prowla

I'd rather have your Gus!

I've had a go on @Happy Jack's 5-er and it did one thing the same as the one I had: the normal 4 strings were clang,clang,clang,clang, and the B was "thud". Not sure if it needed a new set of strings. Otherwise, it was like a Ric with an extra string bolted on and a wider neck for it. Who knows - I might pick up another at some point; there was one going on FB for £1200 for a while and I was almost tempted.

Just the headpiece itself (ref. OP)!

I think this could be bad for me... ...or at least my wallet. 🙂

I didn't bond with the one I had and I found I was gravitating towards my Warwicks for 5-strings.

It just doesn't look quite "right" to me.

Nice conversion... ...(not)

My middle name varies, depending upon the topic of conversation! 🙂

That upper strap button is at a rather jaunty angle!

So, it looks like the "No Rics" notice has disappeared from the for sale stickies (or did I imagine it being there?); however, it is still there in the rules.

Your choice which Fender you choose to compare which Ric to; in the end Ric sell every one they make, so plenty of folks have made their choice. Meanwhile I occasionally use my thumb.

………………..

You can pick up a Ric for around the £1k mark if you keep your eyes open.

Well, we all know there isn't a budget sub-brand, so that's not particularly relevant. Looking at Andertons prices, they have USA Fenders at around £2,000 and Rics at around £2,200, so it is not a completely different ball-park for someone who has that sort of budget.

The price thing is a bit of a myth, if you compare to US Gibson & Fender.

Hmmm - they do look rather nice.

I find I play more precisely with a plec and more random noodley …unless I’m noodling with the plec and playing a song fingers.

I think you need some new glasses! 🙂

And then there's Michael Manring, who puts them on every string, but he doesn't seem to have the chops to use a 5-string. 🙂

I wasn't confused, as I clarified I was showing 4-strings, but would you like me to remove my post?

Looks like one of them has resurfaced on FB Marketplace for £1200. https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/295601332540682 (Looking at other items, the seller does seem to be inclined towards "optimistic" pricing.)

Here y'go (on 4-strings)... They're handy if you need 2 more frets down. The way they work is that they slightly rotate the tuner to go down a tone; the little thumbwheel fine tunes the lowered note. I've bought several from BTN Music (https://www.btnmusic.co.uk/), though they are small and their stock is dictated by Hipshot's random production runs.

Some time ago I picked up a 6/4 doubleneck for not a lot of money. Both its bass and guitar "Overlord of Music" bridges were pooped and the original owner had given up on it and just wanted rid. I've got the instrument to a working state: I managed to repair the guitar trem bridge, but I've had to lock it in position as the trem just plain doesn't work. The bass bridge was a bit grim, with some of the string-pull claws failing; the tuning bolts were actually stock M4 bolts with a knurled end slotted over them and they were way stronger than the soft metal string pull claws and just graunched their threads. I bought a replacement unit, but it arrived faulty too (the claws snagged against the upper cover and so it wouldn't tune); I got a partial refund and managed to make one working one out of the two. But the thing is that both bridges cannot in any way be considered reliable. The shame is that the rest of the instrument is quite nice and very playable (maybe bar the nut-end string clamps which leave sharp ends pointing out, ouch!). I also fitted a pair of copy Ric pickups, which were exact replacements for the fake-branded EMGs it had. So, my question is, are there any decent quality headless tuners available at a decent price; the Hipshot ones are too much and Steinbergers seem to be a rarity? The guitar: The bass bridge:

One of my fakers... 🙂