The Fenderbird is here!

[PWV]

I went to Mike's shop today and I can't believe what a master luthier he is!  The guy is simply one of the best in the world.  This bass was an extreme makeover - not only was the truss rod toast and was buckled up inside the neck, the neck and body had been shattered and glued back together.  You simply cannot tell it ever resembled that bass right now.

Here's my initial observations after playing it today:

1) It looks way cooler than I thought it was going too.  The headstock decal I ordered from The Factory Guy looks frickin' awesome.  Mike said the same thing about the final product and his initial doubts (and I know other folks thought the flake finish was crazy, and I sure had my doubts at times), but he couldn't believe how it great it looks also.  The silver flake around the chrome just complements it perfectly imo and..

2) How great it plays!  He wired it back to series to match its original 70's setup.  The wiring was messed up too, but I couldn't tell you how.  I decided to keep the rounds on it for now because they really sound great.  Its got that 70's TBird growl with Maple neck ping - hard to describe, but the tone knob has a lot more variations than my other birds.  One thing I noticed - and I don't know if this the bridge or the neck or the rounds or some combination - but it has sustain like no other bass I've played before. Notes ring a very long time before the decay occurs. 

Through my SVT-CL it really sounds authentic - sounds very close to the tone Mark gets on his TB's.  The rounds really do sound like they belong on there.  I'll take it to church on Sunday and run it through my Ashdown rig and report back.  Right now I can't stop looking at the thing!

[PWV]

A couple more gratuitous pics:

[rockinrayduke]

Takin' it to church? That'll wake 'em up on a Sunday morning!

Who made the neck? And you're right about that logo, great job.

[PWV]

Yeah, church will wake up that's for sure.  Its the drummer's last Sunday too.

The neck we had made here: http://www.usacustomguitars.com/

The guys that work there are very cool and have helped me ship a couple of basses overseas too.  When they moved to their new facility, I got a tour and was pretty impressed.  Funny - I first met the owner when I was in the USPS office trying to ship a bass and USPS said the box was too big.  USA Custom Guitars have been my friends ever since.

[TBird1958]

I can never say enough good things about Mike!
He can set a bass up like no one else, he can a take good instrument to an entirely new level. He's set all my basses up, they play so well, and when you visit his shop you get the rockstar treatment, both Mike and Roger are great guys!
As for the wiring..........Thank the guys here on this forum and over at Jule's place 
When I replaced a pickup in my Green 'Bird awhile back I made sure he got to see that info.

When you're on winter break lets have a beer and run that bass thru my rig! 

[ilan]

Amazing!

[uwe]

That logo is cute! 

As for the fin ... it's certainly intrepid and original. For the bass player that doesn't want to attract too much attention, no doubt.

[PWV]

That logo is cute! 

As for the fin ... it's certainly intrepid and original. For the bass player that doesn't want to attract too much attention, no doubt.

Well, I know how much you love chrome Uwe - and the silver flake really highlights the wear and age of the chrome.  But my camera sucks.  So I'll try and take some more hi-def pics to show that here soon.

Things I notice - still has a little neck dive, but not like before with the original neck.  But I'm not one of those folks that bitched about the "oogedy-boogiedy neck dive" complaints on Gibsons or G&L ASAT's. That's what wide straps and right elbows are for - feels natural to me. 

Also, I'm glad Mike went with the USA Custom neck instead of a stock Fender jazz neck.  It doesn't have the Entwhistle vibe on the headstock, but Mike was able to custom fit to a pretty-frickin' tight neck pocket.  I've only seen two other Fenderbirds and both had Fender necks, but a neck pocket so big you could have stored a stack of guitar picks in there with room left over for loose change. 

So far, I've got a keeper.  Something I haven't been able to say about many basses that didn't have "Gibson" stamped on the headstock already.  Funny, if it hadn't been for this forum this would have ended up as a parts bass.   Good work guys! 

[Barklessdog]

That turned out amazing. The three part body was perfect for the finish. Love the logo as well.


Take it out side on a guitar stand to get some decent pictures. Good lighting is the key to good photos.
Experiment with lighting, reflections etc.

[Stjofön Big]

Very hot, indeed!

[dc10bass]

That is sooo cool!
I really dig that version!

Well Done!

[PWV]

Finally got around to some *better* pics (I think)

Nothing says "America" like a Buck Bird on a picket fence!   



Good shot of chrome and metalic flake together:



The BiCent. PG:



Finally, the Headstock logo from Factory Guy!

[Dave W]

Nice. Sort of Buck Owens meets Grant Wood. 

[Nocturnal]

Thats a great looking bass!!!

[OldManC]

Great work and a beautiful bass!