Thunderbird Club

[Mvf]

And it sounds so good, I don’t want to lower the pickup!

True

 

[JJR58]

My problem is actually the E string hitting the pole piece of the neck picup. The bridge pup is not a problem. I play fingerstyle, resting my thumb on or close to the neck pickup. And I only have this problem with the Rick, maybe because the strings have a slightly lower tension? I could lower the pickup a little, but that would affect the sound. So I just have to continue working on my technique

I used to be so heavy handed.
Took a bit to tame it all.
Now i let the amp and bass do the work.
I mean, I have to do my part.
But wasn’t to much of a challenge to reinvent how I play.

 

[bobyoung53]

Was cleaning out the garage yesterday and ran across an old WWII era Minerva tube AM radio that belonged to my Grandparents. All original and still works just fine.
View attachment 4573623 View attachment 4573624






A classic! Oil changes are fun on the V12, about 10 quarts required IIRC. I had a 1973 XKE V12 convertible for a short while back in the late 1980’s. Sold it for a more predictable 1988 Mercedes 560 SEC, an autobahn monster in its day.

Does the radio have an audible hum? A lot of times with old radios that have been sitting for years the electrolytic caps dry up and don't filter the AC as good as they're supposed to and the result is hum.

I have an '09 Pontiac G8 GT and it also takes about 10 quarts of oil. 6.0L (364 CI) V8.

 

[Chucky Stiletti]

I’d be up for that! If we get serious about a SoCal GTG keep me in the loop, I can bring a boat load of different basses for folks to noodle on.


So, do you have a favorite player yet?


Was cleaning out the garage yesterday and ran across an old WWII era Minerva tube AM radio that belonged to my Grandparents. All original and still works just fine.
View attachment 4573623 View attachment 4573624



Ok guys, stop it with the 2021 NR talk already! You’re killin my wallet!


A classic! Oil changes are fun on the V12, about 10 quarts required IIRC. I had a 1973 XKE V12 convertible for a short while back in the late 1980’s. Sold it for a more predictable 1988 Mercedes 560 SEC, an autobahn monster in its day.

nice radio!!
always a soft spot for E-Types…designed by Malcom Sayer who had worked at DeHavilland designing jet engine cowlings…Enzo Ferrari called it “the most beautiful car ever” the 3.8 L series one coupe is by far my favorite…..paid 8k for one exactly like this in 82 (just graduated hs) and sold it for 8k four years later when I moved to europe to play on contract…..should have NEVER let that car go….…

 

[bobyoung53]

My problem is I like too many different basses. But I’ve had a run of bad luck with twisted necks. Oye!!!

I've never knowingly owned a bass with a twisted neck. Just curious, can you actually see a twist? I'm not skeptical at all as I've heard this many times, just don't think I've seen it.

 

[bobyoung53]

My problem is actually the E string hitting the pole piece of the neck picup. The bridge pup is not a problem. I play fingerstyle, resting my thumb on or close to the neck pickup. And I only have this problem with the Rick, maybe because the strings have a slightly lower tension? I could lower the pickup a little, but that would affect the sound. So I just have to continue working on my technique…

On my 4001 I actually have to lower the E side of the neck pickup as it overloads believe it or not. It doesn't hit the string though. I hate low string tension so never use anything less than 105 sets, especially on a Ric.
Another thing I like about the NR is the taut tension with Rotosound 105s.

 

[Chucky Stiletti]

pretty not-Thunderbird related, but I would love to be able to do this sort of thing:

man, he’s not even reading! memorized the whole thing?..

 

[PhR75]

didn’t know you could get them fretless from the factory…I turned mine (74, exactly like your white one) into a naturally finished fretless..I also installed two J bass pups on an angle (Roger Glover) wired up as a humbucker….. the silly things we used to do, wish I still had it in stock condition…..

I once saw a pic of Pete Agnew playing a Ric with the same mod Glover's bass had. It could have been Roger's bass 'cause he did produce a few Nazareth albums. Not the black one he used with Purple but this Fireglo:

And here Agnew is miming with a 60's reverse for a Ric recording (or at least it sounds like Ric to me).

 

[TBird1958]

I once saw a pic of Pete Agnew playing a Ric with the same mod Glover's bass had. It could have been Roger's bass 'cause he did produce a few Nazareth albums. Not the black one he used with Purple but this Fireglo:
View attachment 4573726
And here Agnew is miming with a 60's reverse for a Ric recording (or at least it sounds like Ric to me).

I saw Nazareth about '75 or so, right after "Rampant" came out - Pete Agnew was all Marshalls and an EB-3. Loud, very loud.

 

[PhR75]

I saw Nazareth about '75 or so, right after "Rampant" came out - Pete Agnew was all Marshalls and an EB-3. Loud, very loud.

He had that gear in the sleeve pics of "Razamanaz" too.

This is even more off-topic but Zal Cleminson was the reason I revisited some Naz tracks as he played with them in the late 70's. Zal of course was the guitarist of The Sensational Alex Harvey Band and as it's been 40 years since Alex died (4th of Feb, 1982) I've been on a SAHB kick lately. Chris Glen did not use a T-Bird as far as I know but his Telecaster and Acoustic 370/301 sound here (and on their "Live" album) is as great as John Paul Jones'. Ted McKenna is just superb on drums, he has that Richie Hayward vibe, cousin Hugh on keys very underrated secret weapon of the band and Zal's guitar is stingy as ever. He did use a non-reverse Firebird at times.
Sorry for the rant but I'm sure I'm not the only one SAHB fan among us?

