3below Posted April 24, 2011 Share Posted April 24, 2011 Looked for old photos of my black JB EB3 but unable to find any. For those who have mentioned interest in one - try before buying, I remember with mine the neck dived considerably, probably the worst neck diver I have encountered. It was also relatively heavy compared toan EB3 due to all maple construction. Then again the headstock won't snap off in a hurry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schnozzalee Posted April 24, 2011 Share Posted April 24, 2011 [quote name='Big_Stu' post='1210299' date='Apr 24 2011, 08:04 PM']Ahem? THIS is the most recent JB job I found for him - and it'll be the last ............. (JB customised a lot of Gibsons) If it's the same guy you're talking about?[/quote] Oops, sorry I missed the post! Yup same chap Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big_Stu Posted April 24, 2011 Share Posted April 24, 2011 (edited) [quote name='Darkstrike' post='1210331' date='Apr 24 2011, 08:33 PM']Here's one I've always loved, originally made for Barry Devlin, bassist for Horslips(he eventually gave it to a fan/friend). One of the other members of the band designed it, I don't remember which. I've often thought of asking a luthier to make me a copy, or something close to it.[/quote] Amazing! It's the kind of thing that made John's name in the early to mid 70's................ Glitterband Roy Wood Mud More than anything in particular I like the look of the pups; they look like they ooze power! Edited April 25, 2011 by Big_Stu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schnozzalee Posted April 24, 2011 Share Posted April 24, 2011 There was a penis one on Ebay for ages, probably like 3 years lol wonder why? I like the Glitterband Star Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darkstrike Posted April 24, 2011 Share Posted April 24, 2011 Oh coool! He made a bunch of oddly awesome stuff! Agreed about the pickups! Definitely look like they could do damage! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big_Stu Posted April 25, 2011 Share Posted April 25, 2011 [quote name='Schnozzalee' post='1210492' date='Apr 24 2011, 11:13 PM']There was a penis one on Ebay for ages, probably like 3 years lol wonder why? I like the Glitterband Star[/quote] Oh the history of that one! I mentioned it to John Birch when I first heard about it; he was ballistic! It's not one of his he said, someone had used his parts on a body made by someone else & was passing it off. (It's good old MG that has it) It next turned up in Guitar & Bass in someone's collection, claiming it has belonged to Andy Scott of The Sweet as a promo item for their hit "Little Willy". Time for someone else to go ballistic - Andy wrote a disclaimer for the magazine denying any connection with the guitar in any way shape or form. Strangely enough the guitar then went back into the ownership of MG in one of their Denmark St shops. If you see it on Ebay they now claim it was made for Showaddywaddy; but if you see it in the window of their shop, last time I looked it said it was made for Dave Hill, which I know for a fact is a lie. I've been told by Greg Dorsett that if you see it up close & personal it has no JB logo - and stinks of fresh paint. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schnozzalee Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 [quote name='Big_Stu' post='1210766' date='Apr 25 2011, 12:22 PM']Oh the history of that one! I mentioned it to John Birch when I first heard about it; he was ballistic! It's not one of his he said, someone had used his parts on a body made by someone else & was passing it off. (It's good old MG that has it) It next turned up in Guitar & Bass in someone's collection, claiming it has belonged to Andy Scott of The Sweet as a promo item for their hit "Little Willy". Time for someone else to go ballistic - Andy wrote a disclaimer for the magazine denying any connection with the guitar in any way shape or form. Strangely enough the guitar then went back into the ownership of MG in one of their Denmark St shops. If you see it on Ebay they now claim it was made for Showaddywaddy; but if you see it in the window of their shop, last time I looked it said it was made for Dave Hill, which I know for a fact is a lie. I've been told by Greg Dorsett that if you see it up close & personal it has no JB logo - and stinks of fresh paint.[/quote] Hahaha I can't imagine who would wanna own up to it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big_Stu Posted May 7, 2011 Share Posted May 7, 2011 [quote name='Schnozzalee' post='1219390' date='May 4 2011, 12:28 AM']Hahaha I can't imagine who would wanna own up to it![/quote] Well .............. would ya? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big_Stu Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 (edited) [quote name='noirpunk' post='1209706' date='Apr 24 2011, 12:13 AM']Any more JB content?[/quote] Yeah, OK - it's a guitar - but damn they're versatile! Just to keep it on topic, my baby taken this morning.......... Edited May 20, 2011 by Big_Stu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
noirpunk Posted August 24, 2011 Author Share Posted August 24, 2011 Bump - any more John Birch love out there? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big_Stu Posted September 8, 2011 Share Posted September 8, 2011 (edited) [quote name='noirpunk' post='1350836' date='Aug 24 2011, 10:23 PM']Bump - any more John Birch love out there?[/quote] Another guitar, but this went up on Ebay a few years ago, with a BIN of £25K Called "The Bat" it was built by John Birch for Dave Hill (again) when he was going through an appreciation of the Native American phase. It didn't make anything near the BIN (surprise!!) Is this really the ugliest guitar ever built? Edited September 8, 2011 by Big_Stu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted September 8, 2011 Share Posted September 8, 2011 [quote name='Big_Stu' post='1366245' date='Sep 8 2011, 12:08 PM'] Is this really the ugliest guitar ever built?[/quote] Not at all. I think that's rather elegant. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Immo Posted September 8, 2011 Share Posted September 8, 2011 (edited) [quote name='Big_Stu' post='1235761' date='May 18 2011, 03:30 PM']Just to keep it on topic, my baby taken this morning.......... [/quote] Damn, that's a beauty! Edited September 8, 2011 by Immo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big_Stu Posted September 8, 2011 Share Posted September 8, 2011 [quote name='Immo' post='1366582' date='Sep 8 2011, 04:08 PM']Damn, that's a beauty! [/quote] Thanks! I think so too! [quote name='BigRedX' post='1366366' date='Sep 8 2011, 01:30 PM']Not at all. I think that's rather elegant.[/quote] Seriously?? I'm also thinking it must have been quite a big guitar, looking at the positions of the hardware I reckon a "normal" sized body would have ended around where the decorative black curved line is underneath the two knobs in the middle??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
