The Last Bass Outpost
Gear Discussion Forums => Other Bass Brands => Topic started by: Stjofön Big on March 22, 2019, 01:06:16 PM
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Gotta say, I've had a really nice day. Started with my son calling me up in the morning, telling me he sent a picture from an advertismen he'd seen on a site. It was a Bach Fenderbird. Red. Looked beautiful!
Son says, "Hey dad, if you want it, I'll get it for you". Of course I want it. Maple neck. 2 pups. Red. As sin!
So I tell him, you don't have to, I'll buy it myself. Then he tells me, "don't you remember you gave me your P-bass -65, and one of your Embassies. This one's on me".
So he bought it, for me. US dollars 180!The Fenderbird is 1 000 kilometers from here, down in Gothenburg. But my grandson lives there, so he's gonna pick it up on Sunday. Then it's another story to get it up to my place. Though that's very small troubles!
Ain't life grand!?!
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What a good son! Also, what a generous dad, giving him those basses.
180 USD is a great deal, hopefully no issues.
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Great!!!
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Those BaCH Fenderbirds are great basses.
Not many were made.
I was not amused when BaCH released them, because they had not made them exactly like I had told them to.
They could (should) have been closer to the original Fenderbird. But they're still great.
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That's a nice deal and son Staffan! I just vaguely remember that model, so please post a pic when it arrives.
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This is the original red Fenderbird by BaCH.
(http://www.numberoneguitars.com/shop/media/catalog/product/cache/1/image/9df78eab33525d08d6e5fb8d27136e95/f/t/ft-1.jpg)
They also made a batch with the half pickguard (a la Reverse Thunderbird).
Here's a version with Thunderbird style humbuckers installed:
(http://www.numberoneguitars.com/shop/media/catalog/product/cache/1/image/9df78eab33525d08d6e5fb8d27136e95/f/t/ft-01-or-tb2000.jpg)
And they had them in Honeyburst with flamed maple top:
(https://scontent-ams3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t31.0-8/17632235_1161048857356884_7723489678736529990_o.jpg?_nc_cat=106&_nc_ht=scontent-ams3-1.xx&oh=dd0dcc9d6aa8f7a19a21ff1756365a89&oe=5D4AF7A8)
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The one I got is the one in the middle, with the half pickguard. But I've got to admit that the one on top, the original Bach F-bird, looks really cool.
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What a great day! Congrats.
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Congrats !! What a nice kid.
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Anyone here's got the measurements for the Bach Fenderbird? Need to know so I can bring the right case for it for shipping.
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(https://i772.photobucket.com/albums/yy5/tore00/CF272BAF-6D4C-4A69-AF37-40376C6131D7.jpeg)
I’ve one of the first batch. It is a very nice bass. I will be able to take some measurements later
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Overall length is 120 cm along the centerline, width, measured perpendicularly to the centerline is about 35 cm at the widest point, 32 at the bridge, distance of upper horn from centerline is 14 cm, lower horn 18. Just let me know if you need more
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Thanks, Tore! Tomorrow is the day I'm gonna start looking for a suitable case, Thanks again!
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So, the Fenderbird finally found it's way to daddy. Last week a friend of the family brought it from Gothenburg. I could hardly believe my eyes when I got the bird in my hands! Such a beauty! Pups works just fine. The neck needs some work, as the strings buzzes on a couple of frets. So I've left it to a luthier friend to fix the bass up. He'll also change the pup covers to original T-bird shape. I'll bring her home next week. Get some pics, and show all of you what Real Beauty looks like!
Though I've owned a T-bird earlier on, the -76 model, I wasn't prepared for the neckdive on this one. I know the problem been up for discussion a couple of years ago, here on the Outpost. Anyone remember the best trick to get rid of the neckdive problem?
And, one last thing: How come Bach came up with such a strange idea as to start producing the Fenderbirds? I can't see a great economic potential in that. From where came the idea? Could it have anything to do with influences from a certain Nederlandic voice? (Step forward, Rob! If there's a story here to tell, please tell it!)
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So, the Fenderbird finally found it's way to daddy. Last week a friend of the family brought it from Gothenburg. I could hardly believe my eyes when I got the bird in my hands! Such a beauty! Pups works just fine. The neck needs some work, as the strings buzzes on a couple of frets. So I've left it to a luthier friend to fix the bass up. He'll also change the pup covers to original T-bird shape. I'll bring her home next week. Get some pics, and show all of you what Real Beauty looks like!
