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Building a Rickenbacker 4003. Help please!
- Thread starter Peterevid
- Start date
I can give you exact measurements on a Ric bass if you want them, but that would still leave you schlepping to the store to measure inside the case. Believe me, been down this road, and there is no shortcut.
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If you're willing, it prob'ly wouldn't hurt if you did, as other folks might want them too, and next time someone searches, we'd all be one step closer to that table for which I was wishing earlier, since we also now have dims for a Fender P linked upthread.
And it might motivate me to go get mine and measure it too, for comparison.
What model and year is your Ric ?
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Feel compelled to point out the person you are replying to hasn't been in the forum since September 2011.
I'm actually building my own 4001/4003 clone, but the dimensions match current 4003 specs exactly.
The Hossenfeffer Bass Build
There has been a good bit of variation by year as far as size and thickness of body horns and headstock, but current 4003 dimensions, give or take about 1/8", are as follows:
Bridge end of bass to farthest extent of headstock (not including strap pin) = 3'-8 13/16"
Widest point of width (edge of upper horn to bottom of body wing below controls = 1'-1 5/8"
Upper horn to outer tip of headstock = 2'-1 3/4"
Lower horn to tip of headstock = 2'-5 5/8"
Top of upper horn to bottom of lower horn = 12"
None of this will do you much good if the stores won't bother to tell you what the interior dimensions are, which is the central aggravation.
Here's a picture of my bass build inside the Roadrunner case. The bottom compartment where the body sits is 13.5" x 21". The total interior case length is 47-1/4". As you can see, it's not a perfect fit, and this is far from an Anvil flight case, but good enough for light gigging or storage. The strap across the neck keeps it from moving around, but I wouldn't want to drop it head-first. I plan on making a couple foam inserts covered with matching grey fabric eventually.
The Hossenfeffer Bass Build
There has been a good bit of variation by year as far as size and thickness of body horns and headstock, but current 4003 dimensions, give or take about 1/8", are as follows:
Bridge end of bass to farthest extent of headstock (not including strap pin) = 3'-8 13/16"
Widest point of width (edge of upper horn to bottom of body wing below controls = 1'-1 5/8"
Upper horn to outer tip of headstock = 2'-1 3/4"
Lower horn to tip of headstock = 2'-5 5/8"
Top of upper horn to bottom of lower horn = 12"
None of this will do you much good if the stores won't bother to tell you what the interior dimensions are, which is the central aggravation.
Here's a picture of my bass build inside the Roadrunner case. The bottom compartment where the body sits is 13.5" x 21". The total interior case length is 47-1/4". As you can see, it's not a perfect fit, and this is far from an Anvil flight case, but good enough for light gigging or storage. The strap across the neck keeps it from moving around, but I wouldn't want to drop it head-first. I plan on making a couple foam inserts covered with matching grey fabric eventually.
I suppose I should see if my project fits in my 4003 case. It never occurred to me to try
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VERY NICE WORK ! drool
I'll be reading the remaining 27 pages of your linked thread soon.
Is this the same bass which you began in that thread ?
Clearly, you are doing this for the love of making something yourself, though I admit that to BUY a new Ric these days costs whole lot more now than when MINE was new - 3 or 4 times as much.
Thanks for the measurements, and if yours is made to those same dimensions, and fits that case in the manner that the pic shows, I would suggest that the case was made to fit a typical Fender P (& J - see further below).
The dimensions for the P (in the thread which I linked) show it as 45 5/8" (about an inch taller than a 4003), again not counting strap button, and width of 13" (which is slightly less than the 4003), with an upper bout of 19 7/8", so a P ought to fit in your case.
It should fit a Jazz too - see where it is longer inside, near where your jacks are, prob'ly for the slanted body contour of the Jazz, and the other thread which I linked also suggests that a Jazz bass is in the same width ballpark as both a P and a 4003.
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Yeah, the same bass in the thread, been sitting in the case for months while I learned to paint with an HVLP gun with water based Varathane. Steep learning curve! I cant say how a P or J would fit, but it fit a Ric best out of the the 10-15 case models they had in stock. If you stumble on a better fit, let us know!
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My sense is that aftermarket cases cater mainly to Fender 34" scale basses, which typically (and fortunately) seem to stand a bit taller than a Ric (if Fenders stood less tall, we Ric users would be SOL except prob'ly from Ric themselves), and if anything else fits, it's a bonus.
I like the look of yours, which seems to be this case :
'RRMBG'
Invalid Link Removed
The GC site quotes internal and external measurements, has them in stock, but does not ship to Canada.
Reviewers there say that these fit Fender P & J basses well, and one person reports putting an Ibanez bass in it too.
Musicians Friend quotes the same dimensions but has no stock.
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/accessories/road-runner-rrmbg-abs-molded-bass-guitar-case-
The manufacturer seems to have discontinued this line of cases, and this is what they now list :
Bass Guitar Gig Bags and Cases - RoadRunner Cases
And there are some used RR cases looking like yours on eBay.
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Yeah, that's it, the RRMBG, decent case, though I would have preferred a hinged cover of some sort over the interior compartment. Time to learn some case fitting and fabric skills I guess! If you gig out a lot, this is probably too light duty, but I'm a bedroom bassist these days. My 79' Ric came with a very nice tolexed plywood case, but damn, that thing was HEAVY. If I was really hard core, I'd build a matched case. The carpentry is straightforward, the upholstery not so much.
Was gonna post that link to and noticed it wasn't good anymore?!
If you want the "good" Ric plans DONT get the ones from England (I forget who shiped those). The ones I got from de luthiers were spot on! The way I found them was to do google searches in different languages. Since the Ric trademark is only for the US I figured someone has got to have them in another country. De Luthiers was in Argentina.
If you want the "good" Ric plans DONT get the ones from England (I forget who shiped those). The ones I got from de luthiers were spot on! The way I found them was to do google searches in different languages. Since the Ric trademark is only for the US I figured someone has got to have them in another country. De Luthiers was in Argentina.
