Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

I got a chance to leave the Island and go to an Oasis concert last week. During one song I was 99% sure that I saw an original 345F but the tailpiece was the tall trapeze style if I am refering to it correctly. But in pictures I have seen the 345F has had different tail pieces. So what did I see them playing?

The early version used the long trapeze, the later style had the R tailpiece.

Thankyou! Little things can drive ya nuts!

All 345F came with Vibrotos.The 5 in 345 tells you this.The 340 is the 3 pu model with the trapeze and later the R tailpiece.Unfortunately there aren't to many to look at.I've never seen one being played in a band.

I always heard the 5 meant 3 pick ups: 325, 365, 375 etc. Is this not so?

I always thought the five meant with VB (vibrato).

I thought it to be as Pat and Stan have stated.
2 pickups- 310, 330, 360, 610, 620.
2 pickups VB- 315, 335, 365, 615, 625.
3 pickups- 320, 340, 370.
3 pickups VB- 325, 345, 375.

The 340F (or even the 340F/12) in '68 came with R tail. The 345 F's came with the vibrato. Two pups.

While a model designation ending in a '5' means a vibrato-equipped guitar in just about every case, there are a couple of exceptions, most of them are famous; John Lennon's 1964 325/12 (had a trapeze), the 1963 625/12 (a trapeze as well, owned by Mike Campbell) and the model 425 from 1958 until 1965 or so when it was re-named the model 420; most were non-vibrato guitars during this time.

Yes and George Harrisons model 425 was, in reality a Model 420.

Correct-a-mundo, Peter. I mentioned the two 12-strings apart from the rest since they were considered one-off guitars for many years.

What is even more interesting is that there were some 425 models with Boyd vibrato units made in the early 60's, they really WERE 425s...LOL..I wonder how the invoices read for those!!

Well hopefully I can get a picture of the band on tour to really get a look at the guitar guitar. Sounded great reguardless!

AND...Trapeze would look good on a JazzBO...anyone agree???

AND....Jetglo Jazzbo...trapeze tailpiece....maybe gold hardware?????? let's hear it......

Josh Homme from Queens of the Stoneage has been using a guitar that looks a lot like an "F" series Rickebacker. It's even got a Ric style slash soundhole. No idea what kind of guitar it is. One of the ones he uses has a Gretsch tailpiece, and the other one has a Bigsby. I try to clock it everytime I see them, but I've given up and am simply resigning it to the "Frankenguitar" file. Gretsch (possibly Epiphone) did make a guitar in a very similar vein. You may have seen Noel et al. using one of those. God knows, they've got a fondness for Epiphones.