Your Favorite RIC Acquisition Story?

[blueflamerick]

Then there was the $700 BIN Blackstar I scored.

[jps]

Of course, you've all read the story of my getting my '67 4005WB for $175.00.

[beatlefan]

....and the perfect condition red 4003s/5 I scored off the 'bay for a $500.00 bin.

[jingle_jangle]

Let me change the focus a bit...I won't mention the deal I got. No numbers, OK?

I found my Electro ES-16 at a swap meet. The guy was unloading it from his car, getting ready to set it out. This was in the parking lot.

I saw the case. I thought it was a Fender Duo-Sonic or Musicmaster, because it was a shorty, so I asked him, for sale?

Yes, he said and opened the case. A dirty Electro ES-16, but obviously very, very original. The case still has the plastic baggie with the adjustment wrench and key inside.

The guitar was purchased when new for a young man by his parents in Huntington Beach. CA, in '83, from a music store where he was taking lessons. I believe it was the Huntington Music Center, but will have to verify this with factory records someday.

It is, of course, the 18-fret student short-scale guitar. It apparently served him through a few lessons and went into a closet. Strings were black with corrosion; frets were green. There was old masking tape on the fretboard with the notes written on each space with a ballpoint pen.

Obviously, it hadn't been played in a long, long time. It was 100% untouched. A time capsule. I took an entire day to properly clean every part and screw, then reassembled it and strung it up.

It is one of the few ever made with a factory high-gain pickup, and its tone and playability are terrific.

Everytime I pick it up, I think about its time in semi-retirement, and about how it is finally fulfilling the purpose for which it was made...

[studiotwosession]

A battered 325 I bought a few weeks back. Don't want to mention cost but it is more than twice what I've paid for any other axe.

[BobKat]

Paul, there was a blowout of the last 25 or so ES-16s in '83. Bet it had Rotomatics too. I had one that was dead mint that cost me $400 with case. I sold it, and have always regretted it, It was a sublime instrument.

[BobKat]

My best story (and I have a few good ones) is not about a guitar I got.

Years ago, I used to go to a place called Chauncey's near my house. Good food. Anyway, they had a Walnut '76 4001 on the wall. Unfortunately, two very glaring and painful screw holes in an otherwise beautiful bass. I offered to buy it many times. "No, the owner got it from a friend" was always the reply.

Fast forward about 10 years to my new town, about 10 miles from there. I hook up with some guys, we start a band. My bass player, who used to own a RIC, really pines to own one again. Our friend Paul is looking for work. He hires him. Next day, there is a call. "I'm coming over, I got something for you to see." He comes over. It's THE BASS. The one from the wall. Seems Paul was "the friend" who gave the bar owner the bass. When he got the job from my bass player, he decided to express his gratitude by going over and getting the bass back, and presenting it to him as a gift.

That bass still has two holes in it, but is just gorgeous otherwise. It's in my workroom right now getting a new nut fitted.

[studiotwosession]

It's a small world indeed. Great story. I guess there are no special restorations for a bass that's been hanging on the wall of a restaurant for years.

[walker]

The following story happened to a friend of mine back in 1987 sometime. Precursor to the story: I was teaching guitar lessons in tiny little Tigard, OR - an industrial suburb on the outskirts of Portland.

******************************

A guitar student of mine who ended up being a good friend played a burgundy-finish Rickedbacker 360 - a gorgeous guitar, and it sounded sweet. He'd play it at lessons plugged into my old Ampeg amp and I'd play acoustic guitar along with him as I showed him the tunes. (His name was Jim Evans. He's the same guy that elicited my punk rock epiphany.) One day Jim showed up at the lesson without his guitar. "It got stolen." he said. My heart dropped and my eyes rolled back in my head. I felt so bad for him. Having your guitar stolen is a staple nightmare for any musician, like I need remind you. He told me about how someone had broken into his car and taken it. Although I felt like saying "STUPID! STUPID ! STUPID!" to him for leaving it in his car in the first place, my empathy far outweighed my urge to dish a little tongue-in-cheek scolding. So we moped through lessons for quite a few weeks. He finally broke down and bought another Rickenbacker guitar, this one a blonde 330. So that was cool. Jim finally had another Ricki. It was gorgeous and sounded sweet too, as all Rickis do.

