Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Anyone care to comment about the earliet possible use of High Gain pickups on a 365??

Hi Greg. The earliest I've seen personally for one of these was on a Fireglo 1970 model 360, also equipped with a 24-fret neck.

The earliest evidence that Richard Smith found when writing his book was a doc sheet dated 8 April 1970 on a Jetglo 360 with a 24-fret neck. I would think a 365 would fall into this era as well.

John: Didn't a few 381s have them in the 1960s? The guitar I have is a 365MG from 68, and they appear to have been on there a long long time. They could be replacements I suppose, but look pretty original.

Well, the pickups were originally designed with the 381 in mind, so they would have had them first I'd think without a doubt. What do the polepieces on your p/ups look like? On a set that early the bobbin should be made of the greenish material that is lightly oversrayed black. I know that early high-gain bass p/ups for the bridge position appeared in 1968.

John Williams's 381 'proto' has toasters in it and it dates to 1968 or 69...The Smith book has Feb. '69 as the first 381 made with high-gains...but YMMV.

My '69 prototype has transitional hi gains.

It went the other way too; you'll find a good many Rickenbackers with toasters up into the early 70's while high-gains were being phased in on the rest of the model lines...

I probably won't get to see the 365 guitar until later this week.

You are right about the toasters into the 1970s. I've got a 1972 360-12WB with 24 frets, small inlays, but with toasters and an original wiring harness from 1966.

I once owned a 360-12 that had toasters and 21 frets but smaller newstyle inlays, '66 SN# plate and '66 wire harness.

I bet the fretboard had been replaced.

Must have been old factory repair. ???

I remember originally thinking that it was a 70's RIC that someone did the parts swap thing.

That was 16 years ago.

I pulled out a photo of myself playing it not long ago and counted 21 frets.......WTF! lol

Karl, it wasn't re-necked, was it? Bob and I have both held a guitar like that, it was all June 1966 with a thin-topped body but the neck was a 1970s-era style, with 21 frets and small inlays...He and I believe it was sent back to Rickenbacker and was re-necked.

John, that guitar was at a winter philadelphia guitar show a couple of years ago. I remember playing that 12 string. Chris Clayton and I talked about it being re-necked. Played beautifully.

Yep, that's the one..and it was priced right. Bob and I have both cringed at not buying it, LOL. It played like buttah...