Fun from Japan: 66 NR II, $11K

[ilan]

https://www.ebay.com/itm/195823608899

[TBird1958]

I really do a Reverse a little better as it turns out, getting that '64 II pretty much cured the GAS for an old Bird - Getting that Sonic Blue BaCH really helped the NR "itch" 


I should probably go to the free clinic. 

[uwe]

Neck thru is neck thru. Anything else can call itself a TBird, but it really isn't, simple as that.

[ilan]

Neck thru is neck thru. Anything else can call itself a TBird, but it really isn't, simple as that.

Rickenbacker 4000 was set-neck, 4080 was bolt-on, they certainly sound like Rics. Do set-neck Birds sound that different?

IMHO - very humble,  having never owned either a TB or a NR, vintage or current - a key factor in the TBirdness of the TB is Ray Dietrich's reverse design. It just oozes cool. The NR, well, looks different.

[uwe]

The Reverse is an Art Deco classic by a renowned designer, the Non Reverse is something engineers came up with out of desperation and to cut costs.

To me a non-neck-thru bass can as much be a TBird (or a Rickenbacker 4001/4003 for that matter) as a six-cylinder motorbike with a liquid-cooled non-V engine can be a Harley-Davidson, a non-denim pants a Levi's jeans or a front engine vehicle a Ferrari. You can stick a brand name to it, yes, but it defeats the essence.

And I find neck-thru or not a hell of a difference in the mid- to upper registers, sound-, sustain-, -feel and tonal development-wise.

The NR is an ugly duckling just like a Mosrite is an ugly duckling. It's ok, even commendable to like it out of compassion, but let's not get carried away and rank it along with a true TBird.

[Basvarken]

I'm working on a Non Reverse Neck Through Thunderbird as we speak.
The missing link? 

[uwe]

If a leftie plays it, then you are at least close! 

[Ken]

If a leftie plays it, then you are at least close! 

Challenge accepted!

[uwe]

Who says you're never good for anything?! 

[Ken]

Tell that to my wife!

[Basvarken]

If a leftie plays it, then you are at least close! 

[hollowbody]

There's an unbroken 67 II that just arrived at Willie's Guitars.  It came out of the North Dakota prairie.  The original owner used to play it through a 361, which was not sold to Willie's but is in equally immaculate condition.

[Ken]

Wow.  And mangled ones go for a lot more.

https://www.williesguitars.com/product/1967-gibson-thunderbird-ii/

[Dave W]

Willie's vintage prices are typically at the high end of the price range.

[Basvarken]

That cracquelee is beautiful!