Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

http://cgi.ebay.com/VINTAGE-77-RICKENBACKER-4001-BASS-GUITAR-BODY-ONLY_W0QQitemZ7402964921QQcategoryZ4713QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Why would someone do this? Will this really bring in more than a standard 4001? We'll see. He bought it for the horseshoe, and now is selling the body no hardware, trc, bridge, tuners etc. in separate auctions.

there may be a problem or problems with the bass and or the seller thinks he can make more money this way ...

He bought it for the 60's pickups that were put in it by someone, horseshoe and toaster. The total is over 700 bucks right now.

I think parting out certain instruments will make a seller more money than selling them as whole, especially Ricks. It would just be more of a pain to pack and ship several items instead of one.

They do it all the time with fenders (especially selling the necks and bodies seperate). I don't like the trend at all. Makes people trying to upgrade just a neck (for example) that would not bid otherwise bid against collectors who want to keep everything stock. Thank god rics are neck through.

Most of them, anyway!

Yeah it's a bad trend unless the bass is trashed, I can see the guys point in this case though, it wasn't original in the first place and who would want a 60's horseshoe and toaster in a 77 4001? Would be better for a 60's bass with a dead one.

Still, I would have popped in a set of RIC pickups and let the bass resume its life.

Here's a set that just sold on ebay for 92 bucks:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Rickenbacker-4001-4003-Bass-Pickups-Pair_W0QQitemZ7402498230QQcategoryZ4713QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

it is just too much fun to take a bass and improve it and work with it and make it better ... the whole idea of taking a working bass and dismantling it and selling it for parts just to make a few dollars rubs me the wrong way ...

When he's pulling in $177.50 for just the TRC, I see his reasoning.

I certainly don't advocate parting out truly vintage/collectible instruments, of course, but in general, people parting out stuff means more parts when I'm looking for something.

Especially Fender necks. Fender doesn't sell necks separately, so if I wanted say, a nice Fender logoed '57 type nitro finished P Bass neck, I'd have to hope someone took apart a Fender '57 RI P and is selling the neck.

That said, it strikes me as odd that someone would part out a Ric. The parts aren't interchangeable, except with other Rics.

These parts all sold for higher than I would have expected:

Jack Plate--$152.50
Case --$152.50
Truss Cover-$177.50
Tuners --$71.00
Tail/Bridge-$72.00

Add in the body($549.90) and you get $1175.40!

Not bad for a '70's 4001 with no pickups.

I guess sometimes dirty deeds pay off.

Crazy prices for run of the mill parts from a 70's Ric....

why would somebody pay $71 for a 30 year old set of tuners when you can get a new set for about the same price ... and $152 for a 70s case??? the whole scenario is too Ed Romanesque for me ...

the over pricing of used Rickenbackers where 70s Rics sell for more than new ones is really turning me off to Rickenbackers ... the stuff from the mid and late 70s is not that good ... it is just old ... like all of the overpriced 70s fenders ... back in the 70s everybody was ****** off that the quality dropped when Leo sold out to CBS ...

I remember that well. 70's Fenders back then were considered rather low in quality compared to the 60's models. Now those same instruments are considered vintage just because they are old, not necessarily good guitars.

My Rickenbacker 4001 that I used to own back then was quite good and well made. Much higher grade than the Fenders of that time. IMHO, Rickenbackers are still better instruments.