Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

I've had my MidnightBlue 330 for nearly ten years. The second it arrived in my home I switched out the pickguards and trc for gold and added oven knobs:



Well, after nearly a decade I decided to go back to white. Why? I don't know.



Me thinks me likes the gold more. The white is cherrier, and more classic; but the gold was unique and personalized.

And don't say switch back. Yes, it's easy to do, but getting the pots to my exact setting (even after making tons of pencil marks) is impossible. I am still monkeying with the five knobs trying to get the guitar back to the way I loved it.

Tom they are both a gorgeous look. Gold, a tad more royal perhaps. You can't go wrong with that guitar. Thanks for the photos. Still left is the gold and white guards together.

I dislike the oven knobs, so the new look is more to my liking, therefore, don't switch back !

steverok wrote:I dislike the oven knobs, so the new look is more to my liking, therefore, don't switch back !

Or switch the knobs for a change of pace.

If I got a 4003AC I'd put vintage style knobs on it.

Keep both. You might even try the white lower guard and the gold upper guard and go two-tone! Seriously, that would be a unique look, to go with the gold-tone inserts of the oven knobs.

No way am I gong two-tone on the guards.

When it comes to guitars I am a traditionalist. Rics are classic guitars -- I want to keep mine that way. The only guitar I went crazy on was a Gretsch (pin-up girl stickers, personalized truss rod cover, dice knobs…) and that's because Gretsch guitars have had a history of crazy aesthetic mods. Other than the gold pickguard with oven knobs, and removing the vibrato arm on my 325, I have kept my Rics the way they came from the factory. They are a classic design, they should stay that way.

Tommy wrote:No way am I gong two-tone on the guards.

When it comes to guitars I am a traditionalist. Rics are classic guitars -- I want to keep mine that way. The only guitar I went crazy on was a Gretsch (pin-up girl stickers, personalized truss rod cover, dice knobs…) and that's because Gretsch guitars have had a history of crazy aesthetic mods. Other than the gold pickguard with oven knobs, and removing the vibrato arm on my 325, I have kept my Rics the way they came from the factory. They are a classic design, they should stay that way.

Tom, I hear you. Tradition is, of course, era based. Lest this seem too unduly churlish, I recall the modifications made by John Lennon (bigsby, knobs) , Roger McGuinn (electronics) Fogerty (bridge humbucker) and Paul Weller (stickers) just to name a few, moved us away from the stock or early Rickenbacker tradition. Rickenbacker has also done this on their own with the Al Cisneros AC4003S model. Overall, I am in agreement with you but have found that changes to my Liverpool 350 have wet my appetite for a new look that I can live with.

As Bob Dylan has reminded us,

"Come gather 'round people wherever you roam and admidt that the waters around you have grown."

admin wrote:

Tommy wrote:... I recall the modifications made by John Lennon (bigsby, knobs) , Roger McGuinn (electronics) Fogerty (bridge humbucker) and Paul Weller (stickers) just to name a few, moved us away from the stock or early Rickenbacker tradition.

That's a good point and very true.

All I can say is those guys were professional musicians. They earned their living with their guitars. The mods they made were for professional reasons be it tone or look (Weller's WHAM! Ric). Me...I am a humble bedroom player. I do not require an onboard compressor or a flashy guitar for an appearance on Top Of The Pops. I am more than happy leaving the classic Ric design untouched.

I moded my three Rics (350v63, 330, and 1997) all with double checkerboard binding. As far as I'm concerned, that's the way they should have came from the factory in the first place!!

pauleway wrote:I modded my three Rics (350v63, 330, and 1997) all with double checkerboard binding. As far as I'm concerned, that's the way they should have came from the factory in the first place!!

Terrific upgrades for each of these models to be sure. I suspect it may slow down production time, add cost and not everyone is looking for binding but I confess that it is an outstanding feature of Rickenbacker. Fortunately there are luthiers that can do this for us after it leaves the Factory.

pauleway wrote:I moded my three Rics (350v63, 330, and 1997) all with double checkerboard binding. As far as I'm concerned, that's the way they should have came from the factory in the first place!!

This can be done after the guitar has left the factory?

I have always thought the unbound soundhole (and body) on a 330 was just wrong. I could live without the body binding, but I always thought my 330 would look better with white binding around the soundhole.

It's possible that could be done?

Tommy wrote:

pauleway wrote:I moded my three Rics (350v63, 330, and 1997) all with double checkerboard binding. As far as I'm concerned, that's the way they should have came from the factory in the first place!!

This can be done after the guitar has left the factory?

I have always thought the unbound soundhole (and body) on a 330 was just wrong. I could live without the body binding, but I always thought my 330 would look better with white binding around the soundhole.

It's possible that could be done?

Another gorgeous photo. Yes binding the sound hole can definitely be done.

It's pricey, but-yes it can be done.
Most luthiers want to strip the finish off the whole guitar, but my guy did a great job without having to do that.
I have a 355v63 w/f-hole (made for Japanese market) that I have and want to double bind it, unfortunately, my luthier retired and moved out of town and every other luthier that does Rics will only do it by stripping the finish off the entire guitar!

pauleway wrote:...every other luthier that does Rics will only do it by stripping the finish off the entire guitar!

Yeah, that's what I thought.

I watched a Ric video and it shows them applying the binding, scraping it down to make it flush to the bare wood. I kind of realized it would have to be done before a finish is put on the guitar.

I'm not going to have my guitar stripped just for some binding around the soundhole.