Though I've owned a T-bird earlier on, the -76 model, I wasn't prepared for the neckdive on this one. I know the problem been up for discussion a couple of years ago, here on the Outpost. Anyone remember the best trick to get rid of the neckdive problem?
And, one last thing: How come Bach came up with such a strange idea as to start producing the Fenderbirds? I can't see a great economic potential in that. From where came the idea? Could it have anything to do with influences from a certain Nederlandic voice? (Step forward, Rob! If there's a story here to tell, please tell it!)
I can't help you with neck dive suggestions but the story behind these is that Rob approached BaCH with the idea back in 2008. There were 50 tentative commitments to buy, so they went ahead with it.
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Yes, I was one of them who ordered that bass. But it was the non reversed model. The Fenderbird is a different bird. Though I wouldn't be surprised if Rob's got some info concerning the later? 🙄
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Yeah, the BaCH Fenderbird was my initiative too. I figured there would be equally as much demand for those as for the Non Reverse Thunderbird. And maybe even more.
And there could have been. Had it not been that BaCH ruined the opportunity...
Just like the Non Reverse Tbird project, I sent BaCH lots of photographs, vector drawings and specifications to base their build upon.
But (again) they did not pay attention. The shape of the pickguard was way off. The colour was way off. It should have looked exactly like John Entwistle's Fenderbird. But it didn't. It was disappointing.
And I had asked them specifically to make the Fenderbird exclusively for me. It was my order.
I was not amused to find out (during my summer holiday in Portugal) that all of a sudden they offered three different versions on their website (red with large pickguard, red with half pickguard and honeyburst with large white pickguard).
It was not what we had agreed upon (at all). I was so pissed off at BaCH that I refused to buy any of the Fenderbirds off them.
They tried all sorts of silly solutions for the pickguard. At one point they even added some sort of studs in the locations where the faulty screw holes sat. They were hideous.
I did not put the BaCH Fenderbirds on my website. And I did not promote them on any of the discussion boards as I had done with the NR Tbird.
But still people started ordering them via me once they found out about them.
So I did sell a few eventually.
Years later (when I let go of the idea that the half pickguard was unsurmountable) I started to offer them on my own website with the EY Guitar humbuckers.
They are fine bass guitars. But BaCH could have sold much more of them if they had done it like we had agreed upon.
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The classic first step in fighting neck dive is to swap the factory tuners for lightweight tuners.
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Yes, swap tuners. I put Hipshot ultralights on my Greco bird and it made a huge difference. It did require drilling a hole per each tuner though, and leaves many of the original 16 holes exposed, so it's not the prettiest on the back of the head.
If that doesn't do the trick, you could consider putting the strap button on one of the neck plate holes to shift the center of gravity a few cm back. I think this requires a button made especially for this purpose. Never tried it.
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Thank's guys, for all your input. Just picked it up today at the luthiers place. Looked brand new! Real beauty! I'll try it out on Thursday nights gig.
Meanwhile, you'll have to get your comfort from this pic, photo by the luthier Leif Jakobsson, at Guitar Works, Umeå: https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=guitar%20works&epa=SEARCH_BOX
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Thank's guys, for all your input. Just picked it up today at the luthiers place. Looked brand new! Real beauty! I'll try it out on Thursday nights gig.
Meanwhile, you'll have to get your comfort from this pic, photo by the luthier Leif Jakobsson, at Guitar Works, Umeå: https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=guitar%20works&epa=SEARCH_BOX
I don't see the pic or your luthier.
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Not even when you scroll down a little bit? And, just to be clear about it, the luthier, Leif Jakobsson, is not in the pic. There's only yours truly, holding a bass that - after a few hours playing - seems quite heavy. Maybe I should go for the old Embassy instead...
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Nope, nothing.
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Sorry. Do not know how to move the photo to this here place. I apologize...
When I was working, I was a reporter at a newspaper, I used computers for quite a long time, like 25 years. But the computer was only a smarter typewriter to me. Never learned to go beyond those limits. So I'm thinking that this fall should be the time to learn more, there must be classes for retired old farts so we can learn to ::EXPAND:: our consciousness... And I feel in need for it.
