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Thunderbird Club

#311,603
MCF said:
Yeah, bashed it. Totally negative. The first TBird review before that was of an Epi Pro with the weak preamp. Also totally bashed.

She seems to be a very good player. But I pay no attention to the reviews any more. She loves the SBMM Ray 4. I have one. It is the worst bass I own. I’m not a fan. YMMV.
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I found the reviews only because I looked to see if she was a TC member. I haven’t watched many others. Different strokes, but yes, a good player!
 
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#311,604
Jakeman said:
I could use a little advice from the TBird gurus. About a decade ago I bought this 2001 TBird, but have struggled with it over the years. I had wanted one as a kid, and this one showed up in great shape for the right price so I went for it. I’ve always dug it, don’t get me wrong. I’ve gigged it, recorded it - I’ve put it through its paces. I switched out the bridge for a Hipshot. I installed Seymour Duncan’s. Yet… I have 9 other basses, a real mix - short scales, fretless, active, passive, semi-hollow, etc. and the Thunderbird is the one I reach for the least. Something about it has always felt off and recently I was able to finally put my finger on it. And it was obvious. Of my 10 basses, not a single one wears round wound strings. Dead flats on each and every one - this TBird is currently strung with 7 year old TI flats. It feels wrong. I have not purchased, researched, or even blinked at round wound strings in over a decade. I want to do this bird justice. It wants to be a rock machine. It wants to scream as it soars through the night sky. It wants to cut glass. What are some sets I should try?

View attachment 7151935
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EBCFs. I have them on my 5 birds - 3 different Epis and 2 Grecos.
 
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#311,605
AllieCat said:
Biggest issue with mine is one of the tuners seems like it might have stripped out threads on the nut. It tightens to about finger tight and beyond that it slips the threads and comes loose. I have to snug it up every couple of weeks or the washer starts buzzing while I play. I've thought about replacing the tuning machine in question. Maybe I should reach out to Gibson, but I'd hate to have them ask to have it shipped back.

Other than that I have some minor fit and finish gripes. The pick guard is a little warped, there's a teeny tiny bubble in the nitro on the neck, what looks like a bit of over-spray on the side of the fret board, and some crustiness in the nitro around the inserts for the bridge. It plays fine but for over two grand I think I can expect a little more from Gibson. I feel like people would trash an import guitar if it had defects like that.
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I’d at least ask Gibson.
 
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#311,611
LowEndLobster said:
I actually ordered a purple sparkle tbird as a bday present to myself heh
Click to expand...

NGL the blue is way prettier!
We'll look forward to your thoughts :)

Cheers!
IJ6DsDa.jpg
 
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#311,612
dagrev said:
60's NR has landed.
Weather was going to be heavy rain and flooding Saturday, so I asked J.T. if he was able to meet up today and while he had plans with his GF he was kind enough to take the bass with him and made it happen this afternoon. Even gave me a bunch of parts. He bought some gold pickup covers and ring, and two piece bridge and gave them to me as well as a parchment pickguard. The repair looks stable--just unfinished. With the gold parts, I'll go in that direction and I'm thinking Pelham Blue sure would be an outstanding choice and still have something of an original vibe. Color-wise anyway.

I was an honor to finally get to meet J.T. after all the conversations we've had. Just a super nice and kind person, but not anything I didn't already know. More tomorrow when I get in to it. Long day of driving. But got to meet J.T., get a NR, and eat at Jack's BBQ! Great day!



View attachment 7152138
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That’s really cool.
Can’t wait to see what you do with it.
 
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#311,613
MCF said:
Thinking about it, I recall that someone here had problems with the tuners. Unfortunately, Gibson chose the licensed Ultralights instead of the USA ones. The mechanisms are different internally. I believe Gibson or Hipshot replaced them; I can’t recall what the resolution was. Mine are fine.