Then one day, with sort of a "You're not going to believe this..." look on his face, he had news once again. "I think I know where my old guitar is." Apparently the guy at the music store who sold Jim his new Ricki saw the burgundy guitar floating around in some insundry circle somewhere. Details sounded shady as to how well the music clerk might have known the guitar thief, but what mattered was that he was going to make an effort to get it back for Jim.

The next week Jim had it... the old burgundy 360 that I'd grown fond of since it had been stolen. I was absolutely amazed that he even got it back. That's like a one-in-a-thousand longshot, getting back a guitar that's been stolen from you. Jim had brought his new blonde 330 that day as well. In previous lessons, we had been working on the guitar solo from 'Kid' by The Pretenders, so this week, we both plugged in and played along with Pretender's guitarist the late James Honeyman-Scott. Jim played his burgundy 360, and I played his 330. All three of us playing this passage together just sent chills down my spine, it was so (*******) cool... one of those moments where all the elements within our little diorama converged in perfect resolve.


Walker

[drathbun]

My brother in law played with a Beatles cover band in Hamilton Ontario. He was the rhythm player and had a 1981 320JG for this purpose. He stopped playing with that band and while I was east for a visit, he told me he was considering selling the guitar to help with a down payment on a house. I said I would help him sell it on eBay and set about taking pictures of the guitar for him.

While we were busy taking photos and talking about pricing for the eBay listing, my wife interrupted me and said "Would you just stop with the photos!? I can't surprise you no matter what I do!" She had secretly arranged with her sister to buy the guitar for me for my 50th birthday. However, seeing her bro-in-law (he wasn't aware of the secret) and me so busy selling it she had to let the cat out of the bag.

So I came home with this little Ricky as a birthday present six months early and the Rickenbacker fever started immediately. Now and I also have 4003FG and developing GAS for a 360/12!

[squid]

My favourite story is about the purchase of my 381v69 MG, but it isn't really about buying the guitar itself. I travelled all the way from Toronto, Ontario down to Elderly Instruments in Lansing, Michigan in order to purchase a 360 MG that they were holding for me. (They couldn't ship it across the border.) When I got to the store and saw the 381's in person, I was a goner. But I wasn't alone. There was another guy in the store who was admiring a 381v69 in Fireglo. He had his little blonde haired boy with him, wide-eyed and hanging on every word his dad said. Dad had to be in his late thirties. The little boy was all of three or four. As the man looked up at the 381v69, he said to his little one, "See that there, Matthew? That's the guitar your daddy wants. But I can't have it. Because I'm married to your mother."

I was with my girlfriend (now wife) at the time, and she made a note of it, too. It's become a mantra in our household, especially when there's something one of us wants to buy that the other one vetos.

[expomick]

That is hilarious, and sadly true, at least as it relates to my life.

I still refer to the engagement ring my wife wears around her finger as my Two Rick's...and a drum set.

Okay, a cheap drum set.

[sowhat]

Well, i do have one story, too, but it's already told in some other thread.

[Ricknut63]

While talking to one of my customers,the subject of Rickenbackers came up.He said"I have a RIC,but it doesn't look like one of those BeaTles models,it's shaped like a bass."I very casually said "Oh?I'd like to see that sometime,"and let the matter drop.About a week later,in he comes with a VERY early production 1972 model 480!No-button high-gains(HOT!),no case,and a nice off-white re-fin.Someone had also added Grovers (>_<),but had done it very nicely.I tried to act cool,and said"If you ever want to sell it,let me know."Another week goes by,and he shows up with it again."I've been thinking about it,and I'm a Strat guy...I never play this thing,and since you're THE local RIC guy,I think that I want to sell it to you."I was speechless.I know what they're worth,and what they're going for on eBay.I told him"It's been refinished,and the tuners have been changed,so it's not worth as much as an unaltered one,and a case is going to be really hard to find...what do you want for it?"He said"How about $450?"I said "How about $400?"He said "SOLD!",and it was mine...then he said "Oh,yeah...I've got some extra parts,too...when my big brother (the original owner) had it refinished (from the factory PURPLE sunburst!),he had some new parts put on it."He hands me a bag with the original plexi TRC,a spare 480 P/G with an extra hole drilled in it,a vintage bridge and cover,and a full set of original VOL/TONE knobs!When he left,I put the original plexi TRC on it,and that's how it is today...a great player,and it always gets the compliments!Thanks to a RIC forum member I found a proper case for it,too!It's not the BEST deal I ever got on a RIC,but that's another story...

[johnallg]

Great story, Matt! And welcome over here at the RRF, about time you showed up here.