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You posted a link to a Facebook search. Click on the actual result you're referencing and copy that URL into your post.
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Found it. It's "Sweden Guitarworks", not "Guitar Works".
https://www.facebook.com/SwedenGuitarworks/photos/a.10151225396885535/10157287494015535/
Cool bass!
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Thanks, guys!
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Okay, now I see it. Nice bass! Will you be playing it Thursday with Shake Down?
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For those who don't have Facebook:
(https://scontent-ams4-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/67633730_10157287494025535_5512080230761627648_o.jpg?_nc_cat=110&_nc_oc=AQndvDgSgvzoZJXZYU5iZ00G-T1NmoVCVpUp6OqX-KA6ORVh5DVnDK6uJCSrqrPPVYU&_nc_ht=scontent-ams4-1.xx&oh=59797a4f2d89f50ab4078ec90a453a44&oe=5DDD3EA4)
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Thanks, Rob! And, yep, David: I'll try her out tonight. Though I'll also bring my T-bird pupped Ripper, as this here new mother is a heavy one. Around 4 kilos. Sometimes I think about Danelctro's single cut bass. Really good looking, nice sound. And light, it seems...
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In action yesterday, front and center.
https://youtu.be/0XVmarN3D2s
https://youtu.be/eGy1eZew7Gs
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Thanks, Rob! And, yep, David: I'll try her out tonight. Though I'll also bring my T-bird pupped Ripper, as this here new mother is a heavy one. Around 4 kilos. Sometimes I think about Danelctro's single cut bass. Really good looking, nice sound. And light, it seems...
It's because of neck problems that I often find myself playing a Danelectro Hodad that I bought a few years ago before they were discontinued. Light and ergonomic, especially when playing standing up. If you adjust it just right, you can come up with a surprising growling sound. Warmer than a Longhorn, although I don't have one of those. It isn't something for a main bass, but if you want something light with an unconventional sound, it does the job. I think these didn't do better with the public because most people who buy a Danelectro want it to look like one and not a Mosrite.
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Unconventional? The Hodad I got circa 2001 had a single totally vanilla P pickup (and a weird not very useful built-in chorus effect for some reason). Did they / do they make more than one variety of them? I guess that was a long time ago!
It did indeed play really well though. Great cheap backup bass.
I eventually sold mine and got a DC with two lipstick pups that I still have. I like it a lot better cosmetically, and it plays great too, but honestly I've come to admit that the lipstick pup sound doesn't work as well for me. But it's a really fun player so it stays around.
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Unconventional? The Hodad I got circa 2001 had a single totally vanilla P pickup (and a weird not very useful built-in chorus effect for some reason). Did they / do they make more than one variety of them? I guess that was a long time ago!
It did indeed play really well though. Great cheap backup bass.
I eventually sold mine and got a DC with two lipstick pups that I still have. I like it a lot better cosmetically, and it plays great too, but honestly I've come to admit that the lipstick pup sound doesn't work as well for me. But it's a really fun player so it stays around.
They've made several versions of them. I'm not familiar with any other than the one I got. I think that kind was made from 2012-2017. I definitely got one of the last ones at MF.
https://www.ibassmag.com/danelectro-hodad/
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Gotta admit the Bird was quite neck heavy. Will try, and relocate the strap button to the neck plate. The sound was the T-bird I wanted, and got. Nice bass! Glad I finally got one!
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Gotta admit the Bird was quite neck heavy. Will try, and relocate the strap button to the neck plate. The sound was the T-bird I wanted, and got. Nice bass! Glad I finally got one!
I'd replace the tuners with Hipshot Ultralights, they are half the weight. Before you actually do that, remove two of the tuners to see if the bass balances on a strap, it's a good simulation of how it will balance with Ultralights.
Another thing you can do is add weight (about 400 gr) to the rear side of the bass, attach it to the strap near the rear strap button. A metal-case tape measure is good for this, the belt clip is convenient.
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try a suede strap
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In reading over an earlier post I realize when I mentioned neck problems it may have sounded like I was talking about a bass's neck. Of course I was talking about neck injuries I received years ago. Up to that point, like most other people, I found ways to deal with it if a bass had neck dive, seemed too heavy, etc. If you really like a bass, you're usually going to make allowances.
