Would like to know if anyone has seen one like this or any thoughts on the subject, thanks all, Mike
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Gibson Ripper Question
- Thread starter Mtnride
- Start date
Would like to know if anyone has seen one like this or any thoughts on the subject, thanks all, Mike
With Gibson, one should be careful about saying “never,” but I have personally never seen a Ripper with anything other than a black headstock face, and I have seen a bunch of them (and own a few, too). I seriously doubt that they ever made one.
Here is a great source of information about all things Ripper [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
Here is a great source of information about all things Ripper [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
Thanks for the reply S_wood, the thing is everything but the non black face says Ripper. I'll take some pics of all the hardware and post, should I just do the thumbnails and not the full size pics? Thanks again
Upon further review of your pics, I am pretty sure. that the “Gibson” logo on the headstock is not original, but rather a crude reproduction. My guess is that the original black headstock and logo (which was done in gold paint) disappeared during one of the refins. Everything else looks legit, though.
So since I want to restore it back to as close to original as possible, do you have a suggestion as to the best approach to replace Gibson logo. Maybe Gibson has a sticker, Hand paint Logo? Thanks again, I’ll still post a couple of pi’s of hardware that come off and the new bridge that arrived today
I have no clue about how to best do that. I would suggest posting that question in the “Hardware, Setup & Repair” forum. You can’t be the first person with this problem! Good luck!
It all looks legit. You have the older version of the pickups and a cool dark tort pickguard! Most Ripper pickguards were black, especially from ‘75 on, but some of the early ones were dark tort - often so dark that they look black until you take them off the bass.
It’s hard to date early Rippers because Gibson used the same serial number range from 1972-1975. Ripper production began in late ‘73. If you want to more precisely date the bass, use this handy pot code dater. I’m guessing yours will be from late ‘74 or early ‘75 because the pickups and tort guard are earlier features, while the alder body and thinner treble side bout are later ones.
It’s hard to date early Rippers because Gibson used the same serial number range from 1972-1975. Ripper production began in late ‘73. If you want to more precisely date the bass, use this handy pot code dater. I’m guessing yours will be from late ‘74 or early ‘75 because the pickups and tort guard are earlier features, while the alder body and thinner treble side bout are later ones.
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s_wood, it looks like in my case never does mean never. I've been having a discussion with Gibson for the last few days and they confirm that what I have is a 74-75 Ripper and that none were built with natural headstock. Sissy Kathy turned me on to a link for new logo and is on order. I'm going to make this one beautiful again. Will post pics when it's done. Thanks again for the help.
Excellent! Rippers from that era are really under-rated basses, IMHO. You’ve got a cool bass.
By the way, I see that I forgot to include the link to the potentiometer tater if you want to narrow down the production day. Here it is: Vintage Guitars Info - dating vintage guitars, amps by date source code
By the way, I see that I forgot to include the link to the potentiometer tater if you want to narrow down the production day. Here it is: Vintage Guitars Info - dating vintage guitars, amps by date source code
