Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Sell the Black Robo-Plank.

Quote: "all fireglos will eventually end up being ambered with age ..."

I imagine that is true for the "real" red Fireglos.

But do you think it's true for the more modern pink/magenta Fireglos?
I doubt it, but maybe.
I won't be around to see it anyway.

You're not that old, Mark...or are you?}

Fuller's has a few AFGs
http://www.fullersguitar.com/index.php?page=shop.browse&category_id=16&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=42

what makes a fireglo turn amber is the clear coat turning amber ... so pretty much any Ric bass with a conversion varnish finish will turn amber with time ... I believe the amber fireglos currently produced by Ric has a clear coat that is already amber ... but as JH pointed out they will also yellow with time as well ...

Fuller also has the Billy Bo Penguin that is the first hardtail one made (my friend Bob has hardtail #2 and I have #3, the first with a vibrato)...they are asking almost $1K more than I paid for mine new last month.

Jeff is correct about the clearcoat turning amber. The wood also turns amber on any Rick with a MG or burst finish, as UV yellows maple. JG Ricks with ambered varnish typically look dark olive green when compared with a true black sample.

The AFGs made now have a tint in the varnish. You can see this by looking at the binding, which will usually show some amber color variation depending upon the thickness of the varnish from point to point around the guitar or bass' periphery.

"JG Ricks with ambered varnish typically look dark olive green when compared with a true black sample."

This is very true. My first (and only, until my AFG 660/12 arrives) Rickenbacker was a Jetglo 330/6, from the 70's. It wasn't taken care of very well at all. It's got a lot of varnish chiped and missing from the fretboard from the 12th on up, and some damage to the body's paint, but it's pretty minimal. But anyway, it was in not great shape, so I picked it up cheaply and got it to where it was playable, and it was very olive looking next to the bass player in my old band's 4003. It wasn't so noticable until they were next to each other.

Jeff, correct, it is the coating that turns amberish.
But wouldn't the base color underneath (red, pink, green, etc.) affect the appearance somehow?

As Paul mentions, the JGs supposedly look dark olive green when aging.

And Kris, I'm not sure what "that old" means but I certainly won't be around to see guitar coatings turn amber.

As I state above, it's also maple that yellows a bit with age.

Every MG Rick I've ever stripped, over a year or two old, displays tanlines under the pickups, guard, and bridge plate, even with all of the varnish removed.

Which brings us to..........drumroll please.......

The Va(r)nishing Point!

Ba dump bump!

And Kris, I'm not sure what "that old" means but I certainly won't be around to see guitar coatings turn amber.

You must be a pretty old guy then, as this starts happening the day the guitar is sprayed and is easily visible within a couple of years. Exposure to UV, whether from the sun or fluorescent lighting, is the variable factor.

Ah HA!

"Paul"...."stripped"....."tanlines"..... SEE, I told everyone they were FEMALE!

Yup, Paul, I recall you stating before about "tan lines" on the guitars you've worked on.

And JH, "this starts happening the day the guitar is sprayed and is easily visble [sic] within a couple of years. Exposure to UV, whether from the sun or flourescent [sic] lighting, is the variable factor."

Yes, we have all discussed here (and elsewhere) the subject of the (possible) effects of sunlight on guitars. That is one reason why I hang my 360/12 MG up in my studio. I am hoping that its color will "age" from its pale off-white to a rich warm wood color.

It has been out for over a year and the change might be so slow and gradual, but I do not notice a difference.
Let's check back in another year.

What I meant was, McGuinn's and Kantner's MGs are over 30 years old. I doubt very much I am going to be playing music and admiring my instruments 35 years from now.

PS: I am at least younger than you.

So all this means that more recent guitars can also look forward to a change, depending on their exposure?