The Last Bass Outpost
Gear Discussion Forums => Gibson Basses => Topic started by: weekend warrior on September 19, 2012, 11:04:48 PM
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Sent my B Bird to my good friend John Scott at bluesman vintage for a makeover.Nice pelham blue refin reliced nicely.Cant wait till she comes home.Shouldnt be but a few days now. :mrgreen:(http://)(http://i586.photobucket.com/albums/ss305/sqwelchbass/Bachbird_zpsc94986dd.jpg)
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shot of the relic job.Nice checking with metal oxidation.(http://)(http://i586.photobucket.com/albums/ss305/sqwelchbass/bbird2_zps10f374a1.jpg)
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That IS nicely done. Finally someone outs himself valiantly here as having an instrument reliced! Come forth y'all! :mrgreen:
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That IS nicely done. Finally someone outs himself valiantly here as having an instrument reliced! Come forth y'all! :mrgreen:
This might be a short thread...
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That is Beautiful! You need a vintage tail piece to go with it! I just happen to know where you can get one ;)
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I'll have to call you later Scott!!
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My "reliced" '67 NR ;D(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/godofthunder59/pool-Hogarosa2012010.jpg)
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Nice to see all those personalized BaCHbirds!
Too bad BaCH is going to stop making them... :o
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Ha, and I feel like I can't touch my Sonic Blue one!
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That looks AWESOME!!!!
Do you mind if I ask how much the refinish cost? Also, did you strip the body and prep it before sending it off or did the refinisher do that too?
Oh, one more question, did you give it a matching headstock?
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That looks great! What pickups are those - Tbuckers?
Here's a shot of my relic'd BaCH. I like it rough! ;D
(http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k125/0chromium0/forums/thunderbird/refin/DSCF0016.jpg)
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It cost me around 250.00 for the relic job.Bluesman vintage did it for me.There is none better at the relic job than John.Im not sure if he did and entire strip or not. I think he did because he had to put a tummy cut in it.
The pickups are lollars.It does have a matching peghead.Will post more pics when i get the bass.
John just told me that he layed the nitro over the poly. He said Fender has done that since the 60's.
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Nice to see all those personalized BaCHbirds!
Too bad BaCH is going to stop making them... :o
Did they get a letter from Nashville?
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It cost me around 250.00 for the relic job.Bluesman vintage did it for me.There is none better at the relic job than John.Im not sure if he did and entire strip or not. I think he did because he had to put a tummy cut in it.
That's actually a really good deal. I wonder if that's his going rate or if that was a "friend deal"?
John just told me that he layed the nitro over the poly. He said Fender has done that since the 60's.
I'm surprised he got it to check like that. The whole poly undercoat thing on Fender has always confused me. I have had a few of the U.S. 62 reissue Fenders which are nitro over a poly undercoat and I cannot get those finishes to check at all and I've been told that it's because of the poly undercoat. But then I have also been told that Fender always used a poly undercoat even in the 60's but all the vintage Fenders I have seen have checked over time. I have also done a few 100% nitro refinishes over the years with the Reranch stuff and those check easily too so clearly the poly undercoat has something to do with it.
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Regardless, I'm excited to see more pictures of yours. It looks great!!!
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That is the rate he charges if he doesnt have to strip the entire bass.He says that the poly finish can be a real pain in the ass to get off.And you really dont need to strip it anyway.He does great work!
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John just sent a couple more pics.(http://i586.photobucket.com/albums/ss305/sqwelchbass/photo3_zpsc2e0d253.jpg)(http://i586.photobucket.com/albums/ss305/sqwelchbass/photo4_zpsc3e0faec.jpg)
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I refinished my own bachbird in black and I love it but I originally wanted to do it in Pelham and seeing yours has really got me thinking.
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Did they get a letter from Nashville?
Nah, it's just that the well's running dry.
Not much demand for them anymore
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I refinished my own bachbird in black and I love it but I originally wanted to do it in Pelham and seeing yours has really got me thinking.
Is yours the one with the black pickguard?
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You know, in 20 years, it wouldn't surprise me if some of these makeovers turned up on Ebay, several owners later, listed as true Gibson basses. We should have done serial numbers and put together a registry of some sort.
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Quote from: Johnbob on September 21, 2012, 03:50:51 PM
I refinished my own bachbird in black and I love it but I originally wanted to do it in Pelham and seeing yours has really got me thinking.
Is yours the one with the black pickguard?
Yup!
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Yup!
Thought so. It looked great with that black pg! Can you repost the photos, please?
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You know, in 20 years, it wouldn't surprise me if some of these makeovers turned up on Ebay, several owners later, listed as true Gibson basses. We should have done serial numbers and put together a registry of some sort.
That's always been my concern about dolling them up as Gibsons, with the pups, truss rod covers and Tbird stamps on the pickguards. No one here would list them as anything but Bachs with Gibson parts but later on, three owners later, who knows.
