Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

I'm sure most people here probably read the forum over at RIC... but if you don't... here's part of a thread on Squire's bass. I found the last paragraph most interesting!

John Hall wrote:

Note that a post has been deleted from this thread, which was a mostly fictional account of how Chris's instrument has been serviced here.

The bass has been back here a number of times for various types of service. The last time it was here, Grover Jackson planed off the fingerboard and installed a new set of truss rods. A very well known luthier, who I won't embarrass by naming, had done some major repairs and in the course of things allowed the truss rod slot to completely fill up with glue, defeating the action of the original rods. Obviously, this work including refretting and refinishing of the neck.

One huge surprise was the fact that the treble pickup was completely disconnected and his tech told us that Chris had never used this pickup, at least for many years now.

Chris Squire's Bass

I wonder if RIC installed a vermillion fingerboard to match the 4001CS. Life imitating art?

" A very well known luthier"

I wonder who it was??????

I know who but wont say.

This is really interesting; IMHO for a good 5 years his bass has sounded like ****; terribly thin, lacking the substantial mids and lo's of his 1970's sound. I thought his neck pickup might have had a problem, not the bridge.

Me too... I caught the post over there before it was deleted.

Suffice to say he's been discussed (at length) over here.

The "well-known luthier" is not the person that provided the "mostly fictional account". In fact, I have only the utmost respect for the luthier who is well known for his own brand; he like many others, unfortunately, didn't understand how our original truss rod system worked and only accidentally damaged it. His actual repair of the broken head was executed very well and is still holding.

There's a link to a reent video of CS playing the old RM in one of the other topics... for everything that bass has gone through I was really impressed with the fact that he can still play it live.

Call me naive... I thought for the most part that when the headstock breaks off it's usually time to eulogize the instrument in question.

What I'd give for five minutes of playing Squire's bass...

You would think that the guy who invented Ric-O-Sound would know his bridge pickup wasn't working. Geez!

JOhn, since you have jumped in this thread: I am interested about the deleted thread, as I am unclear (probably lack of context)...

Was that deleted thread telling untruths about servicing that bass got at the RIC factory?

Thanks!

John, you are a true gentleman. Even I know to put tape over the truss rod slots to keep the glue out!



I think it's quite interesting that Grover Jackson works for RIC now!

The deleted thread was a guy saying Squire sent the bass back to the factory to have the headstock glued back on.. which he didn't.

Squire's own website says that too.

I saw them on the 35th anniversary tour and his bass sounded great. Chris is, without a doubt, my favorite player...can 'ya tell I'm a fan!

Grover worked here for a number of years but went into the ukelele business (really!) for himself about 2000 or so. He's got a small shop just down the road and cranks out all kinds of wood assemblies on an OEM basis for small makers in Hawaii and other places.

He has a small marketing problem because both "Grover" and "Jackson" are someone else's trademarks! I think he's down to "GJ" now.

Usually a headstock break IS the end of an instrument. However, Chris's was rather well repaired other than the truss rod problem. Kenny Howes also has quite a collection of head challenged guitars that have held up rather well but I think generally these are exceptions. He has a "lightning never strikes twice in the same place" theory that so far has held true but we'll see.

The deleted stuff was the just the effects of time, dreams, and rose colored glasses I would say.

I imagine it would be especially hard to repair on those really thin-necked 60's basses. There is just not a lot of wood there.

Squire's own website says that the bass was repaired by Rickenbacker after the headstock was broken off. Of course, he also invented ROS.......