Fender P-bass Early 60's detail questions: Body routings

hvalur

I've restored a number of sadly butchered 60s and 70s P-bass bodies over the past several years, and realized that there are a lot of little details that can be used to nail down when a body dates from, even without any date marks.

I've started to compile this fanatical level of detail and it will eventually be a website or blog, but I still need info on some of the details of earlier p-basses - dating from 1958 through 1965. I was hoping some of the board members might be able to answer some of these questions, either through instruments they own or have worked on.

For 1958 to 1963 Precision basses:

- is there a small routing under the bridge for a ground wire, or simply a hole drilled through to the control cavity? I have owned several 66's with no routing, but have owned what was supposedly a 63 that DID have a small kidney/oval routing under the bridge.

- are there router template pin marks on the back of these basses, and if so, where are they located ? (centerline, butt and near neckplate ??)

- were there changes in how the control cavity was routed between the early 60's and mid 60's - as there were for the strat ?

- are the rear contours deeply scooped as with 66 precisions (sharp upper body edge) or less deeply scooped like a 70's p-bass ?

Thanks for any insight you guys have, and pics would be extra-ultra-mega cool !!

krishna