Should I just buy a new maple glo 620 and have it refinished

[jwinstonp]

I am trying to find a 620 Blue Boy for sentinmental reasons. I am bummed not having my old rick.
I know of a store that has brand new maple glo's should I buy one and have it refinished?

How much would it cost me for a refin? Will this devalue the guitar? Will the refin ruin the binding etc. is it possible for the refin to be as nice or better than the real thing?

I am just getting burned out looking for a 620 Blue boy.

Should I just keep looking?

[Scastles]

Forumite Paul W. would be your man. Pretty much guarantee you his refin will be better than you can imagine.

[sloop_john_b]

I am trying to find a 620 Blue Boy for sentinmental reasons. I am bummed not having my old rick.
I know of a store that has brand new maple glo's should I buy one and have it refinished?

How much would it cost me for a refin? Will this devalue the guitar? Will the refin ruin the binding etc. is it possible for the refin to be as nice or better than the real thing?

I am just getting burned out looking for a 620 Blue boy.

Should I just keep looking?

Buy one, make sure you like it, then have it refinished.

From experience, I would personally reccomend Dale Fortune (will be done to true RIC specs) and Mike Dolan (Inexpensive, fast turnaround time and excellent work but not done to RIC specs). I've seen lots of Paul's work as well and it's excellent.

If you use any of the people mentioned above, the refin will be done professionally and would likely be done with non-yellowing CV (or Poly in Dolan's case) and therefore, be better than factory (IMO of course). Why would it ruin the binding?

[ric330]

I'm a bit interested in this post as I would love to get a new 360 Mapleglo and get it Amberglo'd or Ruby. I really like the feel of the new 360's but would love it if they were more amber rather than clear maple or maybe that really coool Ruby. The clear mapleglo is quite nice but it takes years for the wood to get ambered from age. The other thing is - is it just better to buy a vintage one RATHER than a new one at the new price point and then pay for a paint job Probably if I just got have it:D

As john said: "Buy one, make sure you like it, then have it refinished." This is key to having the experience worth it.
That's why I may go this route. I really like the 07' 360's and getting one refined in a color I want may be expensive as a whole, but than I get exasctly what I want.

Of the refines I've seen here on the forum I would say you would be greatly satisfied with the results.
I myself have not had a refine done and I'm curious as to what that ball park price would be.

You're sort of in the same spot I am - you know what you want but can't seem to get it. The new ones don't come in Blueboy or amberglo.
I sure hope you find one.

[captsandwich]

hmmmm.....

Non-yellowing White 330 BT sounds good to me.

If anyone needs me, I'll be on eBay.

[paologregorio]

I don't think one wouldn't need an MG 620 in order to have a BB refin done. Unless I'm mistaken, any finish would do, as it's going to be stripped to the bare wood before the new finish is applied. I suppose the control and pickup cavities might be a different color, but they could probably be stripped as well, yes? Am I correct in this? Anyone?

[johneek]

I don't think one wouldn't need an MG 620 in order to have a BB refin done. Unless I'm mistaken, any finish would do, as it's going to be stripped to the bare wood before the new finish is applied. I suppose the control and pickup cavities might be a different color, but they could probably be stripped as well, yes? Am I correct in this? Anyone?

Paul is correct. If you wanted a translucent finish like FG, AFG, BBR, etc. then you'd probably need a MG guitar to start with. But BB is opaque and it shouldn't matter what color was underneath it.

I agree with John's recommendations of folks who can do a great job for you. There is at least one other I'd add to the great work but not RIC specs category if you are interested. But Dale and Paul who both work with Conversion Varnish will make it like it just came out of the factory.

Another alternative you might want to consider is finding a used 620, maybe even one that isn't in great shape. The refinishing process will take care of any dings and flaws that are in the guitar and with the BB finish, you'll never see them, plus it will cost you less for the guitar in the first place. Just a thought....

