Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

The FG dyes seem to be quite light-stable, unlike most reds. Experience tells us it would darken.

You gonna try an experiment with one of the 4005s, Ken???

JH has speculated in an archived discussion about RIC finishes that older FG instruments could go very dark in time. Perhaps even close to black near the edges, I think is what he said.

Should I start to sunbath my 4005 to give it nice tan? I think it spent too much time in smoke free studio.

Be glad it was smoke free!

Might also depend on the kind of smoke they were using.......

I think we should test that theory.

Or we could just ask Dane Terry.

I'll speak for Dane... the smoke's made my JG pretty dark...

I would be surprised if sunlight actually darkened FG because UV is the ultimate bleacher of color pigment. Mind you, if it darkened the wood than it might make the FG look darker.

give it a couple of years...

Don't test it on fireglo! I've seen several instruments bleach badly when left in shop windows. My 68 is ever so slightly bleached in the front compared to the back.

I think the varnish is what darkens. Not the pigment itself.

It's important to note that U.V. inhibitors are not permanent. They are chemical compounds mixed into varnishes and certain resins and they do their job by "sacrificing" themselves. Over time, they get used up and in the case of varnish, replenishing them is usually a matter of adding more new varnish on top of the old layers or stripping and recoating. Once the absorber is sufficiently degraded, the U.V. starts to attack the varnish or resin itself which may yellow, darken, chalk, crack, crumble, turn rubbery or a number of other nasty things depending on what exact compound you're dealing with. So, sunbathing your Ric may not be such a great idea. There is a good technical piece on U.V. absorbers in general and how they work here (but I don't believe the 303 products would be a good thing to put on a guitar as they're made more for vinyl, rubber, etc.) The stuff would be great on a tolex case though.

http://www.303products.com/tech/index.cfm?fuseaction=product.display&Product_ID=381

Both do. The ambering of the varnish alone would not turn FG to a near chocolate brown, as we've seen on some old Ricks. It would merely give the FG (which is a single color dye sprayed in varying thicknesses) an orangish tone. Instead, we see a nice hefeweisen amber in the center, blending into orange in the halo, to reddish brown in the edges. This could only be as a result of the entire pigmented area changing color to the same degree, and in areas where the pigment is heavier, the color change is more dramatic.

Todd, this product is made for plastics, to counteract the plastics' sacrificial effect. Vinyl is one of the most volatile in this respect. In my experience, the UV inhibitors in clear coats act in a different way, as blockers.