Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

I had to adjust the intonation on my Oct. 2010 4003 tonight, and now my D saddle has an unbelievable amount of wobble, and rattle in it. This is the first time I've had to adjust the intonation. 3 of the saddles are actually loose, but I've stopped 2 of them from rattling without shimming. I've read some of the other posts, but they were about basses made before the end of 2010. I have no clue what to do to correct my D string saddle wobble; I've tried everything I know, and I've been working on my high end guitars for almost 50 years, so I'm familiar with most setup issues. I finally stuck a piece of plastic shim under it, but that is surely an unexceptable solution for a bass that's a bit over a month old. I put Chrome FW's on it about a week after I bought it, and although the tension was off the saddle when I changed strings; everything was fine. It was only when I moved the screws to adjust the intonation that the problem arose. I'd appreciate any help you can lend. Thanks.
John

Johntheson wrote:I finally stuck a piece of plastic shim under it, but that is surely an unexceptable solution for a bass that's a bit over a month old.

Yes, so you should contact Rickenbacker customer service per your warranty.

I'm really sad this issue is still coming up. The saddles I got a few months ago are perfect and I thought this was a thing of the past.

cassius987 wrote:Yes, so you should contact Rickenbacker customer service per your warranty.

Joshua is right. Posting here about a customer service issue does not get it resolved by RIC. A call to their customer service department will be your best solution. RIC customer service is excellent. Give them a call.

rickenbrother wrote:

cassius987 wrote:Yes, so you should contact Rickenbacker customer service per your warranty.

Joshua is right. Posting here about a customer service issue does not get it resolved by RIC. A call to their customer service department will be your best solution. RIC customer service is excellent. Give them a call.

I bought a 4003FL from Pick of the Ricks in 2007, it developed a rattling saddle after I adjusted it too. I called Chris, he sent me a new saddle (NC), totally fixed the problem. Call your dealer, you may get faster results.

basmansam wrote:I bought a 4003FL from Pick of the Ricks in 2007, it developed a rattling saddle after I adjusted it too. I called Chris, he sent me a new saddle (NC), totally fixed the problem. Call your dealer, you may get faster results.

I'm going to have to agree with Sam on this one. See what your dealer can do first.

My dealings with customer service were less than satisfactory. PM me if you want details.

coolingitdown wrote:

basmansam wrote:I bought a 4003FL from Pick of the Ricks in 2007, it developed a rattling saddle after I adjusted it too. I called Chris, he sent me a new saddle (NC), totally fixed the problem. Call your dealer, you may get faster results.

I'm going to have to agree with Sam on this one. See what your dealer can do first.

My dealings with customer service were less than satisfactory. PM me if you want details.

Jonathan, your saddles on your 4001C64 are good right? It looked like they were going to wobble and I tried to make them do it but I couldn't. They felt solid.

I wasn't posting here expecting it to be my communication with Ric; I was just asking how the problem was solved by anyone else who experienced it. It was in no way meant to be a strike at Ric. I had intended on calling them today, as they were already closed when the issue arose last night. I called them today, and they are going to send me some new saddles. They asked me to send a self addressed envelope to them; which I did this morning. I love the bass, and enjoy the heck out of it; I just hated to see the saddle issue happen. My main reason for posting was in hope of finding a solution, that I could work out on my own, without even having to call Ric. I bought the bass from MF, so contacting them wasn't really going to get me any parts I might have needed.

cassius987 wrote:Jonathan, your saddles on your 4001C64 are good right? It looked like they were going to wobble and I tried to make them do it but I couldn't. They felt solid.

Oh, yeah! They are as snug as can be!

It was my 4003 I was referring to. The saddles on the 4003 were also snug from the factory. After I adjusted the intonation, they started having the wobble problem.

Since the 4001C64 was set up at Wildwood prior to shipping, I'm assuming that these saddles were adjusted without acquiring any wobble. The intonation is spot on, so they had to have been adjusted already, and they're still very snug.

And I'm glad you got your saddle problem worked out, John!

I just had four new (more precisely machined) saddles put on my 2010 4003. RIC sent them directly to my dealer and I couldn't be happier. Now the only click and clack is from me attacking those strings!

That's what I like to hear. I look forward to mine arriving, and installing them.

Johntheson wrote:I had to adjust the intonation on my Oct. 2010 4003 tonight, and now my D saddle has an unbelievable amount of wobble, and rattle in it. This is the first time I've had to adjust the intonation. 3 of the saddles are actually loose, but I've stopped 2 of them from rattling without shimming. I've read some of the other posts, but they were about basses made before the end of 2010.

I had November 2010 4003 with 2 wobbly saddles. I wrote to Rickenbacker Service department 18. February 2011 and got an automatic reply which said their goal is to reply to my message within 24 hours on normal business days. No reply yet so I guess their business days have been abnormal lately.

From the rules;

3. Posts shall not be rude, offensive or nonsensical.

4. Posts shall not show apparent disrespect for others, including RIC and its employees

Rant or complain somewhere else. Thank you!

Last stop here.