Is this Rick 4003S Real?

[H K]

I disagree re. the routing; it goes closer to the neck on the older ones.

I'll have to defer to you on that one, as I know you know just slightly more about ricks than I do

 

[WillyW]

It looks like a bass I would be proud to own.

 

[Geddyfleaharris]

And it turned out nice again! Silly tag line from a local furniture TV commercial back in the '90s. Seems appropriate here.

 

[Geddyfleaharris]

No. The push pull thing was a pretty new feature, like installed in the last 10 years.
My 1993 doesnt have it and neither should anything about 10 years and older.

I am 97.5% sure my 2007 Jetglo 4003 has the push/pull. But because it is not sitting on my desk in front of me I have a few % of doubt.

 

[prowla]

I am 97.5% sure my 2007 Jetglo 4003 has the push/pull. But because it is not sitting on my desk in front of me I have a few % of doubt.

I've got one on my '78...
...but I did put it there myself.
My two 2010 ones have them.
My collection is missing a 90s and a 00s Ric, so I can't comment on those.

 

[bcbassman]

The metal parts on this bass are very corroded but they could be from the 90's. If the bass was a real '67 4001S it would have had a horse-shoe pickup in the bridge position. This one has a more modern version with the plastic cover (which is missing). The 4001S was for export sales and it did not have: stereo wiring (Rick-O -Sound), no Body binding, which would be checkered in 67, and dots on the fingerboard. That looks like a refinished bass so I hope that you have fun playing it.

 

[H K]

I am 97.5% sure my 2007 Jetglo 4003 has the push/pull. But because it is not sitting on my desk in front of me I have a few % of doubt.

Push Pull became standard in 2006
And I'll confirm that your 2007 (probably) has it, I've got my 07' here right now and just checked

 

[bobyoung53]

On closer inspection, the second character, the one after the G, could be an "8."

It looks like an 8 to me too.

 

[prowla]

The metal parts on this bass are very corroded but they could be from the 90's. If the bass was a real '67 4001S it would have had a horse-shoe pickup in the bridge position. This one has a more modern version with the plastic cover (which is missing). The 4001S was for export sales and it did not have: stereo wiring (Rick-O -Sound), no Body binding, which would be checkered in 67, and dots on the fingerboard. That looks like a refinished bass so I hope that you have fun playing it.

I think the 4001S was available in the US too (the "S" was for special order, as opposed to the "Deluxe" model which is the one with the binding) ; it's just there's a certain caché associated with the Rose-Morris "RM" designations.
My 4001S pre-dates the RM deal and I think the person I bought it from (in the 70s) said they'd got it from the US.

 

[H K]

I think the 4001S was available in the US too (the "S" was for special order, as opposed to the "Deluxe" model which is the one with the binding) ; it's just there's a certain caché associated with the Rose-Morris "RM" designations.
My 4001S pre-dates the RM deal and I think the person I bought it from (in the 70s) said they'd got it from the US.

Oooooh, knowledge-time!

What's the Rose-Morris deal, Mr. Prowla?

 

[prowla]

Oooooh, knowledge-time!

What's the Rose-Morris deal, Mr. Prowla?

Rose Morris are the importer of Rics to the UK; they started the deal in 1964 and gave their consignments a designation comprising "RM" and 4 digits.
The 4001S were assigned "RM1999" and the first people to buy them in March '64 included John Entwistle, Peter Quaife, and Chris Squire (who worked in the shop at the time and got it with his employee discount)).
Especially due to Squire's amazing sound, the "RM1999" became something of a legend.
Actually, the "S" is a budget (haha!) version of the Deluxe and doesn't have binding on body & neck, only has a single mono output, and has dots instead of triangle position markers.
Paul McCartney's left-handed 4001S was given to him by Rickenbacker in the US later that year and was not an "RM" one.

 

[Paul Boyer]

Actually, the "S" is a budget (haha!) version of the Deluxe and doesn't have binding on body & neck, only has a single mono output, and has dots instead of triangle position markers.

The "4001S" or "RM1999" is really more like a twin pickup version of the one-pickup 4000. Indeed, the factory used to call it a "4000+1" which stood for a 4000 plus one pickup (and controls, of course). They all have the same chassis, with the unbound body and neck, and dot position markers. Rickenbacker never seemed to list or illustrate the "4001S" in its literature - lists or catalogs - until the early 1980s. Much more in the book.

 

[prowla]

The "4001S" or "RM1999" is really more like a twin pickup version of the one-pickup 4000. Indeed, the factory used to call it a "4000+1" which stood for a 4000 plus one pickup (and controls, of course). They all have the same chassis, with the unbound body and neck, and dot position markers. Rickenbacker never seemed to list or illustrate the "4001S" in its literature - lists or catalogs - until the early 1980s. Much more in the book.

Maybe that's why it was "special"!