Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

I've been trying out different flatwounds on my ric. i broke the d string on my pyramids pretty quickly 40-105 gauge.
i just ordered the la bella "jamerson" set 52-110 gauge. should i be worried about bowing the neck at all or should i just throw them on

It would be VERY helpful if string makers would publish the tension at standard pitch on the string package, wouldn't it!
Then we woudn't have to dig around to find out which we wanted to try.
I wouldn't think it would be that much of an undertaking.

Well, throw them on...but yes, there can be a neck issue, especially if it's an older bass. Not sure how high the tension on LaBella's are...

I used Fender 9050's for a while and the induced some serious relief in my 75 4001...not enough to be unplayable, but certainly more than there should have been. After finding out how tricky the truss adjustments are on that old beast I went to some lower tension rounds...

I plan on trying those Fenders on my Laredo, and I expect that I will have to tweak the truss rods to make it work.

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Amen, Kevin! At least publish something about the density of the strings. I don't mind doing the math.

It CAN'T be hard! They most likely have the data if not on their desk, in the top drawer.
Just a little bit more ink & a slight redesign of the package is all it would take.

I'm using Fender 7350 stainless 105's on my '76 & '77, & I think the tension is fairly low to medium. I hadn't considered extra fret wear, though!
I may be imagining it, but I didn't think my 4000 had as much tailpiece lift before, but the 4001 has hardly any & it's lived a rough life (at other's hands!).

I've got some RIC strings on the way. I'll probably convert all 3 (4000,4001,4080) to all RIC strings.

flat wound strings cause finger cancer ... heheheheh ... just kidding ...

Have you tried www.juststrings.com ? They print the tension info if they have it. I buy D'Addario and TI's and they have always had the tension stats for them.

Just click on the brand, and then the set you prefer.

I have a feeling those JJ flats are going to be pretty high in tension.

I've talked to a few guys who used the JJ set and evidently they're not that high. Fender med. gauge SS flats are very high tension and my newer 4003's and V63's handled them better than new Jazzes and P basses did. I use Pyramids now and have no problems at all, mine are all at least 2 years old and sound as good as the day they went on.

Hey Bob! Where 'ja been, mon?

I've seen pics of JJ's bass somewhere....the strings look like you could slip a STACK of credit cards under 'em....

There was an Epiphone EB-O bass that I saw at some outlet store that was having a closeout sale. The action on it was adjusted such that the average distance between the strings and the fretboard was something like 1.5 inches. It was crazy. It was so high that the neck was actually pulling off of the screws (the EB-O that they make is a bolt-on) that held it to the neck plate.

I think they need a few lessons in guitar setup.

thanks for the feedback. the labella jamerson set is a higher gauge set than the pyramids i was using. my worry was whether or not the difference would be damaging. i'm pretty brutal on strings. if i could only manage to not break the D string, i'd be ok. but that one goes a flyin in a couple months. this may be a stupid question, but would a thicker gauge string break quicker than a lighter? i may end up going back to the pyramids. it just kinda disappointed me when they didn't last any longer than the others. i need to play softer or get a second job

It would be in your best interest to learn to play with a lighter touch, dynamics get better, tone gets better, and you will be more relaxed and can play better because of that.

Very true Jeff. I eventually learned to relax and let the amp do all the work for me. I found that I could accomplish difficult runs easier as well as "sit in the pocket" a lot longer because of the relaxed approach. I have never broken a string though.

Scanman17 - where is the string breaking? If it's breaking at the bridge saddle, then it might be worth getting it looked at - I've heard that sometimes the bridge saddle can be sharp - you shouldn't be breaking strings that much, especially the same one all the time...

I'm gonna have to check where they break. i honestly never paid attention to that. I can tell you that i've broken the D string first 99% of the time on pretty much every bass i've ever played with basically every brand and gauge they make.
over the years, my playing style has become most similar to entwistle. would folks here say that he played too hard? I'm not trying to be smart. i really want to know