You bought new, correct? If so, start with Gibson. If you bought from SW, talk to them. Or you could give Hipshot CS a call. They may just up and send you a replacement if that’ll work for you.
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That would be me that had the tuner issue issue with a brand new sparkling burgundy Reverse.
Fortunately I bought it from Sweetwater. Two of the tuners were thread stripped like the issue that you may be seeing with yours.
This issue became aware to me after the second day of ownership when I changed out the strings to my preferred set.
Sweetwater made three attempts to get Gibson to send a correct set of tuners for this Bass. Every time Gibson got it wrong. The sent the wrong parts consistently. The licensed ultralights are OK if they haven't been abused during installation.
After much disappointment with Gibson I told my rep at Sweetwater to just credit me $300.00 bucks and I would do the replacement myself. And they did credit back that amount.
I bought a set of USA ultralights with that money to make it right.
Sweetwater is aware of this quality control issue because I gave them an ear full. Much to Sweetwater's credit, they offered to send me another Bass to either exchange or just take the tuners and send it back.
Go through Sweetwater with this issue. They will have your back.
If Gibson sends you new tuners check them out first. The ones that they kept sending were to large for the reverse headstock.. Also make sure they send the tuners AND the ferrules. You may not know if the male or female part is stripped.

Hope they make it right for you. No matter what, keep the candy. :)
 
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#311,614
Jakeman said:
I could use a little advice from the TBird gurus. About a decade ago I bought this 2001 TBird, but have struggled with it over the years. I had wanted one as a kid, and this one showed up in great shape for the right price so I went for it. I’ve always dug it, don’t get me wrong. I’ve gigged it, recorded it - I’ve put it through its paces. I switched out the bridge for a Hipshot. I installed Seymour Duncan’s. Yet… I have 9 other basses, a real mix - short scales, fretless, active, passive, semi-hollow, etc. and the Thunderbird is the one I reach for the least. Something about it has always felt off and recently I was able to finally put my finger on it. And it was obvious. Of my 10 basses, not a single one wears round wound strings. Dead flats on each and every one - this TBird is currently strung with 7 year old TI flats. It feels wrong. I have not purchased, researched, or even blinked at round wound strings in over a decade. I want to do this bird justice. It wants to be a rock machine. It wants to scream as it soars through the night sky. It wants to cut glass. What are some sets I should try?

View attachment 7151935
Click to expand...
I would start with an inexpensive set of Ernie Ball or D’Addario nickel rounds. They are both a good jumping off point.
A stainless steel string might be too bright and rough to start with. The transition could be too extreme. Plus I have found that worn D’Addario nickel rounds feel really smooth but still have a bit of round wound sound.
 
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#311,616
Instagator said:
That would be me that had the tuner issue issue with a brand new sparkling burgundy Reverse.
Fortunately I bought it from Sweetwater. Two of the tuners were thread stripped like the issue that you may be seeing with yours.
This issue became aware to me after the second day of ownership when I changed out the strings to my preferred set.
Sweetwater made three attempts to get Gibson to send a correct set of tuners for this Bass. Every time Gibson got it wrong. The sent the wrong parts consistently. The licensed ultralights are OK if they haven't been abused during installation.
After much disappointment with Gibson I told my rep at Sweetwater to just credit me $300.00 bucks and I would do the replacement myself. And they did credit back that amount.
I bought a set of USA ultralights with that money to make it right.
Sweetwater is aware of this quality control issue because I gave them an ear full. Much to Sweetwater's credit, they offered to send me another Bass to either exchange or just take the tuners and send it back.
Go through Sweetwater with this issue. They will have your back.
If Gibson sends you new tuners check them out first. The ones that they kept sending were to large for the reverse headstock.. Also make sure they send the tuners AND the ferrules. You may not know if the male or female part is stripped.

Hope they make it right for you. No matter what, keep the candy. :)
Click to expand...
Fortunately mine is fine. Just trying to help our new contributor @AllieCat out. I forgot that it was you who had the issue and posted the pics Glenn.
 
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#311,618
Question for the group:

I have a Mesa Subway 1x15 cab coming my way. It will be paired with a Jay Ganz Straight Ahead power amp and use different pre-amp pedal for tone etc.
This will be my main gigging amp and the idea is it will be a "one trip" load in for me going forward.
Does anyone have a recommendation for a light, collapsible stand of some sort to get the cab off the ground a bit?
I have seen the regular amp stands but they are bit overkill for my needs.
We tend to play dumps with small stages and I need to keep things as simple as possible for ease of transport and quick change over.
Thanks!
 
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#311,619
RedVee said:
Congrats!
Yes, that gold you mentioned is one of my favourite colours. The Pelham blue is so so for me because of the variation it it.
I’ve seen some I loved, others not so much.
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Chucky Stiletti said:
Congrats Donnie!!
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Thanks. I'm going to put it together today and see if I can't get it playable for tomorrow. I want to determine if the neck repair is good and I can plan on where to spend money.

I know what you mean about variations of PB. I would aim for the lighter version.

1739629717129.png
 
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