Thunderbird Club

[TBird1958]

We talking about the there point? I have for years used various gauges of shim brass to adjust individual saddles on the three point bridge. Works great.

o
A trip to the model shop for some K&S brass stock, or Evergreen styrene strip and you're in for under $5. 8 of my basses have 3 Points, I wouldn't take them off, no reason to. One of my '76s has a bit of a twist the neck, the cool trick to compensate for it is to reverse the saddle. It may not be perfect, but it's a better design than most give it credit for.

 

[Gaolee]

And it's far more effective than the original sheet metal and brass rod contraption that's found on certain exalted models of bass guitar.

 

[Klondike]

That's true... I hadn't thought of that, either. But I think I'd still rather turn a couple of screws than try to find small, thin pieces of something to stick under the saddles, and hope it's the right thickness. But I suppose if you're determined to save $85 and have the material laying around, it might be practical.

I would make shims from a feeler guage. Dont know why but I was thinking of valve adjustments on motorcycles at the time when it just clicked in my head.

 

[PillO]

I am curious. Has anyone tried a Jackson Kellybird? And if so, how does it compare to an Epiphone or Gibson Thunderbird?

 

[willsellout]

I really like the bridge. I'm new to the 3 point so I'm not entirely sure I set it up properly the first time around. So I went back in today and loosened all the strings and put a bit more relief in the neck. It was basically dead flat and honestly with the way it arrived, with the neck convex, I wanted to make sure the truss rod worked properly. It does. Neck has slight relief now. I was able to lower the action considerably, and it already had pretty low action. Now it's incredibly playable with just a tiny bit of buzz on the E string when I really dig in, which is how I like it.

This bass has quickly turned into one of the best basses I've owned. Between the playability, the sound, and the weight it sits right up there with the best of them. If you take into account the price, this thing is king.

 

[Gaolee]

Welcome to being a 'Bird person. Sounds like it chose you all the way. Congratulations! I will occasionally play a different bass guitar, and you probably will, too. But, when playing a 'Bird is like coming home, that's pretty much it.

For what its worth, the reason I prefer Babicz bridges is purely laziness on my part. They don't work any better than a 3-point once it's all set up, but setup is quite a bit easier, at least it is for me.

 

[Mosstone]

I would make shims from a feeler guage. Dont know why but I was thinking of valve adjustments on motorcycles at the time when it just clicked in my head.

Ha! When I was writing that post, I was going to say "I suppose you could cut up some feeler guages or something", but I was posting from my cell phone at the time and just decided to skip it.

 

[Mosstone]

I really like the bridge. I'm new to the 3 point so I'm not entirely sure I set it up properly the first time around. So I went back in today and loosened all the strings and put a bit more relief in the neck. It was basically dead flat and honestly with the way it arrived, with the neck convex, I wanted to make sure the truss rod worked properly. It does. Neck has slight relief now. I was able to lower the action considerably, and it already had pretty low action. Now it's incredibly playable with just a tiny bit of buzz on the E string when I really dig in, which is how I like it.

This bass has quickly turned into one of the best basses I've owned. Between the playability, the sound, and the weight it sits right up there with the best of them. If you take into account the price, this thing is king.

Indeed!

 

[godofthunder59]

Seeing my mother go downhill with dementia I'm with you and the Who on that one. That probably would mean I haven't got that long left but what the hell, I don't want to suffer like that

Sorry Colin, my mom went the same way.

 

[Gaolee]

Sorry Colin, my mom went the same way.

I feel very fortunate that none of my parents or grandparents ever showed any signs of dementia. That's got to be the most heartbreaking and cruel thing to happen to any human or any family. A friend's mother is going that was, and his wife is showing signs of early onset. It's brutal, and he'll need friendship to survive.

 

[GBassNorth]

And it's far more effective than the original sheet metal and brass rod contraption that's found on certain exalted models of bass guitar.

What, you don't like the saddle height random auto adjust feature as the set screws collapse? Or the precision engineered (certainly not an after thought - rolls eyes) threaded barrel saddle to give string placement a chance to align with a neck that has slipped an 1/8th inch to the right in a sloppy fit pocket. Or what about that wonderful thru body string option to actually give the strings a chance to sustain vs the flimsy $1 bent pot metal thingy they call a bridge?
Don't get me started on Fender design features.

