BaCH non reverse t-bird

[davidlovellbass]

Anyone own one of these? They look good for a £250 bass and with new pickups/bridge/tuners/electronics/covers they'd look and sound vintage but with the parts costing £500ish would it just be another very average bass with expensive hardware?

[Doctor J]

Yes. Yes it would.

I notice, like the Olympic fascists, you don't value your own time. Were you to invoice yourself at an hourly rate for time spent trying to de-sow's ear the Bach - in addition to the extra £500 on parts - you'd probably be able to afford a Gibson T-Bird.

Think of all those horrible little cars with mad wings and loud exhausts extra parts bolted on, do you want to play the bass version of that? Of course not. Just buy a good bass which comes with good parts already attached, you'll be happier in the long run.

[Wolverinebass]

I tend to agree with Doctor J. If you really want a good non-reverse Thunderbird, get a Cataldo. Reasonably pricey, but they look (and sound) very good. Plus you know that they're not filled with second rate pots and need a new nut or whatever. I'm pretty sure that there's a gent who's posted a thread in build diaries about his Cataldo being built. Might be worth investigating.

[Muzz]

It depends on how you'd approach the project: if you'd enjoy doing it, go for it - you may find you'll end up with just what you want, with a personal investment in the process and instrument at the end, which can be very rewarding. I've modded several basses now, and I've found it's addictive: off-the-shelf cookie-cutter basses don't interest me all that much these days.

If you're building it to sell, fair enough, you'll never recoup your money, but if you're going to start considering your hourly rate doing something you like, I'd suggest that's massively missing the point.

Oh, and if you buy a Gibson, you might want to look at changing the bridge for a much superior Hipshot Supertone...and that's how it starts...