Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Paul,
yes I mean the back of the neck, and my poor old lamented 75 was identical. I think they have had three headstock shapes over the year, and have gone back to the oldest shape (the biggest) and several neck shapes, and also several cutaway shapes also. I am not familiar with 60's basses however (not yet!) I assume this from comparing them. Your headstocks are all consistent with my theory, however you Shadow's cutaways look slimmer than my 4001's and 96 4003. My 72 (and former 75) headstocks were identical to your 72 as were the necks, and my 98 and 2000 cutaways are identical to your 98. My 98 FG's intonation even intonates like your 98, I have the A and E saddles all the way up toward the pickups, and the E is still just a touch flat, but I don't play way up on the E string very often, so I don't care.

Bob,
By "cutaways", did you mean the 2 outer curves parallel to the nameplate or the lower 2 that lead to the neck?
Maybe the Shadow's cutaways are slimmer because of the narrower neck (1 19/32" at nut)? I noticed that the Shadow's lowest corner (G string side) is as high as the "k" on the TRC while that of the '72 at "c" and '98 even lower, at in between 'I' and "c" .

Paul,
I call the two lower horns "cutaways" My cutaways on my 72 are thin like your 98FG. I think that term came from cutting away the body near the neck's upper registers for better access as opposed to an acoustic guitar's non cutaway body which gets in the way of upper register access.
I haven't really checked where my TRC's are on my headstock, I think at this point it may be until the beginning of next summer or late spring in the US. until I see my other basses. (I have my 78 and 79 4001's here in Lima)I get to skip another winter in the US, it is almost spring here now.

HA! I've just realised that you were talking about the cutaways of the bodies instead of the headstocks, LOL.
(Where was my stupid head?)

Actually, I found the front and back body contours of my '98 and '72 very similar, except that the tips of the '98 horns are sharper making the 2 "waves" more "alive".

The body back contour of the Shadow is squarer and less comfortable. Her hip (where you rest your right forearm) is fatter/rounder than the other two. I don't know if all '80s bodies are like that...

And I've just realized that all my basses are either 70's or 90's and above, the last 80's Ric I had was an 84 jetglo 4003, which I miss of course, as I do all the Rics I have sold over the years.

I can't believe that the Tux sold for under 1,000, I figured 1200 at least.