Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Grey wrote:Notice how all your post-1990 examples of Hi-Gain's with non-molded pickups are black? They are likely holdovers from past production and not current units from that time period.

Seems more like a coincidence to me, there's too few examples to make any general conclusion about it.

Grey wrote:Notice how all your post-1990 examples of Hi-Gain's with non-molded pickups are black? They are likely holdovers from past production and not current units from that time period.

That's an interesting observation! You might be right.

I'll look to see if there are any instances of chrome High Gain pickups in 1990.

Here's a 360 from July of 1990 with chrome pickups:

http://www.rickresource.com/register/vi ... 6itype%3D1



Even in July, it still appears to have a flat top, not molded.

Here's a 360/12 from July 1990, also having chrome pickups with flat tops:

http://www.rickresource.com/register/vi ... 6itype%3D1




There is one 360 (G36962) from July 1990 that has chrome pickups with molded tops, but all the rest of the hardware on it is black, so the pickups are likely replacements.


It could be that a completed pickup-wtih-cover was not assembled and stored, but just the pre-wound bobbin/cable assembly. And then a chrome or black cover is selected during assembly.

Nothing later than 1990, though. All the 1991 examples are black.

Grey wrote:All the 1991 examples are black.

I'm still not convinced - although it could be the black covers are added to the PUs and in 1991 they were using up old stock PUs

Grey wrote:Nothing later than 1990, though. All the 1991 examples are black.

Here's a 320 from August 1991 with chrome covers:

http://www.rickresource.com/register/vi ... 6itype%3D1



Tops look flat.

And a 320 from August 1991 with chrome covers:

http://www.rickresource.com/register/vi ... 6itype%3D1



These are molded.

My conclusion is that the switch to molded Hi-Gain bobbins was in or around August 1991.

I think the earlier ones with the flat tops were not molded bobbins at all but were separate top and bottom pieces of the bobbin that were held together with the pole pieces that were glued in. This means they will have a slightly different sound as the center of the bobbin where the wire is first wound on will be closer to the pole pieces than on the molded bobbins, This means a little more of the wire is closer to the magnetic field around the pole pieces than on the molded bobbins and should make for a slightly more sensitive pickup. Without doing measurements though, that would be hard to tell...and even with measurements it might be hard to tell. The bobbin top and bottom were probably fiberglass that was painted black.

Greg