Thunderbird Club Pt 5

[TBird1958]

Well here it is, my first T-bird.

Congratulations on your new Thunderbird and welcome! Your club number is 325.As always, your thoughts, questions and gig shots are welcomed.

 

[TBird1958]

Welcome Rotwang! #326! I love '76-79 Thunderbirds, your still has the bridge and pickup covers, very nice!

Here's my '76 B-Tb. I just cranked it up full volume a minute after this picture, and was given the big RED LIGHT by "she who must be obeyed".....

 

[TBird1958]

May I apply to the club?
Here's a picture of my 76'T Bird..With my oldest daughter back in the early 8o's...and a picture a few years later..gotta get her away from those P Basses

The second picture is about six ago..I'm still swinging the 76'from time to time..Third picture is from the spring..Why is it that Basses don't get gray and fat as they get older?..
Cheers.

Welcome Instagator #327! Thanks for sharing the pictures, it's very cool that you've had that nice 'Bird for so long.
I love this thread!

Rock on Gentleman


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[NWOBHM_Kid]

ive finally bitten the bullet, pulled out my wallet and got myself the bass ive always always wanted. the epiphone thunderbird pro 5! and i am so so happy i finally did it. its the bass ive always wanted and more!

ive got myself a nice natural wood effect pro 5, the five strings being neccesary for all the daft prog metal stuff my band now wants me to play XD

ill chuck a few pictures on when i get my camera!

for now im so so happy ive finally got the bass i always wanted

 

[hillerup]

Here's my '76 B-Tb. I just cranked it up full volume a minute after this picture, and was given the big RED LIGHT by "she who must be obeyed".....

I especially like the good company your T-bird is in - hanging out with a Gibson Moderne...

 

[NWOBHM_Kid]

the eagle has landed!

heres my new baby! an epiphone thunderbird pro 5 and i love it to bits, evreything i thought it would be and more. love the tone and that body is just something else B)

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

 

[HIaWATTha]

the eagle has landed!

heres my new baby! an epiphone thunderbird pro 5 and i love it to bits, evreything i thought it would be and more. love the tone and that body is just something else B)


[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

Congratulation, it looks real nice. Unfortunately I haven't had the opportunity to test these Epi Pro birds yet.

 

[diskovolos]

greetings y'all and happy new year .

the intonation screws on my T-Bird PRO IV are getting pretty rusty . does anyone happen to know what kind of screws can work as a replacement ?

is it true that black hardware gets rusty quicker than chrome ? should i go for chrome replacements ?

 

[moonshinegtrs]

With the exception of the new pickup, this really has nothing to do with T-Birds, though the body design is a my interpretation of a T-Bird crossed with a Danelectro Pro. (that and I do have a short scale Asto-Bird in the works...); I originally installed a GFS lipstick tube humbucker in this bass, but I wasn't impressed with the tone. This is the bass with original pickup:

Ultimately I decided to install a Gibson Les Paul Bass TB Plus pickup (basically a T-Bird pickup in a humbucker casing). Unlike the guitar pickups that are in the Epi limited edition basses, this is an actual U.S. made Thunderbird bass pickup (this pickup is either a prototype or at least a very early 90's model). Here is the underside of the pickup:

I am really pleased with the results. The T-bird pickup is a really good match for the semi-hollow body; I was worried about having too much mid range (I'm a P-bass guy at heart; love the T-Bird growl, but it doesn't sit in the mix like a P-bass... Sorry ), but this combination has a lot of bottom end with a bit of "twang" when played with a pick... Perfect (for me)!:

Moonshine

 

[Nocturnal]

^^^^ I like it Moonshine!! I used those pickups in my Epi rebuild and in my Bach NR. I think they are a little more aggressive than the black soapbar TBPlus while still retaining the TB sound. I put mine inside 70's TBird pickup covers cause I wanted that look.

 

[NOLA Bass]

With the exception of the new pickup, this really has nothing to do with T-Birds, though the body design is a my interpretation of a T-Bird crossed with a Danelectro Pro. (that and I do have a short scale Asto-Bird in the works...); I originally installed a GFS lipstick tube humbucker in this bass, but I wasn't impressed with the tone. This is the bass with original pickup:

Ultimately I decided to install a Gibson Les Paul Bass TB Plus pickup (basically a T-Bird pickup in a humbucker casing). Unlike the guitar pickups that are in the Epi limited edition basses, this is an actual U.S. made Thunderbird bass pickup (this pickup is either a prototype or at least a very early 90's model). Here is the underside of the pickup:

I am really pleased with the results. The T-bird pickup is a really good match for the semi-hollow body; I was worried about having too much mid range (I'm a P-bass guy at heart; love the T-Bird growl, but it doesn't sit in the mix like a P-bass... Sorry ), but this combination has a lot of bottom end with a bit of "twang" when played with a pick... Perfect (for me)!:

Moonshine

Nice job, looks great!

 

[darren1970]

WOW, that looks insane......Love it.

 

[NOT]

This is from Nikki Sixx's Facebook page. New signature Tbird that he'll be unveiling at NAMM..

 

[NOLA Bass]

This is from Nikki Sixx's Facebook page. New signature Tbird that he'll be unveiling at NAMM..

View attachment 310499

Hmm, I think it might be a Spector. He was talking about pulling his old Spectorbird out of storage recently.

 

[NOT]

Yeah that's what I figured. Those Spectorbirds sound massive!

 

[lfbassguy]

That bridge looks like the ones on Schecters. hmmm surely not.

 

[wvbass]

That bridge looks like the ones on Schecters. hmmm surely not.

Maybe, but Schecter does a two-piece bridge on their bird-inspired Ultra.

Link Removed

24-fret PJ bird? Spector for sure. I'm glad this one has knobs!

EDIT: huh. The guys in the Schecter thread are hinting that it IS a Schecter.

 

[NOLA Bass]

Yes, once I looked not on my phone, I saw it wasn't a Spector bridge. Probably some inspiration from his old Spectorbirds though with the EMG PJ setup.

 

[Nocturnal]

I hope it doesn't look like the regular Ultra-Bass. I'm not too crazy about the look of those.

 

[Baird6869]

View attachment 310499

Looks like 24 frets alo.