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Thunderbird Club Pt. II

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#241
DuoSonicII said:
I've been following this thread intently - it has increased my already-substantial desire for a Greco T-bird II to meltdown levels. :eek: So I figured I should share as well.

Here's my girl, a '95 that came to me with a snapped-off headstock. She was clearly played quite a bit by the previous owner and has some battle scars, but that's just how I like 'em. After a skillful repair by my luthier, she plays great.

DSC00444.jpg


I have quite a few basses, and I've always been one to switch it up...but I have grown really attached to this one in the last couple of years, and she gets the vast majority of my playing time nowadays.

I also have a Dillion which I picked up while waiting for the right Gibson to come along, a really nice set-neck copy.

DSC03660.jpg


(And not to spam too hard, but the Dillion's for sale...) :hiding:

Not really looking for a number, as I'm not into the whole "club" thing, but I have been digging the 'Bird pr0n and wanted to share some of my own. Cheers!
Click to expand...

NICE Birds!

I am loving my Greco T Bird, it is quite a bass.
 
#242
DuoSonicII said:
I've been following this thread intently - it has increased my already-substantial desire for a Greco T-bird II to meltdown levels. :eek: So I figured I should share as well.

Here's my girl, a '95 that came to me with a snapped-off headstock. She was clearly played quite a bit by the previous owner and has some battle scars, but that's just how I like 'em. After a skillful repair by my luthier, she plays great.

DSC00444.jpg


I have quite a few basses, and I've always been one to switch it up...but I have grown really attached to this one in the last couple of years, and she gets the vast majority of my playing time nowadays.

Not really looking for a number, as I'm not into the whole "club" thing, but I have been digging the 'Bird pr0n and wanted to share some of my own. Cheers!
Click to expand...


Thanks for posting up your basses! Interesting that the Gibson has a chrome bridge and the balance of the hardware is black.

I like the Dillon too, noticed its for sale, too bad for me the tax man wants my $$$ this month.
 
#243
TBird1958 said:
Thanks for posting up your basses! Interesting that the Gibson has a chrome bridge and the balance of the hardware is black.

I like the Dillon too, noticed its for sale, too bad for me the tax man wants my $$$ this month.
Click to expand...

Oh yeah, the bridge...I'm responsible for that. Couldn't stand the black bridge on a sunburst, so I swapped it out. For some reason, the pickups and tuners don't bother me though. Go figure. :)
 
#245
Just picked up a Thunderbird Pro. Kinda bummed I didn't get one of the newer ones with the strap button on the back already, but I'm pretty happy with it. The pickups were all out of whack when it got shipped to me. The E side was almost to the wood, and the G side was practically touching the strings, lol. Makes sense now that I'm setting one up that the E string was almost inaudible on the one I tried in store. Never thought to look at the pickups.

So, from what I gather from the warranty, moving the strap button or even installing Straplocks voids any manufacturer warranty. In your opinion...worth it? The neck isn't diving horribad on mine, but it is noticable, and I would be happier playing with locks on it. Any thoughts?
 
#246
JasonKain said:
Just picked up a Thunderbird Pro. Kinda bummed I didn't get one of the newer ones with the strap button on the back already, but I'm pretty happy with it. The pickups were all out of whack when it got shipped to me. The E side was almost to the wood, and the G side was practically touching the strings, lol. Makes sense now that I'm setting one up that the E string was almost inaudible on the one I tried in store. Never thought to look at the pickups.

So, from what I gather from the warranty, moving the strap button or even installing Straplocks voids any manufacturer warranty. In your opinion...worth it? The neck isn't diving horribad on mine, but it is noticable, and I would be happier playing with locks on it. Any thoughts?
Click to expand...

Ehhh - move the strap buttons. It's the first thing I always do to my birds ;)
 
#250
BlueTalon said:
When I first saw this picture, I thought the tree reflection was part of the finish. I was astounded and impressed before I realized it was a reflection.

It's still a very pretty bass (regardless of who made it), just not quite as breathtaking as I thought it was.
Click to expand...

