Well, I got my first look at the guitar.
David may be onto something about the tuners, for the guitar may have had to been made this way for it to fit in a standard-size Rickenbacker case. It does fit, but barely.
It is one of the coolest Rickenbackers to have ever been made at Electro-String, period. All the hallmarks of a custom-ordered instrument from the get-go. The 'R' tailpiece IMO has been on the guitar for MANY years, probably left the factory that way as David said. The only non-original parts I could see were the strap-peg (wooden!) on the upper horn, and the TRC screw at the tip of the name plate. Two long-pole toasters.
An odd combination of an O.S. deluxe 360 body(w/f-hole), R.O.S., and a unbound dot-inlay fretboard, and the crazy headstock with chrome(not nickel) Grover Banjo Tuners. The single-line Klusons are nickel, however.
The guts look untouched and there is plenty of wax residue/splatter in the control cavity.
Pretty wild, man. It may be the most oddball Rick 12 that's ever been made....I reckon we'll see a couple of pics soon...
What do you think of this???
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patrickkelly
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That's right. It is exactly 1/4 inch longer than standard. Because of the fact that the peghead is more narrow than standard, the difference appears to be more than 1/4 inch in the photos. It's an illusion. The case is standard size. I would guess an effort was made to create the new 12-string to fit into a standard case so that a new size would not have to be ordered. The tuners all work perfectly. The banjo tuners are the higher quality Grover frictions from the '60s. They are very smooth in action and do not slip at all.
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route66guitars
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I'm stunned that the neck on this instrument is factory original.
I don't think that it would have come from the factory with finished over dowels from a trapeze tailpiece being removed. I have never seen anything like that, even in test instruments that were never meant to leave the factory. Even the first 12 string had it's replacement 'R' tailpiece factory installed over the the original trapeze plate.
I don't think that it would have come from the factory with finished over dowels from a trapeze tailpiece being removed. I have never seen anything like that, even in test instruments that were never meant to leave the factory. Even the first 12 string had it's replacement 'R' tailpiece factory installed over the the original trapeze plate.
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dale_fortune
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Jwilli Didn't I tell you we made some 1 off and odd things at Electro String and that I thought this was probably an original instrument.
There were lots of instruments that were made that came out of the factory by special order that went undocumented. I remember in 1974 a Special Bass we made that had no body binding, but it had neck binding and an Ebony F,B. with M.O.P. marker dots on the F.B. It was finished in an off white cream color with black P.G and T.R.C. and it was fretless. Anyway, my thoughts are: this was a special order 1 of a kind that was left under the bed for lots of years. I've got 1 myself that's been in the closet since 1992, mint condition with very white and checkered binding.
There were lots of instruments that were made that came out of the factory by special order that went undocumented. I remember in 1974 a Special Bass we made that had no body binding, but it had neck binding and an Ebony F,B. with M.O.P. marker dots on the F.B. It was finished in an off white cream color with black P.G and T.R.C. and it was fretless. Anyway, my thoughts are: this was a special order 1 of a kind that was left under the bed for lots of years. I've got 1 myself that's been in the closet since 1992, mint condition with very white and checkered binding.
It is hard to determine if the 'R' was on the guitar when it left the factory, but it sure has been on the guitar a long time. The finish on the ramp has faded ever-so-slightly along with the rest of the top in a uniform manner, but there is a perfect shadow/image of the 'R' tailpiece on the ramp in a deeper red, undoubtedly the hue of the red when it was factory fresh. It could be one of the first Ricks to leave the factory with an 'R' tailpiece, despite whether or not it was tapped for a trapeze.
Another thing is that there is absolutely no trace or impression in the guitar or lacquer where a trapeze end-plate would have been, and there is no shadowing from a flat trapeze in the fireglo. And I have seen some Rics that were drilled for one thing and then redrilled for another before leaving the factory. The famous curly maple, butcher-block 360F from early 1958 is a good example. Of course, it was a sample prototype and used as a mule to a degree. Plus there is at least one February, 1959 315 that was drilled for a Kauffman plate but left the factory in the mid '60s with an Accent.
I finished reassembling the guitar this morning after extensive photographing.
Leftybass has come over and has just now finished putting strings on it. Wow! It sounds fantastic. He commented on how super slim the neck is, the same as the tiny 1960 fireglo 310, yet the neck is perfectly straight. No wrench has ever been on the rod nuts. The string action is wonderful with plenty of space below the bridge. Both pickups and all knobs work perfectly.
Leftybass says: "very lightweight, slightly over seven pounds on the scale, the slimmest neck I have ever felt on a Ric twelve-string, the sound with the current amp adjustment reminds me of the Who’s recording of Anyway Anyhow Anywhere. The sound is really great!"
Leftybass has come over and has just now finished putting strings on it. Wow! It sounds fantastic. He commented on how super slim the neck is, the same as the tiny 1960 fireglo 310, yet the neck is perfectly straight. No wrench has ever been on the rod nuts. The string action is wonderful with plenty of space below the bridge. Both pickups and all knobs work perfectly.
Leftybass says: "very lightweight, slightly over seven pounds on the scale, the slimmest neck I have ever felt on a Ric twelve-string, the sound with the current amp adjustment reminds me of the Who’s recording of Anyway Anyhow Anywhere. The sound is really great!"
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jingle_jangle
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Didn't sell at $7100.00. Now it's at $76.00 with no reserve from a zero feedback bidder.
FRAUD, of course.
FRAUD, of course.
“I say in speeches that a plausible mission of artists is to make people appreciate being alive at least a little bit. I am then asked if I know of any artists who pulled that off. I reply, 'The Beatles did.”
― Kurt Vonnegut
― Kurt Vonnegut