Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

The case my 480 came in has a broken board on the bottom right side. It's not water damage or anything like that. Just looks like someone dropped it hard. Can a luggage repair shop fix it?

aceonbass wrote:There are two completely different roads you can take on this one. Either an automotive upholstery shop, or a shop that does repair work on luggage.

Thanks Dane! I might have to go to both. I know the suitcase repair place could fix or replace the locks(hasps) but I don't know if they can repair the wood/tolex. I am going to call an upholstery shop near me to ask about that.

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Jeepers for second there I thought you had posted a link to a porn site Mitch.

Too funny...

If the shop you go to can't repair the break in the wood, check whether they would repair the Tolex after you repaired the break after they first removed the outer Tolex (for a fee, of course). You could then repair the break yourself (wood glue with clamping between two straight pieces of wood, with aluminum foil or similar between the "splints" and the the repair to keep the wrong wood from being glued, plenty of time for the glue to dry completely). Then you could take it back repaired and they could finish the recovering/latches.

doctorwho wrote:If the shop you go to can't repair the break in the wood, check whether they would repair the Tolex after you repaired the break after they first removed the outer Tolex (for a fee, of course). You could then repair the break yourself (wood glue with clamping between two straight pieces of wood, with aluminum foil or similar between the "splints" and the the repair to keep the wrong wood from being glued, plenty of time for the glue to dry completely). Then you could take it back repaired and they could finish the recovering/latches.

Thanks Gary,I look at it more closely and saw that there is actually a big piece of wood missing(were you see the mesh backing) so the whole piece would have to be replaced.

Ah, yes, that will require more major reconstruction ...

Is there another case or gig bag that it would fit in until I get it rapaired?

I went to the custom automotive upholstery shop and they told me they had no idea how to repair it(after telling me over the phone to bring it in) so I took it to a luggage repair shop and they told me they could fix it.

They couldn't restore it to it's original specs but they reinforced( the board from the outside and put a new piece of leather(tolex?) end over the repair.They also installed 2 new lock(they didn't have any spring latch hardware to replace the original(broken) locks. Not the prettiest repairs but they seen appropriate for the guitar the case now holds securely.

Functional is the keyword - I think that the repair is just fine!

doctorwho wrote:Functional is the keyword - I think that the repair is just fine!

Thanks Gary! I also found a gigbag that fits the 480 perfectly.

octagon wrote:

doctorwho wrote:Functional is the keyword - I think that the repair is just fine!

Thanks Gary! I also found a gigbag that fits the 480 perfectly.

That looks like a very good bag for it. I have a couple of my non-Rickenbackers in such well padded gig bags, and I feel secure with that.