Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

I would appreciate some advice on a couple of issues relating to the clean-up of a 1983 360-12 in Fireglo.

1. When I removed the control knobs, I noticed that the locking nuts that hold the pots in place have some surface corrosion. I was able to remove the worst of it by doing a superficial clean up with a q-tip and some chrome cleaner and windex, but is there a safe/recommended way to remove the locking nuts without damaging the pickguard or the pots? (It occurs to me that the best idea might be to replace the locking nuts entirely, but I will leave them alone if the attempt is likely to do more harm than good.) Seems like a tricky operation to hold the pots steady and apply enough force to remove the locking nuts without damaging the 25-year old lower pickguard. It looks like the original pot assembly is somewhat delicate, with tape, etc. on the underside of the guard that appears to be original factory, so what I would really like to do is remove the corroded parts on top (maybe one at a time?) and leave the assembly underneath intact/undisturbed.

2. If there is a safe way to remove the locking nuts, is it possible to clean the rest of the corrosion off, or should I simply save them on the side and install new ones?

3. Last, I would be interested to know if anyone has had any luck finding a good lacquer match for the dark brown shade in 1980s Fireglo -- it looks similar to the darker shade of Montezuma Brown. There are two very small spots on the guitar that could use a touch up, but perhaps someone has already stumbled across a match that is close. Thanks.

Welcome John,

There are plenty here who can answer your Q's. You'll enjoy it here!

sixtwentytwelve wrote:I would appreciate some advice on a couple of issues relating to the clean-up of a 1983 360-12 in Fireglo.

1. When I removed the control knobs, I noticed that the locking nuts that hold the pots in place have some surface corrosion. I was able to remove the worst of it by doing a superficial clean up with a q-tip and some chrome cleaner and windex, but is there a safe/recommended way to remove the locking nuts without damaging the pickguard or the pots? (It occurs to me that the best idea might be to replace the locking nuts entirely, but I will leave them alone if the attempt is likely to do more harm than good.) Seems like a tricky operation to hold the pots steady and apply enough force to remove the locking nuts without damaging the 25-year old lower pickguard. It looks like the original pot assembly is somewhat delicate, with tape, etc. on the underside of the guard that appears to be original factory, so what I would really like to do is remove the corroded parts on top (maybe one at a time?) and leave the assembly underneath intact/undisturbed.

2. If there is a safe way to remove the locking nuts, is it possible to clean the rest of the corrosion off, or should I simply save them on the side and install new ones?

3. Last, I would be interested to know if anyone has had any luck finding a good lacquer match for the dark brown shade in 1980s Fireglo -- it looks similar to the darker shade of Montezuma Brown. There are two very small spots on the guitar that could use a touch up, but perhaps someone has already stumbled across a match that is close. Thanks.

Welcome to the RRF, John!

First: pot nuts...You can remove these about a half-dozen different ways. In my shop, I've got a 1/2" socket with a 1/4" drive ratchet handle that I use for these as well as output jack nuts. You could also use a 1/2" open or box-ended wrench, a small Crescent wrench...hmm...that's only three; the other three are not so nice so I won't mention them here.

The escutcheon nut for the pickup selector switch is another story. There is a special socket made for these, but I use a large needlenose pliers, very carefully positioned so as to avoid scratching the acrylic guard.

When these parts are removed, the pots and switch--which are a sort of semi-rigid assembly, held in approximate position by their wires--will simply drop out. No need to worry.

Regarding replacing the nuts for the pots; you can, but be warned that they may not available at places like Radio Shack...the pot nut assortments I've bought there have been metric (for Asian-made stuff), and these are American-made pots with US/UK threading. So, I'd clean them and re-use them.

The color is a thornier problem. The colors that RIC uses for FG are transparent dyes. This means that a good touchup can be mixed by someone who really knows color, but it will vary from guitar to guitar and even from location to location on the same guitar. This is especially true of older Ricks, whose finishes age oddly, with what was once dark red turning a lovely russet-brown, while the lighter red areas end up a burnt orange.

Why not just leave the chips in place? Folks call it "patina" and, unless really excessive, it's a part of the beauty of the instrument. I do a lot of Rick refinishing, and unless the guitar is competently and sensitively refinished, matches may be difficult to do and may decrease the value of the guitar.

For the sake of two tiny areas, a refinish would be folly.

Thanks Paul -- I really appreciate the information. A few follow up questions:

1. Presumably, you have to hold the pot assembly steady under the pickguard to get enough leverage to remove the nut -- are there any tricks to that (or hidden perils other than the obvious danger of knocking a wire loose)?

2. Once they are removed, is there a preferred method for cleaning off the surface corrosion on the locking nuts?

3. I understand exactly what you're saying about the paint chips -- don't want to do any harm. They are hard to see, and all three of them are in the very dark/solid areas of the FG -- there's a tiny chip (probably 1/8") on the bottom near the tailpiece, a similar sized chip next to the binding on the upper back, and a thin line of paint loss on the upper top edge of the headstock. It occurred to me that they might be easier to touch up because they are small and they all appear in areas of solid/dark color, but as you point out it might be very difficult to get a perfect match. I would be interested in hearing from anyone that might have found an off the rack lacquer color that came close to the darker shade of the '80s fireglo, but I realize that might be a tall order. Thanks again.

sixtwentytwelve wrote:Thanks Paul -- I really appreciate the information. A few follow up questions:

1. Presumably, you have to hold the pot assembly steady under the pickguard to get enough leverage to remove the nut -- are there any tricks to that (or hidden perils other than the obvious danger of knocking a wire loose)?

Yes, hold them steady with your fingers. Unless the nuts are very, very corroded, that will provide enough leverage. Knock a wire loose? Not likely...the wires actually will hold the pot assembly and wring harness in approximate alignment after you pull them out of the guard. They are that stiff, and well-soldered (by hand) at the Rick factory.

sixtwentytwelve wrote:2. Once they are removed, is there a preferred method for cleaning off the surface corrosion on the locking nuts?

I use a wire brush on a bench grinder, but usually I toss the nuts and simply put new ones on. These are standard parts. This goes for the escutcheon on the switch, too.

sixtwentytwelve wrote:3. I understand exactly what you're saying about the paint chips -- don't want to do any harm. They are hard to see, and all three of them are in the very dark/solid areas of the FG -- there's a tiny chip (probably 1/8") on the bottom near the tailpiece, a similar sized chip next to the binding on the upper back, and a thin line of paint loss on the upper top edge of the headstock. It occurred to me that they might be easier to touch up because they are small and they all appear in areas of solid/dark color, but as you point out it might be very difficult to get a perfect match. I would be interested in hearing from anyone that might have found an off the rack lacquer color that came close to the darker shade of the '80s fireglo, but I realize that might be a tall order. Thanks again.

It's so tall an order as to be impossible. Even if another Rick owner came up with a perfect match on this color for one area of his own instrument, it would not match another area of the same instrument, and would not match any area of yours. As I said, the variables of hand-spraying transparent tints, along with the vagaries of aging and the effects of the environment and UV on older paint surfaces, mean that no two guitars are alike, and no two square inches of one guitar are likely to be, either, where old FG is concerned.

Thanks again Paul -- I really appreciate the information/advice.