Back to Rickenbacker
Posted: Mon Jan 16, 2012 8:35 pm
Hello, folks.
So, after about 15 years of not owning a Ric, I'm back in the club.
My first bass was a Walnut 3000, which I bought 20+ years ago from the classified ads in Albuquerque. It was a great first bass, but being 6'3", it did not take me long to realize that a short scale was not for me. I stumbled upon a '73 4001 Jetglo, and I was in Geddy heaven. It was a great bass, and I miss it! I added a '78 4001 Fireglo at some point as well, although the timing is hazy. That '78 never sounded all that great compared to the '73, though.
Fast forward a few years, and I had sold both. Over the years, I've tried a number of great basses (some of which I still own), mainly vintage Fenders. In going through some old boxes recently, I stumbled upon a picture of high-school aged me holding my Jetglo 4001. It really made me miss that bass even more, and I decided I should try to find a replacement. Instead, I bought 2...
The first is a 4001 project, that dates to the late summer of '73 (thanks to Rickenbrother and others for helping me narrow the age):
-Wavy Grovers
-Checkerboard binding
-Toaster up front
-Plexi TRC
-Mexico CTS pots from March 1973 ("Mexico 137 7312")
-Inlays that are neither crushed pearl nor full width
Unfortunately, the original jackplate with serial number is long gone. So, it's a bit of a mystery as to the exact age. An unknown previous owner created a jackplate with a serial number that makes no sense.
The bass was sanded and is ready for a refin. Since I miss my '73 4001 Jetglo, I was hoping to go in that direction. Right now, I am leaning toward installing a reissue horseshoe pickup. I will take some pictures as the restoration progresses. I will also try to scan the picture of me with my original '73!
The second is a '72 4001 that is in my avatar. It has a deep, rich Fireglo. Given that the nitro around the binding is significantly yellowed, I'm guessing that the nitro is the cause of the deeper reds. I found it via g-base recently, and looked it up in the register. Unfortunately, the entry listing shows the last sale as without the bridge pickup, so I know know that this pickup isn't original. Along the way, it appears that someone installed Schaller M4s (or similar given a single extra hole), some crazy bridge (a few extra holes but no routing), and a different pickup (a few extra holes but again, no routing). Currently equipped with what appear to be a lot of original parts -- the wavy Grovers, a toaster up front, plexi finger pull, nicely aged bridge, etc.
When it arrived, the frets were in worse shape than expected. I had Mike Lull re-fret and PLEK it and it plays great now! He did a meticulous job cutting the finish around the old frets and installing the new frets, so that he left the original fretboard finish intact!
I'll get some pictures uploaded soon!
-Bob
So, after about 15 years of not owning a Ric, I'm back in the club.
My first bass was a Walnut 3000, which I bought 20+ years ago from the classified ads in Albuquerque. It was a great first bass, but being 6'3", it did not take me long to realize that a short scale was not for me. I stumbled upon a '73 4001 Jetglo, and I was in Geddy heaven. It was a great bass, and I miss it! I added a '78 4001 Fireglo at some point as well, although the timing is hazy. That '78 never sounded all that great compared to the '73, though.
Fast forward a few years, and I had sold both. Over the years, I've tried a number of great basses (some of which I still own), mainly vintage Fenders. In going through some old boxes recently, I stumbled upon a picture of high-school aged me holding my Jetglo 4001. It really made me miss that bass even more, and I decided I should try to find a replacement. Instead, I bought 2...
The first is a 4001 project, that dates to the late summer of '73 (thanks to Rickenbrother and others for helping me narrow the age):
-Wavy Grovers
-Checkerboard binding
-Toaster up front
-Plexi TRC
-Mexico CTS pots from March 1973 ("Mexico 137 7312")
-Inlays that are neither crushed pearl nor full width
Unfortunately, the original jackplate with serial number is long gone. So, it's a bit of a mystery as to the exact age. An unknown previous owner created a jackplate with a serial number that makes no sense.
The bass was sanded and is ready for a refin. Since I miss my '73 4001 Jetglo, I was hoping to go in that direction. Right now, I am leaning toward installing a reissue horseshoe pickup. I will take some pictures as the restoration progresses. I will also try to scan the picture of me with my original '73!
The second is a '72 4001 that is in my avatar. It has a deep, rich Fireglo. Given that the nitro around the binding is significantly yellowed, I'm guessing that the nitro is the cause of the deeper reds. I found it via g-base recently, and looked it up in the register. Unfortunately, the entry listing shows the last sale as without the bridge pickup, so I know know that this pickup isn't original. Along the way, it appears that someone installed Schaller M4s (or similar given a single extra hole), some crazy bridge (a few extra holes but no routing), and a different pickup (a few extra holes but again, no routing). Currently equipped with what appear to be a lot of original parts -- the wavy Grovers, a toaster up front, plexi finger pull, nicely aged bridge, etc.
When it arrived, the frets were in worse shape than expected. I had Mike Lull re-fret and PLEK it and it plays great now! He did a meticulous job cutting the finish around the old frets and installing the new frets, so that he left the original fretboard finish intact!
I'll get some pictures uploaded soon!
-Bob
Re: the finish, it is conversion varnish, not nitro (unless it had been refinished at some point before you bought it). Rickenbacker stopped using nitro in 1959/1960ish.
, so that made it even more frustrating!
