Model of the week 20: The 4004 Cheyenne

[bassduke49]

It's now 1993, and we've come to what can be described as the "next generation" of Rick basses. The folks at RIC decided to take a shot at a more modern looking "boutique" bass. While maintaining the overall silhouette of the classic 4000/4001/4002/4003 series, the new Cheyenne bass has a fresh approach to the construction and equipment. Gone are the classic single-coil pickups, pickguard, and heritage tailpiece. New humbucking pickups were mounted into recesses on the front of the body, wired into a control cavity loaded from the rear and covered by a small plastic plate. The controls were simplified; one volume pot, one tone pot, and a microswitch to select either or both pickups. No Rick-O-Sound outlet on the 4004 series. The timber involved this time was a newly profiled maple neck - a bit wider and flatter than the typical 4003 - and featuring a maple fretboard. But the most striking change was the slinkily contoured walnut body wings; the top rear bout is really thin, rivaling that on a Fender Jazz (as I recall). The icing on the cake is gold-plated hardware, including the modern Schaller tuners and a streamlined tailpiece/bridge assembly.

When John Hall was asked about the start date for the 4004, he indicated that it began several years before 1993 (which is the first appearance of the Cheyenne on RIC price lists and advertisements), keying his recollection to a specific event which he left up to our imaginations. This could be the rumored gift of a Cheyenne prototype leftie to Paul McCartney, but I've not been able to verify that.

The Cheyenne was produced from 1993(?) to about 1999 when it was morphed gradually into what is now officially listed as the 4004Cii (ii meaning "bis" which is French or Latin for "second" or "next version"). But that will be discussed later. Next week, we'll look at the Laredo, but for now, let's discuss and post pics of the beautiful 4004C Cheyenne! Here's mine, bought used from Dave Westheimer in 2003 and modified to vol/vol/tone controls by Jeff Rath.

[jps]

I guess I'll have to wait till bis week.

[incubus2432]

Sorry to taint the Ci thread with other 4004's but it's the only pic I have handy of my ex (strung BEAD)....



It's one of the few basses that I regret selling.

[johnallg]

The contours of the 4004C is so comfortable it is a shame they went to the laminated body and had to forgo the contours on the Cii. Lightweight and of so sexy, the Cheyenne is one wonderful bass. Mine has been modded to have V/T V/T for controls like the 4001/3 series. I like the additional tone possibilities.

Only picture I have of mine as it looks now. Sorry for the confused array...

[fretless]

oooh Beautiful ! My kinda bass

[rickfan60]

Mine is a '93. I have to wonder about the McCartney connection. It seems plausible. The 4004C was clearly made to be light. McCartney likes his Hofner because it is light. Maybe there was hope Paul would consider jumping ship to a nice light-weight Rickenbacker?

[johnallg]

Forgot to say mine is April '95. Here is a picture from before it was mine:

[VRICKY63]

Can not post a photo but it's a FG4004Cii 4-2-5. I likes it.

[heinpete]

There once was a highly figured 4004i Cheyenne in the Bay...?
Never seen such an "old" beauty again.

[cassius987]

These exact Ci's with walnut body wings around a long streak of maple are gorgeous and if the pickups were placed differently I would probably be hunting rabidly for one. They look awesome.

[rickfan60]

The cool thing about these basses is you can refinish them whenever you want. All it takes is a little steel wool and tung oil to make them look new again. The down side to the finish is the fingerboards hold a lot of crud.

[woodyng]

hey john,i never realized that the ci had a differently contoured body to the cii,(or the laredo?) i just thought all 4004 series were alike in that regard,as my cii is very contoured,at least compared to my 4000. hmmm......would love to get my hands on a ci someday.....

[paul_yan]

Me too, Woody, I thought they were all the same!

Can anyone with both a Ci and a Cii (or even a Laredo) take some detailed side-by-side shots of the front and back of the bodies to show the differences in body contouring? That would be very much appreciated!

[robj]

To overcome the grunged up fretboard on my '98 4004C I used a light application of birchwood casey gun oil to "seal" it after giving it a good cleaning, that helped a lot. I also have an early 4004Cii in trans blue and don't recall much difference in the body contours between the two. My 4004C is sidelined with a bad bridge pickup, I keep waiting for the HB1 to be available at the boutique, so it hasn't been played in over 2 years, perhaps there's a difference and I just don't recall?

[robj]

Me too, Woody, I thought they were all the same!

Can anyone with both a Ci and a Cii (or even a Laredo) take some detailed side-by-side shots of the front and back of the bodies to show the differences in body contouring? That would be very much appreciated!

I think I can do that this weekend.....