Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

I just noticed that my 4003 has many small cracks in the finish. You have to look close but they are there.
I have never taken this bass out of my house and it has always been cased.
Has Rickenbacker had a laquer problem in the past?
I will try to get a photo posted.

Rickenbacker does not use lacquer. All Ricks from the late 50's on are finished in a conversion varnish. Small cracks can occur if the temperature changes abruptly. It is probably a coefficient of expansion thing, I don't know for sure. The shipping boxes used by Rickenbacker are labled to warn against temerpature changes. They say that temps should not go below 55F during shipping and that the instument should stay in the box for 48 hours after arrival to ensure against finish damage. While you may have been careful, the selling dealer, UPS, FEDEX, USPS, or the Pony Express may not have been so careful. Some of my basses show very tiny finish cracks here and there but they are not a problem.

It's not a problem either, You really have to look to see them, i just can't believe i didn't notice before. I guess this does effect the value though. (not that i'm going to get rid of it)

I have small cracks in the finish near the fret ends on my Shadow. I don't think anyone will ever care about them though.

Yes the value has been affected! It now has MOJO and your bass has doubled in value.

Here are some photos of the "cracks"

Heres another

Stretch marks? Maybe your bass has lost weight!

Last one, I think you get the point

those stretch marks wouldn't bother me but the red lines would

When the cracks are more or less across the wood grain like these, you can be assured this bass was exposed to some large temperature extremes with rapid changes, i.e. from a hot car trunk into an air conditioned area, or frozen into a warm area (the most likely).

When the cracks run along with the wood grain, it's usually from vast changes in humidity. This is much more rare.

Had this been a lacquer finish of some type, it certainly also would been damaged by either of these extremes but it would be "checked", lines going in both direction in a more irregular pattern.

"I have never taken this bass out of my house and it has always been cased.
"
That's sad.

They are almost invisible, you can only see them if you look at certain angles, then they jump out at you. Rickenbacker only gives a one year warranty on the "finish" from the date of manufacture and not the date of the sale, so i'm SOL on getting it refinished by them.
I did call them and asked if they would do it if i paid them, they told me NO, they only do warranty refinishing and suggested that i find a luither.

Do the cracks make it sound any different?

If I were you Mike, I would put it on Ebay really cheap like with a BIN of $50.00 or something like that, dump it quick before it falls completely to pieces (and don't forget to let me know when the auction starts)
My 81 4003 has the lines that go with the wood grain, many many of them, it is VERY humid here in Lima in the winter, I don't know if they were there when it arrived here several months ago, I don't think so, they are very fine lines. I don't have any red lines like that on it though, thank god.