Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

I'm thinking of going to gold TRC/guard on my JG 620. Who do I need to talk to about swapping the TRC? Any help would be appreciated!

Call Ric customer service, and they'll send you a packet to send in your old TRC; when they receive your old one, they'll send you the new one.... I think it costs about $25 to do the exchange (have your credit card info handy when you call). I did the TRC swap when Paul refinned my 330 Purpleburst and put gold guards on it.

Thanks Melissa!

Another quick question, who's the best company to buy the pickguards from? Pickguardian looks to be the normal choice, is their gold the same as Ric's gold?

I wonder if I can exchange for a TRC like the one on my acoustics? That would be sweet...

Cole

Pick up a vintage TRC (plexi) and send it to me. I can put the same radius on it as the RIC acoustics have, and polish the radius, for $25.00. Bear in mind that Rick would no longer accept it in trade, but ...

If you're interested, write me off-list.

Sean-
I recently did a TRC swap with rick for a gold one.
Kenny at Rick was great!
I got gold guards from Mike Parks who said they were
from Pickguardian. They do not match. The guards are
darker than the TRC.
Bugs me something fierce!
I might cut my own and find the paint that is a closer match. Ace hardware and Do-it's are closer to the dark;
I'm not sure where to find the lighter....

I believe that the paint that matches the Pickgaurdian pickgaurds is "Dupli-Color" Auto Spray # EDSCC343 "Gold Dust Metallic".

Sean, another option is to paint your raised letter TRC gold and then use a Sharpie or paint pen to blacken the letters.

Here's another one done with that method.

This mismatch problem is exactly the reason why I wait for the TRC from RIC before I tint the gold guard paint to match the TRC. Then I carefully apply the gold paint to match the RIC color.

Because both the gold guards and vintage TRCs are transparent acrylic, painted from the back (in the trade, this is known as "second surface" painting), color can also vary depending upon spraying technique.

If the painter sprays a couple of heavy coats, the gold will be two or three shades darker than if he sprays several very light coats, waiting between for them to dry. Typically, RIC practice is to spray many light coats, so their TRCs will be a shade lighter than the color chip for the gold paint would indicate.

The situation if you are painting a white raised letter TRC in gold paint is slightly different.

It helps that the TRC is a couple of feet from the guards, too, as this can mask a slight mismatch. But if you can see a mismatch when both are mounted on the instrument, you've got a bit of a problem!

I bought some gold guards from Pickguardian & they EXACTLY matched the colour of my gold Ric TRC. I didn't expect it to be so, but I was very pleasantly surprised.

There is an element of unpredictability to this, due to the factors I've cited.

That was what I was trying to get at Paul & a point that you suggested in your typically expert explanation of the process.

So we agree, as always, Tony!

Hmm, I'll have to give this some thought. I love the look of gold guards on a Jetglo Ric, but mismatched guards and TRC would bug me. I might just have to go for an Accent and vintage knobs.

I have 5 different golds that I work with. The most commonly used is the "Gold Dust Metallic" which matches many of the reissues. Rickenbacker recently switched to a more vintage-correct Brassy Gold. If you have a TRC to match, you can send it in with your order and I'll try to match it. The raised TRC repaint is another good option.

Tony Dudzik
Pickguardian