Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

A friend of mine has an April 1973 (MDxxxx) Jetglo 4001. Of course '73 was a year of big changes, but I was always puzzled that his bass didn't have checkerboard binding, I didn't think that went away until much later in the year.

He just had some work done on it by an esteemed local luthier who pointed out a little spot at the end of the binding under the tailpiece where it sure looks like a little bit of checkerboard shows through the finish.

So maybe the "missing" checkerboard is actually painted over? Has anyone ever seen or heard of this?

Anything is possible, but it may be more likely that it was refinished and no one cared to see the binding. In my book, I describe the changeover to plain white binding as occurring in "spring" of 1973, so maybe it's not there.

end of the binding under the tailpiece

There shouldn't be any binding under the tailpiece. It stops at the neck wood.

teeder wrote:

end of the binding under the tailpiece

There shouldn't be any binding under the tailpiece. It stops at the neck wood.

Yes. When I saw this the first thing I thought of is this bass is not a real Rick.

Quoting "at the end of the binding under the tailpiece" would indicate the binding stops there.....
So,let's not burn the witch just yet......

woodyng wrote:Quoting "at the end of the binding under the tailpiece" would indicate the binding stops there.....
So,let's not burn the witch just yet......

True, there is about 1/4" of binding that goes under the tailpiece on either side of it. So, lets see photos of this Jetglo witch!

I'm betting that if the factory binding is there then you will have checkerboard binding under the paint. My April 1973 has it as did my May 1973. Now the trick will be exposing it without screwing up the finish.

Sepp

Kopfjaeger wrote:I'm betting that if the factory binding is there then you will have checkerboard binding under the paint. My April 1973 has it as did my May 1973. Now the trick will be exposing it without screwing up the finish.

Sepp

Xacto knife and a pinch of good luck.

It's a real 4001... tailpiece, jackplate, pickups, wavy Grovers, you can even see the skunk stripe where someone's belt buckle wore through the finish on the back. And the luthier who just worked on it knows his Ricks, he would have called foul on a faker. Looks like a Rick, feels like a Rick and most definitely sounds like a Rick.

This instrument is a player, not a collector's exhibit, so the worn and checked finish and painted over binding are likely to be left alone.

I'll ask my friend if he can take some pictures. Somehow every time I save up enough money for a halfway decent camera, I buy some sort of musical gear instead

I've seen pictures of Ricks badly repainted before, right over the checker binding. It's amazing how much damage you can do with a little mis-placed ambition and can of Krylon spray paint! Would restoration, including at least exposing the checker binding, increase or decrease resale value on a bass like this?

Checker binding is a desirable feature to most Rick people. I can't see where exposing it could possibly hurt the value of the instrument.