 

[JJR58]

I've never knowingly owned a bass with a twisted neck. Just curious, can you actually see a twist? I'm not skeptical at all as I've heard this many times, just don't think I've seen it.

I hate to say, you can see it.
Doesn’t seem obvious at first though.
But confirmation comes after the tech says I can’t get the action any lower.
It’s got a twist, I filed the frets a little, but that’s the best I can do.
And I totally trust these guys.

i have the original neck to my ‘71 Precision. A hump and a twist.
I meant to correct Geo a bit back on the AllParts maple neck that’s on there now.
It’s a replacement, not original to the bass. And Fender did have them back then, but rare.
The AllParts neck also has a twist and a fairly lousy flip to it.
Part of my bad luck run.
One day I will have a custom built neck made for the Precision.

 

[JJR58]

He had that gear in the sleeve pics of "Razamanaz" too.

This is even more off-topic but Zal Cleminson was the reason I revisited some Naz tracks as he played with them in the late 70's. Zal of course was the guitarist of The Sensational Alex Harvey Band and as it's been 40 years since Alex died (4th of Feb, 1982) I've been on a SAHB kick lately. Chris Glen did not use a T-Bird as far as I know but his Telecaster and Acoustic 370/301 sound here (and on their "Live" album) is as great as John Paul Jones'. Ted McKenna is just superb on drums, he has that Richie Hayward vibe, cousin Hugh on keys very underrated secret weapon of the band and Zal's guitar is stingy as ever. He did use a non-reverse Firebird at times.
Sorry for the rant but I'm sure I'm not the only one SAHB fan among us?

So awesome and so underrated.

 

[GBassNorth]

I hate to say, you can see it.
Doesn’t seem obvious at first though.
But conformation comes after the tech says I can’t get the action any lower.
It’s got a twist, I filed the frets a little, but that’s the best I can do.
And I totally trust these guys.

i have the original neck to my ‘71 Precision. A hump and a twist.
I meant to correct Geo a bit back on the AllParts maple neck that’s on there now.
It’s a replacement, not original to the bass. And Fender did have them back then, but rare.
The AllParts neck also has a twist and a fairly lousy flip to it.
Part of my bad luck run.
One day I will have a custom built neck made for the Precision.

Wonder if it has anything to do with the area you live in. Brooklyn, NY gets bloody hot and humid in the summer and bitter cold and dry in the winter with a whole bunch of humidity and temperature swings in between. If you transport your bass out of the house to play out a lot, that’s a whole bunch of environmental swings all year long. I gotta admit, since I moved to SoCal from the Midwest I’ve hardly adjusted a truss rod for seasonal changes. My problem here is fret sprout with all the super dry hot air.

 

[JJR58]

Wonder if it has anything to do with the area you live in. Brooklyn, NY gets bloody hot and humid in the summer and bitter cold and dry in the winter with a whole bunch of humidity and temperature swings in between. If you transport your bass out of the house to play out a lot, that’s a whole bunch of environmental swings all year long. I gotta admit, since I moved to SoCal from the Midwest I’ve hardly adjusted a truss rod for seasonal changes. My problem here is fret sprout with all the super dry hot air.

That's part of it.
Don’t even get me started on fret sprouting.
But all my old Fenders, back in the day, here in NYC, never, not a once ever budged, nor sprouted those deadly edges.

 

[bobyoung53]

I hate to say, you can see it.
Doesn’t seem obvious at first though.
But conformation comes after the tech says I can’t get the action any lower.
It’s got a twist, I filed the frets a little, but that’s the best I can do.
And I totally trust these guys.

i have the original neck to my ‘71 Precision. A hump and a twist.
I meant to correct Geo a bit back on the AllParts maple neck that’s on there now.
It’s a replacement, not original to the bass. And Fender did have them back then, but rare.
The AllParts neck also has a twist and a fairly lousy flip to it.
Part of my bad luck run.
One day I will have a custom built neck made for the Precision.

Years ago I put a '66 Jazz neck in a drawer with the truss rod tightened like it had been when it was on the bass and it never played the same afterward when I put it back on the bass, I bet that was twisted as I couldn't get the action as low as I could before. It still played Ok but not like before.

 

[Gaolee]

I never step on my cable:
View attachment 4571985

That is the most reliable solution. It works for me. I don't remember the last time I used a cable between the bass and pedal board the receiver lives on.

 

[JJR58]

Years ago I put a '66 Jazz neck in a drawer with the truss rod tightened like it had been when it was on the bass and it never played the same afterward when I put it back on the bass, I bet that was twisted as I couldn't get the action as low as I could before. It still played Ok but not like before.

It’s also possible that by not loosening it a bit during that time, that, that may have played a part in that.
But hard to say.

I’ve had ‘62’s on up to ‘71’s.
And not a one moved.
Then again, this was back in the mid to late ‘70’s.

I will say this though.
My last Pre CBS was a ‘65 Pbass.
Bought from Bob S. at Guitar Crazy in PDX circa ‘95-‘96.
That bass went back and forth with me to Cali and back to PDX twice.
Not once did it ever need an adjustment.
And those Cali summers are brutal.

 

[Gaolee]

The gang here is very forgiving of me.

We love you Jeff. Besides, you are our official artistic photographer.

 

[JJR58]

We love you Jeff. Besides, you are our official artistic photographer.

So kind Will!
Really a special bunch here.

 

[JJR58]

@dukeorock and @Miles_ONeal
Have plans for my whack photography.