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FS/FT Rickenbacker 4003 Jetglo '04 bass with Ric case. SOLD
£1100

warwickhunt

By warwickhunt,
in Basses For Sale

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warwickhunt Grand Master

warwickhunt

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Manufacturer: Rickenbacker
Model: 4003
Year/serial number: 2004 / 04 40824
Country of origin: USA
Body: Maple
Neck: Maple
Fingerboard: Rosewood
Pick-ups: Ric x2
Preamp: N/A
Hardware: Ric
Finish: Black
Case/Gigbag: Original Ric Hardcase
Extras: N/A
Weight: 9lb 10oz
Positives: It's a Ric!
Negatives: It's a Ric!
Price: [s]£1100[/s] £1000

[url="http://s54.photobucket.com/user/warwickhunt/media/RickyApril20131_zps153ec0a3.jpg.html"][/url]

[url="http://s54.photobucket.com/user/warwickhunt/media/RickyApril20132_zps627baa4d.jpg.html"][/url]

Background

A friend asked to trade his Ric for a pair of my basses (I am aware that Rics have a loyal following and my basses weren't likely to sell in a hurry so ‘in principle’ I agreed); the trade was completed on the understanding that I could find a buyer for the Ric first. I initially advertised this on Basschat and a BCer agreed to buy the Ric then subsequently had a change of heart after I had done my side of the deal with my basses; this leaves me with this Ric to sell.

[url="http://s54.photobucket.com/user/warwickhunt/media/RickyApril201313_zps80795a69.jpg.html"][/url]

[url="http://s54.photobucket.com/user/warwickhunt/media/RickyApril20136_zpsac58683f.jpg.html"][/url]

The bass is a genuine Rickenbacker as is the case. There are no known faults with the bass (that isn't Estate Agent speak for ‘there is a fault but I'm just going to deny it later’), however, if you are after a gleaming 'new' bass then this is unlikely to be the one for you. The bass has been gigged extensively by my mate for approx 9 years (he thought it was 5-6 but serial number puts it in the 40th week of 2004) and as such it has wear. I'll go into detail about anything that I have seen with the bass and I'll probably paint a none too glowing picture but I will try and be as honest and thorough as I was when I described the bass to the previous prospective buyer.



The frets have loads of life left in them, though they may need a bit of a polish/clean up due to a little discolouration. The fingerboard lacquer is undamaged and crack free.



Tuners are all Ric stamped, all work with no bent shafts or stiff operation. Whilst on the subject of hardware; some of the legend/lettering on the output plate has rubbed off over the years, some is still visible though (as is the serial number). The front pup adjuster screws are a bit corroded but I've adjusted the pup (after setting the action) quite easily so they patently work fine, just look rusty. Also, there is discolouration and the finish is missing off the polepieces of the neck pup, the pup works fine and the pic makes it look worse than it is.



All electrics are working as they should with no crackly or scratchy pots and the selector works no problem.

I've already tweaked the truss rods to ensure they are OK. On tweaking the truss rods (both tensioned up equally to get the neck with a bit of relief) and getting the action back to my kind of levels I also noted that I had to take the bridge adjusters right down but it isn't a problem as the dampers still adjust down further so the strings ring clear (needs new strings IMHO as these seem to be very cheap/dead).

There is a single 1mm ding in the rear that goes through the paint but it is very small and not really visible from a couple of feet away. A small scuff on the front of the headstock (check the pics) defo not through the paint or really even visible unless tilting in the light. There are 2 pin head sized dinks on the very tip of the headstock but I'd be amazed if the new owner didn't add to them the first time they were in the vicinity of a drummer's cymbals. What I thought was a 2mm ding on the very back edge of the lower bout of the body actually turned out to be wear from where the lead must have been passed through his strap (does that make sense), it is very slight but smooth and not an impact ding.

[url="http://s54.photobucket.com/user/warwickhunt/media/RickyApril201312_zps8198f2b8.jpg.html"][/url]

Whilst on the subject of wear to the paint, I have to confess I thought the paint on Rics would be mega thick but the paint is almost nitro-cellulose thin (I’ve had conflicting opinions off two BCers as to how thick Ric paint is), tilted in the light, the entire bass reveals the wood patternation beneath the paint. One Bcer on seeing the pics thought that the bass was hand-painted; I can assure you that it is NOT! However, the finish remains an enigma and I'm going to suggest that we 'assume' that the bass has been refinished in what appears to be cellulose.