[johneek]

Here's a used one to look at:

http://minneapolis.craigslist.org/msg/548146969.html

$1200 is not great, but not bad considering MF has new ones for $1646

[mpglove]

I can help you get a brand new 620 for $1200.
I feel for ya man. If we could get someone like Paul
who works for rickenbacker to make it 100% factory
then that might be a cool way to have a real blueboy
and it might even have more value as the year would
be a 2007. I am sure you could get a letter from paul
as well.

Maybe someone could get John Hall on the phone and have
him help out. That would be great.

PM or email me.

[jcreasy]

As for depreciating the value, I'm betting it would not. At least not in my eyes (as a Rick buyer). However, you'd better be sure to document and disclose the color change to any prospective purchaser. If you did that, I'd bet it would increase the value, but not up to the true factory blueboys. (Not because of quality, but simply because of originality). Again, that is my perspective as a Rick buyer.

As for quality, I've had a few guitars professionally refinished (Pat Wilkins) and you'd be surprised. Mine came out beautifully and all of the examples I've seen on here look very, very nice too.

You gotta remember, 620s (in and of themselves) aren't that rare. The rarity comes from the color, and MapleGlo is not a rare one. Not to slag on you, I play early 90's 360s in JetGlo. Again, not a rare guitar at all. They are both great guitars but not rare. So, I wouldn't be too terribly concerned with changing the color as long as it is reasonably tasteful (how do you measure that?) and done by a professional who will not screw up your instrument.

Also, if you are set on refinishing, why don't you hunt for a used one that is less expensive, or even a little nicked up? You could save some money that way. Again, I got a 4001 from Kenny 4 or 5 years ago that was pretty beat up and had it refinished by Pat Wilkins. That thing looks brand new! (Paul W., if I'd known you then, I would have sent it to you. You get the next one... Just don't cringe on the color choice).

Just my thoughts as a Rick buyer and player... Not a guitar collector.

Take it easy and good luck,

JKC

PS For what it's worth, I recently traded my 360 BlueBoy and sometimes regret it. That is a beautiful color... But, the guitar I got for it was worth it for me.

[octagon]

Peter did you get the message I just sent you?

[jwinstonp]

mitch thank yo for the help.

I am having a tough time in my mind buying a guitar for $1500 and then having it repainted. It just seems a waste.

I imagine that when they refinish they will need to strip the guitar down and then paint it and they also have to deal with binding which makes it even more of a difficult time for paint. More work.

I can't see a refinish job being cheap. So even at a minimum of $200 which would never happen(probably more like $500), I would be talking about $1700 for a refinished 620.

I wish I could just find a beat up 620 that is begging for a refin and for cheap.

I am not looking for rare, etc. etc. I just know that in the past having owned a few fenders and gibsons and selling them that it was a giant pain in the ***. If anything was unoriginal or refinned then it was a dog that just wouldnt sell. If I ever have to sell the guitar or someday 100 years from now one of my grandkids needs money and trys to sell then they will deal with the scrutiny and bs that comes along with a refinished non original guitar. And the value will be nothing.

so, while I dont own a rick and really want this I am having a tough time squaring away the idea of $1700-$2000 for a non original guitar.

[alanz]

If the binding is in good condition it is left on the guitar and masked off when the liquid stuff gets shot on it.

But, the good guys here charge, uh, "more" than $200. More than $500, too, maybe. There's a lot of labor involved in this; multiple strippings and sandings, sealer, sanding, color, sanding, clear coat, sanding, sanding and then some buffing and waxing and well, you get it.

You have to want to pay for good work; you get what you pay for with this stuff, just like in the rest of life. There is no WalMart of Refins here at RickResource.

[wj350]

Johneek is a very wise man. If I were planning on spending coin on a refin, I'd find a beater and go for it. Well maybe not a total beater, but I certainly wouldn't buy new.

Bill

[brianeharmonjr]

I don't think I've ever even seen a 620 blueboy. I'd love to see some pictures if anyone has some. I've seen 650C's, 660's, 330's, 340's, 360's, 370's, 4003's, and even a 325/12, but never a 620 BB.