Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

I've used them John, and actually have them on my FL also, they are kind of floppy but I haven't really used them enough to get used to them, I like the TI's, Pyramids and Fenders for flats. The Rotos are a very different feel from round wounds. I think the Pyramids are pretty close in tone to McCartney also and are closer in feel to a round wound.

I have a concern about string tension as well, and I hear the black nylon Rotos are lower tension than, say, Labellas or Pyramids. I like light-gauge rounds (40-95) normally, that's what was on the bass before I started the work.....

Yeah they are very low tension, the TI's are too, they have much less tension than their gauges would indicate, and they are brighter and feel much better to me, I love Ti's on 4001's, they remind me of the strings that were on my 77 4001 when I bought it brand new. TI's are also a very high output string which means your bass will be quieter too. The Rotos are definitely different from all other strings I have tried. I think paul Yan has them on his FL too, maybe he has some more playing time with them and has a more favorable opinion.

Bob and John,
Those black strings on my '72 FL are the Rickenbacker nylon tapewounds. They are loud and twangy. They make my '72 sound like a bright upright acoustic bass in the toaster position when plugged into a clean amp like the Ampeg B100R.



I've never tried the black nylon Rotosound flatwounds though.

Paul, what are the gauges on the RIC strings? I think the Rotos start out at 65, don't they??

John,
The RIC tapewounds are 45-56-77-103.
They have a little more tension than the T-I flats but are very comfortable to play.

John the Rotos are gauged at 65, 85, 100, 115.

I tried them on my Rick, they are very strange! the whole bass feels odd with such thick massive strings and a thin neck. I also think they dont do the ricks sound any favors - very muddy and rubbery sounding.

I think if you can find a set of nylons that are more standard in their guage - your bass will sound pretty good.

Paul are the RIC nylons discontinued?

Yeah they are huge, the only reason i was able to put them on my 72 was because it has a nut that allows about any size string. The slots are cut on a slight slant (looks like it was a factory thing, not done by hand) so you could put a .150 in there if you wanted to, and also can put a .095 and neither of them will budge, I think they were great nuts, do you have those on your 72's also, John and Paul? (sounds familiar doesn't it?)I'm now going to check out Pauls picture closely so I'll probably know after I post this.

Since the RIC nylon set has been discontinued, what is RIC using now for their fretless models?

Bob, my '72 has a nut at present that's unoriginal, and I plan on having a bone nut cut for it. My '79 4001LH has it's original black nut and it's cut like you describe, like a wedge...

Wow, I had no idea the RIC tapewounds have been discontinued. Is it true? I bought my set from Mike Parks in this past March. Now I've just checked his site and he doesn't have any more in stock...

Bob,
Here are some closeup shots of my '72 headstock and nut slots. I think the nut slots are pretty how you described. Notice that the rod nuts/ends are bent back down and can't be grabbed by RIC's recommended hex socket driver. I shall do something about it in the near future as I'd like to give the neck a little lesss relief, though she plays fine with her current setup. (Ignorant me don't even know how to pull them out to bend the ends back haha.)

Paul, that's a great shot of the nut on your fretless...I'll use this as the example when I get the bone nut cut for my 4001LH.

I think so Paul, I'm not sure, I thought my slots were wider and flatter and a little more slanted but I haven't seen it for 4 months again, and won't for another 6 months probably.
I've had that problem with several basses, it is a delicate situation, haha! No I've usually just bent them up with a pair of needle nose pliers or have pried them up with a screwdriver just enough to get the nut driver on them, one other thing I've done was to turn the nuts manually with the needle nose pliers until I could get the nut driver on them. And if I couldn't I would just take the nuts right off, pull the rods and then inspect and bend. Actually I think that is probably the safest way. I don't think any of my methods are luthier approved, it is a difficult thing to do without damaging something. Once I can get the nut driver on them I'll take them out enough to inspect them, if they are ok, I'll just bend them straight and hope they stay that way. I've had surgery on two of them because of that situation.
And actually are there any nuts available for 4001's or do I have to have one cut also? My 79 has an unoriginal wooden nut and I'd like an original one if possible and the new ones are a little too wide.

Paul it will be hard to get those rods out without , as Bob says, bending them up a bit with a screwdriver. Dunno what yours is like , but my 4001 has grooves chiseled into the wood behind the nuts, i thought this was a hack job to get at the bent rods but there was original finish over that area so im not sure.

You will undoubtedly pop the fretboard a bit by prying them up, unless you clamp the fretboard to the neck around the nut (or use a strong capo) Your bass looks near mint so it would be awful to damage it. Apart from the bend your rods look good.

Mines just a wreck it was popped anyway and i managed to worsen the split to 1 inch. I just reglued it after. The nuts and cavity look like **** but everything works good now

A clamp is a good idea, but I'd probably take the strings off and put it on the fretboard right in front of the nut with something between it and the fretboard like a piece of cloth to keep it from getting damaged.
The nut isn't on the fretboard and wouldn't do anything to keep it from getting popped, I don't think anyway. But if you are real careful it can be done without a clamp and also without popping the fretboard.