360c63/12 string spacing

[Medicus1963]

Hi experts,

if i look to certain pictures of 360c63/12 guitars versus standard 360/12 it looks like the first has some wider string spacing and a bit of awider neck! I mean not the spacing between the pairs.
Is this correct or some optical miracle? Did Rickenbacker have the 360c63 in early 1990?

Thanks for helping !

Peter

[collin]

It's an optical illusion. While I'm sure the c63 neck is different width (slightly) that te earlier v64 model that preceded it, the string spacing between octave and main strings is wider than vintage or c63 spec. Therefore, the strings appear more "crowded" on the board than on a c63 or vintage model

[stsang]

Did Rickenbacker have the 360c63 in early 1990?

Hi Peter,

The 360/12c63 came out in late 2005. The neck width is the same as the standard 360/12's (1.63 inches):
360/12c63 specs: http://www.rickenbacker.com/model.asp?model=360/12C63
360/12 specs: http://www.rickenbacker.com/model.asp?model=360/12

The one difference is that the c63 has a crown radius of 7.25 inches (vintage spec) while the standard model's is 10 inches.

Hope that helps.

Cheers
-Simon

[Medicus1963]

Thank you all!
So i think the guitar i was offered must be a 360/12v64. Does any body know the data and specifications of this guitar ?

thanks

Peter

[stsang]

Thank you all!
So i think the guitar i was offered must be a 360/12v64. Does any body know the data and specifications of this guitar ?

thanks

Peter

Hi Peter,

Check this out at the RIC site:
http://www.rickenbacker.com/catalog_pos ... tage-6.jpg

The table states the 360V64 neck as having a width at the nut of 1 and 5/8" (1.625") and crown radius of 12". So the width is more or less the same as the c63, but with a flatter crown radius.

The other difference is that the V64 series came from the factory with the hotter wound toaster pickups - around 11-12K Ohms. The c63 has scatterwound toaster pickups more like early/mid-1960s guitars. I think the c63's neck pickup is wound to around 5K Ohms and the bridge pickup to 7.4K Ohms.

The c63 also has the 0.0047uF capacitor inline in the bridge pickup circuit (the V64 doesn't), so it will not only play differently from the V64, but sound different too.

All the best,
Simon

[silvergp05]

Sound differently Simon? How so?

[Folkie]

Paging Simon Tsang!

I'm this close to purchasing a new 360/12C63, but first I want to be sure that I like the string-spacing, as I'd rather not go through the whole rigmarole of replacing the nut and bridge. Am I correct that your C63 has less space between each low course and octave than your 2002 360/12? To your knowledge, is that true of all C63's? (I believe this was suggested earlier, but I found this thread very confusing! ) How does the C63 sound and play different from your 360/12?

Robert

[J1854Me]

Robert, I hate to say it, but it might be an idea for you to spring for 2-way shipping and try the C63 for its playability, perhaps if purchasing from someone who'll give you an audition period.

I used to have a RM model 370/12, which I think had generally the same neck geometry as the C64 model, and struggled with playing that guitar. The C63 that I bought a few years ago had a 72-hr audition period so I was able to try it and make sure I could play it comfortably (bought it from Dave's -- thanks Laun!), and it "fit the bill" so to speak right away. I could tell that its ergonomics suited me better.


I'm just getting a 12-string saddle bridge installed on it now, and then I should be all set.

Best of luck getting it all sorted out!
Fred

[Folkie]

Thanks, Fred. The dealer I'm considering buying from has a 72 hour return policy. Perhaps I shouldn't worry so much about string-spacing anyway. Todd Bradshaw and many others here have replaced nuts and bridges on their Rics without batting an eyelash. I just want my tech to have to do the least work possible.

By the way, I can't remember if the 6-saddle bridges and the 12-saddle ones are priced comparably. I like the tone of my 360/12 with the 12-saddle bridge, but I'm a little wary of modding a signature model like the George Harrison by changing the bridge. I know there have been multiple threads here defending the tone of the six-saddle. Even John Hall described a difference in tone between the two. Does anyone have any fresh thoughts about this?

Robert