The other day a guy listed a Cherry Red TH-1 on eBay and wrote it was one of the second series because of the color. I wrote him and corrected him.
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some people are still sensative about about the name on the headstock. get over it.
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Mine still has the Bach logo. It doesn't bother me a bit.
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I see no reason to change the TRC or remove the Bach logo. It's a BaCH and I like it like that.
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When Gibson has moved to China, BaCH will still be Czech-made.
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The body cavity cover will always give it away to anyone who knows enough about original NR's to spring for that kind of scratch. As in everything else, caveat emptor. I don't mean to sound cold or anything but I'd bet everyone here that's owned more than a few basses over the years learned early on to do their homework. For some of us it was an expensive lesson. For some of us, not so much. Either way, we all learn one way or another.
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Thought so. It looked great with that black pg! Can you repost the photos, please?
Yup, here's a few.
(http://i1092.photobucket.com/albums/i417/tambiharon/Pic20.jpg)
(http://i1092.photobucket.com/albums/i417/tambiharon/Pic21.jpg)
(http://i1092.photobucket.com/albums/i417/tambiharon/Pic22.jpg)
I must say, I am still totally thrilled with this bass. I have always been a Fender guy but I have always wanted an NR Bird to just mess around with from time to time but it has definitely become my main bass at this point. Don't get me wrong, I still love and use Fender basses but the NR bird is getting way more use than I thought it would.
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I traded a late 62 jazz bass for my 68 Tbird.Best thing i ever did trade wise.I have since gotten rid of my 69 jazz bass for a 76 tbird as well.I honestly thought nothing could touch my vintage jazz basses. I was WRONG!!The 68 tbird is the best sounding and playing bass i have ever owned period.And believe it or not, Other than the weight,My Bachbird is dam close to that.Thats a sweet Bachbird JohnBob
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Thanks for reposting those! I love, love, love it with the black pickguard on it! Who made it for you?
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Somehow I postted this in the wrong thread already
Hello guys, I thought Id sign up for the forum and answer a couple of those questions that were asked about the finishing on Jeff's BaCH.
I DID shoot the Nitro over top of the poly on this one in order to keep the cost down a little bit. stripping poly finish is a long and laborous task ESPECIALLY on a set neck instrument where you have to work around the neck joint and such. I Always prefer to spray a FULLY Nitro finish whe doing a vintage restoration, refin, or even a new finish, but the cost was a prohibitive factor on this one. and to the Bach's credit, the Poly finish that it had wasnt too terribly thick so what wee did here was treat the existing poly finish much like a poly base coat that fender has been using since 1968. Which brings me to the question about checking.
Somone asked why their '62 reissue would check, even tho it was nitro over poly. well the answer is that many companies including gibson and fender ad a hardening agent to their lacquer to prevent unwanted cracking and makes the lacquer much harder and more durable.
the down side.... It also makes it much like a Poly finish in that it chokes the life out of the wood if applied to thick. Under the right conditions this hardened lacquer can also crack or "check" but many times the outcome is not the desire asthetic, so many "relic" guy use a razor blade to apply checking cracks. I PERSONALLY DO NOT. I have seen many people try this blade checking tecnique and have seen many people fail miserably at mking a believable and authentic looking instrument. In fact the Only person Ive seen achieve any measure of success with this is TOM MURPHY of Gibson, and he is credited for creating the whol relic process for Gibson.
(Stepping down from my soapbox now....)
I hope tis answers any of the questions you may or may not have had about the BaCH finish we applied.
JOHN SCOTT
Bluesman Vintage Guitars (and Basses)
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You Da Man John!!!!
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Somehow I postted this in the wrong thread already
I thought I was experiencing deja view ;D
Welcome to the forum John.
John
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Cool to hear from you, John. I personally agree with you on the razor blade thing. Third Coast Guitar Repair here in Chicago swears by it.
I'm an RS Guitarworks endorser so I'm stuck on them. But your work looks Very nice!
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Oh I forgot to say...WELCOME to our club!!!
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Thanks for reposting those! I love, love, love it with the black pickguard on it! Who made it for you?
Denis - Thanks. JohnK made the black pickguard for me and he also helped me put the finishing touches on the bass in general. He most certainly did a great job in taking my amateurish refin job and making it look and play super pro.
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Hello guys, I thought Id sign up for the forum and answer a couple of those questions that were asked about the finishing on Jeff's BaCH.
I DID shoot the Nitro over top of the poly on this one in order to keep the cost down a little bit. stripping poly finish is a long and laborous task ESPECIALLY on a set neck instrument where you have to work around the neck joint and such. I Always prefer to spray a FULLY Nitro finish whe doing a vintage restoration, refin, or even a new finish, but the cost was a prohibitive factor on this one. and to the Bach's credit, the Poly finish that it had wasnt too terribly thick so what wee did here was treat the existing poly finish much like a poly base coat that fender has been using since 1968. Which brings me to the question about checking.
