Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

The toggle down should be the treble pick up only on the old basses. As was discussed here before, Macca,s wiring is probably back to front/upside down/whatever...or are lefties wired this way....Lefty??

I can tell you this much:

The switch on my 1972 4001LH works just like you'd think it would, treble/down, neck/up etc; the knobs are wired to work clock-wise like most guitars do.

The switch on my '79 4001LH works the same way, but the knobs work anti-clockwise. The tuners work backwards too, LOL.

When you order a new harness from RIC to re-wire a bass, you must specify the harness to be left-handed. I ordered one once and when it arrived, it wouldn't fit. D'OH! Kenny got me straightened out.

As for what went on with Paul's bass, I have read the talk about it being wired differently since it was a lefty, and I have my doubts about this.
I think what Andy says is right...toggle down is treble. Rickenbacker basses IMHO sound quite smooth and provide a fair amount of punch, even on the back pickup. Paul used a pick most of the time which provided some added definition to the overall sound. If the switch is up, it's probably the neck p/up guys.

I have almost always seen the switch down also, essentially that would be a 4000 but with a treble cap in the circuit. I don't know what a 60's horseshoe sounds like soloed with the cap but I do know that early 70's basses with treble pickups soloed are very very thin sounding, and with flatwounds they would pick up almost nothing. So I would bet he's either had both working somehow or he or someone really eq'ed the hell out of it to get any bottom at all. It's possible because before I knew about the cap I used to run my Ric's stereo with intact cap into an SVT with two channels and I ran the bridge pickup into the main channel and eq'ed it enough so that it had a lot of bottom and punch, I used that as my main pickup with only a small amount from the neck. I could get it to sound exactly like the little solo in "Everybody's got something to hide 'cept for me and my Monkee" like this with a pick muted by hand. Of course there weren't many amps back then that had that much EQ capability that I know of anyway.

Oh John, on your 79 you say the keys turn backwords, to go up in pitch do they turn clockwise? If so they are just regular reverse tuners which is what are on my 78 and 79 4001's, and my 81 4003. Or are they reverse-reverse? haha!

It was a typical warm spring day 1975 in So. Cal. Dick Burke walked from the main bldg. to the wood shop carrying the Bass. The 1st work done was by Mike Allen the most experienced sander in the shop. Mike cleaned the Bass up on the stroke sander and tube/flap sanders. Then Dick brought the Bass to my bench, handed me a bone nut blank which I scribed it then took it to the belt sander and fitted it to the F.B. The Bass had a piece of what seemed to be Rosewood glued on with a zero fret attached. After this Dick took the instrument over to Brian Carman who was incharge of the final assembly dept. It wasn't until Dick came back to the wood shop we learned the news that it was MacCartney's Bass. After talking to others in the factory we learned details: Mac liked the action high and gave orders not to alter or change the neck. As for the zero fret, I was told he did this because his Hofner was that way and he liked the feel of the strings at the open position. The Horseshoe P-Up had dead Mags. it was replaced along with the pick guard and bridge. Other than this, I only saw the Bass for 15 minutes. The Bass was cleaned up, sealed and re-assembled for Wings tour of 1975. One interesting item, when the Bass came in with the original nut, it was taken, a hole drilled in it and attached to a key chain by Tom. As for who,how,or when the zero fret work was performed I have no info on that.

Bob, I turn the Grover's on my '72 anti-clockwise to raise the pitch.....to raise the pitch on my '79, I turn the(Kluson)tuners clockwise. I have heard of other Rickenbackers made around this time do the same thing....

Awesome info, Dale. Incredible to hear first-hand anything Beatle related. Thanks for sharing!

So Dale, would you be able to make me a bone nut ?

Dale, Thanks for sharing the inside info with many of us here who "would have loved to been there"! It must have been an unbelievable privilige to hold that bass and be fortunate enough to play it. It's been around the world and surely has some great stories to tell!

Mr. Glen Yes I can make you a bone nut. But I live near Portland Oregon and the best I could do is cut one to your specs then it would have to be fitted(cut slots/set height) by someone near you.
The one MacCartney had was probably Whale bone, I didn't notice the Grain in it that Ivory has. I believe by that time Ivory was no longer in legal use. Walrus Tusks are very nice as long as no one kills the animals for pleasure. Now days I use Bone White Corian material. This is a counter top material, samples can be had at your local Home Depot or Lowes Centers. I prefer this as it's not an animal by-product, and it's very user friendly and strong.

Hi Dale, thanks for the response, you've got email.

Mr Glen !! Leaves me feeling I'm in trouble, like being called James instead of Jim !!!

I've always liked people with 2 first names.
I would say you're not in trouble, at least not with me. I like everyone who plays Rickenbackers.

Thanks Dale .....

On another subject I've been mistaken lots of times for Mr McCartney, literally I've had to produce identification especially in the far east to show I'm not who they think I am,.

I've been waylayed in airports, asked to sing in bars, or sign asssorted body parts, since I've a Scots accent, which to a lot of folks is as good as a Liverpudllian one it just adds to the confusion.

It used to be even worse when I had a beard, and played my Ric ...

WOW I see what you mean. Ever thought of selling your image. They could have used you in Back Beat
Great movie if you haven't seen it check it out.

Hadn't crossed my mind Dale, but maybe I could get some work as a stand in, I'm a righty though so it kinda gives it away a bit !!!