hillerup
There are basses, and there are Thunderbirds!
Never seen that shape before.
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Thunderbird Club
- Thread starter TBird1958
- Start date
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- club thunderbird
Never seen that shape before.
Aahhh yes. That why I specifically chose the phrase "3 main Gibson style knobs". If memory serves... I believe they also had a couple different styles of "chicken head" knobs somewhere in their history too
Same here. Do they make other colors I wonder, will have to look into it. Would love red ones.
Looking at potentially replacing the pups in my Goth. Is the Chinabucker an option? Does anyone have a link to more info on them?
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Gaolee
Official leathers tester and crash dummy
I think I got them from Ebay. I have them in the '91 as part of chroming it out. The originals were just fine, but they weren't chrome and were potted in the black plastic covers with epoxy or something like it. Mark suggested that they wouldn't respond well to a de-covering attempt, so I just went with Chinabuckers. They are just fine until I get enough other projects done to replace them with Thunderbuckers.
Are you speaking of the TB+'s not being able to chrome out?. Mark said it could be done. A pic was even sent by the one and only on how to do it.
Can you sense the panic in my voice if it can't be done?
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Not sure what I want to do with the pups just yet.@kat888 always seems to keep a link close by
Got plans for your Goth pups?
I'm in the preliminary phases of creating a FrankenBird. For aesthetics I was planning on blacking out the FB with a dark dye, routing a perimeter groove (ala Gibson) around the headstock for a dark red paint highlight, installing a black leather pickguard with hand tooled skull and roses, and installing black lampshade or speed knobs. The tuners have to be replaced (stock ones are too sloppy for me). The passive controls will be yanked and replaced by an active 4 knob Spector tonepump I have laying around (using the top mounted output jack hole for the 4th knob and moving the output jack to a side mount) also installing a rear mounted battery box for the preamp.
But first things first - did a strap balance test and found no neck dive (good news on a TBird that just barely weighs 8 pounds). Did a complete set up and found no serious fret or neck issues and was able to get a nice low action. Determined the stock tuners are crap and have to be replaced. Didn't like the stock strings so they were replaced with a set of Heavy gage Black Beauties I had laying around. Unfortunately that string and gauge combo forced the Goth into full blown mids and wiped out the top and bottom end. Not sure if it's the strings or the pups so I'll be installing a set of La Bella Black tapes on it next week, if that doesn't bring the bottom end back then the pups will go, hence my question about the Chinabuckers. I know EMGs will work good with the Spector preamp so I always have that option as well.
Whenever I go down the major mod path I like to get the "engine" running good before I work on the body. Sound and playability wise if it's a keeper I'll slap some lipstick on that pig. So far playability is proven, sound is being worked on, if that pans out it's lipstick time!
Sounds like a fun project
When it comes to the electronics, I've kept myself kinda stupid. Does a stock Epi 'bird come wired in series, or parallel? ... and how easy would it be to mod the controls to volume/blend/tone instead of VVT?
Gaolee
Official leathers tester and crash dummy
It was the specific pickups in my bass. They were 1991 pickups, and there have been several iterations since. I was going to do the stripping and the chroming that Mark explains how to do, but the specifics of my pickups were an oddity. The ones in that bass are not representative of just about any other Thunderbird pickup, let alone recent TB+ pickups. No need to panic.
- Mar 13, 2008
- 18,894
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- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist Mike Lull T Bass pickups, The Bass Shop, Seattle WA.
Easy there, Big Fella!
It can be done, just like those pics I posted. I wouldn't try it with the pickups used on the bolt on neck version as they're 3 screws instead of 2.
To be honest, I haven't even opened up the control cavity yet so no idea if its series or parallel. As a rule of thumb, every time I've installed a series/parallel switch it ends up staying in series 95% of the time so that will be my default wiring. M sure you could easily convert the VVT to VBT but my preference is Vol/Vol. I'm not fond of the thin sound you typically get at center detent on a pan pot (although I have heard there is a way to wire it to avoid the problem). I just run full neck and mid tone or less 90% of the time and dial in the bridge pup to add more definition if needed. YMMVSounds like a fun project
When it comes to the electronics, I've kept myself kinda stupid. Does a stock Epi 'bird come wired in series, or parallel? ... and how easy would it be to mod the controls to volume/blend/tone instead of VVT?
Since you used to have a Goth and now have different TBird, I'd be interested to know if you felt the Goth had more or less bottom end than your current Bird? Mine is rather anemic compared to my Gibson Anniversary Bird which surprised me a bit since the only other one I tried was very heavy on the bottom end (it might have been a Korean model, the one I have now was made in China).
That bass is not white... Any longer...
I was going to say ‘it’s barely chrome’ then remembered it’s not chrome at all. That is/will be nickel. In this context ‘chrome’ substitutes for ‘shiny white metal’.
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I liked everything about the Goth, better than what I have now... with the exception of the neck profile. Comparing the sound that came outa the Goth to that of the TB IV... I wouldn't necessarily say it had more or less bottom end per se. The tone just seemed "darker" overall, with more snarl & attitude. The TB IV is more... polite, I suppose. Though the Goth had a more aggressive, sorta "pseudo-overdriven" tone... I believe the output is a just a little bit hotter on the TB IV.
Do you happen to have a wiring diagram that would illustrate how one would perform the V/B/T mod?
Sounds like a fun project
When it comes to the electronics, I've kept myself kinda stupid. Does a stock Epi 'bird come wired in series, or parallel? ... and how easy would it be to mod the controls to volume/blend/tone instead of VVT?
They are wired parallel. A blend pot requires a dual-gang pot, though couldn’t tell you values you would need.
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