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Thunderbird Club

#265,861
MarcieB said:
Hi there, since a week a proud owner of an epiphone thunderbird 60's. I love the bass, but as many i have issues with the intonation and I am considering replacing the bridge. I am however not at all technical and am not sure which bridge, if any, would fit preferably without having to drill new holes.
Anybody here with more experience on this? As in: which bridge to order? I am looking at:
Hipshot supertone. I assume the 2 point? SuperTone Gibson® Bass Replacement Bridge

Also heard good things about Babicz but honestly have no idea which bridge is the correct one.
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That Hipshot 2 point will not work on an Epi 60's.
 
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#265,864
MCF said:
Big Babicz fan here. They allow for the lowest string height adjustment compared to the three point and the Hipshot. I also like how they look. I know @GBassNorth has mentioned that his Greco bridges slide some due to less tension to hold them in place.
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I have ordered a set of locking studs to address that issue on my gold Casady.
 
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#265,865
Chucky Stiletti said:
yeah….JM was perusing around the crowd singing the anthem and all his usual weirdness……Barts sounded awesome through the rig as well….:hyper:
https://youtube.com/shorts/si44VKlkZN4?si=Z66pKv5HsXkHmBzL
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As much as it pains me to say it, I think the Barts sound even better. But that might just be the fact that each bass was used for different songs. Would be very interesting to hear each bass playing the same song back to back. I put Barts in my Goth and they ended up being incredibly clear and clean pickups (especially when played in single coil mode) and incredibly deep in humbucker mode.
 
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#265,867
MCF said:
I’ve looked there before. I’d be wary. The prices seem a little too low to be true. I’d be interested in hearing if anyone has ever tried buying from them.
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Tempting to just try ordering via PayPal and seeing what happens. PayPal always seems to side with the buyer, so if there are issues I'm pretty sure they'd make it right. But in the end I don't need it. It's a left-handed Japanese Fender Jaguar bass. I've always kinda lusted after those. Only Fenders that tempt me.
 
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#265,868
Engle said:
I've been looking at my Orville, and it's actually closer to a 60's reverse than a VP. The VP has the neck set out further for more access to the highest frets and the pickups are closer to the bridge. And the headstock is bigger!
As far as I can tell, the dimensions of the Orville match the original. It has a set-neck and a 3 point bridge, so that's different.
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Different looking in details yes. I noted all the differences between the VP (now Gilded Bird) and my '64 II when I first got it, and there are a number of them. But I have yet to hear anyone do an audio comparison between the (reverse) T-bird clones against a Gen 1 T-bird. I don't think my '64 II sounds 'the same' as the VP, but they both sound really good.
 
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#265,869
GBassNorth said:
As much as it pains me to say it, I think the Barts sound even better. But that might just be the fact that each bass was used for different songs. Would be very interesting to hear each bass playing the same song back to back. I put Barts in my Goth and they ended up being incredibly clear and clean pickups (especially when played in single coil mode) and incredibly deep in humbucker mode.
Click to expand...
thx George, definitely more in your face but not as pillowy on the strings which I REALLY like (and cherish sidewinders for).....lotsa of it...a direct (unfair?) comparison between active and passive onboard controls imho...
 
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#265,873
JIO said:
Different looking in details yes. I noted all the differences between the VP (now Gilded Bird) and my '64 II when I first got it, and there are a number of them. But I have yet to hear anyone do an audio comparison between the (reverse) T-bird clones against a Gen 1 T-bird. I don't think my '64 II sounds 'the same' as the VP, but they both sound really good.
Click to expand...
I know @TBird1958 didn't like the stock pickups in her Orville. Mine is an "Orville by Gibson" which was apparently a line that had Gibson USA pickups, whatever that means for 1991:rolleyes:. I was on bass duty last night at the Legion, so played the Orville. It sounded great and really growled nicely playing some ACDC with a pick!
 
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#265,878
BklynKen said:
Seriously. Very solid. Looking forward to the new one coming. A right angle plug at the board will be very welcome since it has back jacks and it always in front of me with the amp in back.
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I had a cord with those ends for 20+ years. I finally retired it because one of the boots had deteriorated and wasn't providing any strain relief. It didn't actually fail, but why tempt fate?
 
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#265,880
Been working on a new bass build.
A Thunderbird IV in the shape of a (long scale) EB-0

brooks-eb-tb-iv_orig.jpg



Almost ready for staining and finishing:

brooks-eb-tb-iv-unfinished_orig.jpeg
 
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