 

[JIO]

What, you don't like the saddle height random auto adjust feature as the set screws collapse? Or the precision engineered (certainly not an after thought - rolls eyes) threaded barrel saddle to give string placement a chance to align with a neck that has slipped an 1/8th inch to the right in a sloppy fit pocket. Or what about that wonderful thru body string option to actually give the strings a chance to sustain vs the flimsy $1 bent pot metal thingy they call a bridge?
Don't get me started on Fender design features.

That's rich - like Thunderbirds are so well designed... WADR - I own, love and play both and find the 'dead horse' Fender bashing so tired and unnecessary. FTR, people who own Fenders don't waste their time bashing other basses, including Thunderbirds.

 

[Klondike]

Seeing my mother go downhill with dementia I'm with you and the Who on that one. That probably would mean I haven't got that long left but what the hell, I don't want to suffer like that

Sorry to hear about your mom Collin, my dad had Alzheimer's. R.I.P. Your mom and my dad.

 

[Klondike]

I feel very fortunate that none of my parents or grandparents ever showed any signs of dementia. That's got to be the most heartbreaking and cruel thing to happen to any human or any family. A friend's mother is going that was, and his wife is showing signs of early onset. It's brutal, and he'll need friendship to survive.

Pretty brutal watching him deteriorate like that. Heat breaking for sure. Miss him.

 

[willsellout]

That's rich - like Thunderbirds are so well designed... WADR - I own, love and play both and find the 'dead horse' Fender bashing so tired and unnecessary. FTR, people who own Fenders don't waste their time bashing other basses, including Thunderbirds.

I would definitely say that there are definitely Fender folks who bash other brands. It's definitely prevalent on here. TBH though, that bent plate bridge sucks. You can't defend it. Does it work? Yeah, but it sucks. I swapped that bent tin bridge on my J bass for a really sweet Hipshot Kickass bridge. No real tonal difference but the adjustability is great.

 

[willsellout]

I definitely used a crap ton of definitely's in that post.

 

[GBassNorth]

That's rich - like Thunderbirds are so well designed... WADR - I own, love and play both and find the 'dead horse' Fender bashing so tired and unnecessary. FTR, people who own Fenders don't waste their time bashing other basses, including Thunderbirds.

I hear ya, just calling a spade a spade.
The Fender bent plate bridge is not superior to just about any possible replacement you can put on it.
Does it work - kinda. Is it ideal - far from it.
And FTR, I can direct you to countless TB threads specifically set up to bash Thunderbirds along with everything else Gibson not to mention the threads that just devolve into Bird and Gibby bashing. Also FTR, I own more Fenders by far than any other bass brand. They have their place as do Gibbys and other basses, and they have their faults as do Gibbys and other basses. Just being honest and calling a spade a spade.

 

[Dadagoboi]

That's rich - like Thunderbirds are so well designed... WADR - I own, love and play both and find the 'dead horse' Fender bashing so tired and unnecessary.

Amen, JIO!

 

[kat888]

I love Telecasters almost as much as I love Ric 330s and anything with P90 pups, but I've never been fond of the old-style 3 saddle bridge.

 

[TBird1958]

I hear ya, just calling a spade a spade.
The Fender bent plate bridge is not superior to just about any possible replacement you can put on it.
Does it work - kinda. Is it ideal - far from it.
And FTR, I can direct you to countless TB threads specifically set up to bash Thunderbirds along with everything else Gibson not to mention the threads that just devolve into Bird and Gibby bashing. Also FTR, I own more Fenders by far than any other bass brand. They have their place as do Gibbys and other basses, and they have their faults as do Gibbys and other basses. Just being honest and calling a spade a spade.

We've all been here awhile and know this does go on, not saying it's right. I'll never go out of my way to criticize someone's bass, it just doesn't really matter that much in the big picture.
Here on the club thread we do take a poke at the big F and as long as it is in fun, or based on fact we're ok - I'd rather not see us degenerate into a lot of internecine bitching about it. A lot of folks (and the Moderators) look at this thread besides us, I read good things about it elsewhere on the forum, let's respect each other and go forward.