Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

leftybass wrote:Wes, I think Pete Quaife's 1999 was pretty early in the run, although I don't know the month it was made. Possibly even as early as Jan-Feb 1964....some of the earliest known RM's have had 'guards similar to the on this bass....it's just another inconsistancy that make the early basses special....technically the same, but still a bit different from bass to bass.

Well, the bass in the OP was only made a month later, and the pickguard looks almost identical to Pete's, even though the HS surrounds are different. Who really knows though? That's the fun with these

wints wrote:

rickfan60 wrote:

weemac wrote:
So I believed until JH said that they were never sandcast.....
Have a look here:

viewtopic.php?f=12&t=385282&p=488343&hi ... st#p488343

As near as I can make out they may have been gravity diecast...
Hopefully JH will chime in again and really clear up the mystery..

Eden.

Jeez, I don't know then. Three people who worked in the factory back then told me the same story about pressing molds into sand.

I'd have to go with those guys personally Ted. If it was just one of them it's debatable, but when it's 3, and they were there at the time....

The thlot pickens!

Eden.

This thread is a true example of what I love about vintage Rics:

They are like fingerprints and snowflakes, they have many variations and it is rare for two to be exactly identical!

The uniqueness is especially true of the basses. Rickenbacker apparently did not sell many basses back then as most players wanted Fenders. There may not have been enough sales to justify tooling right away so they used existing hardware where possible. Other parts were apparently made by hand.

Quaife does have a early 64 RM. Feb/March probably.

Here's another March 64 RM1999, but this looks like a RI surround to me...



And, a May 64 like my green one. No question, this is original...

I think Pete Greenwood's DA bass had a RI HS/surround. Hopefully Pete can chime in here...

Andrew, what type of pickup is the chrome, blade type bridge pickup in the second photo? It looks quite nice in the surround space, especially if one wants to leave the cover off.

Wes,

Having also been (slowly!) doing essentially what you're planning (turning my V63 into as close to an RM replica as is possible/sensible), I can tell you that a.) cutting down the neck-side of the RI surround worked fine for me, and b.) trying to make the long-taper style shape out of the RI surround came up a little short, optically by maybe 1/8" or less. Paul W.'s idea of welding a new strip on, however, is novel and enticing! (The long-taper surround is still pigeonholed for a different, future, Deluxe 4001 replica project....)

Here are the threads on my surround and guard (mis?)adventures:

viewtopic.php?f=13&t=379942
viewtopic.php?f=13&t=380486

It's quite a challenge picking a "model" for an RM replica. Personally, my ideals have been mostly a cross between Roger Waters' bass and Wints' greenie - short taper surround, pickguard extending all the way to the surround (in my case, slight overlap, which Dane mocked me for, which was mostly to make sure to hide the original surround holes), knobs closer to the body edge of the guard than to the center of the bass, sort of like on Andy's bass, etc. There really isn't any one specific RM that really exists or existed that I'm modeling mine after 100%, but in some ways that makes mine feel more unique to me.

Short of casting an aluminum bridge and tailpiece in my driveway (!!!), I've gone as far as I practically can, short of the woodwork and refinishing. If I can afford a backup to use while the work is being done, and then the work itself, I'd love to bring it to Paul or Dale to have it transformed to its conclusion, but I can't earn the money to restore it without using it! It's quite a conundrum....

paologregorio wrote:Andrew, what type of pickup is the chrome, blade type bridge pickup in the second photo? It looks quite nice in the surround space, especially if one wants to leave the cover off.

Paul, not too sure. This one was in Europe. It may be a DeArmond. Someone else may know...Anyone?

pacealot wrote:It's quite a challenge picking a "model" for an RM replica. Personally, my ideals have been mostly a cross between Roger Waters' bass and Wints' greenie - short taper surround, pickguard extending all the way to the surround (in my case, slight overlap, which Dane mocked me for, which was mostly to make sure to hide the original surround holes), knobs closer to the body edge of the guard than to the center of the bass, sort of like on Andy's bass, etc. There really isn't any one specific RM that really exists or existed that I'm modeling mine after 100%, but in some ways that makes mine feel more unique to me.

Paul, wow! Apparently I was completely oblivious to your threads when they were around, sounds like you've already done a lot of the hard work. Did you ever get that tracing of the long taper surround? I'm planning on drawing from a number of different 1999s as well, seems like the only way to do it really. What year is your V63?

BTW, have you taken beveled edges into account for when you refin?

Mine is a February 1993 V63. I don't think Dane was able to find the tracing for the long taper. I ended up doing everything from eye at any rate.

The beveling is honestly one thing I never noticed until you pointed it out in a previous thread. It's hard to make it out in many of the available RM pics. Of course, now that I know, it's added to the list of woodwork details that I need to be extremely mindful of when the time comes....