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Thunderbird Club

I have not used a Hipshot because I do not like the way they look. It is a shallow thing.

Three point bridges work just fine but are a bit fiddly to set up. The saddles fall out if you don't have strings holding them down, and the inserts can pull out under certain circumstances. Once set up, they are rock solid for intonation and stability.

Babicz bridges are a whole lot more adjustable. Instead of being made with the fretboard shape integral like a three point, each string is adjustable for height. The intonation mechanism is clever. I like it a lot, and I find it easier to set up. In the end, it is not much more stable than a well set up three point. I do not find that a Babicz makes much difference in sustain. This is purely subjective because I never timed it.

I think string spacing may be adjustable with a Hipshot. Jeff or somebody else who has one will have to say for sure.

I got along fine with three points for a long time. They are a huge improvement over the old Gibson two point bridge. The three points on my Gibson Thunderbirds are all Babicz now, mostly because I can. They are a bit easier to set up and I like the way they look. It is a shallow thing. I also have no urge to alter the string spacing, just height and intonation.
Nothing wrong with shallow...

I only have experience with the Babicz vs. the three point and love the Babicz. Set it and forget it until a string change. No issues with inserts pulling up and making sure the angle is right. Setting string height is easy. And it looks nice.
 
I used the TKO 115 with a heavy handed punk drummer and a guitarist with a Mesa Dual Rectifier going thru a 412 cab and It was all good!

Same here - being a three piece where I'm bass/lead vocals, with a versatile guitarist & grooving punk drummer, the TKO 115 carried it's own & shaped my tone pretty great. Clarity through a 15" is pretty rare. Hence why i'm probably gonna go with familiarity rather than new territory that might not work as well.

Just stack ‘em to the ceiling.

Already the case with the rest of my stuff in my room. Building two vaults to house a few of my instruments & my drum shells are stacked ontop, the other has my amp heads & pedalboard. I've limited space & hope to be cleared of enough before i move out xD
 
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Happy new year!


Happy new big headstock year...

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Any of y'all got good recommendations for good Nitro refinishers? I've been contemplating doing it myself, but I don't really have the space or gear currently to do it myself. I contacted Johnk_10 since he's close by, but unfortunately he doesn't do set neck instruments of this size. So then I contacted MJT, but they only do finishes with some level of aging and I want it looking fresh so I can beat it to hell over the years. Waiting to hear back from RS Guitarworks, but is there anyone else y'all'd recommend?
RS Guitar Works has my vote. Small town shop but they've done work for people everyone would know, including some R&R Hall of Famers. I've found them very friendly and helpful in conversations on a couple basses. Considering having them do a refinish on a '55 Pbass (that has a worn out refinish from years ago).
 

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