Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Steve, I've added the 3 Ricks. Can't add the unidentified Mystery Bass. You do weed out the slim necks!

Thanks John....
It's a German bass anyway....

Just as I posted in my new thread about my new bass ( ), here are my 2009's measurements:

4003 MG 2009

1 @ 11.2 cm
3 @ 11.5 cm
7 @ 12.3 cm
12 @ 13.1 cm

...Not so chunky eh?!

Josh, looks like the Oct. 2008 measurements. If Jeff Scott could add the other measurements for his '08 JG it would fill in more of the recent picture.

johnallg wrote:Josh, looks like the Oct. 2008 measurements. If Jeff Scott could add the other measurements for his '08 JG it would fill in more of the recent picture.

I thought I did!

I'll do that tonight, again (I think).

Jeff, you only reported the measurement for the 12th fret. Not the other two.

johnallg wrote:Jeff, you only reported the measurement for the 12th fret. Not the other two.

Well, I thought I did measure something!

Okay, here we go:

1st fret - 11.45
3rd fret - 11.7
12th fret - 13.3

These confirm that this neck is virtually the same as my two '73 4001s, nice and thin.

You're a part of history now, Jeff!

We need some more 2009ers to chime in.

My measurements are so much smaller than the rest of yours. I am going to redo them with a different tape measure just to make sure I don't have a bad instrument or something... I have triple checked everything so if there is a problem it would lie in that. It just seems weird to me that I would have the thinnest stuff.

...on the other hand the fact that my 2007 and 2009 are so similar in size (which my hands confirm) is also contrary to a lot of what people are saying, so maybe I do just have an outlier or two in my possession.

CNC has been brought up in this thread (i.e. everything should be streamlined and the same because of it) but I think we do have to consider finishing processes that take away additional mass like sanding that are done by humans, not machines. I doubt with this method there will ever be a perfect, unvarying neck profile. And to me that's a good thing! Variance leads to uniqueness and unique results. Considering no one neck profile is "right" this sits just fine with me.

...oh yeah, one more think. John, could you add standard deviation to the Excel file? I know how to do it for myself but I think it might benefit others. Here are my results from the current spreadsheet: 1 @ .252727; 3 @ .259782; 12 @ .284921. The uniformity of these deviations says something about the overall shape of Ric bass necks over the years...

OK, here's the scoop on my Nov 08 4004Cii MG

Girth:
1st: 11.80
3rd: 12.46
12th: 14.23

Width:
Nut: 4.41
12th: 5.77

Front-Back:
1st: 2.37
7th: 2.48
12th: 2.53
16th: 2.56

All measurements in cm.

Josh, standard deviation has been added. CJ, thanks for ALL the measurements.

Here are the measurements for my bass. I always liked the slimness of its neck, and although my Wal bass is probably equally as 'fast' to play, it does feel like a baseball bat in comparison.

1995 4003 Jetglo (born in May)
1st fret: 11.18 cm
3rd fret: 11.65 cm
12th fret: 13.06 cm

Pretty similar to Ben's 1993 model I'd say, though we're looking at differences in some cases of half a millimetre. I used a narrow strip of paper to make the measurement; my fabric tape measure consistently gave a result about 1mm longer.

Becky wrote:I used a narrow strip of paper to make the measurement; my fabric tape measure consistently gave a result about 1mm longer.

+1 I have found this to be the most reliable method of measuring the neck.

Rebecca, thanks for the readings and welcome to the forum. We need more female input here at RRF. Welcome aboard!