Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

I'm about to buy my first Ric and my first bass, a 4003, over the internet. The store I'm buying it from said they're getting a few in so I'd like to give them some parameters for the specific Ric they pick out for me. I'm having it shipped halfway around the world and would like to avoid having to return my bass for any reason. What should I have them check for? Besides the color, so far I'm thinking:

-balanced string response (as I've heard some 4003s have weak E strings)
-no dead spots (I've heard this can be a problem, especially on the D string around the 8th-10th fret and around the 3rd-7th fret of the G string)
-no neck dive (I *hate* that)
-a weight under 9.7 lbs
-no tail lift? Is this a problem for new Rics or just for aging ones?
-good sound (duh!)

Anything else I should look out for? If I decide to return it I'd probably lose $600 on shipping and customs fees, so I'm really trying to cover all my bases (haha) here!

Thanks for your help and thanks for making Rickresource.com such a cool place! I've been lurking here for a couple months but this is my first post.

With international buying and such, I'd advise buying from a well-respected Ric dealer. There's a few who's praises we sing here. That would be your safest bet.

Thanks for the advice, s4001.

I'm buying from a dealer I trust; they mostly deal in high-end gear and good customer service is sort of their "thing," if you know what I mean. I bought a high-end Fender from them last year and everything worked out well. They're also offering me a really good deal. But as I said, returning this thing would be a real PITA; I don't want to end up with a bass with a flaw that I could have easily just told them to look for before they shipped it out. I was told told they're expecting 30 (!!) Rick basses in the next shipment so they should have a large pool to pick one out for me.

That said, if you could recommend some specific dealers, I'd be sure to check them out, too

Tritone wrote:-balanced string response (as I've heard some 4003s have weak E strings)

Never had this issue but have heard clips of it from others. I think it's setup related. I know there are some threads on here of people who had it and fixed it.

-no dead spots (I've heard this can be a problem, especially on the D string around the 8th-10th fret and around the 3rd-7th fret of the G string)

If you have a thicker neck or a laminated neck like the new 2-piece you're much less likely to have this but no one besides the dealer can promise you anything before buying if you don't play it first. I have one bass with a very thin one-piece neck that had an issue at the 10th fret D string but it has since resolved itself without much work on my part (in terms of actually getting results). I think once the wood settled it just stopped happening, but no amount of tweaking on my part did any good in the long run... it just took time.

-no neck dive (I *hate* that)

I think this is symptomatic of how you wear your strap. If you wear it in a normal playing position you should be fine. I have never experienced dive on *any* bass using that position--it's the one promoted by teaching methods like Hal Leonard. A bit higher than I initially wanted but it facilitates playing and hand/wrist health.

-a weight under 9.7 lbs

I'm pretty sure most 4003s clock in under that.

-no tail lift? Is this a problem for new Rics or just for aging ones?

Seems like 99% of these complaints are on older Rics but now people are so sensitive about it that they consider any sort of gap to be tailpiece lift. Sometimes my basses had mine lift, like 1/32'', and it was just because the screws under the bridge were too tight compared to the other two. So you need to be aware of how to set the bass up if you're concerned about this.

-good sound (duh!)

That's one thing that has never failed me with any of my 4003s, 4003FL or 4001FL. They all sounded great the first time I picked them up. Set up will enhance this but there is usually an inherent potential to the bass to begin with. If there's not any, you're in trouble, but I only know of one person who experienced basses that were beyond redemption in his ears and they were not 4003s.

If its a 4003 with adjustable pole pieces, you should have no problem dialing in a more powerful E string if you feel it needs it. As far as dead spots go, every bass I've ever played (including those with graphite necks) have had a dead spot in the areas you describe to some degree. This just seems to be the nature of the bass guitar and its inherent design. Some folks around here have had success with lessening the prominence of the dead spot by giving the truss rods a tweak. Good luck with your purchase!

Hey Zac, good luck with your purchase. Post some pics when you get your bass. Mark

Welcome to the family, Zac!

Seems Joshua and Steve have your questions answered very well.
If you have any questions and need help getting you 4003 fine tuned to your needs, we'll be sure to help you.

what ever you do, Dont buy a 4003 from 1999-2006 they have thick necks and They really get annoying!

Nelson, send all the fat neck 4003 basses that annoy you, to me. They don't annoy me at all!

rickenbrother wrote:Nelson, send all the fat neck 4003 basses that annoy you, to me. They don't annoy me at all!

hail the thin necks like a C64s! haha! well I don't have a 4003 anymore. I just sold it.

Thanks for all the advice and the warm welcome, guys. I don't know much about basses (I'm branching out from guitar) but it's weird how some people say "every bass has dead spots to some extent" while other say stuff along the lines of "none of my basses have dead spots." Very confusing!

Honestly I'd probably be happier buying from the Rickresource classifieds, but I don't have 100 posts

Tritone wrote:Thanks for all the advice and the warm welcome, guys. I don't know much about basses (I'm branching out from guitar) but it's weird how some people say "every bass has dead spots to some extent" while other say stuff along the lines of "none of my basses have dead spots." Very confusing!

In my experience "dead spots" can vary from bass to bass. One of the first things I do when I pick up a bass is check where the dead spot occurs and how bad it is. Folks may claim their basses don't have dead spots, but I'd suspect that the the problem area just isn't very prominent.

Welcome Zac! I think you'll find you only need 30 posts to get into the market place. 30 comes very quick.

Thanks, T.A.R.!

Only 30, huh? That's not so bad. The problem is I don't even own a Rick yet so I don't really have much to add to the discussion! All I can really say is "I want a Rick" or "ooooh, that one looks cool!"

Tritone wrote:All I can really say is "I want a Rick" or "ooooh, that one looks cool!"

Only 26 more to go, so have at it. You wouldn't be the first.

And welcome aboard.