Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

looks a little washed out, too much light...

and the last one...

Thanks, awesome photos. I love the flamed necks on some Capris!

ALDER

RIC

ROCKS

Thanks for sharing these clips, David. It's so nice to hear and see these great instruments in action. I would LOVE to have a go at a Capri through my Fender Super Sonic.

And I may send your links over to a certain Phillistine who once said to me, "Rickerbocker??? You might as well be playing a tambourine!"

Hey Noel,
Glad you liked the clips. I'll post more. Yes, ALDER ROCKS! That's for sure. One of the reasons I love old capris so much. The later capris were maple, still cool, but alder is warmer. Plus Ric still used laquer in the late 50's. The magic formula...laquer + old alder =
old maple + conversion varnish = Still cool for sure.

When I get a chance, maybe I'll do a clip of my 1997SPC in your honor....

Most excellent.

Very nice!

vintagemusicgear wrote:Hey Noel,
Glad you liked the clips. I'll post more. Yes, ALDER ROCKS! That's for sure. One of the reasons I love old capris so much. The later capris were maple, still cool, but alder is warmer. Plus Ric still used laquer in the late 50's. The magic formula...laquer + old alder =
old maple + conversion varnish = Still cool for sure.

So that flamey top, is that maple topped on a alder back?

No, that is flamed alder. The top, back, and sides are all alder, the top and sides are flamey. I actually have 3 vintage capris that have flamed alder. Flamed alder is super super rare. Alder is usually kinda boring. I mean, when was the last time you saw a strat from the 50's or 60's with flamed alder? Alder finished in nitro tends to check more than maple, but who cares? Alder is a better tonewood, IMO. It's more resonant, "alive", warm, but still with a lot of definition and presence. Maple is good too, especially old maple. But in comparison, maple is "stiff" and alder is "more alive." So I must revise my previous post regarding the magic formula for vintage tone....

OLD alder + laquer =
OLD maple + conversion varnish =
OLD flamed alder + laquer =

vintagemusicgear wrote:No, that is flamed alder. The top, back, and sides are all alder, the top and sides are flamey. I actually have 3 vintage capris that have flamed alder. Flamed alder is super super rare. Alder is usually kinda boring. I mean, when was the last time you saw a strat from the 50's or 60's with flamed alder? Alder finished in nitro tends to check more than maple, but who cares? Alder is a better tonewood, IMO. It's more resonant, "alive", warm, but still with a lot of definition and presence. Maple is good too, especially old maple. But in comparison, maple is "stiff" and alder is "more alive." So I must revise my previous post regarding the magic formula for vintage tone....

OLD alder + laquer =
OLD maple + conversion varnish =
OLD flamed alder + laquer =

Ok:

Where the *%&$ can I get some AAAA flamed alder!?!

__

There are 3 options,....

#1

option #2

option #3

option #3 with the correct Kaufmann....