Rickenbacker JetBurst?... Any such animal?

[Low End Lover]

Hello All,

So as I have been looking over the site, I have noticed Rics in every color burst except JetGlo. Has Ric ever done a JetBurst finish? If not, I vote that for the next COY.

LEL

[johnhall]

We've done them as tests before and they look awful. Trust me, you wouldn't like it.

[rickaddict]

And there you go, right from the man himself. Ain't this a great place?!

[FretlessOnly]

I'd be happy to have one of those tests! I think the closest thing that really worked was that one-of-a-kind 4003 from several months back that looked like a JG to grey-blue burst. DIdn't someone here get that one?

[Low End Lover]

We've done them as tests before and they look awful. Trust me, you wouldn't like it.

Well, that settles it then. Even though I know there is an excellent reason, I still wonder why it doesn't work?

[rickaddict]

... I have noticed Rics in every color burst except JetGlo. Has Ric ever done a JetBurst finish?..

I guess it would also matter what you had in mind as a "Jetburst."

I'm no finish expert, but what would you have in mind? Like a Gibson Les Paul Silverburst?

Or maybe a blackish tint that shows the wood grain in the middle but gets solid on the edges?

[rickenbrother]

There were samples of experimental finishes at RIC during the 75th anniversary factory tours. One of the samples was black burst sample, not a guitar, but a wood blank. It was nice, but didn't have the wow factor, at least to me. Maybe because I'd seen black burst finishes on much cheaper guitars. There was an aqua burst sample displayed, which got me hoping that when they got aqua burst to their liking at RIC, that it would some day be one of their finishes, even if it was a COY.

[libratune]

I'd be happy to have one of those tests! I think the closest thing that really worked was that one-of-a-kind 4003 from several months back that looked like a JG to grey-blue burst. DIdn't someone here get that one?

Is this the one you're thinking of?

4001C64 BlueBlack one off 1

4001C64 BlueBlack one off 2

I think someone here did get that, maybe Craig?

[s4001]

I'd be happy to have one of those tests! I think the closest thing that really worked was that one-of-a-kind 4003 from several months back that looked like a JG to grey-blue burst. DIdn't someone here get that one?

Is this the one you're thinking of?

2.jpg

3.jpg

I think someone here did get that, maybe Craig?

That one - not awful.

[FretlessOnly]

Is this the one you're thinking of?

Yes yes yes. I'd forgotten that it was a 4001C64.

Scott: Not awful? I had to strap on a drool bucket just to respond to Ron's post. If I recall, that one went for less than the $4,000 that the tobacco burst went for.

[cassius987]

I can see the Jetburst failing because it would be very difficult, to me, to actually do a "burst" blend just using black. Gibson's "Silverburst" requires more than one finish color; so do the examples being cited. I'm not sure I've ever seen a "blackburst" even though I've seen flat and trans black many times. It's probably really hard to pull off.

On the other hand I think traditional "sunbursts" (like FG) are just one finish color applied repeatedly in "concentrics", with some added black depending on the finisher.

Just imagine a guitar that looked like a JG on the periphery but had AFG's creamy center, or worse yet MG. I can't picture that in a nice way. Sort of like a tobacco-meets-tweed burst at best.

[FretlessOnly]

Which, Joshua, is exactly why that JG-dark blue-burst works so very well for me.

A Jetburst might work if the center were the now white with non-yellowing finish. But it could easily look like a cartoon (maybe that's what RIC observed). But black to green, black to burgundy, black to MID burst, black to orange, black to coppery gold, black to purple burst - all of these could work in spectacular fashion.

[Low End Lover]

A Jetburst might work if the center were the now white with non-yellowing finish. But it could easily look like a cartoon (maybe that's what RIC observed). But black to green, black to burgundy, black to MID burst, black to orange, black to coppery gold, black to purple burst - all of these could work in spectacular fashion.

Oh man, my imagination's running wild! This thread is turning out to be much more interesting that I could have imagined.

[FretlessOnly]

Well Jason, imagined is the key word there. The one-offs are perhaps all we'll see for a while that constitute real variations. Too much backlog to deal with. But there must be some other reason to produce these other than to bring in a couple of thousand extra dollars, right? RIght?

I dunno. Imagine buying a one-of-a-kind and having it become a regularly-produced item a year or two later. Sure, you have your serial # to designate the prototype, as it were, but...

[paologregorio]

There were samples of experimental finishes at RIC during the 75th anniversary factory tours. One of the samples was black burst sample, not a guitar, but a wood blank. It was nice, but didn't have the wow factor, at least to me. Maybe because I'd seen black burst finishes on much cheaper guitars. There was an aqua burst sample displayed, which got me hoping that when they got aqua burst to their liking at RIC, that it would some day be one of their finishes, even if it was a COY.

My memory of it was that it was Jet-glo-y, with grain that was just barely visible through in some spots. Things don't always work out as one envisions, even for the whizzes who've come up with the gorgeous standard and limited finishes coming out of the RIC factory.