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Thunderbird Club Pt 6

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#922
hillerup said:
How does one convert an Epiphone T-Bird Pro to passive?

I've seen this conversion mentioned quite a few times, but haven't yet found a guide on how to actually do this, despite extensive googling...
Click to expand...

What I did, I bought a set of pre-wired passive pickups from eBay and installed them. I had to enlarge the pickup routs just a tiny bit, but it worked fine.
My T-bird didn't come with any pickups or hardware, so I didn't have to mess with removing a preamp or anything.

EDIT: this is what I got for mine: Link Removed
 
#923
MicG said:
Alright guys - after some repairs and upgrades, I'm ready to "officially" join the club :D

20130809_132844.gif


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My 2011 Gibson Limited Heritage Cherry 'bird w/ the new Hipshot mini clovers!

Separate thread link: http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f8/up...bird-new-hipshot-mini-clover-content-1005983/
Number please?:smug:
Click to expand...

Beautiful!!!
 
#924
blackest_frank said:
What I did, I bought a set of pre-wired passive pickups from eBay and installed them. I had to enlarge the pickup routs just a tiny bit, but it worked fine.
My T-bird didn't come with any pickups or hardware, so I didn't have to mess with removing a preamp or anything.

EDIT: this is what I got for mine: Link Removed
Click to expand...

That's just a set of pickups from a regular Epi 'Bird...

What I'm interested in, is to use the original ones that comes with the Pro as passive with a VTVT konfiguration - It should be possible...
 
#925
hillerup said:
That's just a set of pickups from a regular Epi 'Bird...

What I'm interested in, is to use the original ones that comes with the Pro as passive with a VTVT konfiguration - It should be possible...
Click to expand...

Assuming they are passive pickups with an active preamp it is simple. Remove the preamp. Buy a prewired VTVT harness. Solder the pickups and ground wire to harness. Play music.

Here is a good pre-wired harness:

http://www.bestbassgear.com/bass-passive-harness.htm

It comes with a wiring diagram.
 
#926
I've got a Pro 5 at hand, which I'd like to convert to 8 strings - The nut seems more than wide enough for the conversion, but I am worried the neck will be way too wide at the top.

What is the string spacing on an Epiphone T-bird Pro 5?

Also what are the measurements of the fretboard at the top of the neck (where the neck meets the body)?

Would $ 265 be a reasonable price for a used Pro 5 in transparent black without case/gigbag?
 
#930
Anyone ever covered their pickguard with vinyl? I'm about to buy some (I should say A BUNCH. 2 ft.x6 ft. sheet) 3-D Black Carbon Fiber self-adhering vinyl and was wondering if it's going to be a major pain? I assume I'll have to make some cuts in it to get it to wrap around the curved edges but I've never dealt with this type of stuff before. May even cover the truss rod cover as well. Heck, I might end up covering the whole bass if I'm not careful.:D
 
#934
Around the sides. The edges are beveled so I had to makes sure those got covered as well. Maybe 1/4 inch overlap around to the back. It's not as shiny looking in person as it is in the pic. Just the way the light was hitting it. The 3M stuff I used looks like it is actually woven and changes reflectivity as you move it around. Cool stuff. Got a 1 foot x 2 foot section on ebay for $10. More than enough for 2 Thunderbird pickguards and t-rod covers.
 
#935
jaxstarke said:
Around the sides. The edges are beveled so I had to makes sure those got covered as well. Maybe 1/4 inch overlap around to the back. It's not as shiny looking in person as it is in the pic. Just the way the light was hitting it. The 3M stuff I used looks like it is actually woven and changes reflectivity as you move it around. Cool stuff. Got a 1 foot x 2 foot section on ebay for $10. More than enough for 2 Thunderbird pickguards and t-rod covers.
Click to expand...

That's pretty cool looking - I might just look into doing this myself on a couple of my 'birds...
 
#937
Anyone know where you can find edging or some type of black plastic edge guard material I could use for the raised edge here on my Thunderbird? You can see in the picture that it's getting worn down and, I didn't get a pic of it but towards the bridge where I usually place my thumb it's waaay worse. No edge even exists there any more. Just need something small and semi-inconspicuous that will guard that edge from any more future damage.
 

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