Another Frankenstein coming

[lowend1]

Here's the mock-up - it's a shame to disassemble to put a fin on it...

[exiledarchangel]

Have you decide on color? That would look nice with a solid color, maybe cardinal red.
Also, you must change the pickguard, sorry but the one in the photo looks horrible.

[lowend1]

Have you decide on color? That would look nice with a solid color, maybe cardinal red.
Also, you must change the pickguard, sorry but the one in the photo looks horrible.

LOL. I wanted to do something different. The guard had to be custom made. The SX/Dr Parts body is not a dead on copy of a Fender, so the contours and control cavity did not even come close when I tried a Fender guard. I could have used an SX pg, but there was no acceptable way to put the Thunderbird pickup in where it was already cut out for the split P. Since I originally wanted a Marty Bell sparkle paint job with no guard at all (but knew there was no money in the budget for that), I had the guard done in black/silver glitter material. I was spending money for the shape and custom cutout anyway, so the fancy material was inconsequential. As you can see, it really pops when light hits it. The plan was to make the body sorta low-key compared to the guard and hardware. My most recent thought was a matte red stain, but I haven't committed yet.

[slinkp]

I feel like it would look good in white.

[lowend1]

Yeah, I considered a "pickled wood" white stain also.

[Dave W]

Looks nice as is.

[lowend1]

Looks nice as is.

Another possibility. I am concerned about leaving it "raw" though. Maybe an oil finish and call it a day?

[FrankieTbird]

To each his own, but for me, that bridge pickup totally ruins the whole look.

[slinkp]

I like the bridge pup!
I took the liberty of a sloppy photoshop mockup in black or white.  Hmm...  yeah I like white!

[lowend1]

To each his own, but for me, that bridge pickup totally ruins the whole look.

I considered going single pickup, largely because there is so much love here for that configuration. I decided against it, obviously. Here's the thought process:
Generally speaking, I like to play near the bridge, and the bridge pickup is where I typically anchor my thumb. In addition, the single pickup sound tends to be a little "wider", with less focus. I own only one "traditional" (single pup) P-Bass, and I tend to tire of the sound and start hankerin' for a bridge pickup after playing it for an hour or so.
With regard to the look, the first Thunderbird I ever saw was a two-pickup, and as a result the one-pickup models always look like they are missing something - but that's just me. Actually, I do have a 70s Japanese "Aims" brand P that only has one pickup (the original pup was one of those Maxon deals that Ibanez also used). The remaining Chinabucker I have would probably drop right in. It has one of the guitar-sized TB Plus units in it at the moment, and I could probably find a better home for that.

[lowend1]

So, after a little research, I've determined that the body is "sealed", and therefore a stain or oil finish would not be a viable option. It's looking more and more like I will leave the body as-is, per Dave's observation. In that case, what would the preferred method be for maintaining/preserving the wood?

[Pilgrim]

Depends on what they used to "seal" it.  I'd want to know. If it's a poly coat, that's one thing - if it's oil, that's another.  If all they've done is fill grain, that's a third.

I don't know what "seal" means in this context.

[lowend1]

I would be guessing, but I don't think it's a poly or oil. The body was obviously sanded smooth, but the wood itself doesn't seem to have any kind of identifiable coating on it, nor does it have any real grain texture. It just feels like really, really smooth wood. It's alder. If that helps.

[Dave W]

Alder wouldn't need grain filling. If it's sealed but you can't see anything, more than likely the sealer coast was something like Zinsser Sealcoat or another shellac product, followed by a light sanding. It wouldn't hurt to do another quick coat of Sealcoat, that gives you a barrier between the original sealer and whatever topcoat you use. If you want to keep it natural, you can always use a satin finish wipe-on poly.

[godofthunder]

   Both white and black look great! But seeing as the body is sealed leaving it natural would be easiest. I like the guard with black or white.  Natural I'd go with brown tort for that late 60's early 70's stripped hippie look.