4002 pickguard repair advice

Setup, repair and restoration of Rickenbacker Instruments

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Kopfjaeger
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Re: 4002 pickguard repair advice

Post by Kopfjaeger »

OK, it's been a while but I've made soem progress on the original 4002 pickguard. I filled in the chips with two part epoxy that ended up being more grey than white. oh well. After plenty of careful sanding to level the repaired ares and properly countersinking the repaired holes, I laid on a few coats of nail polish and then attempted to blend in the repair areas. It did not work out so well. I took Danes advice and attempted to paint the entire guard with gloss black lacquer. First I wet sanded the surface with 400 grit paper to give the paint something to adhere to. After laying on copious layers and wet sanding after every three, I was final sanding with 1600 grit when I noticed the paint was peeling off the edges. The material is too slick and resistant to the paint. I was able to peel the entire finish off with my fingernails!! All except the repaired areas. Those areas the paint was solid!

Back to the drawing board. I hit the entire surface with 400 wet paper followed by 1600 wet. Then polishing compound and swirl x and a buffer then wax. The original; finish came up nicely but not perfect. The repair areas are OK but not perfect and there is a blem on the lower section. The etched phone number is visible at certain angles as well.

At this point my options are limited. I like the idea of using the original pickguard. Pickguardian can make me one in the correct b/w/b/w/b sandwich but his material is not as stiff as the original. My Walnut 4002 has an aftermarket pickguard and it sags in areas since the screw holes are quite far apart. You can't tell unless you are playing it and looking closely and this bothers me. The original material used to craft the 4002 pickguard is no longer available so there is no way I can get one made out of original material. Finding an NOS 4002 pickguard is not going to happen. I've been tossing around the idea of having pickguardian make me an all black plexi guard and using that one and keeping the original one safe in case I ever sell the bass.

Thoughts? Here is the finished original pickguard.

Sepp
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cjj
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Re: 4002 pickguard repair advice

Post by cjj »

Are you going for a show piece, or something you're going to play? The guard, as is, looks prety good for something you're going to play. If you want something that looks newer, go for the Pickguardian one.

I wonder just how much softer BWBWB stuff from Pickguardian is. I mean is really going to be an issue? Of course, if you're really just trying to make it usable (but looking good), there's no problem going with plain black. Nobody will notice unless they are up close, and most people will never know it's supposed to BWBWB anyway.

Have you asked Tony if the plain black is actually stiffer than his BWBWB material?
I have NO idea what to do with those skinny stringed things... I'm just a bass player...
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Kopfjaeger
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Re: 4002 pickguard repair advice

Post by Kopfjaeger »

CJ,

It's going to be a player. I'm seriously hoping it plays, feels, and sounds as good as the Walnut 4002 does. I'm very leery to take that bass to gigs, let alone practice. Too worried about banging her up. I fully intend to rock this Mapleglo 4002!! :D

Tony told me the material is thicker on the plexi than the laminated "sandwich" guard, so it will be stiffer although not visually correct from 2 or three feet away. I'm seriously leaning toward the original guard or the all black plexi.

I'm very surprised the gloss finish came back as well as it did on the original guard. I really scrubbed it flat to have the paint stick to it. It actually looks much better in person than the foto.

Sepp
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chrisdski
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Re: 4002 pickguard repair advice

Post by chrisdski »

I'd use the original as is.
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johnallg
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Re: 4002 pickguard repair advice

Post by johnallg »

chrisdski wrote:I'd use the original as is.
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Kopfjaeger
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Re: 4002 pickguard repair advice

Post by Kopfjaeger »

Thanks guys, keep the opinions rolling in!! I know it's baby steps and not nearly as exciting as mark's RM 1999 restore but I'm sorta going nuts looking at all the parts not going together so I put the new harness in the original pickguard.

I had Dane Wilder build me a new harness since the original one was pretty ratty. Yes, I still have the original one, just in case. Dane asked me if I wanted to keep the harness original or was interested in putting better components into it and achieve the same sound. I went the better component route, without hesitation!! I also had Dane install a push pull pot on the treble pot to by pass the cap, in case I want to.

Since the push pull has a smaller diameter than the standard pots I used a 1/4 inch ID rubber 'O" ring to fill the extra space in the pickguard so the pot remained centered in the hole. I did the same thing to my 4004 when Dane installed two push pulls in the VVT/coil tap harness he built for me. The "O" ring works perfectly as a bushing!!

I realize that no one will see Danes under the hood work when the bass is together but it really is a work of art. he is a true craftsman and the care he uses while weaving his magic really shows. All the components slipped right in as they should. Fiber washers were used in between the pot nuts and the guard. Yea, my OCD would not allow me to install the nuts without them. :| Sometimes it sucks to be inside my head.

Anyhow, here are two fotos of the "loaded" pickguard. I think I'll be using foil top knobs. if I was going the blackout route that I first wanted, I'd use the vintage knobs I have laying around.

Comments??

Sepp
harness2.jpg
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jdogric12
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Re: 4002 pickguard repair advice

Post by jdogric12 »

If you have Dave's old 4002, you have the last NOS 4002 pickups, which he bought on ebay. While you have it disconnected, I'd return it to stock configuration by NOT connecting both pickups to the XLR. You actually have two bridge pickups. A stock 4002 neck pickup only has 2 wires and does not go to the XLR. I'd wind up the green and blue wires of the neck pickup and tape them to the guard in a spot where they will not cause a problem but still be there if you need them in the future.
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Kopfjaeger
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Re: 4002 pickguard repair advice

Post by Kopfjaeger »

Jdog,

Yes, I still have Dave's bass. I have not pulled the pickguard off although i may in order to see what hardware is used to adjust the pups. Since you have been under the hood on your recently, are grommets used between the pup and the pickguard to adjust height like on 4003 neck pups??

I'm not sure if I'll ever use the XLR feature on the bass. Not sure how much recording I'm going to do with that bass. If I were, I will mull over disconnecting the "neck" XLR leads as I know that should not be there.

Thanks.
Sepp
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Kopfjaeger
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Re: 4002 pickguard repair advice

Post by Kopfjaeger »

Wow, a ton of time has gone by since my last update. I've tried a million different remedies to even out the tone of the 4002 pups and nothing worked well enough to make me happy. I pulled the pups out and sent them to Tom Brantley in North Carolina. He has rebuilt a few for Larry Davis. After checking the magnets charge he found the treble side were substantially lower than the bass side. By the dispersion of the magnetic field, he believes a speaker or strong magnet was placed on top of the treble side of the pups. Tom re-gaussed them and is sending them back. He does not believe it is necessary to open them and screw around inside. Hopefully I'll have her back together by next week and she will be fine!! What a Christmas present that will be!!!

Sepp
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johnallg
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Re: 4002 pickguard repair advice

Post by johnallg »

Well, there's something none of us considered.... Let us know!
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