Beyond a few closed listings, rave reviews on bass message-boards, and photos of the guitars in process on a basic Facebook page, there's not much information available about Jack Read Custom Instruments. But this bass speaks for itself! It's a well-crafted instrument that will deliver a wide range of sounds.
This PJ Bass was signed and dated by Jack Read in June of 2005. Its body shape definitely has some of that J-Bass offset thing going on, but it feels sleek and contoured with a bit of its own flair. The finish is a nice tobacco sunburst, and this bass is set up in the classic "PJ" configuration: a Precision pickup in the middle and a Jazz pickup by the bridge. This pickup complement gives you a wide range of tones and the best of both worlds—powerful bass bloom from the P and the cutting definition of a J.
This Read PJ Bass has a 32" scale. It has a Swamp Ash body, a quarter-sawn Maple neck, and a rosewood fingerboard with a 16" radius. The nut width is 1.5" and the strings taper to 2-3/8" spacing at the bridge. The neck carve feels a lot like a '60s C-shape neck—nice oval, fast and smooth. It has high-quality tuning machines, and the overall build quality is impressive.
There's one important detail that sets this apart from a lot of PJ-style basses: this Read Custom has a three-way switch. This makes it so much easier to get the most out of the pickups. Without a switch, it's too hard to switch between pickups mid-song, so the faster three-way switch just means more overall versatility.
This 2005 Read Custom PJ Bass shows some general signs of play and use, but it is free of any severe cosmetic signs, scratches, or signs of carlessness (see photos). All in all, it's a great-playing bass that covers a wide range of sounds. The previous owner added a custom thumb rest that sits on top of the pickguard, right by the P pickup. It's pretty handy and can be easily removed. Molded plastic hardshell case included!