![]() Note there are only 2 knobs- one TONE and one VOLUME. Two two mini-toggle switches were installed (they are phase switches for each PU, with an "off" position in the center), and the tone/volume knobs are knurled chrome fender-style. The top still has its gorgeous, now-aged original binding, the back and sides appear to have original finish, and bass still has original truss rod cover. I am selling the original 3-point bridge/tailpiece that came with it in another listing. The pickguard was not put back on, in order to show off the flametop, and it is already sold. It looks like a 206 bridge (like on the Fender Roscoe Beck 5). I should mention that these pickups are very high-output (I measure 13.07k and 12.35k ohms, respectively, compared to standard Gibsons under 10k), and I think they sound great- clean, round tones.Ī MASSIVE chrome Gotoh bridge on top of a black base was put on to handle the 5 strings and add significant sustain. I suspect some routing occurred to allow for the new 5-string spacing- these measure 4" across, wider than the original Gibson soapbars. But tough to find out info on the bass pickups here- they appear to be modeled after Bartolini's or EMG's (but these are passive- no active EQ, here). These are good quality parts, especially from Gotoh/Japan back in those days. The pickups are Gotoh (there is no 9v battery), and the back of the neck pickup is marked "RBH-50F". The pickups and all wiring were also changed. Five chrome Japanese-marked (probably Gotoh) tuners installed (the original tuner holes were plugged and finished over, and then the new ones installed). Lots of changes: a new black plastic nut was installed. I do not notice any "neck dive" (from having too heavy of a neck) here. There are 14 frets before the neck joins body, and 20 frets in total. Although narrow at the nut (1.5"), it is a great playing slim neck, and gets considerably wider as you go down the neck (2/17" at 12'th fret). and the frets are still pretty much like new. ![]() ![]() During the "remodel", the rosewood fingerboard was overlayed or replaced with an ebony one. a "neck through body" design (and Gibson's first neck-through-body bass in '63). To get a flame maple top, a laminate/veneer was added to the top and also the headstock.Īgain, the underlying Thunderbird bass here has a beautifully-grained, gorgeous 9-piece mahogany/walnut body and neck. The back of the guitar and back of neck has original finish, and is in remarkable EX condition. It is a "neck-through" design with walnut "strips" the entire length of the mahogany body, that go all the way to the end of the headstock. Also, #3, and most important: the body and neck, from the back, clearly show the multi-piece 9-piece construction that was being used. it seemed plausible because, 1) the parts that came with it, i.e., the original 3-point bridge and pickguard, were clearly 70's parts, and 2) the hard-shell case is clearly a 70's Thunderbird case. OK, so this was sold to me as a "1976", but who knows. The nut might need a some notch tweaking, or worst case a new nut. I honestly think it could easily be converted to a low "B" setup. I was attracted to it, as a prior guitarist, for the soloing aspect of the range. So this is likely the only Gibson Thunderbird "high C" 5-string on the planet, actually crafted from a 70's 4-string Thunderbird bass! And yes, please note: the 5'th string is currently a high "C", not a low "B". ![]() Gibson did not offer the Thunderbird in a 5-string configuration, although there was "Studio 5" for a couple years in the mid 2000's, and the newer Epi "Pro-V". I've owned it for at least 20 years now, and bought it from the player who had the whim to get this done. What an amazingly-unique instrument, crafted from a vintage 70's Thunderbird Bass (REVERSE body style), this was modded 20+ years ago to make it a 5-string flametop! I'm serious. Here is something I know you've NEVER seen. ![]()
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