Uwe's Shortie T-Bird

[Barklessdog]

They are supposed to be killing the grey ones Kenny.

[uwe]

Once you have the yanks "overpaid, overfed, übersexed and over here", you never get rid of them history teaches.

Those US Besatzungs-rodents are even making inroads in German forests. No idea how they got there. But our former Minister of Hunting and Woods, Hermann Göring, who let 30 racoons go free in North Hesse in the thirties to have some new game to shoot at (they multiplied and live happily ever after), would no doubt approve. Add to that the North American Buntbarsch



we can't get rid of as well as the Rotwangenschildkröte (we even have snappers, they seem to get used to our winters)



which infest our ponds, not to mention the bullfrogs ...

[dadagoboi]

I LOVE those greys...especially in gumbo!  Also in the Coonass (what Cajuns call themselves) specialty 'squirrels in gravy.'  Yummy!  Froglegs is good too!

[Dave W]

Once you have the yanks "overpaid, overfed, obersexed and over here", you never get rid of them history teaches.

Those US Besatzungs-rodents are even making inroads in German forests. No idea how they got there. But our former Minister of Hunting and Woods, Hermann Göring, who let 30 racoons go free in North Hesse in the thirties to have some new game to shoot at (they multiplied and live happily ever after), would no doubt approve. Add to that the North American Buntbarsch we can't get rid of as well as the Rotwangenschildkröte which infest our ponds, not to mention the bullfrogs ...

Foreign species are a problem all over. Here we have asian carp and milfoil.

[Dave W]

... Froglegs is good too!

http://www.funnychill.com/media/766/Frog_Legs/

[uwe]

Foreign species are a problem all over. Here we have asian carp and milfoil.

You forgot Nile monitor lizards



and Burmese pythons.



But I hear the locals fight back.



Sometimes things end in a tie though.

[uwe]

I compared my new Hobbird side by side to the closest thing I could think of: my 2006 Gothic TBird IV, which is an odd item for the fact that is has a no-ply as opposed to a nine-ply neck, it has a massive maho neck unlike any other reverse Gibson TBird except for the earliest ones in 63. Of course it is neck thru (the Hobbird is set neck), but it has the same flat black faded fin, not that that would in any way impact on sound I hasten to add. Same pups (in theory). Both were strung with a fresh set of D'Addario 105s nickel roundwounds. Gothic has an ebony, Hobbird a rosewood board.

A few observations:

- The Hobbird sounds warm and full, even musical, but with none of the assertiveness of its longscale sibling. D and G are superior to a long scale in their mellow phatness, but with E and A you lack that taut rebound which not only feels better when playing, but also lets a longscale cut through better on the deeper strings. That said, E and A are perfectlly fine and even on the Hobboird as short scales go, you can't beat the laws of physics.

- In essence, the Hobbird sounds TBirdish sans the piano strrring rrring and the assertive mids of a long scale. My guess is that the lack of those two had it fall through with Scott (of Thunder) in his live test. I'm taking mine to the rehearsal tonight.

- For whatever reason the longscale sounds louder than the Hobbird. The Gothic came out with allegedly  "new design TB Plus pickups" for added ooomph at the time, no idea whether the more docile nature of its little brother is down to the scale difference, the pup positioning (further to the neck) or that I cannot get the pups of the Hobbird as close to the strings due to the convex body/neck angle which has the side of the neck pup towards the neck slant earlier towards the strings than the side facing away from it.

- Maybe it is plek'ked after all? The fretjob looks utalitarian, true, but it is surprisingly even - no other off the rack TBird has enabled me to get the action as low buzz-free. I could still go lower but have decided not to, let's not get too girly.

- Do not let pics deceive you. Against all optical illusions the Hobbird's body has the same body shape and body size of its larger brother. But it tends to look smaller in almost all situations. The fact that they have dragged the pickguard all the way up to and even higher than the bottom of the pups distorts the visuals of the Hobbird (in an unfortunate way me thinks) but I've held the bodies side by side, no difference in shape.

Overall: It plays and feels better than it looks. But the feel is more Fire- than Thunderbird.

[4005]

"But it tends to look smaller in almost all situations."

If there's any truth to some of the spam emails I get, you can take a pill to remedy that,

[uwe]

Which brings us back to the old adage that size matters and how anybody lies who says it doesn't!

[dadagoboi]

Thanks for the review Uwe.  What makes a TBird a TBird to me is the distinctive sound and by your description this one it is lacking that.

BTW, that notorious girly man John Entwistle preferred his action so low that he said he liked the strings "under the frets." 

[uwe]

And his sound suffered for it me thinks. He was incredibly fret-noisy and beyond all that volume of his huge backline his bass tone sounded dead and flat, especially in the later days.

[dadagoboi]

And his sound suffered for it me thinks. He was incredibly fret-noisy and beyond all that volume of his huge backline his bass tone sounded dead and flat, especially in the later days.

I have the benefit of having heard him live in '68, no such problem then.  Who's Next was the high point for me, cut live on his Fiesta Red FenderBird IIRC.  Stopped listening after Quadrophenia.  The Who had little appeal to me after that, they were just an Arena Rock monstrosity, not the quintessential aggro pop band of the early days.  Success breeds excess.

[Highlander]

I like his early sound - I lost interest post Moon... I only saw them in '76 and he was using his first Alembic for that gig...

If you had to chose a shortie, Uwe, would this be the one...?

You grow 'em pretty big  over there Kenny.

Scurrius Giganticus...!

I LOVE those greys...especially in gumbo!  Also in the Coonass (what Cajuns call themselves) specialty 'squirrels in gravy.'  Yummy!  Froglegs is good too!

Well, what do I expect from a Suthun upbringin'...   (Jackie's late uncle from KY would call it "gud eat-un")

I believe we gave you Americans a few too, like the starling...

They are supposed to be killing the grey ones Kenny.

They have a shoot-on-sight order in some parts of Scotland, John; the (indigenous) reds are significantly on the endangered list - I believe Europe has three species but we have just the one - we still get the regular (grey) visitors here - expecting this seasons brood to appear any day now...  

Oh yeah, Jackie's an import too...

[dadagoboi]

South Brooklyn is where I'm from, was introduced to Cajun cooking by my ex mother in law.  About the only thing I miss about Louisiana is the food.  Crawfish season right now, sorely tempted to visit my daughter.  The local grey squirrel population is almost kept in check by the feral cats I allow to live under my trailer in return for keeping the rats under control.

[Highlander]

... in return for keeping the rats under control.