Sticky Gummy Finish on UNPLAYED 1999 Rick 4003 CurlyMaple FG

[Hotzenplotz]

Given the rather personal comments you've made about me to people and on websites, I'm not inclined to offer the benefit of my experience on the sticky paint issue.

To be honest: originally I was looking for these comments.

What I found was more interesting, written already on the 30th of October - this thread was started later! - at another site, by the user gggoattt:

I was able to test polish some of the stickiness off with Zymol but the softness remains, and even with mild polishing the finish exhibits splotchiness of clarity...some areas are more shiny than others due to mild clouding. However, the problem is the softness and gummy aspect...and I don't want to polish it with something that might prevent it from being repaired by someone more knowledgable than me regarding Rick's conversion varnish.

BTW...I tried to polish an area with 3m Finesse-It wax...huge mistake. It's as if the polish immediately dulled the finish and wouldn't rub out. Repolishing with Zymol removed it...but still left the area soft and gummy. Not good.

I could not find this essential information in this thread...


- But I was asking (very early) if the rubber thing is under the scratch plate, too. No answer until yet.
I was asking this for the reason to isolate the "diagnosis" to two possibilities: if it is under the plate, the problem is the varnish itself or an outgassing process. Quite easy.

Reading the other more than similar threads I start to feel somebody has stolen my time!

There is a saying in german language, quite easy to transfer: "You can not dance on two weddings at the same time."

Maybe it is better to concentrate on ONE thread.

You have got 70 instruments, 25 of them are Rickenbackers? I am sure You own as many as one car, too.

So my final - and constructive - advice is: Take that bass, drive to a car painter and show the bass to him. The fastest way to get an answer. And please, do not waste so much time of others in future.

[bassman7365]

Given the rather personal comments you've made about me to people and on websites, I'm not inclined to offer the benefit of my experience on the sticky paint issue.

I like this, as there seems to be a whole segement of our population whom are of the opinion they should never be held accountable for their words and whatever happens could not possibly be of their own doing. This person has no idea what is the root cause of his problem. Yet, it is quite evident he has had no problem throwing, not only Rickenbacker Inc., but Mr. Hall himself under the bus. Kudos. Now he can pay to have his instrument shipped back to the factory, refinished, and returned to him. My apologies for the diatribe.

[rickenbrother]

Given the rather personal comments you've made about me to people and on websites, I'm not inclined to offer the benefit of my experience on the sticky paint issue.

I like this, as there seems to be a whole segement of our population whom are of the opinion they should never be held accountable for their words and whatever happens could not possibly be of their own doing. This person has no idea what is the root cause of his problem. Yet, it is quite evident he has had no problem throwing, not only Rickenbacker Inc., but Mr. Hall himself under the bus..

I agree with you , Pete. Plus the unkind comment towards RIC made by someone else on that other site, which if that site gets mentioned here again, this thread will be toast.

[sloop_john_b]

Now he can pay to have his instrument shipped back to the factory, refinished, and returned to him. My apologies for the diatribe.

Oh, I highly doubt it will be headed back to the factory...

[RIC_FACTORY]

Oh, I highly doubt it will be headed back to the factory...

That's a fact, JB.

My dos centavos: Gassing off? Seriously? That finish stopped gassing off before W took office, that is not the issue. Conversion varnish completely gasses off in in just a few weeks. How many weeks since it was sprayed? Even if one were to stretch the boundaries of chemistry, if it were still gassing off twelve years later, it theoretically should be HARDER, not softer and stickier.

As far as improper catalyzation, that can't be the explanation as the OP said the bass was fine previously when he showed it to friends. If the finish had been improperly catalyzed, that would have been readily apparent as soon as he first touched it. It would have been sticky then and remained like that.

Plus, the fact that it was made from curly maple means nothing. Curly maple is not any different than regular grade maple apart from the appearance.

Sounds like it reacted with the case, or was wiped down with something. I highly doubt that we'll ever know the truth.

[bassman7365]

Sounds like it reacted with the case, or was wiped down with something. I highly doubt that we'll ever know the truth.

Well, since I am not in the employ of Rickenbacker, I can be a wee bit more outspoke about this. Hmmm, what could be the truth?

1. Some sort of mysterious phenomenon (sic) involving large quantities of glue gas escaping and destroying the UV cured finish.

2. Mr. Hall, with absolute malice, sent a note to the finishing department and instructed them to put a time release chlorine capsule into the lining of this gentleman's OHSC.

3. This gentleman was showing off his, one of a kind instrument, to his friends and didn't observe the common sense practice of, paying attention to what the h*#@ is going on around him (at one time in the not so far past called cognizance), and just put it into its case without proper storage procedures.


Up here in the Northeast, we have a commercial on television for Bob's Discount Furniture, that in the end asks, You Be The Judge. For me, I'll take what is behind door #3.

Dude, you made a mistake, we've all done it at one time or another. You put away your bass without cleaning it. Not taking it out of its case for umpteen yrs didn't help. And now you're lookin to have someone else take responsibility. C'mon, are you hangin' out at Wall Street, or Oakland. Asking for help would have been fine. But perhaps you've come to the realization, we here respect Rickenbacker and all the fine people who make the wonderful instruments we cherish!

[sloop_john_b]

PICS.

[bosco64]

PICS.

Probably not at this point....

[coolingitdown]

For anyone wondering where Joey is, he walked off mumbling something about finding a padlock.

[ram]

Well I agree with the wood and finish being fully set up within months…I’m thinking we are looking at something in the cloth (mouse pee, dye whatever) sitting around for years with glue and then when exposed to a catalysis (someone’s after shave, body wash, smoke from incense or oil lamp, kerosene burner or air freshener) started a reaction and began to goo the finish. I don’t think cases were ever envisioned as storage vaults. Personally I’d be too worried about things like mold and what not in cases not open for long periods. Get it out of the case occasionally let that air react with it and the case. As for fixing it if sets up maybe you can fine sand and polish it back. If not maybe a refin…. Or sell it as the goo bass. After all it is famous now. An after thought – maybe the Blob likes Ric basses??????

[rickenbrother]

For anyone wondering where Joey is, he walked off mumbling something about finding a padlock.

Yeah, I think it's about that time!