Greetings Ebay Bass Buyers,

There seems to be a lot of misinformation in the descriptions of basses sold under the Parker brand. I hope I can clear some of this up.

I was production manager at Parker Guitars in the original factory in Wilmington, MA from 1996 to late 2002. Ken was kind enough to let me assist in the product development of the bass so I feel that I have a firm basis for the following claims:

1. The production Parker Flybass began shipping in October of 2002. I personally set up and QC'd the first 60 instruments. Anyone claiming to have a production bass built before October of 2002 is either misinformed, ignorant, or just not telling the truth.

2. The original basses made at the Wilmington factory have a 7-digit serial number that uses the same sequencing as the Parker Nite-Fly. These were the serial numbers we had so these were the serial numbers we used. The first two digits indicate the month, the next two the year, and the last three the guitar's sequence from that month.

3. Parker Bass production was moved to Vernon Hills IL in July of 2003. The serial number system was changed to a 6-digit sequence starting with 092. Any bass whose serial number matches these criteria was made by Washburn.

4. Parker basses whose model numbers begin with PB are import instruments and, outside of the sihlouette, bear little or no resemblance to the original Flybass in construction or tone.

5. Shortly after moving production to Vernon Hills, the extremely stable, multi-laminate neck construction of the original basses was scrapped due to production cost. I've had several of these instruments on my bench recently. The necks don't seem to be as stable as the ones made in Wilmington and they seem to have less top end.

I hope this guide helps to clear up some of the mystery surrounding this incredible instrument.