How much thunderbird will £3k buy me?

wellREDman · March 02, 2023, 08:32:58 AM

following on from this thread, https://bassoutpost.com/index.php?topic=12304.0

I think if I'm going to do this I really want a Gibson, ideally a thunderbird, how far will my £3k go towards a 70s bird?

as in what are the ballpark prices?

I know when it comes to it I will do my own research but time is pretty tight at the moment so coming here for a rough idea please?
cheers

uwe · March 02, 2023, 10:30:17 AM

For a Bicentennial in good condition, £3k might not be enough. And they're not nearly as collectible as a 60ies Bird.

lowend1 · March 03, 2023, 11:45:46 AM

You're looking at north of $4k for a 70s model, depending on color and condition. Honestly, if you want to play it without worrying, you're better off grabbing an Epi Vintage Pro (or whatever they're calling it this week).

wellREDman · March 05, 2023, 08:22:24 AM

Quote from: lowend1 on March 03, 2023, 11:45:46 AM
You're looking at north of $4k for a 70s model, depending on color and condition. Honestly, if you want to play it without worrying, you're better off grabbing an Epi Vintage Pro (or whatever they're calling it this week).

Its not about playing and I have lots of basses, most that I have built or recycled myself to fulfil every need I have.

I want some of my savings to be a Gibson hanging on my wall rather than Krugerands in a vault.

is there anything old and fun and Gibson that will hold its value?

explorer? RD?

please dont make me go to a guitar forum..

uwe · March 05, 2023, 10:04:14 AM

Well in that case, look leisurely for a Bicentennial until you can grab one and be prepared to add something to your 3k budget.

wellREDman · March 05, 2023, 11:59:25 AM

Quote from: uwe on March 05, 2023, 10:04:14 AM
Well in that case, look leisurely for a Bicentennial until you can grab one and be prepared to add something to your 3k budget.

I wish you could "like" posts in here

thank you Uwe,

I Like this post

are we talking closer to £4k or £3.5k?

uwe · March 05, 2023, 01:08:52 PM

Easy, for £3.5k you just have to be even a little more patient!

It's like waiting for the benefits of BREXIT, which will eventually come, I'm sure.

uwe · March 05, 2023, 01:12:10 PM

I paid EUR 2.000 for my Bicentennial in good shape (the bass "from the Cold" i.e. communist Germany) maybe 15 years ago. That should give you an idea. I'd say that was a fair price at the time (the guy didn't ask for anything higher, I didn't offer anything lower), neither a bargain nor robbery.

Stjofön Big · March 05, 2023, 01:36:14 PM

Forty years ago, I paid 600 Euro for a bicentennial T-bird. Never liked it. Sold it. Got hold of an Epiphone Embassy -64, for 1 200 Euro. Liked it! Bought another one, just in case..., also from the 60's, much cheaper. Gave it to my bass playing son, together with a Fender P 65. He's satisfied. I'm satisfied. Everyone's happy. Son's got a modern Epiphone Embassy, too. He likes it a lot. So: What to do? Get hold of a 60's Tbird. That's what I would do if I were in your clothes. Go cat, go!

Dave W · March 05, 2023, 03:38:40 PM

Ten years ago I bought a white Bicentennial for Carlo here locally and shipped it to him in Florida. It was US $2500. It had some bumps and bruises but no neck break.

wellREDman · March 05, 2023, 05:06:13 PM

Quote from: Stjofön Big on March 05, 2023, 01:36:14 PM
What to do? Get hold of a 60's Tbird. That's what I would do if I were in your clothes. Go cat, go!

is a 60's bird more in my price range than a bicentennial?* are they the holy grail of T-birds?

Quote from: uwe on March 05, 2023, 01:08:52 PM
It's like waiting for the benefits of BREXIT, which will eventually come, I'm sure.

Thank you, and umm, ouch

*The bicentennial is one of my earliest memories, at 4 years old I was living in a US airbase in the middle east when suddenly all the yanks went bonkers. I thought it had something to do with buffalo

uwe · March 06, 2023, 06:18:40 AM

From the past, I'd say a 60ies Rev Bird should be twice as much as a Bicentennial, at least. Is that still roundabout correct? There are simply fewer of them (both in original production and via the further decrease in numbers through destruction/damage and loss over time).

Of course, currently, they have a more substantial value increase over time too, but don't underestimate how vintage the 70ies have meanwhile become to people in their 20ies and 30ies who will be the coming generation of guitar buyers.

Grog · March 06, 2023, 07:29:52 AM

Quote from: wellREDman on March 05, 2023, 08:22:24 AM

Its not about playing and I have lots of basses, most that I have built or recycled myself to fulfil every need I have.

I want some of my savings to be a Gibson hanging on my wall rather than Krugerands in a vault.

is there anything old and fun and Gibson that will hold its value?

explorer? RD?

please dont make me go to a guitar forum..
Quote

The RD's have seen a bump in value. I remember reading an article back in the day; "RD Artist, Ahead of their time or timeless turkeys", They are heavier than a Thunderbird but unique in their own way. You should easily be able to find one in your price range. Kind of a "Melted Down" Thunderbird.

TBird1958 · March 06, 2023, 11:15:00 AM

My 2 '76s were 1K and 1100.00, but that was a long time ago now. I look at them on Reverb and see they've up quite a lot with 4-6K being common, it might just be me but I think they're held in better regard now than they used to be, being 47 years or so old isn't hurting the value either. I think Uwe said that they need a big amp to sound good, I would agree with that, cranked up a little they sound great, especially with a set of Ken Smith Rock Master Stainless and a .73 Tortex pick.
A little over a year ago I bought a '64 Thunderbird II, it was 7.5K - including the requisite broken neck. Actually, it was in pretty good shape, had both covers and the mute was intact except for the felts, I've noticed that since then there seem to be far fewer old Birds out there and most are at 10K or more.

OldManC · March 06, 2023, 07:29:46 PM

I've seen two or three Bicentennials go for around $2500-2800 on Buyee over the last year. It's a Japanese auction aggregator that charges a very small fee for any item won. The item is then shipped to them, and they ship it to you. Some people don't like to buy that way but it's worked pretty well for me once I figured out the oddities. If buying online is something you are OK with, you could check it out. Since they started shipping to the U.S. again, it costs about $200 a pop, so I just add that into my consideration whenever anything interesting pops up.

One you're signed up, this link will take you to electric basses (they sell just about everything available by auction or online in Japan, so it can be hard to find the right category):

https://buyee.jp/item/search/category/2084019034

The main thing I'd add is that there's a lot of junk that gets posted (and misidentified) among some decent stuff, so take a good look at the photos, descriptions (there's a decent translation widget) and any links to the original auction site (sometimes they have more photos).