NUGD - 1976 Ibanez Firebird

[ICTGoober]

I bought this wreck of a 1976 Ibanez Firebird yesterday off FB Marketplace. The seller was a lying ass tweaker. He couldn't keep his stories straight.

Anyway - it's beat to hell, and the only original parts are the neck, the body, the Star tuners, and the pickup selector. The original pickups are gone (he said they used active EMG's from the factory), the Maestro-style vibrola is gone, original pickguard gone, truss rod cover is handmade, painted Gibson logo in gold metallic. 3 sizes of pickguard screws, gold, black, and chrome. Someone routed out for full size humbuckers in the past very sloppily, and the wiring job was shit (but it worked).

I haven't decided whether to return it to full glory, or just part it out. Also, the hard case is original Ibanez stuff - that's worth something, too.

 

[Wattage]

wow a cool find regardless

Bolt neck I am assuming? Pancaked body?

 

[jeremy]

looks cool to me! fix it up and rawk

 

[ICTGoober]

Yeah, bolt-on neck. Solid mahogany.

 

[Securb]

That is a sweet axe. I would fix it up and rock the fuck out of it.

 

[Artie]

I'd vote for restoring to previous glory. With your own tweaks along the way. It's still sweet.

 

[Wattage]

I didn't say fix it up right but I meant to

Totally a cool piece

 

[Phantasmagoria]

Yeah, looks like it's worth the trouble. That's a nice slab of Mahogany..

 

[ICTGoober]

MIght as well cross this with the pickup thread... I've determined it has Gibson pickups...

Any EMG experts here? - Seymour Duncan User Group Forums

 

[chadd]

That looks like a fun beater. I'd probably spray it solid color (heather mist is my fav on a Firebird) and leave the Bigsby on it. If you decide to sell it, let me know.

 

[ICTGoober]

Despite being beat up, it's still a classic collectible. Anyone like to see more detailed photos of the parts and so on? Maybe the hard case?

 

[Hsb]

Thats a very cool find, dont think Ive seen an Ibby firebird

 

[beaubrummels]

Despite being beat up, it's still a classic collectible. Anyone like to see more detailed photos of the parts and so on? Maybe the hard case?

I'm curious to see the neck, headstock and tuners.

 

[Fender_Punk]

Despite being beat up, it's still a classic collectible. Anyone like to see more detailed photos of the parts and so on? Maybe the hard case?

Yes! Congrats on the find, and I hope you got it for a song given its condition. I'm guessing you did, given you said the seller was a tweaker. Well done. I would fix it up (maybe not restore to FULL glory, but most of the way) and then rock it until it falls apart!

 

[ICTGoober]

I'm curious to see the neck, headstock and tuners.

Here ya go... Neck photos tomorrow?

 

[ICTGoober]

Altered truss rod cover. The plastic is very thin, like a pickguard on an acoustic guitar.
Also the 4 holes in the top? These are stock - the vintage tailpiece is secured there - not on the edge next to the strap button.

 

[Wattage]

Here's the truss rod cover

https://www.reproguitarparts.com/#!/Ibanez-2348-Firebird-truss-rod-cover/p/6732173/category=1370956

 

[ICTGoober]

Well - I strung it up with 10's and got the action nice and low. The body is super light, making it neck heavy on a strap. Once I put my right arm on the body it was stable. The Gibson pickups sound great - lots of bite, even on the neck pickup. Plays well, neck is narrow - feels like a 70's SG. The Bigsby doesn't work for shit, barely any response. Maybe a roller bridge would help, but it looks nasty to me on this thing. This guitar could be gigged right now, no problem. That white pickguard must be in another box in my storage unit. I'll go dig it out once it warms up a bit.

 

[Demanic]

Glad you enjoy it.
I would probably use a band saw to pointy up those curves, but that's just me.

Sent from my SM-A115A using Tapatalk

 

[Ashurbanipal]

Nice 2348 . If I remember right, they came stock with a maestro style vibrola. Dig the subtle bursting of the edges.