Ric 4001 fretboard separating from neck

[steverok]

Hey All,

Almost 20 years ago, my bandmate gave me this early 80s Ric 4001 bass. It has been a fantastic bass, and I love it dearly. Much to my horror, when I took it out to record the other day, I noticed the fretboard is separating from the neck, to the point where I can slide a guitar pick nearly halfway into the opening. It also looks like it may be trying to separate on the other side, as there is a crack in the finish that runs along the seam that aligns with this point on the neck. I don't remember ever dropping it or causing any trauma to the instrument, although neither of us were the original owner, so I don't know where it's been. The strange thing is, the bass feels, sounds, and plays the same as it ever did. There doesn't seem to be any flex at the moment, in that I cannot push it together and close the opening. It still feels very solid. My bandmate and friend who gave it to me is no longer alive, so I definitely want to rescue it. It it salvageable ? If so, what should I do ?

Thank you all, Steve

[jps]

Is the separation just in that area of the neck or does it go all the way up to the nut?

[steverok]

Starts after the 2nd fret and goes until almost the 5th.

[jps]

I assume this has the old-style hairpin trussrods?

Can you do the work to make the repair, yourself? It is not hard to do; what you need to do is inject glue into the area and clamp the fingerboard down for a couple days. I'd start by completely loosing the truss rods and remove the strings, then let the guitar sit for a day or so to see how things flatten out first. You'll need a fresh bottle of wood glue, something like Titebond II (IIRC correctly I used the same to fix the fingerboard separation on my old 4005WB.

I'll get back you later, I have a contractor on his way for some work at the house.

[Dirk]

That seems like a classic issue, not impossible to repair, but do it the proper way.
Most times it happens over time when the truss rods perform their job too well.

It happened to my '69 4001, so my condolences.

The best way to repair it would be remove the fingerboard completely and reattach it.

Not a process for the unexperienced though, you need heat (like an iron) to melt the glue, and a good thin blade or putty knife.
Start slow and take your time, start at the end you can get the pick under. Then you need to clean up both surfaces. Then it's just glue and clamp well.

If this seems like too much, then I would take it to a capable luthier.

Good luck,
Dirk

[teeder]

If it doesn't go all the way to the nut, it isn't the "classic" separation that's caused by incorrectly adjusting the rods or a drop. IMO

Could be dried out wood?

[steverok]

Today, I am bringing it to a luthier who builds basses. He said he needed to look at it before determining whether the fretboard needed to be removed, cleaned, and re-fastened. Fingers crossed ...

[jps]

Today, I am bringing it to a luthier who builds basses. He said he needed to look at it before determining whether the fretboard needed to be removed, cleaned, and re-fastened. Fingers crossed ...

Let us know how it goes. And as teeder said, this is not the "classic" fingerboard separation; I had to take care of the latter on the 4005WB in '03, but not invasively, just by doing as I had decsribed, above. The hardest part of the job was removing the truss rods, which in itself, was pretty easy once I got my courage up (I had never done it, before).

[steverok]

He said, if he tried to close the opening with a clamp and glue, it wouldn't hold. The wood has already assumed this position, he said, and there is no going back. In his opinion, I shouldn't invest any money in it, and that, for him, it's a wall hanger. He did adjust the set-up, and it does play cleaner now. I only use it for recording, but very recently, some of the fret buzzing it had, prior to today's set-up adjustment, actually compromised a couple of my recordings, so I have to go back and clean those up. Hopefully the new set-up will resolve some of that. I only use two basses - a Jazz bass and this one - and I really rely on both of them for my music. Given that the frets are worn down, the bridge is old with no ability to intonate the strings back any further, plus this issue with the fretboard separation, I am starting to wonder how a new 4003 would benefit me. Would a new 4003 offer the same great tone as this early 80s 4001, and have there been any improvements in the hardware and set-up ability on new 4003s ? Would love to hear y'all's expert opinion.

[Dirk]

It's really a matter of old glue and decades of pressure of the rods pushing against the back of the fingerboard.
It's not always about poor rod adjustment causing the fingerboard detachment. Modern glues will be stronger than the wood itself.

It is a lot of work, and always the risk of damage. But to me it would be worth the effort, but I have done the procedure before.

Replacement bridges are readily available from several companies including Ric.

As far as a more modern Ric's go, you can get plenty close tone wise. And the modern bridges are much more adjustable.
A modern bass would have less of chance of failure, so that's worth considering.

Good luck in your decision.

[steverok]

I think I can get by with it for now, until the end of this project. Personally, in the long term, I would like to have the bass repaired and restored with new frets and new Ric hardware. However, I don't know anyone who could and would do that for me. I would be willing to ship it, if anyone has any recommendations. It is too good-sounding of a bass, and too important of an instrument for me, to hang it on a wall.

[JackTheRipper]

If it were mine, I'd contact Larry Davis (https://www.davisguitarworks.com/) for repair.

--jack

[jps]

If it were mine, I'd contact Larry Davis (https://www.davisguitarworks.com/) for repair.

--jack

Ditto.

[teeder]

If it were mine, I'd contact Larry Davis (https://www.davisguitarworks.com/) for repair.

--jack

Ditto.

Ditto, Ditto

[Colonel Sanders]

If it were mine, I'd contact Larry Davis (https://www.davisguitarworks.com/) for repair.

--jack

Ditto.

Ditto, Ditto

Ditto, Ditto, Ditto.

Larry knows how to work with Rickies. And he won’t ******** you on the delivery date.