I never looked at it that way before - but it would be pretty amazing if that was the actual finish.
 
#251
Killa said:
l_bca6bb831a8e2ebc908de45c4f4b0ced.jpg


91
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Nice!

White 'Birds Rock, thank you for posting. You are #109, share gig shots here as well, we love our Thunderbirds :)

TBird1958 #1
Godof Thunder59 #2
Funkster#3
Gibenbackerbass #4
Sidd Laroy #5
Jazzbo58 #6
Tender Prey #7
Showdown #8
The Mojo Hobo #9
Doctorpunch #10
Stiles72 #11
Brenner182 #12
Baird6869 #13
Poorbassist15 #14
PWV #15
Mr Typhus #16
Tracii #17
Aditya #18
amimbari #19
knifedge #20
Nitrofix #21
Atoz #22
bassphreak #23
Seydlitz #24
bassclef112 #25
bassplayer8953 #26
D.M.N. #27
Edhunter #28
kruno maestro #29
Tombowlus #30
Kalik #31
#32 is a duplicate entry so we'll keep it open for now.
Walter Vega 33
Carlos 840 #34
Shadowtippy #35
Saltymonkey #36
lel95 #37
gaffster787 #38
mc2ny #39
Low Sound Love #40
BrianKrashpad #41
Deep Six #42
BenEd #43
Bassmachine2112 #44
ponkoponk #45
Heatheroo #46
darkside 88 #47
GCool#48
TedhHernstorm #49
Darbo #50
uncletupelo #51
Vaider #52
Rip Topaz #53
bmb73 #54
Badfish #55
Afireinside #56
Redstrand #57
reptyls #58
dabido #59
96tbird #60
whilke #61
JIO #63
thebrain #64
Rob Martinez #65
bazzandeson #66
PhR #67
Dr.Eagle #68
lowend1 #69 Mopar or no car!
Basvarken #70
s mcsleazy #71
Burruss #72
Matty H #73
moonshinegtrs #74
bass lord mutha #75
jumbodbassman #76
davidprice #77
A-Step-Towards #78
birdman14 #79
Quadzilla #80
jbalou02 #81
johnk 10 #82
electrocoyote #83
ih8law #84
muzukman7 #85
3rdcurve #86
rdwil191 #87
BluesBear #88
JAF #89
Swin #90
TBirdie #91
bassplayerbob #92
trevorguns #93
Clammy #94
jammi_fool #95
Molochnik #96
Rocker47 #97
Shark1 #98
BlueTalon #99
Fab Superlative #100
Doragon #5150
ThumpsAlot #102
Doelle #103
AllyDetours #104
Southway #105
mav #106
tw63 #107
Casperrobo #108
Killa #109
roffe #110
 
#252
And now the reason I didn't post pics or ask for a number are becoming apparent. After some more testing in a not-wiped from a twelve hour shift mindset, I noticed the Thunderbird Pro I picked up has some serious grounding issues. A shame, as it's turning this bass to a dealbreaker for me. I love the finish, the feel, the playability sitting, but I don't want to void my warranty by moving the buttons if I don't have to, and I don't want to fix the grounding problem if I'm already unhappy with something else. I'm in talks and thoughts of refund/exchange.

I know I'm being picky, but it's only because I asked MF's customer service and got told the one I ordered would be one of the newer ones, and that's why I pulled the trigger when I did. Money is kinda tight, so this was my reward for not killing anybody from stress bass. MF can't promise if I exchange that I'll get the one I'm after, so I sent a query out to Sweetwater. I swear, I will one day soon join this club. Mainly because I already have the hardshell case and I'm not dealing with shipping that out. :D
 
#253
JasonKain said:
I swear, I will one day soon join this club. Mainly because I already have the hardshell case and I'm not dealing with shipping that out. :D
Click to expand...

DON'T GIVE THAT UP! You got the right idea. Getting a hardshell case for the T-bird was the first thing I did after I got the bass. It came with a gig-bag, but I wanted something more substantial than that to protect my new baby.
 
