Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Posted: **Fri Mar 26, 2004 7:07 am**

He e-mailed me back with a legitimate story. Not sure if I'm allowed to post it.

Posted: **Fri Mar 26, 2004 7:10 am**

Marc,
Can you FORWARD it?

if so, my email is in my profile.
Steve

Posted: **Fri Mar 26, 2004 7:55 am**

If it is a piece of wood that found it,s way out of the factory some 30 years ago it could be a neat project. It,s never going to be a Ric though. I wouldn,t be too surprised to see a posting from the CEO on this one...

Posted: **Fri Mar 26, 2004 8:20 am**

Already forwarded to legal. Buyers beware.

Posted: **Fri Mar 26, 2004 10:46 am**

Good thing I held back!

Posted: **Fri Mar 26, 2004 10:59 am**

After hearing the story from the seller my first guess was right on the money, bad mojo.

Posted: **Fri Mar 26, 2004 11:21 am**

it would cost over $700 in parts to turn that into a functioning bass ...

for that kind of money you can get a real 70's 4001 ...

Posted: **Fri Mar 26, 2004 11:22 am**

It would be a gamble if the rods even worked.

Posted: **Fri Mar 26, 2004 12:50 pm**

It's funny how the tone of this thread changed suddenly, haha! I wonder why?

Posted: **Fri Mar 26, 2004 2:46 pm**

Actually the real legal problem here is that he calls it a Rickenbacker. How can you prove that?

What's the difference what the story is?Where is the Rickenbacker logo on the instrument?

Posted: **Fri Mar 26, 2004 3:05 pm**

I think the shape is copy protected too...

Posted: **Fri Mar 26, 2004 4:00 pm**

yep ... the headstock and body shape are trademarks or copyrighted or both ...

Posted: **Fri Mar 26, 2004 4:02 pm**

I e-mailed the guy and his story was that he had friends that worked at Rickenbacker back then and they would occasionally come by to see him with "Rickenbacker parts, etc."

He'd be better off selling it as firewood! That may be legal.

Maybe John could reward us for keeping track of these bogus Ricks we find and reporting them to the community at large with RIC t-shirts or something.

Posted: **Fri Mar 26, 2004 5:17 pm**

I got the same story from him too. It it's true this unfinished bass is worth quite a bit. Therefore there is no copywrite infringement. However, if it is genuine, it's probably stolen property 30 years after the fact. Statutes of limitations have no doubt expired on this though. Firewood?...I don't think so. I'll bet someone on this board wants this real bad. I would if it weren't a long scale instrument. I work in the automotive industry and the term "NOS" is like gold for obsolete parts being used in restoration. An NOS 4001 with checkered binding?...name your price!

Posted: **Fri Mar 26, 2004 5:21 pm**

I don't think there's anything bogus about the piece. It's probably real. I'd be surprised if Rickenbacker goes after him, unless he claims to have others,which he says he doesn't.

To me it's not such a big deal, unless he could list it again and agin and others start doing it. Not exactly an epidemic.

Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Naked 4001 on the Bay