24 hours ago I bought a Epiphone Thunderbird IV from a TB member in Seattle. I had never played a TB before and was super intrigued by a bassist I saw playing one. Not only did she look incredibly cool playing her white TB, the sounds she got were incredible as well, both recorded and live. I started researching the TB basses, and the player (Butterfly Boucher) and her band (Elle Macho).
All that research last week eventually led me to where all Thunderbird posts end up: the Thunderbird Club.
At first, I felt like the new kid at school. I jumped in and posted a few things and got a few responses, before my posts were then buried under posts about venison or caribou meat, views of a beach, and other jokes. But, I didn’t feel unwelcome. In fact, many of the TB Club vets were gracious and friendly enough to make me want to ask more questions.
I’m sure all my questions had been answered somewhere in the 8 year old thread, but I didn’t do any deep dives. Sure, some quick searches, but for specifics, I just fired away.
Before long, both @TBird1958 and @Gaolee reached out and offered me to try their basses, as we all live in the Seattle area. A few PMs later, Gaolee had offered up an Epiphone Thunderbird IV he wasn’t playing for a super fair price. We set up a date to meet yesterday.
I got to Gaolee’s house and played his TB through his amp. It was an epic vintage amp and I won’t disrespect it by naming it incorrectly, but the amp sound incredible. The bass wasn’t half bad either. He said it hadn’t been played for awhile, but it played just fine to me. The size of the bass wasn’t lost on me. With the huge headstock and long tail, I felt like I was playing a giant bass, but after a few minutes, it started to feel better. I played some more and then did the deal.
From there, I headed to my bandmate’s house a few miles away and plugged into my rig. Using my own rig, it was noticeable how clear and bell-like the TB sounded when I plucked the strings. The sustain on the notes was long and wonderful, too. Neck-dive was not bad as there is a strap button on the neck heel, and that’s where I attached the strap that came with the bass.
I then brought the bass home and gave it a good wipe down, removed the strings and lubed the fretboard. I removed the roundwound strings that were on it and put on some old flats I had laying around. Today, I adjusted the truss rod and sort of just messed around with it, with the help of the homeys in the TB Club as well.
Some things I learned in the last 24 hrs:
· The saddles in the 3 point bridge are not fastened to the bridge. When I took the strings off to wipe down the guitar, I then flipped it over and then, “plink, plink, plink, plink,” all 4 saddles fell off. I looked at a picture I took earlier of the whole bass and tried to put the pieces back where they went. I thought I did it right, but the strings sat funny. Off to TB I went to learn…
· That the saddles are printed with numbers 1-4, indicating their placement in the bridge (1=E, 2=A, 3=D, 4=G). I had the E and A backwards and once I swapped them, the strings followed the radius of the board.
· I learned the board is a 12” radius.
· I learned that the bridge does not have individual height adjustments for the saddles. However, you can adjust the overall height of the bridge by turning the 2 screws at the base of the bridge (I have not done that yet so I may be wrong on that statement).
· The length of the TB neck from the end of the nut to the end of the fretboard is actually SHORTER than the same measurement on my L-1000 G&L.
· There is a gap between the fretboard and the body of the bass. This is normal.
I spent about 30 minutes playing the TB through a Carvin R600 Cyclops I have in the basement. I turned the gain and tube blend knobs up, the volume down a little, and went to town. I really liked what I heard. I did some recording in ProTools via my SansAmp BDDI and it sounded pretty good in there as well.
The strap pin on the bottom of the bass was working its way out so I snapped off a couple toothpicks and screwed the pin back in. Nice and tight now.
I likely won’t play it in a band setting until Sunday or so, and may not even play it then. My band’s last show is on 4/9 and I don’t want to be distracted with how a new bass sounds/feels/looks on stage. Will go with my #1 that got me here, the gold L1K, and then unveil the TB in the future projects coming up.
In the meantime, thanks to the TBC regulars that pitched in to all my n00b questions and being so inclusive and welcoming. Not once did anyone ask if I’d searched for my answer, they were all happy to help. I’m sure I will have more questions and, if what I’m understanding about TBs is true, this may not be my last one. After all, I really wanted one in alpine white…
Taken just after I bought it, on the ground behind my car.
We all know what these look like, so here are some close ups.
Not sure why the neck heel strap pin was put there instead of where the bolts are, but it works for me. Also happy to see it's a 99, that it's got some years under its belt. And for a 99 it is in excellent shape. Really great.
About the only issues I see with the bass are the little cracks/chips between the fretboard and neck, right where they meet the nut on either side. Looks like it's cosmetic more than anything else.
And, lastly, when turning the truss rod earlier today, it moved quite easily. It didn't have the "stuck" feeling like other TRs I've turned have. It almost moved too easily? Anyway, thanks for reading and indulging my NBD recap.
And, lastly, when turning the truss rod earlier today, it moved quite easily. It didn't have the "stuck" feeling like other TRs I've turned have. It almost moved too easily? Anyway, thanks for reading and indulging my NBD recap.
