x

[hwestman]

I realize I violated some rule here so... I have removed the text...

Sorry, no harm intended.

[jingle_jangle]

These pickups are in violation of RIC trade dress. Interesting that on Artec's site in English, these pickups are not shown. There are also not any on eBay, anymore, at least that I can find.

This is the reason I deleted this same post from the "Vibrola" section.

[johnhall]

Not to put too fine a point on it, but Toaster is a Lanham Act trademark (TM) of RIC and as required to take a case to Federal Court is now being upgraded to registered status (circle R). Use the word carefully please . . .

[scotty]

Ouch.........Thing is i understand availability and price living in Europe can be a pain in the backside but the way i see it is if you have a proper Ric whats the point in putting something Non Ric on it.Ive changed to toasters in a few of my guitars and yes they do cost a lot but you cant beat the unmistakable sound from a toaster pickup be it a 7K or a 12K.

[hwestman]

Sorry if i did something bad. I apologize.

[fireglo67]

I'll be on the phone to Argos in the morning.
They've got loads of Toasters advertised and not one of them is made by Rickenbacker.

[scotty]

I'll be on the phone to Argos in the morning.
They've got loads of Toasters advertised and not one of them is made by Rickenbacker.

Im sure i saw a kettle drum in there too!

[hwestman]

Ouch.........Thing is i understand availability and price living in Europe can be a pain in the backside but the way i see it is if you have a proper Ric whats the point in putting something Non Ric on it.Ive changed to toasters in a few of my guitars and yes they do cost a lot but you cant beat the unmistakable sound from a toaster pickup be it a 7K or a 12K.

Yeah... that's as crazy as having a Fender, Gibson, Ibanez, Gretsch etc. with aftermarket pickups... Don't know what I was thinking Better inform Duncan, DiMarzio, Lollar, Novak and others that they are doing crazy stuff.



I apologize for entering this forum. I obviously am not pure enough to reside here. I mistook this for a place along the lines of TDPRI, Offsetguitars etc...

Could some moderator please delete my account,thank you!

[jingle_jangle]

Another total misunderstanding of IP regulations and ethics...

[winston]

Harald,

It is best if you PM myself or Peter (Admin) if you truly want your account deleted.

[scotty]

Its just my thought doesn't mean im right its up to anyone what they do with their guitar.If anyone wants to Mod their guitar to their taste nobody is stopping them.Dont take offence i certainly didnt mean to cause any as far as you saying your not pure enough to reside here thats daft this forum is full of people that arent pure enough.

[rkbsound]

So the point is, unless you are referring to a Rickenbacker (RIC) pickup as a "toaster", do not refer to any other pickups manufactured by someone else as "toaster". Sort of like "Coke" and "Kleenex". The design is probably protected as well. As long as RIC has protected these names and designs, then they should remain protected. Kudos to them for staying on top of it -- it certainly must be a pain, but I'd bet that Gibson or Fender wishes they had done the same. I also would bet that John Hall would be the first to applaud modifying guitars. It's his job to make sure that other manufacturers of guitar parts don't rip him off. If not, who knows what would be on the guitars we buy - new or used.

[jingle_jangle]

... as far as you saying your not pure enough to reside here thats daft this forum is full of people that arent pure enough.

...there you go, giving away our darkest secret.

[johnhall]

We could care less how anyone mods their guitars; more power to you if you want to customize everything. Just don't call someone else's product a "Toaster" or use parts that look like a Toaster. That Toaster shape is already a fully registered trademark, specifically #2,665,042.

[whojamfan]

Here I was, seeing the title of this topic, thinking Billy Zoom had gone over to playing Rickenbackers
Billy is/was/is the guitar player for the Los Angeles band X.
Scott, stop scaring away the new folks! Oh well, if only they new what an interesting sort most of us are anyways