430 questions

[ziess]

Hey, I think this would be better placed here than in the general discussion section.

I just picked up my first Rickenbacker for cheap! It's a lowly '74 (from the pot codes) 430 in a faded-to-yellow white.
The tuners have been changed to plastic-tipped Gibson Deluxe Kluson-a-likes and the bridge has been changed out to some Schaller stoptail monstrosity.
The Schaller seems to have completely the wrong string spacing for the guitar with the strings being too widely-spaced at the heel end of the neck so, along with the fact that it's clunky and ugly, it needs replacement?
Any ideas on what to replace it with? I'm a big trem fan (all my other Electric guitars have trems) so a Bigsby would very much be on the cards. I presume that there would be nothing to stop me fitting a decent bridge and a B5 tailpiece? The neck is set pretty high on the body for a bolt-on so the break angle over the bridge would be no problem.
If I wanted to go down this route does anyone have any suggestions as to which bridge I ought to use? If I wanted to go hardtail, is there a combined bridge/tailpiece I could use or would I have to use some kind of separate tailpiece?

Another thing that's bothering me is the electronics. The bridge pickup has all the bass rolled through a cap (probably seemed like a good idea in the '70s) but I just wanted to check that I'm not going to make a big mistake rewiring this thing! The electronics are as-of-yet untouched so I'd be messing with some vintage (ha!) wiring.

Thanks,
Tommy.

[kiramdear]

HI!

My '75 430 came with a standard 330-style bridge that sits on a stop bridge plate with string slots and the serial number stamped on it. Replacements for the stop tailpiece are available from a couple of sources online (I want to say Stew-Mac). If you want to go with a B5, I would suggest the standard bridge plate from the RIC boutique and standard bridge. This will leave you with three screw holes showing right behind the plate. And if you're thinking of installing a Bigsby, then you'll have to drill four more, of course. The B5 will add sustain and darkness to the tone, in my experience. Proper pickup height and balance makes a huge advantage as well.

Those are some things to think about. Hope it helps.

I love my 430, BTW. I call it my Rickencaster.

[ziess]

Hey, thanks!
Do you have any pictures of your bridge? It comes in two parts?

Tommy.

[kiramdear]

Sure. It is a standard RIC bridge that sits on a plate with keyholes for the string ends. Very simple and third party replacements are available online. I can't remember where I saw them, sorry.

[ziess]

Ok, I assume it mounts on the three screw holes. Does the bridge itself (as opposed to the plate) mount onto the plate or onto the guitar's body? If it mounts to the body does it have legs (like a Gibson-style bridge) or does it just screw on?
I'm asking because my guitar obviously has two mounting holes for the stoptail but I don't know if they're original or not.

Tommy.

[kiramdear]

The bridge stands like a table on four adjustable screws that simply sit in four divots in the bridge plate, and the two parts are held together only by string tension. The bridge can be bought new from RIC. The plate is what you must hunt for or have made special. There are two smaller screws under the bridge as well - in all there are five screws that hold down the plate.

[doctorwho]

Tommy, here is a good exploded drawing of the Rickenbacker bridge:

http://www.rickenbacker.com/pdfs/gbridge.pdf

The only difference between the current bridge and the one that was originally on your 430 is in the type of screws for the saddle adjustment.

Here are a couple of pictures of the September 1975 430 that I once owned:

430 bridge

Sept 1975 430 Matte Black

[kiramdear]

That one is spiffy, Gary. I like the jetglo. I just installed silver top knobs on mine so now it looks worn and loved but 100% Rickenbacker.

[ziess]

Thanks guys, I'll digest all that and see how I want to proceed.
Are there any other choices for a Rickenbacker bridge that'll fit?

Any objections to me rewiring this thing to better suit me?

Tommy.

[badeggs]

Any objections to me rewiring this thing to better suit me?

It's your guitar, man - by all means, have at it!

[kiramdear]

Thanks guys, I'll digest all that and see how I want to proceed.
Are there any other choices for a Rickenbacker bridge that'll fit?

Any objections to me rewiring this thing to better suit me?

Tommy.

If you're planning on installing a B5, the the Bigsby "bow-tie" bridge may be a nice option for you. I guess you could use it without the B5 too. They look cool, although they don't offer adjustable, individual saddles.

Wiring changes are usually reversible, so why not?

[ziess]

Hmm, the only problem is that the 430 seems to have a really narrow neck... It's 51mm (2") as opposed to the 55m (2 3/4") of my Gretsches and upon trying the Bigsby bridge from my 6128, it's too wide for the 430's neck.
I see un-cut Bigsby bridges online for sale though, is the normal way to do it to buy one and then slot it to suit the guitar?
What is a Rickenbacker's normal string-spacing anyway?

Thanks again,
Tommy.

[kiramdear]

Tommy,

You'll need a bridge with slots to "funnel" the spacing between B5 and bridge. The Bigsby's spacing is a little bit wider than the bridge spacing. I used mine with the standard 330-style bridge with slots filed in the saddles, and there was no problem at all from the B5. You can even pinch the spacing a little on the back roller to get a little bit better visual alignment, and friction will hold them where you put them (within a small range of slide-ways movement). But it doesn't affect function or playability. The 430's neck width at the last fret does feel more narrow than standard, but it still fits a standard Rick bridge just fine, so I'm not sure about that.

Say, if you search the forum for "430" you will come up with several threads that I started about my 430, and tons of pictures One of them gives a look inside the pickups, and others show my guitar with and without Bigsby

[jps]

I'm still waiting for all 430 questions, so far there have only been a few?

[kiramdear]

Patience, Grasshopper. All will be revealed to you when you are ready.


(dontcha hate that??)