interesting, mine didn’t come with a drill bit. Go figure...
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New 2019 Rickenbacker Bridge
- Thread starter Maestro29
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- rickenbacker bridges
interesting, mine didn’t come with a drill bit. Go figure...
Is the new bridge smoother on the bottom so that it doesn't dig into the finish causing it to crack/peel?
On one of my Ricks that I returned for a factory refinish one of the things they did was to file down the corners on the bottom front of the bridge to try to keep it from causing the finish to crack. It didn't work, but I'm wondering if the new bridge was designed to counteract these sharp pressure points that affect the finish on the newer brittle paint Ricks.
Does anyone know or have a pic of the bottom of one of the new bridges?
On one of my Ricks that I returned for a factory refinish one of the things they did was to file down the corners on the bottom front of the bridge to try to keep it from causing the finish to crack. It didn't work, but I'm wondering if the new bridge was designed to counteract these sharp pressure points that affect the finish on the newer brittle paint Ricks.
Does anyone know or have a pic of the bottom of one of the new bridges?
That's interesting, a lot of people (including me) theorized that the rough bridge castings were what was causing paint to flake around the bridge. If Ric filed yours as part of a paint fix, that (finally) confirms what seemed obvious. Of course they STILL required people to ship basses one way to CA to fix THEIR bridge problem. Sigh...
I ended up shipping it back twice. Almost $300 in shipping costs counting the original shipping from Wildwood. I think I still have the warranty paperwork that came back with the bass; if I find it I should post it.
Rick also put two pieces of white masking tape on the bottom of the bridge on each side before installing it which looked terrible; I guess to help with the finish issue. When I inquired about it when I got the bass back, they acted as if it was a "gasket" and not just tape. It was just tape.
Rick ended up repainting the bass yet again due to a poor job refinishing it the first time (painting over the nut, the truss rods, poor prep, etc). When I got it back the last time, it didn't have the tape between the bridge and body but they had actually filed more off the corners of the bridge. The last time, Ben Hall supervised the refinish and the paint itself was finally done perfectly (except the truss rods were still painted over). I cut my losses after that and never bought another Rick, although I love them and have a bunch of them. But, until they fix the finish issue I will never consider another one-which is sad.
If this new bridge helps eliminate the finish shattering problem I will get one. On mine, where Rick filed the corners down, it looks bad and wrong. The edges of the bridge don't touch the body by quite a bit on the corners.
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One thing about the new bridge is that the string pull pressure itself is taken by the separate internal bridge, and the whole outer shell is laid over the top of that. Didn’t catch how smooth the edges of the underside is on the overlay, but the screws that hold that to the body are under the saddles, not the rear. I imagine that because there are no screws at the rear of the overlaid outer bridge, that there is not any significant pressure driving into the finish at that point, so cracking should be eliminated in theory.
Any new updates from folks here on Talkbass how this new bridge is working out?
I love it. Adjusting intonation was a breeze. No issues to report here, the saddles are rock solid, no clack or shifting with hard playing. The mute still needs to be hand shaped, stock, it has too much curvature, I wish they would get that down. I like this bridge much more than original, for reasons I’ve gone into before here.
Hunting around for a Rick to buy. Can't decide between an old one or the new one's with the new bridge. What was the problem with the old bridge exactly? Maybe I should buy a Musicman Stingray instead lol
Common complaints (from those who complain) have been difficulty with adjusting and setting the intonation. Over the years there have been complaints of “tail lift” with the strings pulling the bridge up a slight bit from the body. The new one supposedly fixes these issues.
I’ve got a 2015 4003 and no complaints about the older style bridge.
The old ones are a minor PITA to intonate, the screws are at the back of the saddle assembly, which is recessed too low to get at them easily with even a medium string height. I use a small right angle screwdriver, it's finicky, but not something you have to do often unless you swap string gauges all the time. You have to loosen one string at a time and adjust, re-tune, repeat. The bridges haven't had tail lift issues for a while, since they beefed up the castings, the new ones avoid the possibility by using a separate screw anchor. The "teeth" around the mute assembly make it impossible to palm mute over either the old or new V2 bridge. If you palm mute a lot, skip both old and new and get a Hipshot.
I think I'll pass. Rick's are overrated and overpriced. The only reason Lemmy played one was because his hero (Paul McCartney) used one. Everyone else ditched them eventually (Geddy, Phil Lynott).
- Apr 18, 2008
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- I'm highly opinionated and extremely self-assured
You do realize that a MM Stingray is as much or more than a Rickenbacker, right? And the Rick is capable of more tones than the single-pickup Stingray.
The above quote is from a Rickenbacker 4003 "for sale" thread. It is the post previous to this next one:
So why are you interested in buying a Ric if they are overrated and overpriced, so much so that you would pay for one over time?
Relax, the guy's a Rick-hater, nothing we can do about that. It's too late for him, son.
Maybe because between that post and the next one.. I did some research. Ever heard of research?
Because I still am interested in it of course but I do think it's overpriced for what it is. Everyone always says "Lemmy plays it!" Yeah he did. I worship Lemmy but he only played one because his idol, Paul McCartney, played one and if you look at his sig Rickenbacker.. the bridge is completely different from the piece of junk on the current models (tho they did recently upgrade the bridge) Still a lot of money for what you're getting with that bass which is probably the most iconic bass design next to Fender. What you're really paying for is the body design. Everyone else has had quality control issues too.
Truth is I set the bridge on my 4001 about fifteen years ago and haven't had to touch it since . I kept the same string gauge so there's been no need to adjust it . I have the older style rods , and they're incredibly stable , I don't have to do seasonal humidity adjustments on my Ric . Action is set to medium low , with a flat neck . The old bridge works fine . I remember it being a bit of a pain to adjust , but once set it's been fine . Recently picked up a set neck 4000 and had to slightly tweak the bridge . I'm hoping it too will be good for another fifteen years .
It COULD be a great mute though, that's what's frustrating. Maybe some spongier foam would be more forgiving.
Does anyone know if the new bridges are solid and made of good quality metal, or if it's still that weird pot metal like the old ones?
