1968 Burgundyglo 4001 a risky adventure

[Kopfjaeger]

Guy,

As pro9mised I'm posting the fotos of the 1968 4001 I purchased sight unseen off of Craigs List. it was advertised as a 1064 4001 but by the one ****** foto it was apparent it was a later 4001. The Serial number dates the bass to an October of 1968 made 4001(HJ). I contacted the owner in Denver and after a brief description by him, I told him it was a 68 instrument. he claims to know nothing about Rickenbackers, this was going to very obvious very soon. I purchased her after I was pretty certain she had no structural issues.

She arrived yesterday and I was horrified by the condition of the shipping carton. It seriously looks like the box was dragged from behind the vehicle from Denver to my home!! Luckily the seller packed the **** out of the bass inside the original case.

The positives first.

The finish is Burgundyglo and it is fantastic as well as original to the bass. it has some scuffs and some dings but nothing major. There is zero structural damage tot he neck, board or body! The electronic components all look original. The .047 caps are both 400v rated Ajax and the .0047 is the little aqua colored bugger. The switch looks good as do the pots but someone rewired her with clear speaker wire. Why, I do not know. The toaster pup is a vintage perfect short pole type! The tail piece and bridge are the correct cast aluminum and the mute pad device is the multi-angle type like the one in my 1965 bass. Pretty cool!!

The neck on this bass is every bit as slim ans Mark Walker's very slim neck on his ^8 horsie bass that I'm babysitting for him. Actually, the neck on this is as slim , if not slimmer than the the neck on my 1965 4001!

The not so good. The treble side truss rod threaded section is sort. I may need to-cut a 1/4 inch of the rod and shorten the non threaded end. i do have a new pair of rods that Paul W made so maybe I'll just throw them in. The pickguard is cracked.

The bad, the horsie is a re-issue. The same type as found in v63-c64 basses!! The shoes are steel but not magnetic. The bobbin has those huge-*** magnetic slugs!! Some idiot replaced every pick guard screw with machine screws That are too long and wide!! This includes the tug bar. The heads were snapped on the tug bar screws so someone glued the tugbar to the pickguard. The screws were still going through the tug bar and was preventing me from getting the guard off. I had to break the tug bar in order to get to the screws so I could put a vice grip on them and turn both posts out in order to get the guard off. The TRC has blurry lettering so I'm of the opinion it's not original either.

I immediately contacted the owner to say the bass is not what was advertised and I would be returning it. According the owner, he told me he knew nothing about Rickenbackers and that he paid a premium for the bass and he described it to the best of his abilities. I think that's a load of **** and now it makes sense why he did not want payment via a credit card or Pay Pal. I would have had some recourse. Not so much with the bank check I paid with.

I will be contacting the Colorado better Business bureau and reporting a fraud claim.

So now instead of a plug and play bass, i have another project!!

Sepp

[Kopfjaeger]

More fotos.

Any opinion on this TRC?

[rickaddict]

The TRC looks original to me. There aren't any extra holes in the headstock beneath it, are there?

It looks like a cool, mojo'd, mostly original, rare, burgundy, '68 4001 to me. Looks like it has a lot going for it.

The wiring is messed with, but could be brought back to work as it should. Also, it looks like the tail was machined out to give more room to lower the bridge.

But this one is hardly a basket case...I guess the big question that needs to be asked is: What did you pay for it? But that would be rude of me to ask, so don't answer!

Could you sell it and recover your investment?

[rickaddict]

Oops! Just saw the original thread on the bass so I know the Craig's List asking price!

Don't mind me! I'll go back to sleep now!

[Gilmourisgod]

Nice looking bass, sorry for your troubles with the seller. Are those the original frets? They look fatter than original, and it doesn't look like the binding has "nibs" at the fret ends, but could just be the photo. The checkerboard binding and crushed MOP inlay are too cool.

[Kopfjaeger]

She does have a lot going for her but I paid way too much!! I'm not sure if this bass should have a harsie in her. October is pretty late. I know the Fireglo that sold in Toronto a few month back had a horsie and she too was late 1968.

If the frets are not original then the luthier that put them in did a very nice job! They appear to have been cleaned and dressed a bit and they exhibit very minor wear. The fretboard to stunning and has age cracking in the two closest to the body.

She has wonderful bones and 90% of the original parts including the pup surround. I'm going to send the pickguard to Dane to have him go over the components to see what is good and what is not, since I never even plugged this in.

Sepp

[jdogric12]

The fact that Vince did not beat you to it should have been the first and biggest clue. Sorry to see you got burned. I know that's a lousy feeling! Heck, throw it on ebay immediately and hope two of the people who called after you and offered more haven't seen this thread!

[Kopfjaeger]

Jason,

While I don't have the vast resources that Vince does, I did get a good jump on this bass out of the gate. I'm not so sure that he was not in line after me. Wish I hadn't been so quick on this one but it is what it is.

