1972 Ric 4001 Ebay Mystery (to me at least)

[Ric N. Backer]

Here'e the bass...

http://offer.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll? ... 0561247398

It's taking off to Pluto. Currently at $3,000.00 Apparently the space race is between two primary bidders (78* & 260*).

My question is:

Why would the same person make 7-8 consecutive bids $1,700 to $2,400? They outbid themselves over and over again. Is this some sort of strategy or lunicy?

Is this bass worth THAT much? You could purchase a brand new 4001 C64 for $500 less, and have a magnificient problems-free instrument.

. I had to ask

[BAD RONBO, KiLLeR DWaRfS]

you would have to have owned or played the early basses to understand our sickness.

to know, know, know them, is to love, love, love them, and i do, yes i do, and i do, yes i do and i do, yes i do, yes i do, yes i do !

[opticnerve]

Da, da, da - da, da, da...

[rickaddict]

Why would the same person make 7-8 consecutive bids $1,700 to $2,400? They outbid themselves over and over again. Is this some sort of strategy or lunicy?

The auction may have had a reserve on it that the bidder was trying to meet. Or maybe someone else had a good bid in there that the bidder was trying to beat.

[Ric N. Backer]

you would have to have owned or played the early basses to understand our sickness.

to know, know, know them, is to love, love, love them, and i do, yes i do, and i do, yes i do and i do, yes i do, yes i do, yes i do !

I guess they are a bit different from the 4001 C64 then, eh? I'll have to lay my hands on one and give it a whirl.

Buffalo sounds like a musical place.

[RicOSoundMan]

Well I had heard of people doing that to their offering on E bay. Yet, If I had the money to spend, I couldn't think of a better place to put it than in another wonderful Ric 4001/4003.

[wints]

The seller is lovin' this one!

[cassius987]

Well... I don't get it either.

[rickenbrother]

Hey look, it's Mapleglo...and um CJ and Mr. Cabibe aren't those fingerprints and smudges that I see on it?

[ajish4]

Hey look, it's Mapleglo...and um CJ and Mr. Cabibe aren't those fingerprints and smudges that I see on it?

He obviously failed diaper polishing 101.

C'mon Joey, you can't compare the two!

This guy didn't even wipe down the chrome before taking pictures.

[robj]

My first Rickenbacker was a '72 in MG. I think mine had a little nicer wood and also had the walnut headstock wings. Still miss that bass....

[cjj]

On ebay, you can't really outbid yourself. Putting in successive bids for a higher amount will only raise the maximum that you'll go to and won't show the higher amount until someone else outbids you.

In this case, the t**t guy was merely adding to his bid to try to get it higher than the t**n guy who seemingly had $1700. In fact, he had a higher top amount and the other guys successive bids just went in leaving the t**n guy on top. Or at least I think that's what happened.

As for the bass, well, the wood's nice, but nothing super exceptional. I'm watching it though, but not enough to really go for it, especially with the price where it seems to be going...

[Lost Coyotes]

Brings back memories...
Once upon a time, I so lusted after an early 1970s 4001 with all the cool, discontinued stuff that I believe I lost my mind. Temporarily, I thought... though I am realizing that I never did find it again.
But I do understand the drive these guys are feeling to "win" this '72.
It's real. And $3k isn't all that much.

[Ric N. Backer]

Well, never having played one I suppose I can't really comment on its qualities. Perhaps some of the things I've read over the years regarding this vintage period's nuances are tainted. It just seems that one could purchase something brand new, like the 4001 C64, and get an instrument that has the improved truss rod system, and other coveted features, that would satisfy.

I know there are folks here who own something from this period. Care to comment - compare and contrast the differences between the two (4001 C64 & early 70s vintage). I'd be particularly interested in tonal differences. The difference in visual characteristics is evident.

[robj]

This probably won't help much, It's pretty hard for me to verbalize the differences in sound, but I have a '72 4001 in FG, a 4001CS and '86 4003 and each sounds very different beyond the inherent Rickenbacker sound we all know and love. My '72, all original, has more of that classic sound than the other two, somehow it sounds purer to me if that makes any sense. The CS is much more agressive and perhaps more modern sounding. Really all three are very different animals tone wise but in the end they all sound great.