1964 RM1999 (DC126 - Squire's is DC127) for sale...

[Lefty4003S8]

Thank you Paul for that info. I have often wondered about that "Gap-Toothed" bridge thing.

Lefty4003s8











Do not drink from the toilet when taking Lyrica

[aceonbass]

The original cast aluminum tailpieces didn't actually have proper molds. They were sand cast, which means destroying the mold every time you break a new casting out of the sand and then making a new mold in the sand with a master buck . These would have been done with an upper and lower half to the sand "molds". The gap was probably caused by a piece of steel used to align the molds and act as a heat sink that once removed, left the gap. The V63 and C64 tailpieces just had the gap cut before they were plated.

[bassduke49]

Thanks, Dane. Correct.

[philipharris]

Come on, someone must be able to tell us where we can see this thing, or find the details? Isn't that what this forum's for? Kevin? Henny?

[philipharris]

Aha - found it, or at least the ebay echo of it. Oh well, let's see if it come back up....

[berth]

Aha - found it, or at least the ebay echo of it. Oh well, let's see if it come back up....

What do you search for, and on which ebay site (which country)?

[edit] I found this on gbase.

[henry5]

Hey Henny, welcome back! Hope you're well.

That bass is rather tasty and I have to agree with Andrew that in UK terms that's a pretty good price. I thought the company in question (MG) went bust though?

[godber]

Hey Henny, welcome back! Hope you're well.

That bass is rather tasty and I have to agree with Andrew that in UK terms that's a pretty good price. I thought the company in question (MG) went bust though?

I think that's true.
http://www.mi-pro.co.uk/news/30985/Musi ... -appointed

[johnhall]

Hmmm. According to our records, both DC126 and DC127 are invalid serial numbers and don't appear on any Rose Morris invoices. DC193 IS a valid number.

I'm going to have to contact Richard Davis, Chris's tech, to see what's actually on the bass.

[aceonbass]

John, does DC193 show to be a 4001S or an actual RM1999?

[johnhall]

DC193 does not show up on an RM invoice, so I would assume it's a 4001S. It would take further digging in the files to verify how it was billed.

[pag]

One of my RMs was DD458.
I traded it on after the headstock had bent forward too far to be straightened (this was in 1982).
The fretboard had already been replaced by a rather thick un-Rickenbacker like rosewood one to raise the strings and compensate for the moving headstock.When I did the deal at Guitar Player in Rochdale the owner of the shop said that a collector would buy it due to its rarity. I was a bit surprised at the time that anyone would want an un-giggable Rick!
Today I would have sent it to be fixed and brought back to as near original as possible but back then we had no internet to contact experts like those on this forum.

The reason I mention this is because I have just spoken to Music Ground and this bass has that very same problem.
That explains the £5000 price tag because the guitar is in effect a non playable (not for gigs and certainly not with roundwounds) bass.
If you look at the photos theres a couple of screw holes either side of the trc that are for a string retainer.
There are old photos of both Genesis and Roger Waters with their RMs sporting what look like elastic bands or wire to act as string retainers for the same problem.

All was not as rosy as we think nowadays in the 60s/70s world of the RM bass and the big criticism of the 60s Rick bass in the 70s was that it couldnt withstand the tension of Rotosound Swingbass strings.
Having had a couple of RMs with no adverse reaction to Swingbass strings I think the problem some RM basses had was a mixture of bad setup and storage.You can never rule out the lack of correct truss rod adjustment knowledge with Ricks having dual rods and we have all seen threads here regarding bent necks etc. that were sorted after some tlc with the truss rods and general setup.

Back to this bass............
Its had a re-fin some time ago to emulate Squires bass.
The tuners are recent Schallers and the pup selector looks wrong but other than that I think all the hardware could be as original as Music Ground claim it to be .
So in all this bass is not the holy grail or a gigging vintage Rick for the discerning player and although five grand is steep its got a lot of rare equipment attatched to its person.
What it might be to someone out there is a lifeline (expensive one at that but the results could be worth it) for a very good 60s bass that is missing the original (slim tail too!)horse shoe and surround,and the impossible to find aluminium bridge tail (in good nick ) plus the original wiring (if it is still ok under the hood) and tug bar (could be a recent one) and trc.
If I had a couple of 60s Ricks and a bit of spare cash I would be trying for a deal on this as a spares backup bass.
Its being sold on behalf of a customer by the way so a deal might be on the cards depending on his/her bottom line.
Its just possible that someone out there can restore the headstock/neck to its proper angle which would be a justification for the outlay.
I should be recieving some more pics of this so will keep you guys informed.

Interesting bass this.

[henny]

Comprehensive replies as always, (I'm just the messenger.)

Thanks for clearing a few things up about it!

The roundwound tension issue is what steers me away from ever investing in an old 60s 4001, as a gigging bassist, I rather like the rigidity of my StingRay's fat neck at the moment!!

Does this place have a "For Sale" section anymore? - Did it ever have one? (I can't recall...)

I'm on the hunt for a 4003S, prefrably Jetglo - I sold one to somebody on here about 4 years ago!!

[bassduke49]

We do have a "For Sale" section. You should see it in the directory of Forum topics. Look for "Marketplace" then you will see the for sale section as well as "on line" "wanted" and "appraisals."

[godber]

Comprehensive replies as always, (I'm just the messenger.)

Thanks for clearing a few things up about it!

The roundwound tension issue is what steers me away from ever investing in an old 60s 4001, as a gigging bassist, I rather like the rigidity of my StingRay's fat neck at the moment!!

Does this place have a "For Sale" section anymore? - Did it ever have one? (I can't recall...)

I'm on the hunt for a 4003S, prefrably Jetglo - I sold one to somebody on here about 4 years ago!!

PM sent sir.