Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Mark - Just curious as to what it would take to get this back to its proper state? It seems pretty badly thrashed.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=873597246

There are several things that will be unknown until surgery starts.

What is the condition of the original fretboard .

My guess ....it is history .I'll bet they leveled the fretboard to glue the ebony onto it .

Then you have the classic , body curl .


So , guess guessing , here is what needs to be done to make this tool work.

If all the parts are there then;

pop off the binding from the body , remove the back.This is ONLY if the body is curling.
Fix the braces ,SEE John Williams 4005, then install back and binding.

While the back is off , remove the neck (it is easier to work on that way and the neck joints are generally only two edges that are really glued not all sides ).
Rebuild neck pocket.

Remove ebony fretboard using heat .Evaluate the original , then decide on what kind of fretboard wood to use .
1-Paduak
2-Monkey pod
3-bubinga
4-Rosewood
5-other

Inlays, what to do there ...

1- dots
2- imitation pearl
3- real shell (abalone,pearl etc.)
4- resin swirl
5-acrylic pearl sheet stock
6-other

If the is to be the classic triangular inlays , then the neck needs binding and fretting.

The truss rods can be changed to the "modern" version yet retain the old look .
The anchors could be placed inside the neck , only you and I would know! The adjustment nuts would be stock as would the aluminum bar.

Body fix .
The face needs a section cut to fill the hole made by the additional pickup installation.
The best way to 'HIDE' this is to lay in a section on the whole face .This will look like the center section from this time frame ,only wider.
This is the cleanest way and will not be apparent to most people.

It will be gone if the bass is sprayed fireglo .
This section needs to be epoxied into place rather than using yellow wood workers glue .
This will hide the seams in the R tailpiece area and the cutaways.

The pickup holes can be re-'routed' (and I use that term loosely here ) .

The neck then gets re-installed and sanded, and painted.

How much ? Some where between $1700.00 to $2300.00

Depends on what needs to be done, and what has been done and what the condition is and what 'stain' was used .

Hi Mark, all,
Don't forget the Vintage truss rod cover, add 100 for that

Greg

Can you even get a truss rod cover without an exchange? Would Mr. Hall make an exception for a "back-from-the-grave" project like this?

answer ............NO he would not .

I see no one bid on it. Maybe that was a good thing. Before the auction ended, I thought I'd be nice and tell the seller about the discusion here:
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Just an FYI: your bass has engendered a discussion at the Rickenbacker FOrum

http://www.brunnet.net/rickresource/discus/index.html

under the heading

Ask A Rickenbacker Luthier: 4005 on eBay - How much work to
salvage this one?

You might want to check what the experts are saying.

Best regards,
The Doctor
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Here is the seller's reply:

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Date: Sun, 02 Jun 2002 17:13:15 +0200
From: "flowerpop"
To: doctorwho
Subject: Re: Question for seller -- Item #878517054

Who cares................

Can't you read????

Handyman special......

Doctor who? Haha Haha

Might check something else..........
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Sounds like a real jerk to me. I certainly wouldn't want to deal with someone like that.