12stringbassist Posted September 13, 2011 Share Posted September 13, 2011 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big_Stu Posted August 4, 2012 Share Posted August 4, 2012 [quote name='Meddle' timestamp='1343943882' post='1757786'] Guitarguitar in Edinburgh have a John Birch Rickenfaker at the moment. It is (re)finished white. It has six knobs! Between myself and a member of staff we still couldn't work out exactly what was happening. One pot was almost like a crude passive bandpass filter. Another pot was actually a 3-way switch which seemed to put stuff out of phase. Two were (both) a master volume but their behaviour changed with the 3-way switch's position. Oh it had another 3-way pickup selector.... I gave up and tried a 4003 as well. Not as tonally broad.... [/quote] Problem with John's guitars were many were made to order with various switching options. More often than not 6 knobs on a bass were vaguely as you described. It was usually 2 x vol, 2 x tone, master vol and the three way switch pot was usually humbucker/single coil (in an attempt to copy a Rick sound) and a phase inverter. But on a guitar that was often a treble booster instead. Could be the one you saw had been messed around by a previous owner. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KevB Posted August 5, 2012 Share Posted August 5, 2012 I'm sorry if this is common knowledge as I don't know that much about JB but I was watching the reruns of TOTP from 1977 and I noticed the bass player in Hot Chocolate - the 'ric' doesn't look quite right and I wondered if it might be a John Birch? [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JFI96L0F5Fc"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JFI96L0F5Fc[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted August 5, 2012 Share Posted August 5, 2012 [quote name='KevB' timestamp='1344170145' post='1760631'] I'm sorry if this is common knowledge as I don't know that much about JB but I was watching the reruns of TOTP from 1977 and I noticed the bass player in Hot Chocolate - the 'ric' doesn't look quite right and I wondered if it might be a John Birch? [/quote] From what little you can see in the video it looks like it. Giveaway items are the pickups and the bridge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big_Stu Posted August 5, 2012 Share Posted August 5, 2012 (edited) It is, their guitarist had one too; though strangely they aren't listed in any John Birch catalogue that I've seen as being regular users. It might be that they were on loan for trials. I was told by two of JB's ex-employees (so I take it to have an element of truth) that John would send out his guitars unsolicited to various "stars". Often they would assume it was a gift or endorsement item. John would then wait a few months & send an invoice into their office for it, often as not it would be stamped & paid among a list of other expenses. Bit of a rogue - and by all accounts a hell of a temper, which is why he had a fair turnover of staff, but I liked the guy - a real mad professor. John Birch (RIP) Edited August 5, 2012 by Big_Stu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big_Stu Posted August 5, 2012 Share Posted August 5, 2012 (edited) Dupl post Edited August 5, 2012 by Big_Stu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KevB Posted August 5, 2012 Share Posted August 5, 2012 Thanks for the info, better view of it in this one; [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3fX2_bxEkg"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3fX2_bxEkg[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big_Stu Posted August 5, 2012 Share Posted August 5, 2012 Yeah, it was pretty bad around 76/77 just before New Wave/Punk seriously hit the charts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big_Stu Posted September 23, 2012 Share Posted September 23, 2012 Anyone fancy a bit of vintage awesome power in their guitar or bass? having all those poles makes it work like a blade so they're great in guitar OR bass (I have both for now) [url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Vintage-1970s-Hyperflux-Pickup-by-John-Birch-RARE-Tony-Iommi-Old-Boy?item=221127292319&cmd=ViewItem&_trksid=p5197.m7&_trkparms=algo%3DLVI%26itu%3DUCI%26otn%3D4%26po%3DLVI%26ps%3D63%26clkid%3D2245070649219219381"]http://www.ebay.co.u...070649219219381[/url] No connection with the seller, but right now I'm thinking "£160?" I'll be flogging a JB Magnum which looks near identical to that in coming weeks, so I'll be hoping for similar. All of the sellers pitch about Iommi is a crock, easily demonstrated by the page they included themselves from a JB catalogue telling you that it's the Magnum which Iommi uses, because of it's huge output. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeBass Posted September 24, 2012 Share Posted September 24, 2012 (edited) Never had a JB bass but have had two P basses that were customised by him - both by previous owners to me. first up a 1959 P that had a JB birds eye maple board fitted. fantastic board - devalued the bass but, I'm a player not a collector. Got rid of this around 1995 .[attachment=119228:1959-Pbass.jpg] [attachment=119229:1959Pbass.jpg] next, a 1964 P that had a JB stereo pick up and controls in it - I got it in a pretty bad state and the JB pre-amp and pots had disappeared - this bass had many mods over the years including,at one time, a bass Gizmotron on it!!! Gave local luthier Brian Eastwood a stripped down body, neck and box of bits and he restored it to near original state. all original bar refinish, pu guard and knobs. Brian used the PU on one of his projects. photo shows JB PU in situ near bridge . [attachment=119230:63_P-BassPreRestoreBody.jpg] Edited September 24, 2012 by MikeBass Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big_Stu Posted September 24, 2012 Share Posted September 24, 2012 [quote name='MikeBass' timestamp='1348515334' post='1814689'] [attachment=119230:63_P-BassPreRestoreBody.jpg] [/quote] Cool! - A Superflux, I've never seen one coloured up before; I just missed a black one in the days when Music Ground was a respectable source of JB parts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.