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I'd replace the tuners with Hipshot Ultralights, they are half the weight. Before you actually do that, remove two of the tuners to see if the bass balances on a strap, it's a good simulation of how it will balance with Ultralights.
Another thing you can do is add weight (about 400 gr) to the rear side of the bass, attach it to the strap near the rear strap button. A metal-case tape measure is good for this, the belt clip is convenient.
400 grams? :o
That seems like overdoing it a bit.
I've sold a few of these BaCH FT bass guitars. The neck dive was not that severe.
Moving the strapbutton to the neck plate was enough to solve it.
If you're still not happy with the balance, you could try Gotoh GB640 Res-o-lite tuners, they look like original tuners that JAE's bass had.
But I would never add 400 grams to an already rather heavy bass guitar.
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400 grams? :o
Yes. The bass will actually feel lighter. A neck-heavy bass pulls on the strap in a certain way that makes it feel heavier than it really is. A balanced bass will feel lighter, distributing the weight evenly on your whole back. Even with the extra weight of almost one pound it will feel lighter and easier to play. You can of course experiment with different weights, but 300-400 gr is in my experience a good place to start.
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Like I said, it is not necessary. Placing (or moving) the strapbutton to the neckplate should be enough with the BaCH FT-01
And if you use lightweight tuners as well, you're all good. No need for extra weight.
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My version of the FenderBird is closer to the original Peter Cook/JAE design. It has a compact body, is 46" long, and fits in a Precision size case. It's not just a Fender neck on a copy of a Gibson body. You can get an idea how much shorter it is than the Bach version by how close to the end of the body the bridge and tailpiece are.
(https://i.imgur.com/VUw1CDO.jpg)
ExplorerBird for comparison.
I had pictures of the actual Entwistle basses but Photobucket ate them. Here's my build thread from 2010.
http://bassoutpost.com/index.php?topic=4598.0
Weight is under 8 lbs (~3.5 Kg) with Honduras Mahogany body. Neck dive is minimal, even with original Kluson style tuners and strap button on upper horn.
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Very cool bass!
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The drawings that I gave BaCH to build the FT01 were also based on pictures of John Entwistle's Fenderbirds, and some faithful copies that were out there (like former outposter Traynor's bass). If my memory serves me right the upper horn is also shaped a bit different.
(http://www.numberoneguitars.com/shop/media/catalog/product/cache/1/image/9df78eab33525d08d6e5fb8d27136e95/f/t/ft-1.jpg)
here's a couple of videos that I did back when
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pzTGCOHj-SE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QL3r4AXEUFE
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The drawings that I gave BaCH to build the FT01 were also based on pictures of John Entwistle's Fenderbirds, and some faithful copies that were out there (like former outposter Traynor's bass). If my memory serves me right the upper horn is also shaped a bit different.
The Cook/Entwistle FenderBird was modeled on a '64, it has the same upper horn, not the Bicentennial (and later Gibson) shape. It's almost like a Telecaster.
(https://i.imgur.com/c29nXHQ.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/0kKTfjk.jpg)
The original FenderBird preceded the Bicentennial reissue by around 5 years. This is from Whotabs with original case.
(https://i.imgur.com/hzUSxY4.jpg)
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Isn't that Traynor's bass?
I have that pic too in the Fenderbird folder that I sent to BaCH :toast:
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Anyone tried the Ashdown Lowrider yet?
https://ashdownmusic.com/products/the-low-rider
(https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/2397/1117/products/AshBass2020-019_1200x.jpg?v=1595420080)
It's typical how they avoid the whole Fenderbird name as well as John Entwistle in their marketing...
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I like the color scheme and the rosewood board. Looks like Jazz nut width, but can't say for sure. Not crazy about the look of the MM pups, and the bridge looks cheap. I didn't even know Ashdown made basses!
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according to this clown it has a jazz type neck
and the pickups don't sound like MM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GAq8aN59Qvw
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I clicked on the link after I made my initial comments. Yes, Jazz width. Also several colors and choice of rosewood or maple. Pickups do sound good. That lobster dude does some of the better bass demos I've seen.
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He's a bit too enthousiastic is his comment. Like he's on the paylist of Ashdown.