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Thunderbird Club

#94,322
dukeorock said:
I’ve had a few over the years. Always wanted to love em more than I was able to in the end.



Funny, other folks feel that way about T Birds...they just don’t get on with the ergonomics of em. The trouble spot on a Ric for me is right where you rest your forearm on that sharp binding. It’s like a dang cheese grater to the forearm :)



Thanks! Yep, came with a very nice case :)



Man, I’d love to have Andrew Drake make me another bass one day! Love my Drake to bits. I can’t sell or trade off the Ric anytime soon as it’s a gift from a fan who’s a great person. I’m gonna try to make it a nice recording bass for now. Heck, I’m playing it at a gig tonight because the fan who gave it to me will be there. It’s not like it sucks! I’m just fortunate enough to be very picky about basses at this point in my life and know what I like. If I could only keep 3 of my basses, it would be an easy choice right now.

1. Drake w/ TV Jones Thunder’Blades
2. 2002 Gibson T Bird w/ Lollars
3. Cataldo NR w/ TB ‘66

Glad I can keep the others though :)
Click to expand...
Is "the fan" a boy or a girl?......
 
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#94,323
Chucky Stiletti said:
Is "the fan" a boy or a girl?......
Click to expand...

It’s actually a married couple to be accurate, but the husband is a collector of sorts. Owns around 80 guitars and just a couple basses. Super nice folks
 
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#94,326
JJR58 said:
Gonna change up a few things on it, But here is the liberated '71.

View attachment 3160912
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my 72 purchased in 78 (pictured in 79) for 250.00 with OHSC. It looked exactly like yours before removal of the trays, PG swap and addition of a DiMarzio (all plain stupidity)...BTW @GonePlaid, you've already commented on the 70's Dago look and Farfisa....:laugh:
15.jpg
 
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#94,327
dukeorock said:
Certain people were just born to play Ric’s and I love the way those people sound...I just like chunkier lows live...might look into a set of Joe Bardens or something :)
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Is yours stereo? Kind of a hassle to dink around with two amps,
but the ric-o-sound feature is what really sets these basses apart.
Chucky Stiletti said:
+1. Wanted one sooo bad in the early 80s and then got one. Not impressed with the bottom end, had a pair humbucker wired J pickups installed in the neck position a la Roger Glover... then had the frets pulled out..idiot, should have just sold it...they looked SO cool... the styling was so radical back in the day but (imho) dated today...they also seemed so much better engineered than a 7ender in every aspect.
many players dabbled with them for awhile and then moved on to something else..
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Same here. I was a huge Chris Squire fan so of course I had to have one. Quickly realized it was not the bass for me.
Especially as it was my first BG transitioning from upright.
Nothing else looks or sounds like a Rick though. I wish I still had it.
 
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#94,332
MCF said:
A very different PJ, that’s for sure. I would think it’s got a ton of versitle tone.
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There's a Dimarzio DP122 in there. not all that thrilled with it. The Carvin sounds good, but it's so freakin hot.
It'll go to the tech, cause the wiring is all wonky. But it plays like a dream. i knew going into it, that i'd probably mod it even more.
 
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#94,339
JIO said:
Yes, agree about the lack of ergonomics. I had a sweet '86 4003 Fireglo with the two-part pg/reversed tr and two extra bridge anchors. I got it for $400 in it's OHSC because someone had put EMG's in it, removed the original electrical harness, and the top pg piece, mute and mute screws were missing. I cut a white pearl pg for it, ordered pu's, mute and screws from Ric, found an '85 harness on eBay and Bob's yer' uncle - good as new! (cost another $400 total) Looked great, sounded great, was fun to play but just never was one I regularly reached for. Sold it for a nice profit after owning it a couple years. I enjoyed it while I had it but don't miss it.
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almost like they were designed for pick players exclusively. all that clutter in the front and string spacing...
it didn't take long for GL to swap to a more conventional (Badass) 7ender type bridge..
 
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