Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

The neck binding is going on tonight. I will try to get some pics of that up right away.

Excitement is high!

Hey John! I guess I should have e-mailed you first. I'll send you a CD of all the pics. There are a lot I have not posted here.

Hi John, read your write-up in Vintage Guitar - how cool!!

"I'll send you a CD of all the pics"

Woohooo!

"Hi John, read your write-up in Vintage Guitar - how cool!!"

Woohooo!

Ted, thanks again for making my one and only Ric incredibly playable and gorgeous. It was only one project for you, but to me it's a daily joy. I know how all too often, things end up taking much longer to complete than they should, especially when you have a passion for perfection. It can be exhaustive mentally and physically. This is the unseen fruits of your labor, and I for one understand and appreciate it.

Jack: The headstock of your bass is still the background on my computer. I am not tired of looking at it yet! Yours was challenging for different reasons and in some ways more difficult than the 4005.

While the neck binding is setting I decided to fit the truss rods. I had to clean up the G side a bit but the E side slid right in. Perfect. They sit perfectly flush with the maple and center stripe. So far so good!

Ted, is that 4005 going to be refined?

Here is a little more background about the bass. Based on the damage I found inside the neck, it appears that the bass was dropped and the G side of the headstock hit the floor first. Maybe the strap came off the horn. The impact was bad enough to break the neck and probably the fingerboard, hence the ebony replacement. What was not apparent at first was the neck break. I used heat to remove the fingerboard. All of the laminations were loosened as a result. That included a hidden lamination in the form of a repair on the G side of the neck.



Once it is cleaned up a bit and finished over it won't be noticeable. The break is very clean an only affected the lower section of maple. The walnut stripe stopped the break right at the lamination. The repair will be quite strong because so much of the width of the neck escaped damage. There is something to be said for the strength of laminated necks.

John: I am guessing yes. It is John's call but I have taken the liberty to reserve a December spot with Dale Fortune for a re-fin should John decide to go that way.

I figured it would be because of all the work you were doing on the neck would need finishing, and the rest looked like it was in need also. I guess we'll see - maybe the elusive JetGlo Silverburst!!

It is funny you should mention re-fins. Also apparent on the body is an attempt to remove the neck from the body using heat. Look here...



Notice the marks that appear to be abrasions? They are actually tiny bubbles in the finish that are perfectly aligned with the grain of the wood. When the wood was heated, the moisture inside boiled off as steam and traveled down the grain which is actually tiny bundles of tubules. When the steam reached the surface it was stopped by the finish which softened and bubbled under the heat and pressure. This wood grain pattern was the result.

I think it can be finished in a transparent color as well. The wood is really in pretty good shape. Dale can make it beautiful again.

Here are some other details. The wood on the face of the neck was damaged and crudely filled in. I applied a thin piece of maple here to repair this very visible area.



A much smaller one had to be applied here. It still needs to be sanded flat.

Fascinating! Will you need to reglue the neck in the pocket?