I won't take a ****** foto of her and put her on ebay in the hopes to stick someone else with her. As in my day job, my credibility is of the utmost importance to me. Without it, I have nothing. I'll bring this bass back to respectability whether I have a pup built, purchase one, or one falls out of the sky and hits me in the head. It may take a while but she'll be smoking. She already has a solid foundation.

Sepp

[rickaddict]

Jason,

I won't take a ****** foto of her and put her on ebay in the hopes to stick someone else with her. As in my day job, my credibility is of the utmost importance to me. Without it, I have nothing. I'll bring this bass back to respectability whether I have a pup built, purchase one, or one falls out of the sky and hits me in the head. It may take a while but she'll be smoking. She already has a solid foundation.

Sepp

I don't think Jdog is suggesting that you take bad, grainy photos to try to scam someone into paying what you paid for a bass that isn't worth it, Sepp. I think what he's saying (and I agree) is that it might be worth the price you paid to someone else despite what you see as issues. Some people would actually prefer the re-issue horseshoe pickup. Maybe someone might think it's worth $7,000 with the re-issue pickup and would be glad that they didn't have to pay a higher price for the bass had it come with the original pickup. You never know. I'd say...if you're sure that you don't want it, it's worth a shot to put it up as-is with great photos and full disclosure and see what happens.

[brycycle]

Jason, I was next in line...nice try though!

Is there a link to a discussion on the '68 FG that sold in Toronto recently? Always stings to miss one in my own city.

Thanks-

[Ashgray]

Hi Sepp

Really sorry to hear that you seemingly got sold a pup there. Speaking as someone who has recently got stung by someone of (apparently) good reputation that seriously mis-advertised a Rick that I ended up buying for a top-dollar price, on the basis of trust and desire (which I've learned can sometimes be conflicting feelings), you have my sympathies. To find that the horsie is, in fact, only a re-issue, and for you to find truss rod and other issues on arrival of the bass that are indicative of a careless amateur's work is unforgiveable - sellers who shaft enthusiasts in this way need bringing to book. If the seller in my case was local to me, he'd have had his collar felt by now, but from across continents and oceans, I could do nothing. Like me, it sounds as though some of the work that was done to this bass was done cynically, with no real care, respect or appreciation for the instrument. Me - I'm biding my time before taking action but for you perhaps, if you paid by Paypal for this bass, you may find that you have some recourse though.

I hope that you get this project sorted out, to the point where it becomes a beautiful instrument that speaks to you, but in truth, it shouldn't need to be a project for you in the first place.

Ash

[teeder]

IMO, it's possible to have had a greenie hi-gain in October '68. There was some over-lap there.

[Kopfjaeger]

I don't think Jdog is suggesting that you take bad, grainy photos to try to scam someone into paying what you paid for a bass that isn't worth it, Sepp. I think what he's saying (and I agree) is that it might be worth the price you paid to someone else despite what you see as issues. Some people would actually prefer the re-issue horseshoe pickup. Maybe someone might think it's worth $7,000 with the re-issue pickup and would be glad that they didn't have to pay a higher price for the bass had it come with the original pickup. You never know. I'd say...if you're sure that you don't want it, it's worth a shot to put it up as-is with great photos and full disclosure and see what happens.

Jeff,

I thought twice about engaging in a reply but I've been shy about how I feel so here goes.

No Jason did not say to take a grainy foto but that was done to me. A clear shot from a good angle or a few general fotos would have told me all I needed to know. To sell her on ebay I'd have to put up the same **** foto since better fotos would tell a lot.

What Jason did suggest was to pass her down the line. Hey, it's a dog eat dog world out here and I see that everyday but I won't be the one doing the screwing. I can't since it rubs every fiber of my being the wrong way.

Here is a very relevant question for you, if you were duped by me because I sold you an instrument that I knew was a lemon, would you be ******-off? Would I have been right to stick you with it? I think you know the answer to both!

It's a moot point really since I'm not going to saddle anyone with this bass. I'll fix her and enjoy her. I'm never afraid of posting fotos of anything on my collection, it's how we all learn. Perhaps I have very little to share with "serious" collectors but most here seem to appreciate my transparency and my willingness to share my collection with the forum. That's what it's ll about, right?

Sepp

[Ontario_RIC_fan]

Sepp...

I am sorry that things did not turn out as you wished with the bass.. I am pleased that you will try to sort them - I think it is a lovely shade of Burgundy at least!

It may take a bit of work - but I think in the end it will be a keeper.

[Kopfjaeger]

Brian,

I will get her sorted out but like I said, I really did not want another project. This is already an expensive one! I will most likely put a correct horsie on her since there was no set date for phase out.

If Vince has any info to share about what the latest month a horsie shows up in, I'd love to hear it. Also the green bobbin with slotted pole pieces, when did that come into play with a horsie. I can only imagine it's the same pup with a magnet on the bottom in place of the magnetic shoes. For the most part, this pup continued into 1973 but the magnet size changed along the way.

There an HK with a horsie in the register as well as earlier one without so I believe this one could have had one. At least it's not a stretch to have one there.

Sepp