Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

I'm taken with having a bass like Woody's and Josh's, both of which started out with a 4004, moved the HB-1 pickups to 4002 positions, and added a large 4000-style gold pickguard.

I tried out a 2008 4004Cii and the neck was simply too large for me to feel comfortable with it.

Current plan is to either find a 4004 with a narrower neck than the one I tried, and convert that - or start with a 4001S or 4003S. The 4001S/4003S will have the neck dimensions I want.

If I start with a 4001S/4003S. I'll remove the two original pickups, route the body for the two new HB-1s in the 4002 (Jazz Bass) locations, perhaps fill the original neck route, and then fabricate and install the new large gold pickguard and the inline V/V/T 4004-style controls.

FInally I'll also have a choice of using the original 4001S/4003S bridge, or converting to a 4004 bridge (or a similar Schaller bridge).

Any advice?

I'd start with a newer 4004 with the narrower neck since there would be less work. Starting with a 4003 will give you a lot of extra routing to deal with. By the way, I have the pattern for the pickguard I made for Woody's bass. PM me for details....

Dane: Thanks for your advice.

When you say there will be extra routing for a 4001@/4003S, what will cause that? Isn't it the same, with two pickups routes and the pickup cable routes?

It seems to be a lot easier to find a 4001S/4003S than a 4004.

The 4003 is going to have extra routing under the bridge,so unless you want to keep that bridge,or replace it with a hipshot,you'd need to add in wood,which would then be visible.
I've entertained the idea of having my Cheyenne's neck pickup moved back next to the bridge,and having some kind of cover plate made for the newly exposed cavity.
Of course,i could go the route of a 50's style pickguard to cover that too....
I got to play a Lemmy 4004 last summer at the BARC,and just really love the sound of the hb1 back by the bridge. I have no use for 3 pickups on my bass,though.

Woody: What's your opinion of the Hipshot replacement bridge?

Woody is correct about the extra routing. In addition to that, there's a GIANT route for the 4003 bridge pickup assembly. Since the pickups on Woody's bass are mounted to the body, and can raise through the guard, to do the same on a 4003 you'd have to fill the route with a maple block.

My opinion of the hipshot bridges?--I like them.
I've had 2 of the aluminum ones on my 74 and 72 4000's,and they are great in every way for my purposes. I originally put one on my '74 because of an intonation issue with the original bridge. (I gave that bridge away here,hoping someone else would find it useful,but it sounds as if it may not be working for him,either.) It was after getting the hipshot installed that i noticed the other benefits of a more even string to string response,and of course a better "fit" to the body,as well as not having the mute teeth and knobs in my way. (I would never use it either).
I would be likely to put one on any 4001/3 bass i might ever buy.
(Not too sure what the odds are on that at this point!)
I
Overall though,I'm an even bigger fan of the 4004 series of basses with the ABM bridges.

If I keep the original 4001S/4003S bridge, then I only have to deal with filling the large bridge pickup route and the smaller neck pickup route, but not the bridge route.

Since the old pickup routes will be under the new pickguard, I won't have to refinish the bass.

That doesn't sound like too bad a solution. It ensures that I'll get the nice 4003S neck profile.

I can get an open box 4003S in Fireglo for around $1250. That's probably around $200 to $300 less than what a used 4004 will cost, so it leaves funds for having the old routes filled and the new ones routed.

I'll have to buy two HB-1s and the controls.

Does that sound like a reasonable plan?

The stock 4003 tailpiece can be modded to work quite well, however, my pickguard pattern is shaped to allow for an ABM or Schaller bridge, so it would have to me altered a bit where the tailpiece sits. I can get the HB1's and provide the wiring as well.

If i were doing this to,say a new 4003S,I'd want to keep the horseshoe look and just do a 50's version of a 4000....but that would not accomplish the pickup positions you're wanting.

Thanks to Woody and Dane.

I'm more interested in the clean and modern look that you both and Josh got, with the two HB-1s and the large 50's-style pickguard than preserving a classic 4000 look with all the odd-shaped and technical-looking hardware. As you can deduce, I'm not fond of how the stock 4001/4003 looks or feels while playing.

I'll post more after I find a bass that I'm ready to mod.

There's a 4003S I've found that might do the trick.

I love modded Ricks,so looking forward to what you come up with!

LenMinNJ-best of lucy on your project!

One mod I've been thinking about lately is a 4003s to 4000 conversion: Acquire a 4003s and a 4000 replica pick guard. Adapt and locate the treble pickup bobbin to use as a dummy coil for humbucking under the new pick guard, then use the neck pickup in the treble position with a mojo bezel. It could be a relatively easy and inexpensive way to procure a quasi 4000, humbucking, while mostly retaining the hi-gain pickup sound.

Hmmmm....Why would you swap bobbins? You could also just put an HB1 in the bridge position, and skip all the extra wiring.

Kiddwad57 wrote:LenMinNJ-best of lucy on your project!