Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

I think after perusing the following ad I think you will agree with John Halls strict policy.

We all understand the reasoning very well!

I must admit I was one who questioned the policy thinking "Who the hell would put a real TRC on a phony rip off? They don't even look or sound the same?" Coming across this ad opened my eyes.

I came across one of these fakers a week or two ago. Although they are cheap-looking, they don't play as bad as you might expect - very close to the original design. It would be quite easy to fool a beginner into thinking it's the real deal.

Need MORE proof?

http://cgi.ebay.com/VINTAGE-RICKENBACKE ... 7C294%3A50

Quote from the auction....

"I bought this for $600 BIN plus shipping,It was listed as real .

I got a surprise when I flipped it over and found the backplate."

Nuff said.

I have only seen two fakers in my life, and both of them sadly had RIC TRC's on them... It is more common then you would think...

B

I absolutely agree with the TRC replacement policy.

However, the pic in that image doesn't clearly show the TRC and what you're reading may be nothing more than a seller hard-selling his wares.

I'm leaning toward the fact that it's likely a true TRC (poor thing sitting on a lifeless slab of wood), but until I saw it up close I couldn't say for sure.

The words in the ad, however, truly belie the insidiousness of such a sorry act.

I understand the policy, and even agree with it, as I think most all of us here do. What stinks for me is that I have a real Rickenbacker guitar that I am restoring that needs an authentic looking TRC. I can't get one, without paying an arm and a leg. And then, I'm not guaranteed that the one I'm buying is actually real. So, if and when I sell the guitar, I might never be sure if the TRC is legit.

If I could even get something that was technically from RIC to put on it, it would make the whole process easier and full disclosure could be made without any doubt as to the provenance of the TRC. But I can't, so this guitar is going to be without a TRC until I can find someone I trust that is willing to sell a TRC who's style (1966 6 string 330) matches the year and is selling it at a reasonable price (ie, a price that I can afford and doesn't tip the scale of the money I've put into the guitar vs the resulting value).

I think that if you ship the guitar to RIC, that they should return it to you with a TRC on it. This would allow them to prove that you have a genuine guitar.. But it still doesn't address the issue of people putting real TRC's on fakes.

Perhaps, they should come up with a TRC that self destructs if it is removed from its original instrument?

Just a thought!

I think that if you ship the guitar to RIC, that they should return it to you with a TRC on it. This would allow them to prove that you have a genuine guitar.. But it still doesn't address the issue of people putting real TRC's on fakes.

That's a great idea.

The only downside I see to it is that someone, somewhere will take their TRC off and ship it to RIC and now have 2 TRCs. What becomes of the second TRC?

I can see how this will severely limit the thugs out there but it would dramatically increase the gratitude of honest folks who legitimately have this issue.

Based on what I know about this guitar, the TRC was probably lost/destroyed 30+ years ago, but there is always a possibility that the TRC exists on another guitar. It's just a tough situation for vintage guitars that are in high demand and are beginning to require replacement parts. But you can't make one and then sell it with the guitar. There is a solution somewhere, but maybe not in the near term.

I think that if you ship the guitar to RIC, that they should return it to you with a TRC on it. This would allow them to prove that you have a genuine guitar.. But it still doesn't address the issue of people putting real TRC's on fakes.

A number of years ago I had replaced a TRC on one of my guitars with one I made out of aluminum and had the Ric logo etched into the metal. It came out great and looked very cool. Recently I wanted to put all the original parts back and couldn't find the original TRC. I had heard of Ric's policy and wrote a letter to John Hall asking him if I could send the guitar back to Ric and they replace the TRC. This way I could prove to them it was an authentic Ric. John wrote back that once you loose it that's it. He even went so far as to suggest I search eBay for ones that were up for auction. Well that put a fire under my butt and got motivated enough to go to my storage facility, rummage through all my old boxes, and after many hours found the original TRC. I was very lucky.

I had the aluminum TRC riveted to my forehead.

Nelson: "Don't it always seem to go that you don't know what you've got 'til its gone." Congratulations on finding the original. I am impressed that you saved it.

I actually agree with the RIC policy on TRC's with one exception:
Someone who owns a genuine Rick should be allowed to send back their TRC and purchase one in a different color. A standard 330FG looks excellent with white guards and TRC, but it also looks excellent with gold guards and TRC such as what comes standard with a 660.

The only faker I ever played was at a shop in Glasgow and it was not even close to the real thing. I'm glad there is such a strict policy