Headcracker Goes For $535.50!!

johnallg · Post by **johnallg** » Wed Apr 12, 2006 3:26 pm

Remember the 4001 AutumnGlo used as a club in the bar fight?

http://cgi.ebay.com/1978-RICKENBACKER-BASS-MODEL-4001_W0QQitemZ7406236317QQcategoryZ4713QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

loendmaestro · Post by **loendmaestro** » Wed Apr 12, 2006 5:28 pm

That makes me physically hurt....
(not because of the implied "bar brawl injury".)

johnallg · Post by **johnallg** » Wed Apr 12, 2006 6:18 pm

Unfortunately parting it out at today's prices paid on eBay and they'll still come out ahead...

kcole4001 · Post by **kcole4001** » Thu Apr 13, 2006 4:40 am

Again I say "Fenders are for whacking people over the head", not Ricks!

rickaddict · Post by **rickaddict** » Thu Apr 13, 2006 4:49 am

I think that's exactly what I paid for my brand-spankin' new 1980 4001 in May of '82.

billy_sacco · Post by **billy_sacco** » Thu Apr 13, 2006 5:44 am

I don't have much money so i might have taken it at that price

. At least it is not a neck crack those scare me a little more then body damage.

cerrem · Post by **cerrem** » Thu Apr 13, 2006 8:22 am

Looks like a VERY sloppy repair...
Epoxy is a pain in the #### to take apart.. You need lots of heat to break down epoxy...without colateral damage to the wood would be difficult...
This bass could have been re-glued properly and made to look vertually perfect...There is a way to make seems disapear... Too bad..

Chris

edski · Post by **edski** » Thu Apr 13, 2006 8:27 am

Broken neck worries you?

The fingerboard of my 75 4001 lifted in early 1983, about 2 years after I bought it. I was worried because the wood in the neck was cracking (i.e. the fingerboard separation was stopping, but the crack wasn't) a bit too on the E sting side.

Fortunately I knew a very good string instrument repair guy - used to be my trumpet teacher - and he charged me $50 to make it right.

It's been almost 23 years now, about 4 of those with massive Fender flats on it, and absolutely NO hint of an issue. It's very likely the glued part is stronger than the parts that never had an issue.

Some day I'll get some good pics of it. The crack into the neck only extended about 3/16 - 1/4". Not far at all, but scared the *you know what* out of me. And I have always been a little worried since. But as the years turned into a decade turned into two decades, it's less of a concern now.

Someone like Ted S or Paul W get a hold of something that's salvageable, it'll be fixed like this guy Bruce in Danbury CT did for me when I was in HS...solid work, done right. One of those 2 had a basket case Cheyenne I that had a fretboard lift that nearly too off the headstock when I first joined this board. When fixed, that bass looked perfect. From the accounts I read, it played perfect too.

The way the crack on that eBay bass looked, I could see how the playability might not be affected much at all. And if that piece was glued back on flush, it might actually not even feel like it was so seriously damaged once.

Might be a good deal from whoever got it.

*********

Oh, just looked at the pics on the re-list...that neck was way snapped...ouch!

$535 might have been a bit much IMO...

I thought only a body wing snapped...

wints · Post by **wints** » Thu Apr 13, 2006 8:37 am

I'd agree with with Ed. Most repaired today are stronger than the original necks. My 73 has had a headstock repair and there has never been a problem since.

billy_sacco · Post by **billy_sacco** » Thu Apr 13, 2006 9:15 am

Jeez I did not see the crack on the neck. Yeah pass on that one. Don't know about the Ricks but one common problem with the old gibson paddle headstocks was they just break off. I had heard once they were repaired they were kind of likely to just break in the same place.

rickfan63 · Post by **rickfan63** » Thu Apr 13, 2006 9:24 am

My V63 had a major neck crack repair done on it. The crack was from the 6th to the 13th fret on the G string side. A previous owner did the damage and I had a friend who does excellent guitar repair work do the fix up. Haven't had a single problem since. That's been over 2 years ago, and it plays great.

ricosound · Post by **ricosound** » Thu Apr 13, 2006 9:38 am

The epoxy repair was crude, but using Ted's heat method to remove the wings and repaired properly, it's still a worthy project necesitating a complete refin. The price would have to be right however, $535 doesn't seen out of line for the sum of the parts.

kcole4001 · Post by **kcole4001** » Thu Apr 13, 2006 10:26 am

A good glue joint will be stronger than the surrounding wood. I know 2 guys here in town who have had the headstocks snapped off their Gibsons & properly repaired. They both swear that they sound as good as they did before the break.
That's definitely a weak spot on Gibs, but it takes pretty serious abuse to do that to a Rick, another testimony to how strong they actually are.

jetglow1 · Post by **jetglow1** » Thu Apr 13, 2006 11:48 am

Gentlemen, if I'm not mistaken that guitar is a "bolt-on" neck now, look closely at the skunk line where the crack is, that looks like the head of a phillips screw.

johnallg · Post by **johnallg** » Thu Apr 13, 2006 12:17 pm

Shawn, using Firefox zoom (300%) I believe you're right. There is a phillips screw head there.