Great looking bass! I always loved the way these T-birds look, and the purple sparkle is particularly eye-catching. To me, T-birds just scream Southern Rock, though I can't think of a single Southern Rock bassist who plays one. My only issue with them is the neck dive. I owned an Epi T-bird for a short time about fifteen years ago, but I sold it after owning it about a year. I recently bought a Jackson Kelly Bird, which is a very similar shape. Even with the stock ultralite tuners on it, it still exhibited neck dove. I finally built an aluminum strap bracket for it similar to the one Gibson used on the Steinberger Synapse basses and guitars. It extends the strap attachment up to around the twelfth fret, and that took care of the neck dive. I also swapped out the Jackson so-so pickups for a Tom Araya signature pair of active EMG pickups. Even with its fat neck similar to a '70s P-bass, it's a pleasure to play now.
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NBD Oops I did it again! Epiphone Thunderbird 64 Purple Sparkle
- Thread starter /\/\3phist0
- Start date
Weight redistribution worked wonders for my Ebony bird.
Light tuners, tungsten weights in the control cavity.
It now has only a hint of dive, is still under 9lbs
Even with the comically large headstock.
Open jam, whiskey: what can go wrong?
Ebony bird
Purple 64
Ebony bird
Purple 64
And yet the bird ergos are perfect for me. Fender basses are just OK, even though Strats fit me well when I played guitar. <shrug> Viva la difference!
Leon Wilkeson (Skynyrd) played a couple (as well as other basses). It was seeing him and the Ox play them that made me decide if I ever played bass I would start with Thunderbirds. When I switched to bass, I did just that - and to date that's all I own.
Viva la difference indeed.
Same here. Inside the Strangers in the Night double live album! To a 15 year old kid, I was awestruck by that bass.
Awesome score! If you don't want the body to flop forward with these models you can move the bottom strap button without redrilling by unscrewing the left side screw of the tailpiece, and screwing it back in with a strap button of your choice. It also moves the bass closer to your right!
(Blurry phone pic for reference)
(Blurry phone pic for reference)
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Thanks for the suggestion!
Sorry not an option for me.
There is enough static stresses on the tailpiece from the string pull, without adding
The stress from the strap pulling and releasing .
The reach to the first fret is not an issue for me, being 6’3”.
And I’m accustomed to a long reach : 32”scale Billy Bo Jupiter Thunderbird hangs similarly
As does my Meteora., and a Jaguar, I sling them kind of low, and rake the playing position upwards which also brings the nut closer to my body.
A Solution to a Bird that dives, AND FACE TIPS.
Move front button to edge of body. (Eliminate face tilt)
Light weight tuners (prefer Gotoh)
Add the equivalent weight that was saved by replacing tuners (about 10-15 oz)
Place Tungsten weights in unused space in control cavity.
The weight of the bass remains the SAME.
If more counter balance is needed the tail pin can be relocated farther up the bout, from centerline.
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Happy for you. Second time’s the charm!
All American muscle. That’s the Thunderbird.Other than the Ergonomics? Right up there with any bass I have ever owned. Or built.
For pretty short money all things considered.
Many cut corners to be sure, all addressable if one wishes to step it up even more.
The LOOK!? What is more rock and roll iconography than an instrument designed by a renowned Mid century car designer!?
Much more appealing to ME than one designed by BMW(And named after a drum ;-). )
Thunderbirds just work. P’s are fine. I can’t stand the J ergos. Everyone is different.Viva la difference indeed.
I mean I wouldn't knock it till you tried it! The stress from pulling the strap around this spot is incredibly minimal compared to the overall string tension the tailpiece is holding. I've been running this setup for about a year now and so far I haven't had any issues, and I always pull the bass by the strap to put it on, so far nothing's yanked out of the body. There's always an option to get longer screws if you feel the tailpiece screws are too short.
Here a full pic of my setup, I do hold the bass at a similar height/level myself, this is my way of trying to get the bass the way I want with as minimal modding as possible
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Very cool Thunderbird II! And a white to boot!