[url="http://s54.photobucket.com/user/warwickhunt/media/RickyApril201311_zps6f2a2382.jpg.html"][/url]

When the bass arrived to me it had some of the binding lifting, I have had this professionally reapplied but as with anything that is done after leaving the factory it means that the bass isn't mint (see the pics as I am making this sound worse than it is). TBH if the bass was mint I'd hope to get a good few hundred more but as it stands (a gigging bass), I think it can't be far off what it is worth.

Trade offers would need to be something that I would want to keep, so unfortunately no heavy basses and ideally a vintage Warwick (Streamer would be perfect).

Edited by warwickhunt
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  • 3 weeks later...
warwickhunt Grand Master

warwickhunt

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[quote name='spacey' timestamp='1367167148' post='2062018']
Do you know what colour it was before it was re-painted ?
[/quote]

TBH I've said that it is refinished to cover my self but a local guitar builder has seen the bass and he is stumped because there aren't any of the usual signs that it is a refinish, just that the paint appears to be following the wood grain as opposed to the usual thick gloss black that I've seen (and he has seen) on other Rics; he knows that it isn't but voiced the opinion that it looks all the world like a factory 'thin' finish. Not sure how I could establish what colour it was (indeed 'if') without scratching away at the paint and even then there is no guarantee that it wouldn't be natural! BTW the finish isn't rippled or anything, it is smooth and any 'graining' that you see is beneath the top finish.

I will stress that at more than 12-18" away and unless tilted in the light, it looks like the original finish. In fact I had the bass in my house and hadn't even noticed anything until I took hi-res pics with the camera; the flash brought out this anomaly.

Sorry if this isn't helping but I'm trying to be honest and if I declare it as I have, then someone can still pick up a Ric for not a lot of money (for a Ric) and then just live with it and get playing it. ;)

As a teaser I'll throw in a Warwick double gig bag for free (obviously you still get the pukka Ric case) if someone buys this bass before I sell the gigbag locally. :D

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spacey Enthusiast

spacey

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The loose binding is the usual sign of a refinish as they use a hand blade to finish the binding before the last single coat of lacquer which goes over the binding , when you remove the standard finish the binding stands proud a bit, so unless you are a real expert you can not get the binding height right .
It could have been jetglow, but I would go with a refinish to be safe, which the price reflects.

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warwickhunt Grand Master

warwickhunt

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Interesting.

If I thought that the bass needed a refinish, I'd suggest it but TBH the bass will polish/buff up nicely, it's a bit flat/lacklustre where the original owner rested his thumb over the neck pup position and upper horn but otherwise is in good nick.

I should mention that the biggest conundrum is that the bass has only had one previous owner and he is a friend and assures me that he hasn't refinished the bass and that the bass was a deeper/flatter/glossier black when he got it but the finish has settled like this over the years.

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martthebass Grand Master

martthebass

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It doesn't look refinned to me John, just paint settling - my recently departed US made Jazz was pretty much like this. I'm not an expert on Ricks, but both that I've had, had non conventional finishes. I don't know if it's part of what makes up the UV cured paint on the newer ones but on dark finishes they sempt to have a haze to the gloss - subtle but definitely present.

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warwickhunt Grand Master

warwickhunt

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[quote name='martthebass' timestamp='1367175260' post='2062208']
It doesn't look refinned to me John, just paint settling - my recently departed US made Jazz was pretty much like this. I'm not an expert on Ricks, but both that I've had, had non conventional finishes. I don't know if it's part of what makes up the UV cured paint on the newer ones but on dark finishes they sempt to have a haze to the gloss - subtle but definitely present.
[/quote]

That's the odd thing, I've had conflicting messages from folks re. the finish on Rics including a local Ric owner who has an similar aged bass that has identical finishing (including some of his binding coming away :D ) and he has had his from new also. :huh:

I just want to be safe/honest and if someone strips the bass and finds that it was maple/fireglo or whatever, then I haven't lead them up the garden path. :D

Still cheap enough I think that someone will either get a gigging Ric just as it is or it'll be cheap enough to have it refinished.

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warwickhunt Grand Master

warwickhunt

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[quote name='Stag' timestamp='1367527799' post='2066614']
Wish I was closer! Doh... someone should pick this up... nearly half the price of a new one, and without the potential wait!
[/quote]

Cheers. If there is no further interest in this bass then I'm going to put it into a local music shop (who will add their bit on top). :)

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Norris Mentor

Norris

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[quote name='warwickhunt' timestamp='1367679348' post='2068327']


Cheers. If there is no further interest in this bass then I'm going to put it into a local music shop (who will add their bit on top). :)
[/quote]

Steady on :) Read your PM :)

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