apply here. Ouch.

Title: Olympic Stanley Clarke bass
Post by: lbpesq on June 22, 2005, 06:58:39 AM

My favorite part of the listing is:
 
Up for bid is this Alembic Stanley Clarke Model Unfinished Guitar, this Guitar is Still Under Construction, all you have to do is finish it and you are ready to rock out and enjoy some nice sounding Music from the guitar that you Made and Finished 47 inches Long, the Base is 15 inches wide and 1 1/2 inches in width, you buy it and finnish it, thanks for looking
 
Not only can you get a four string Stanley Clarke guitar, but you get to Finnish it!  I might be interested if I got to Canadian it, French it, or maybe more appropriately Korean it.  But Finnish it?.  No thanks, too cold for this California boy!  (No offense to our members from Finland, of course - LOL).
 
Bill, tgo

Title: Olympic Stanley Clarke bass
Post by: Bradley Young on June 22, 2005, 01:22:10 PM

I Also Appreciate the Fact That He Apparently Graduated From the School Of Superfluous Capitalization.
 
That, Indeed, is Music to Rock Out To.
 
Brad

Title: Olympic Stanley Clarke bass
Post by: mica on June 22, 2005, 01:57:29 PM

I wrote to the seller again today inviting them to reveal the true nature of the item they are selling, i.e. calling it an unfinished Alembic is really not true.  
 
Let's hope that since they updated the title of the auction, they will also correct the text so that whoever winds up with this piece will understand exactly what they are getting.  
 
Might make a nice clock!

Title: Olympic Stanley Clarke bass
Post by: kungfusheriff on June 22, 2005, 03:50:48 PM

Ended early...apparently there was some sort of error in the listing.

Title: Olympic Stanley Clarke bass
Post by: jacko on June 24, 2005, 04:36:37 AM

LoL!!
 
graeme