#254
JasonKain said:
And now the reason I didn't post pics or ask for a number are becoming apparent. After some more testing in a not-wiped from a twelve hour shift mindset, I noticed the Thunderbird Pro I picked up has some serious grounding issues. A shame, as it's turning this bass to a dealbreaker for me. I love the finish, the feel, the playability sitting, but I don't want to void my warranty by moving the buttons if I don't have to, and I don't want to fix the grounding problem if I'm already unhappy with something else. I'm in talks and thoughts of refund/exchange.
Click to expand...

If I were you I'd send it back, order a new one from GC, if there's one close. Play it before buying; newer ones are supposed to have the humming/buzzing issue fixed.

On a side note: I bought one of the earlier ones, and it had the noise problem. Re-grounding the bridge wire helped; changing the strings (discovered later) made the biggest difference. Almost unnoticable now. When played passive, a non-issue.
 
#255
I recently bought my Epiphone T-Bird Pro from Guitar Center and it has the rear mounted button and no hum problems.
I'm very pleased with it.

Keep your case. It is NOT a stocked item at GC stores and I had to wait nearly three weeks to get one shipped to me. I couldn't gig with mine for nearly a month because it didn't even come with a gig bag.

 
#256
Oh, lol. I meant I was definitely keeping the case. It's the best case I currently own, and with how the interior is shaped, it limits me to getting a Thunderbird. Can't exactly keep the case and try to fit an ESP or something in there. I'm torn on one issue. I'm planning on getting a refund from MF, Guitar Centers around here have no idea what I'm talking about, and Sweetwater has the exact thing I'm looking for...except it's black. I already have a black bass. I like the Sunburst...but I WANT IT NOW, and they're out of stock.

lol. I hate being impulsive sometimes. It's too hard to wait for things.
 
#257
Take the salesman @ GC to their website & show it to him. Also, If you go to GC's website, you can look up the bass, then find which stores have them...several around Chicago do.

Also, Music123 has sunburst available, so does American Musical Supply: If you want to again try the internet-order route.
 
#258
bassplayer8953 said:
Take the salesman @ GC to their website & show it to him. Also, If you go to GC's website, you can look up the bass, then find which stores have them...several around Chicago do.

Also, Music123 has sunburst available, so does American Musical Supply: If you want to again try the internet-order route.
Click to expand...

Talked to a GC rep on the phone today, it took ten minutes for him to understand I was talking about the Thunderbird Pro, not the basic Epiphone Thunderbird. Then he almost started arguing that they don't come with the strap button located on the back...because he was looking at the original stock photos with them located on the side. I'm out in the boonies of small town-Wisconsin, and the nearest place that can even order these is around 70 miles away.

I've got my return all packed up, so once my card gets credited I'll probably order a black one of Sweetwater, because they have real-life photos of the actual bass they're selling, so I kinda know what I'm getting. I don't wanna run the risk of getting the old line again, which is what I fear ordering anywhere else.

I know I'm being a weenie about this, but I'm picky and I still have a bad taste in my mouth from my first and last active bass. My first real bass was an ESP five string with active electronics. Turns out one of the pots was loose, and every time I fiddled with my EQ it rotated slightly one direction. Long story short, solder joints touch and shorted the preamp, and I didn't have any money to fix it, plus it was right outside the terms of warranty. Ended up selling her off. So, now I'm paranoid about everything I order online, especially actives. Which is why I'm going nuts about stuff like warranties and tech service, as I'm supporting my parents and I don't really have any extra money to keep doing returns or get the various small problems fixed.

That said, before I boxed her up I threw on a set of old Chromes I had lying around for giggles. Wow. Just...wow. I will be owning one of these very soon.
 
#260
Let's see if this makes your beautiful 8 string 'Bird a little bigger.
8reverse.jpg


Fantastic bass, thank you very much for sharing it with us!
You are #110, welcome here and if you have any gig shots with this lovely please do share them!
 
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