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Rickenbacker no longer lacquering fretboards

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  • Loobs said:
    Offset said:
    Loobs said:
    I would friggin' love a 12-string ricky 360! Someday! 
    I wanted one too, but I got one of these instead and never looked back.  You can jangle all day long.  They've gone up £300 in price since I bought mine 5 years ago mind...




    Funny you should mention that because I watched Eric Haugen's excellent video on it last night (Guitar as Textural Device) and realised I should probably buy one of these instead! 
    I have a 360/12 after going through one of the Dano's and an AR Fender XII.
    No regrets. They're expensive, but for me they're at the summit of 12-strings.
    That said, I've always found 6 string Ric's more of an aesthetic pleasure than a playable one. I had a 420 that, whilst beautiful, really didn't do anything that another guitar couldn't do better.
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  • PabcranePabcrane Frets: 489
    I've not been troubled by the lacquer, I don't think it would make much difference to me either way 

    This must be a pretty new decision, I got a new guitar last year which is lacquered. I imagine some people will like that the fingerboard gets darker without the lacquer.
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  • ICBMICBM Frets: 71963
    JezWynd said:

    D'ya think a decent Ric fretless bass is finally an option?
    No… but not because of the fingerboard, it’s that the whole design of the bass doesn’t suit it for some reason. I’ve played one and it was awful, just bizarrely wrong.

    "Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski

    "Just because I don't care, doesn't mean I don't understand." - Homer Simpson

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  • mikem8634mikem8634 Frets: 380
    Be interesting to see how the used market deals with it. Will the lacquered boards become a vintage correct premium or an out of date impediment that brings prices down?
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  • JayGeeJayGee Frets: 1254
    Loobs said:
    Offset said:
    Loobs said:
    I would friggin' love a 12-string ricky 360! Someday! 
    I wanted one too, but I got one of these instead and never looked back.  You can jangle all day long.  They've gone up £300 in price since I bought mine 5 years ago mind...




    Funny you should mention that because I watched Eric Haugen's excellent video on it last night (Guitar as Textural Device) and realised I should probably buy one of these instead! 
    I have a 360/12 after going through one of the Dano's and an AR Fender XII.
    No regrets. They're expensive, but for me they're at the summit of 12-strings.
    That said, I've always found 6 string Ric's more of an aesthetic pleasure than a playable one. I had a 420 that, whilst beautiful, really didn't do anything that another guitar couldn't do better.
    The Dano (like all Danos) is A Thing in its own right with its own quirks, idiosyncrasies, foibles[1], and it’s own voice. Something to enjoy for what it is rather than stressing over what it’s not.

    [1] Starting with the concentric tone/volume controls on mine, which drive me crazy but not quite crazy enough to change them out for a straight master tone and master volume setup…
    Don't ask me, I just play the damned thing...
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  • chrisj1602chrisj1602 Frets: 3897
    mikem8634 said:
    Be interesting to see how the used market deals with it. Will the lacquered boards become a vintage correct premium or an out of date impediment that brings prices down?
    For jokers like the Guitar Dept it will no doubt be *RARE* and add a few hundred on.
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  • Musicman20Musicman20 Frets: 2296
    Probably saves money as well.....
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  • DrumBobDrumBob Frets: 198
    edited October 2021
    As a Rickenbacker fan, I welcome the change to an unlacquered fretboard, and was frankly surprised when the company took that radical step, as John Hall, the president of the company, is hesitant to make changes to guitars that have been made the same basic way since the 60's. He and I have had discussions about this before. He's a conservative man by nature. His argument is, why change something that works? He knows Rickenbackers have quirks, like glossy fretboards, narrow necks, six string saddles on twelve strings, inaccurate intonation, etc., but he cites all the great records that have been made by quirky Ricks over the years.

    Truth is, if you like Rickenbacker guitars, you have to adjust to the quirky features. Either that, or you just don't and move on. I have been able to, because I love the way they look and sound and they were everywhere in the 60's when I was a kid and besotted by rock 'n roll, both British and American.   

    John Hall is at retirement age now, and his son has taken a more active role in business decisions at Rickenbacker, so perhaps his influence is starting to be felt in terms of changes to the guitars. If I had my way, I'd add twelve saddle bridges to the twelve strings and widen the necks on all of them, not just the 660-12.  
    USA Guitarist/Drummer, semi-pro working musician, music journalist, author, radio DJ. 
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  • JezWyndJezWynd Frets: 6021
    ICBM said:
    JezWynd said:

    D'ya think a decent Ric fretless bass is finally an option?
    No… but not because of the fingerboard, it’s that the whole design of the bass doesn’t suit it for some reason. I’ve played one and it was awful, just bizarrely wrong.
    Yes, I had one very briefly and it didn't feel right at all but I wonder if a natural rosewood or ebony fretboard might improve it. The percussive effect of the strings against the lacquer definitely felt and sounded odd.

    chrisj1602 said:
    For jokers like the Guitar Dept it will no doubt be ♣︎♥︎♢♠︎RARE♣︎♥︎♢♠︎ and add a few hundred on.

    ftfy.
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  • I'm quite surprised by this to be honest.

    I really like my non lacquered one but I can't say I've played a lot with lacquer to say how much difference it makes. 

    Genuinely a bit surprised they're changing such a fundamental detail though. 
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  • PhilKingPhilKing Frets: 1473
    ICBM said:
    JezWynd said:

    D'ya think a decent Ric fretless bass is finally an option?
    No… but not because of the fingerboard, it’s that the whole design of the bass doesn’t suit it for some reason. I’ve played one and it was awful, just bizarrely wrong.
    I had my 1972 4001 fretless for a while but ended up having it refretted with regular bass frets.  I actually didn't mind it fretless, but I needed it with frets for some stuff I was doing in a band at the time.  I've since had @WezV make me an excellent fretless that is great to play.  The Ric fingerboard was stripped of lacquer at the time it was fretless and I left it like that.  It didn't really bother me either way.
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  • I've owned 4 Rics and have had quibbles with 3 of them, but not once has it been about the lacquer on the fingerboard. It's a total non-event. As mentioned elsewhere on here, it just feels like any fender lacquered maple board. 
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  • Can someone explain: Every time I envisage a Ric, I see it with a Rosewood Board? Does Lacquering only apply to Maple? The Ric Boards look darker.

    For Clarity, when Lacquer is mentioned I see a Shiny, Fender Type Maple Board.
    Only a Fool Would Say That.
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  • WezVWezV Frets: 16547
    Can someone explain: Every time I envisage a Ric, I see it with a Rosewood Board? Does Lacquering only apply to Maple? The Ric Boards look darker.

    For Clarity, when Lacquer is mentioned I see a Shiny, Fender Type Maple Board.
    They use bubinga, which is a mahogany looking wood, but very hard.
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  • WezV said:
    Can someone explain: Every time I envisage a Ric, I see it with a Rosewood Board? Does Lacquering only apply to Maple? The Ric Boards look darker.

    For Clarity, when Lacquer is mentioned I see a Shiny, Fender Type Maple Board.
    They use bubinga, which is a mahogany looking wood, but very hard.
    Thanks, I realised it wasn't quite as dark as Rosewood, but looked "Brown"  =)

    It doesn't look like a wood that Lacquers, but I'm no expert.
    Only a Fool Would Say That.
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