Somone asked why their '62 reissue would check, even tho it was nitro over poly. well the answer is that many companies including gibson and fender ad a hardening agent to their lacquer to prevent unwanted cracking and makes the lacquer much harder and more durable.
the down side.... It also makes it much like a Poly finish in that it chokes the life out of the wood if applied to thick. Under the right conditions this hardened lacquer can also crack or "check" but many times the outcome is not the desire asthetic, so many "relic" guy use a razor blade to apply checking cracks. I PERSONALLY DO NOT. I have seen many people try this blade checking tecnique and have seen many people fail miserably at mking a believable and authentic looking instrument. In fact the Only person Ive seen achieve any measure of success with this is TOM MURPHY of Gibson, and he is credited for creating the whol relic process for Gibson.
(Stepping down from my soapbox now....)
I hope tis answers any of the questions you may or may not have had about the BaCH finish we applied.
JOHN SCOTT
Bluesman Vintage Guitars (and Basses)
John,
Thanks a lot for all the helpful info. You did an excellent looking job on the bass. It's got me thinking about getting another Bachbird and having you do the refinish work on it. Love that color. I need to wait a bit so I can save up some money first though.
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I traded a late 62 jazz bass for my 68 Tbird.Best thing i ever did trade wise.I have since gotten rid of my 69 jazz bass for a 76 tbird as well.I honestly thought nothing could touch my vintage jazz basses. I was WRONG!!The 68 tbird is the best sounding and playing bass i have ever owned period.And believe it or not, Other than the weight,My Bachbird is dam close to that.Thats a sweet Bachbird JohnBob
I LOVE T Birds...But a '62 Jazz??? I'd Gladly trade my Inverness Green NR T bird II '68 for a Pre-CBS Jazz!!! (Preferably sunburst!!!)
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Yeah.....but...Mine is a IV :mrgreen:
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Yeah.....but...Mine is a IV :mrgreen:
You can keep the IVs. I'd take a II any day over a IV ;)
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Yeah..I hear ya...I went to Chicago Music Ecxchange today and played the ultimate bass...a 1961 slab board Jazz bass. It had the greatest neck I have ever felt...But ahem...Not for $20,000.......I'l stick with my Thunderbirds all the way....I also went to Rock N Roll Vintage and played a 1958 Rickenbacker 4000.......I'll stick with my Thunderbirds.
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Ive had three 62's over the years and ive been a jazz bass guy all my playing days.Until i finally played this particular TBird.Honestly,all kidding aside.The bass smokes them all.The bass i traded for it was a good bass. But not a great bass.The IV i got,Had the original case in super clean shape.The mutes had never been off it,Original covers as well.It wore flats so it had no wear to the frets.Unbroken unmolested condition.Thats the first one i've ever played.I've been totally missing out all this time..
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I had two basses when I was playing for a living. It took a while to get two, but I finally had them - a '64 Precision with a perfect neck, and a '63 Epiphone Embassy. I had to sell one at one point when the kids were little. Take a guess which one went, and which one stayed. 8)
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I had two basses when I was playing for a living. It took a while to get two, but I finally had them - a '64 Precision with a perfect neck, and a '63 Epiphone Embassy. I had to sell one at one point when the kids were little. Take a guess which one went, and which one stayed. 8)
Let your Epi freak flag fly! ;D
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I did play a 1964 Embassy as well today...Just didn't do it for me. Still a cool bass...Everyone's got their thing.
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When I first went looking, I had a Thunderbird in mind. Back then, a good used one would cost you $1000. The Embassy was $650. There were 4 of them on the wall that day. Only one jumped out at my ears. It was one of Tom Petersson's old basses. Mark (fur85) will attest to how this bass sounds, since he had about 8 years with it. I have always suspected that Petersson had the pickups rewound. I came across a couple old band recordings. I may have to post them in our Dropbox for you.
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No problem. Would love to hear it!
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I had an Embassy too for a short while. It was a fantastic bass and really got me turned onto the Gibson vibe.It was a later one so the pickups were stupid hot.Like my 68 NR
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No problem. Would love to hear it!
I put one song up on our Dropbox site. This is a really old cassette recording. I think it was done straight to my old boom box from the sound board. No direct feed, just room sound into cheap built-in mics. The funny thing is, I hadn't heard this in so long, I wasn't sure what it was. And, I think I'm the one singing. Talk about memory loss!
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How do I find it??
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How do I find it??
Do you have the invite from Dropbox? The song is "Rock Me Baby" from my band, Thief.
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Got it!! Thanks! I'll check it out!!!
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Waiting on the fedex truck............