Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

I was lucky enough to get a John Hall led tour of the Rickenbacker factory. Amazing place. Very special company. And Mr. Hall was a real pleasure to spend time with.

Though I haven't been as fortunate, I do know it is a special place. And yes, John is cool...

Sounds like a great day Vincent!

Did you get the chance to try out any of the basses in the museum?

Photos, please?
I'm guessing you didn't leave empty-handed...

DriftSpace wrote:Photos, please?
I'm guessing you didn't leave empty-handed...

Vincent only likes the old ones.

Not from Vincent's trip, but here are my own photos from the factory, for your viewing pleasure:

http://www.johnbiscuti.net/#/photos/rickmuseum/
http://www.johnbiscuti.net/#/photos/rickfactory/

John,

They actually allow you to play the instrument there??

Sepp

Quite a while back Mr. Hall gave me a tour when I was doing a story for Gannett News Service and AP. I was blown away not only with the great guitars in the museum but by how much was still done by hand. Aside from forming the bodies, I don't think a lot of that has changed. I watched them spray the RICs, put on binding, string them and set them up, etc. It was way cool and I really appreciated my RICs a lot more when I got home knowing how much human effort goes into each guitar. .

Kopfjaeger wrote:John,

They actually allow you to play the instrument there??

Sepp

Nope!

manta wrote:Quite a while back Mr. Hall gave me a tour when I was doing a story for Gannett News Service and AP. I was blown away not only with the great guitars in the museum but by how much was still done by hand. Aside from forming the bodies, I don't think a lot of that has changed. I watched them spray the RICs, put on binding, string them and set them up, etc. It was way cool and I really appreciated my RICs a lot more when I got home knowing how much human effort goes into each guitar. .

All very true, Tim. It's amazing stuff to see.

A look around the factory there shows how a CNC doesn't make guitar-building as easy as pushing a button. CNC helps cut consistently good parts, but there are so many other steps towards making these pieces into a functional instrument, much of which is done by skilled hands. Interesting stuff!

It was like '93 or '94 when I got the tour and that means 20+ years of guitars added to the museum. It is an incredible room full of innovation, history and some just plain gorgeous guitars. I am sure it is a superb experience now. Vince, you're a lucky guy and Mr. Hall has always been quite gracious with his time. Thank for sharing.