Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Hey John, I think your right, I did get a original 1976 Gibson Ripper and a 2000 62 Fender reissue Jazz bass in lake placid blue which is rare color for that bass nowadays, but I guess your right, and Paul thats just my luck, from 91 till 2003 I wasent desireing a Ric so missed out on that...

bassduke49 wrote:Yeah, you had your chance! Turquoise was a "standard" color from '91 to '03, and still pops up now and then on the used market. I was fortunate enough to purchase Steve Woods' Turquoise V63, one of only two that I know of:

Please sell me your bass. LOL! It's a beauty! What year? Looks like a short headstock.

sorry,, I got distracted,,,,,another pic.

The Turquoise V63 is a 2002, the year RIC painted several V63 in non-standard colors. Although I've never seen a Desert Gold (2001 COY) or Burgundy (2002 COY), I have seen photos of a Midnight Blue V63 (or two). I've also got a White V63, but it's a customized refin.

The 4001V63 was discontinued in 2000 which was also the year that Sea Green was offered. By the time Desert Gold came along in 2001, you couldn't order a 4001V63 (and RIC wasn't offering COYs on the C64).

perfect looking headstock ! fabulous !

Actually, Steve, V63 production drifted into 2002, witness your/my Turquoise V63. The two Midnight Blue V63s I've seen in photos purport to be '02s as well. It DOES appear that the Sea Green V63 that you own and a handful of others may be the only official COY V63s, but it is POSSIBLE that there could be Desert Gold and Burgundy V63s out there. If RIC was willing to do the '00 COY on the V63, they could have fulfilled special orders for the COYs in '01 and '02. I've not seen or heard of any, but . . . .

I don't know of any C64/C64S in a COY. The C64 was SUPPOSED to be available only in Fireglo and Mapleglo, but eventually some started showing up in Jetglo. The C64S was SUPPOSED to be only clear satin finish ("Maplematte"? ), but in the last year of production, we started seeing satin black, satin Fireglo, and even satin Midnight Blue. I have photos of a C64S in glossy Fireglo, too. There was a group of C64 basses in glossy Midnight Blue, too.

I got one of the 4001C64S basses in satin FG. It is a KILLER bass!!!

No question from my perspective that the early one's will be the most coveted in years to come, SG examples excepted!

Nice example Scott. Congrats!

bassduke49 wrote:Actually, Steve, V63 production drifted into 2002, witness your/my Turquoise V63. The two Midnight Blue V63s I've seen in photos purport to be '02s as well. It DOES appear that the Sea Green V63 that you own and a handful of others may be the only official COY V63s, but it is POSSIBLE that there could be Desert Gold and Burgundy V63s out there. If RIC was willing to do the '00 COY on the V63, they could have fulfilled special orders for the COYs in '01 and '02. I've not seen or heard of any, but . . . .

I don't know of any C64/C64S in a COY. The C64 was SUPPOSED to be available only in Fireglo and Mapleglo, but eventually some started showing up in Jetglo. The C64S was SUPPOSED to be only clear satin finish ("Maplematte"? ), but in the last year of production, we started seeing satin black, satin Fireglo, and even satin Midnight Blue. I have photos of a C64S in glossy Fireglo, too. There was a group of C64 basses in glossy Midnight Blue, too.

Hey Paul - with the backlog, its quite common for discontinued models to be produced several years after the year they were officially discontinued. But as far as I know, COY orders have always been limited to a orders placed in a particular year. In the case of the Sea Green 4001V63, you could order this particular model only in 2000. By the start of 2001, you could no longer order an instrument in Sea Green and similarly the 4001V63 cold not be ordered. This would explain why we don't see 4001V63s (or 360V64s, 325V59 etc), in any COYs later than Sea Green.
Not sure when Turquoise was discontinued, but its likely that your Turq 4001V63 was ordered when that finish was still available. The backlog resulted it in actually being produced after the finish was officially discontinued.
The C64 and C64S are a bit different. RIC did not produce any in a COY (as far as we know), and the only finishes were supposed to be Mapleglo and Fireglo for the C64 and stain Mapleglo for the C64S. But as we have seen, this model started showing up in other "standard" finishes, including satin variations.

You might be right, Steve, on the ability to order a V63 after 2000. I have the C64 listed in the January 2001 price list and no V63. However, I think it took some time for C64 basses to appear. Meanwhile, orders for V63 were still being fulfilled. Whether or not RIC bent the "rules" and made some of the outstanding V63 orders in COYs may never be known. They have been known to stretch the rules for special customers at times, and we may someday be surprised.