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Thunderbird Club

#59,342
kat888 said:
Same location, same CTS pots, strings etc etc etc.
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That would be an interesting experiment. Several bodies, several necks. Some neck through, some bolt on. All made of different kinds of wood. How long you got to wait? It took me a year to build a P-Bird out of pre-cut parts, and I'm still not done!
 
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#59,343
Gaolee said:
That would be an interesting experiment. Several bodies, several necks. Some neck through, some bolt on. All made of different kinds of wood. How long you got to wait? It took me a year to build a P-Bird out of pre-cut parts, and I'm still not done!
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I can record those two electronically identical guitars if you'd like.
 
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#59,345
kat888 said:
Anyone care to offer an opinion on the merits of basswood vs mahogany for the body on a bolt on bass? Is there really much difference?
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Kat - Both are perfectly good woods. I have basses made of each with no complaints. As far as woods go, basswood is generally lighter in weight than mahogany and it's also not as hard as mahogany. Basswood isn't one of the better wood grain selections for staining but is fine for solid colors as long as you use a hard finish over it. It machines very easy but may be a little less sturdy when it comes to holding a screw thread. You mentioned a bolt on neck - if that's the plan with basswood I would absolutely use a neck plate to distribute the screw force over a larger area, I'd be concerned with screw heads getting buried in the basswood if they were just counter sunk in the body wood (even with ferrules). Then there's the whole tone wood discussion that will take on a life of its own and is best left in the genpop threads but I personally like the sound of mahogany with TBird pups, basswood with Stingray pups, alder with Jazz and P bass pups and maple with EMG pups and active preamps.
 
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#59,347
PianoOfDoom said:
Anyone have any thoughts on the Vintage Pro pickups vs fancy replacements like the Thunderbuckers? Just curious if it's worth going down that road.
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Briefly, I've been A/B comparing them to my '89 Gibson with Lull pickups, probably not what everyone would like to hear, but the Lulls are certainly better, fuller, there's just more presence especially in bass and lo mids. In working with the Epi my first thoughts were to use the settings and models that I use with my Gibson, it wasn't bad but certainly not the same, thus my comments sprinkled through the daily 100 or so posts regarding me spending time working the Epi up to speed with the band. For me it's nothing unusual as I've done it with all my basses - I probably owned the Jackson 'Bird 2 years before I played it out with the band. I have no intention of replacing the stock Epi pickups, they do have a great, warm growly voice that I like a lot, it's me that needs to work some more to get them fine tuned.
 
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#59,348
Gaolee said:
I don't think it makes that much difference no matter what. Some, but not as much as the true believers think. A pine 2x4 is outstanding tonewood with the right strings, pickups, and hardware.
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In fact the best playing FSO in my collection has a pine body and maple neck. Nothing wrong with pine in my book.
 
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#59,350
GBassNorth said:
Tool? Only if your knowledge of golf is limited to the movie Caddy Shack (love that movie by the way)
Pretty typical ladies Golf attire...
View attachment 2863362

Pretty typical men's golf attire...
View attachment 2863363

But all that said - I think we've fount a topic that nearly eclipses Tort in this club. :roflmao:

Golf is clearly not for everybody, and even the most die hard players find it frustrating at times. Kinda like playing a bass and trying to nail that ultra challenging song, it sure feels good when you succeed. :thumbsup:

Now if you like, we can talk about my other hobbies, which besides bass, includes flower gardening, sharp shooting, sporting clays and motor sports. :hyper:
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I see you go all in on the inexpensive hobbies.
 
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#59,351
GBassNorth said:
Kat - Both are perfectly good woods. I have basses made of each with no complaints. As far as woods go, basswood is generally lighter in weight than mahogany and it's also not as hard as mahogany. Basswood isn't one of the better wood grain selections for staining but is fine for solid colors as long as you use a hard finish over it. It machines very easy but may be a little less sturdy when it comes to holding a screw thread. You mentioned a bolt on neck - if that's the plan with basswood I would absolutely use a neck plate to distribute the screw force over a larger area, I'd be concerned with screw heads getting buried in the basswood if they were just counter sunk in the body wood (even with ferrules). Then there's the whole tone wood discussion that will take on a life of its own and is best left in the genpop threads but I personally like the sound of mahogany with TBird pups, basswood with Stingray pups, alder with Jazz and P bass pups and maple with EMG pups and active preamps.
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Actually, I'm considering the merits of basswood, poplar, limba (korina) and mahogany. The softness of basswood does concern me a little.
 
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#59,356
dukeorock said:
I’m not sure how much difference it makes even if it is a neck through. So many different opinions on this subject. I’ve heard some say the neck wood is way more critical than body wood and I’ve yet to hear any strong evidence that there’s a huge difference between a good bolt on and a good neck through
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For me, it makes sense that having one contiguous piece of wood from head to toe, would be “better”... but once again... I have no PowerPoint presentation prepared. I just like it. They’re much less prevalent in the world of guitars, than in the world of bass... and ones that I actually like, are downright scarce. When I started playing bass, I decided early on, that a neck-thru model was something I was interested in pursuing. In fact... it was part of my fascination with the Thunderbird, long before I ever thought of playing bass (I always kept my eyes peeled for a Firebird... the stars just never aligned). I love the look & the feel... and there’s just something cool about playing one. I can’t put any science behind it... but I like it... and that’s good enough for me:thumbsup:
 
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#59,357
GBassNorth said:
Kat - Both are perfectly good woods. I have basses made of each with no complaints. As far as woods go, basswood is generally lighter in weight than mahogany and it's also not as hard as mahogany. Basswood isn't one of the better wood grain selections for staining but is fine for solid colors as long as you use a hard finish over it. It machines very easy but may be a little less sturdy when it comes to holding a screw thread. You mentioned a bolt on neck - if that's the plan with basswood I would absolutely use a neck plate to distribute the screw force over a larger area, I'd be concerned with screw heads getting buried in the basswood if they were just counter sunk in the body wood (even with ferrules). Then there's the whole tone wood discussion that will take on a life of its own and is best left in the genpop threads but I personally like the sound of mahogany with TBird pups, basswood with Stingray pups, alder with Jazz and P bass pups and maple with EMG pups and active preamps.
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Basswood - no issues

fullsizeoutput_cab.jpeg
 
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